The Washington times., 1922-06-25

We can imagine nothing more
soothing than to loll under vine
or fig tree and read this ro-
nance Of chugging motorboats,
mad pursuits up and down Long
Island Sound, sufficient mys-
terry 10 battle ones holiday wits,
and the cutest little love story
Of the season.
We have had just enough ex.
perience with motor boats to know
that the author writes of gasoline
GRAFT a. one who knows and loves
them. Also we have sufficient i'm
agitation to be entranced with her
pictures Of moonlight. the good
ship ''Sorceress'' bucling a head
ssa. the comfortable upholstered
seat In the cockpit, the throbbing
engine. and the charming heroine
snuggied up against the skipper.
ANOTHER book we recommend
10 'HThe Million Dollar SUIT.
case.- by Alice MACEDONIAN and Per
~ Newberry. This is a genuine
sut-and-out detective story. in
which bank teller and a million
dollars disappear at the same time.
and the clues develop SO rapidly
that one n kept In an agony Of sus.
pensA.
Then there b the charming girl
with q penchant for figures. who
helps straighten out the tangled
skeins and incidentally furnishes
the sentimental stimulus so neces-
sary 10 this type Of yarn. It 10 all
smoothly written and the authors
use much ingenuity in keeping the
solution Of the mystery from the
reader until such time as is- tit
ting and proper.
WE rather liked Marigold, Of
Samuel Merwin's "Goldy
Green" BobbsMerrilD, while that
I snappy young person was occupied
selling tickets ut a movie theater
in sunbury, III. The Goldy Of this
period was q human little person,
nineteen, sharp of tongue, gum
chewing. nose-powdering reliant.
scantily-clad. with eyebrows fash
toned on straight lines, hair puffed
over ears, adept at give and take
with the wise guys who patronized
her theater. In short, the perfect
flapper, who are many In the
land. = .r
But the Goldie who graduated
from the ticket booth to enter the
Insurance business, eventually to
become manager Of chain of
theaters. 10 much less true to the
ME. and therefore Of much less
interest. She Is entirely too sue
cessful in overcoming obstacles;
she IL really too good to be true.
And we had q distinct feeling Of
annoyance about her marriage.
The Goldie we knew and liked In
the tclet-booth days, We feel.
would never have married az the
later 0oidis did. No amount of
explanations by the author can
convince us that her selection was
IN the last degree plausible, and We
nut aside the book with the feel
ing OF another promising story
gone wrong.
TOR those who are given to the
uplift, and rejoice In heroines
OF the Poliyanna type, nothing can
be more suitable than "Jane Jour
neys On" by Ruth Comfort
Mitchell. An It's contents have
been passed by the censor and
there IL nothing In II to flutter
the most Victorian old lady or the
most immature reader.
uARRIET T. coMsTocK's "At
the Crossroads" Doubleday,
Pare q Coz is pleasing
little rural romance which re-
hates the adventures which came
70 Brace Northrup on q walking
trip which brought him to Kings
Forest. Brace was young, but
broken BY the strain Of hack-writ-
ing which gave him his bread-ard-
butter. On advice Of his physician
Z 20 lose himself for q time. he set
out on q walking trip. leaving be-
hind him q charming but irritating
fiancee.
At the cross roads In Kings
Forest. he came upon Heathcote
Inn. which seemed just the plncs
70 forget the world. The proprie-
tors, Aunt Polly and her brother,
were philosophers after a fashion
of their own. which was to take
iife calmly. Brace was made vel.
come AZ one Of the family. and
gradually became acquainted with.
all the neighborhood gossip and
tradition.
Y