Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-05-22
THE ROUNDUP
Time to Brand Western Novels us
% Bad Lot.

cooper Streak Trail" by Eugene
Manloye Rhodes (Iioughton Mifflin Coz.
''The Lobstics Trail" by Douglas Dur
kin CA. c. McClurg a. Coz
Laramie Holds the Range" by Frank
| spearman tScrbners).
The lady who presides at the
public library amazes us with the
ayowal that there is always run
on western fiction among readers
in this section. They can't he
| thrilled fast enough, she says. We
have therefore promised to increase
the supply Of such by reiinquishing
to the library every volume of this
brand sent us by the publishers for
review. We are just that impressed
with the popular demand for the
cheap adventure story.
The average western city Is much
too tame for the tenderfoot who
comes to make his home here. He
is still obliged to fulfill his desire
| for adventure from his reading,
even as he did back home. He
wants his books to have suspense,
dramatic thrill, and q quick rush
OF narrative. He cares not whit
for literary merit. He gets Just
what he wants, and several nun
bred mediocre authors who are al
most sure Of sale on the western
stuff, see to it that he gets 1t.
This is not written in condemna-
lion of all western novels, nor OF
the particular ones covered in this
review. But taken as whole they
are all dished out of the sams bowl
of imagination, with the same iu-
gradients. The recipe includes q
dash OF whooping cowboys, beau
tiful mountain maidens, either
sturdy native or fragile imported
ones. one or two quite remorseless
villains, prairies, a few nerds OIL
cattle. saloons and noble but IL
IIiterate stockman or miner Tor
hero, These are stirred with the
spoon of melodrama, and served,
half baked or raw.
Mr.. Rhodes, who Is generally
hold in high esteem in the west as
a western writer, has been DIS
appointment in his latest story,
Cooper Streak Trail. He mas
either written an amusing travesty
on the typical western novel, or, In
moment OF financial duress,
turned out a sure fire novel for
a nut-boiler. as they are known IN
the writing business. 1t is hard to
saw which, but it is harder to pc
llieye that anything so hackneyed
could be q serious effort.
Two gentlemen of the plains
staked a claim on mountain Oh
CONFER, but they lacked the noun
tain of gold with which to develop
H. Zurich & Gang, the villain
hand. devoted themselves to IND
ing said claim. There Is some
shooting much riding, a brief tri-
Iumph for villainy and the emphatic
victory of virtue over the rasca a,.''
A small boy. wrangler among .ne
best of them, figures somewhat
prominently in the story ana there
lis an occasional flash back TO the
east where the capital Is cached'
THE Lob stick Trail has all the
proper ingredients but the mixture
| Is too cut and dried to be tasty
It qualities for the table of western
fiction by having a trail in Its tltie'
and that in a country which prides
I,tself ON the increase in paved roads
for the tourists. 1t has all the ex-
lnected characters in all of the eN-
pected situations and hardly any
Originality.
Frank Spearman also seems 70
have dropped from his standard IN
the Laramie story when he returns
TO the ranges and cattle rustiers
for his latest published work. Al
though he undoubtedly knows ms
country well, he seems no more
artful or convincing in pictpring
his characters or in putting through
the action than his less popular
contemporaries. Mr.. Spearman
was probably at his zenith as
writer when he did man of Music
Mountain Laramie" finds him
at his ebb. H. H. L.