Evening star., 1923-07-03
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
AFTER ALL. George F. Hummel.
Roni and TJyorfohf

climax In a properly constructed
drama. The other presents the
familiar anti-climax with which life
forever denies art. offering no more
| than a shred here, a patch there, out
OF the full fabric of rewards and
easements that art so neatly portrays
through the logic Of it's carefully
selected situations. A fair break
| with the literary convention this one.
TOO, Tor the story is a study Of life,
not an invention suggested by 1t. To
be sure, as life 1t gives but one mans
experience. To be sure, 1t covers but
one mans convictions. The situation
ihVolVed, however, Is a general one
| as general as the widespread insti-
| tuition of marriage. The conclusion
is, therefore, calculated to reach far
| and to take a fighting hold upon the
prepossessions Of innumerable read
ers.
And what is that vital point upon
| which the romance converges? Just
this: The state Of marriage consti-
tutes the biggest handicap that life
80 oo Aot ucSiSeu TO nOlQ man back
IRON any considerable development
OF MS own inherent powers. from any
possibility Of his best achieve
ment, from the realization of any of
the brightest of his dreams. Such
conclusion. thoroughly tried out,
serves to separate the husband and
wife who center this particular situa-
tlon. Now. IL this romance were pure
art IL would stop short here upon
the the tragic note of a family gone to
~reckase. But this Is life, and so the
Crisis merely holds the story in sus-
pension. And at the critical mo-
ment life, the great opportunist, in
teryenes, Offering its usual make
ehl1t. down at-heel compromise. This,
accepted. provides the second latter
all" the anti-climax, to an uncom-
monty searching bit of social realism
drawn off into a modern romance of
striking feature and effect.
And what wrought dissolution to
this particular marriage bond? Nothing
at all. Thatis. nothing at all in the COM
mon rigmarole Of cause for such ef-
feet. No broken vows, no alienated
against the recognized code that has
built itself strong and high for the
sarekeeping of the ancient and hon
orable Institution of marriage. If
Just the system of never-ending
compromise and accommoda ton
twenty-four hours a day of 1t for
go ;, days sy a year and one day more
Of them-"Let's do this. No. let's do
that" I'm not going tonight. Yes,
you are. Whatll they think?s Not
t1a that ,Yn way Right over here" Same
things be put where there is some
chance of finding them!" Just about as
little as this--but Lord! how these
littlenesses do nibble and gnaw and dig
in! The Spartan boy. calm of front
sides, had nothing at all for endur-
ance on this married pair, chewed to
bits by the business of trying to
people? Quite the contrary: But
even IL they were, that would make
them only a part Of the. great ma
jority. And meanwhile what has be-
Where is The time to hold to ones
individuality. to have ones own
thoughts, to salvage a scrap Of ones
own particular leisure. to rescue ones
own soul from sheer damnation?
Finally, the separation. And this
act, In. any other line of life. would
have justified itself by subsequent
events. But, of course. in this par
ticular line there can be no justifica-
ton. However. just in passing let
US see what does happen. Both
promptly take a new lease on life.
The man goes back to his dreams. to
beauty of life and setting IT to word
and phrase. A writer whom the
world wants. The woman starts
anew upon an old course Of public
er, for whom there is need and a
place. This Is really what does hap
pen.
Now, in the course of time, not
ht~e lc Ian
Is it the years coming on? Maybe
1t is but the memory Of the best of
the home, now broken. Maybe II Is
only the poignant, deep-seated home
sickness-for God knows what
that every mortal knows. Whatever
is clearly homesick. He feels again
now with something like comfort
the house-bond, the community bond
settling upon him. Maybe recollec-
tions of the immediate past, maybe
some far call out of an immeasurable
last, when human learned to flock for
Ilfety. Nobody knows. He knows
asst of all. But he is homesick. And
Us is the moment when pure art
ipsks her budget and goes home. Just
tn moment when life steps into turn
he. customary trick of compromise.
TIN Is the anti-climax to art, but 1t
the very essence of life and hu-
mannature.
So the story ends-not as you
thlnk maybe. since these two have !
not trveled equally along the road of |
hIe-s there are dfsparities yet.
A iof time, relatively, spent on !
what is 1t part of this uncommonly
sincere al beautiful story of the life |
OF Gus bfaner up to the point where |
We nave aged so long. 1t begins |
away oack~hen Gus, a little fellow, !
could swim Ike tadpole. when there
wasn't trein Bishops woods that
he couldn't Cub, when he was Black |
snake In thStndian tribe, of which |
nbeef hee Cbe Wban blacksmith's boy, was |
every kind of leather all over the
bay and knew Y swamps and woods /
lke tne PACK his hand for ten |
miles around. Aough little animal |
with tne iove OF T. T. open soaked clean |
come. with this sae outspoSen sins
cerity to picture en- And those
other days. so be&dering. so diff %
cult, to the growinSoy. wherein his
rides the boy. fast al hard Til some |
sure place of compose and controI !
and understanding ohs I'm bafora
him. Gus Brenner is 1.-THE thraIi of |
beauty-the beauty of a world tba
beauty of women, of mic. Of wbate
ever God has made to sa,fv tho need |
of man for things fine eIorinns
It is under this single donSa tion that
1.-THE story develops in a beav ruada af
sincerity and simplicity.
| X X X X
One thing sets this roma-e ouite
apart from the class which, on the
surface. 1t appears to resemhl This
. class makes much of it's tlism
Many of these stories Rn bach