The New York herald., 1921-10-23
After Prison the Uphill Road

THE PEOPLE AGAINST NANCY
PRESTON. BY John Moroso. Henry
Holt & Co.
NF its kinc this hook is an
achievement. 1t is the story of
the struggle that a man and
woman had - stay honest after they
were once known to the police, and 1t
is handled with a delicacy and pre-
cision that does credit to it's author.
Unlike other books of it's type, there
is no hint of propaganda about it nor
any sentimentalizing about prison re-
form. 1t is direct and honest ap-
peal for little more Christian charity
In our dealings with those whose mis-
takes happen to have been brought
into law court.
Nancy was a girl whose unfortunate
environment had made the street an
easy place to look for a living. She
was known to the police as a member
OF well defined profession, and when
she gave 1t up to become Bill Preston's
wife they still had it against her. Bill
had been burglar, but after he mar
ried Nancy he was as determined as
she was to go straight. For seven
years they lived in a poor little home
In the Bronx. fighting hard against
poverty and for the sake of their son
determined to be respectable" Nancy
wanted that more than anything else.
wanted it desperately. and thousands
of people who take responsibility as
a matter of course may even wonder
that it meant so much to her. When
we find her, Bill has been killed in a
mysterious encounter with cop" and
events come thick and fast that
destroy her patiently built foundation
and connect her again with crime
and this time, murder.
Despite the pathos and the appeal
ing qualities in Nancy's character,
Michael Horgan is really the central
figure in the book. He has been a
mystery to the police. They know
that his name Is an alias, and his
manner and intelligence make them
sure that he originally held a rather
exalted position in society. He had
served term in Sing Sing for burg
larry. and later. although innocent. a
second term. Through the horror and
misery of those years, despite his
background Of culture-or perhaps.
because of it-he kept his clear, rea-
soning outlook on life. his kindly at
titude toward his fellowmen and his
strong sense of Justice. Nor were
those years altogether wasted: he
worked in the prison hospital and in
creased his knowledge of medicine and
In his spare time wrote a book on the
faults. not OF the law but of it's adj
ministration. He loved Nancy for her
brave fight and yet Fate had decreed
that he should bring further unhappi-
ness upon her. He is so human in
his mistakes and vet so fine in his
principles that he can take his stand
with any of the heroes of modern
fiction.
The author has written another
book on similar subject, called "The
City of Silent Men" He is vitality
interested in the treatment of Grim
inals. But he does not permit his
theme to run away with him. He does
not paint all officers of the law, dead
black nor all criminals as potential
saints. His portrait of the kindly
Judge is not only a good piece of
Characterization but welcome relief
TO the cruel mechanics of the law,
and he is generous even to the point
of permitting a private detective to
do q gdbd deed contrary to his own
interests. The style Is tense and clear.
crowded with action and not without
humor. There is an uncanny reality
about 1t all. even the happy ending.
There Is no doubt about it that the
attitude OF the People-of you and me.
OF all those who contribute to that
elusive thing Salled Public Opinion