Evening star., 1924-01-06
j. HARDIN & SON. BY Brand Whit
lock, author of Belgium. etc.
New York: D. Appleton & Co.

lock. author of "Belgium." etc.
New York: D. Appleton & Co.
"HIS is the day Of all days
when the middle west is
standing up and declaring
itself to be of age. Here
efter. the middle west is going to
have its say and. as far as possible.
its way, in every drection-politics,
government, industry, social expert
ment, what not. Even the wr1'eTs rs
of this quarter have combined TO
emphasize its Importance In the
ultimate character and influence OF
I4ewis has created "a r9raa MALI MALI
it Photographic Rabbit EDGAR
Lee Masters has drawn spoon r1Ver
poems straight from the plain peo
pie. Herbert. Quick has reproautteea Geo
Tho pioneer days Of Iowa, where the
rail- corn grows Hamlin Garland
has TAX en- care of another section OF
the middle west. And now, branu
Whitlock has lifted up bodily 'He it
Ohio village of Macochee ana SCI ~
down without crumple or crease
within the pages of q book. Inc
streets and familiar waymarks or any
little old home town OF the NORM anu Az
II. Hardin & Son." About them hun
dreds of people-each distinct In an
individuality of his own-comoine II!
the humdrum busy-ness OF the anei i..
age shut-in village. Here the o,s irsere
of j. Hardin. strong character
pious, puritanic. a dictator out OF an
austere New England strain. ouen
the BACKGROUND OF paTeh,ase Are ca Teer % OF
Paul Hardin. son" is projected. An
.. unspectacuIar career. this. not es-
senttaUy different from that OF any
average man-inconsiderab 10 the
ee ha u-nr1l trpmpnQOOSlN. iii
portant to the man himself. Herein
iies the main point of this characseI
projection One finds in Paul Hardtn
the common hopes and unlu.lliiiitniiS a tsaiT
easy forgettings; the average bust
ness life pursued without lifting
vision or vitalizing zest; marriage,
dull and stodgy in the ,; prooo;s .fe afe
lection of the unsponsored sort. Ihe
usual program, you see. setthnE
finally to that common balancing oa
accounts-responsibil on the one
hand, fugitive dreams on the otner.
Like the great majority; Paul aaraIn tha
throws his decision on the side or the
greater security. Almost everybody
story, 81. Hardin & Son" In It's es
working together for the fashlonlns
Of character. A very complete ana
literal picture Of locality, besides
contributing substantially to the
cOmpetanC ana 0TdIidliN oS ASi-'
which the writer's of the middle west
have set for the preservation IN ac-
tuality of certain periods ana phases
Of that particular section Oh the
country.
FRJTTFULNESS. BY Emile Zola
Translated by Ernest Alfred VI
zetelly New York: Doubleday
Page & Co.
The fecundity of the earth. the
spontaneous fruitfulness of nature
ready to cooperate with depletea
overcivilized man for his restoration
TO primal state OF vigor. 70 tne
yitalizing effects of toil-this is the
vision out Of which grew Emile Zola :
great realistic novel, "Frultfulness.
To reduce the theme TO selzaple Inn
its the author represents the Who,e
ready and waiting earth by an ola
estate, Chantebled, first neglected and
finally abandoned to the sterile anu
ragged output of INTENDED fields 10
this unpromising estate In an OUT
of-the-way corner of France comes
Matthew and Marianne with their
children. a round dozen OF them
hnally-these. too. symbol or the
natural and wholesome reproductlVlty
Of nature. Such the setting, such tne
initial impulse of this drama of new
order a new life. The story grows
by way of daily toll whose WEAKNESS
gives way to renewed Vlgor undeI
nights of rest that are as deep ana
CleanSlnR as IIe Sed ilSSlI. Anu NiiS
earth, joyously fecund and instantly
responsive to the supporting hand or
human industry, changes into bountf.
full granaries the once impoVerisheo
fields of Chantebled. And Chantebled
expands. reaching abundant hands to
many a nearby waste, converting each
TO it's own fruitfulness, just as the
entire earth wAlld expand in peace
and happiness vnder the -, eoceperat o,3,dsan
of Matthew and Marianne, heirs to
legacy of labor with it's honest re-
wards and natural joys, become part
ners with the big and generous earth
itself in life that fortif1es the body
and enriches the spirit. Real life is
set out here in a manner OF complete
realism. Joy and sorrow change
places here in life-like rhythm. HUI
man passions, beautiful and ugly,
strive together here. Defeat trails
the footsteps of success. Today
hopes soar high, tomorrow they fall
to earth. All is as it is with the hu-
man everywhere. Here, however.
of work, the simple outlook, natural
ambition free from the poison Of
artificial demands. Here, in word,
is the heritage of Adam followed to
story handed over to English readers
here in an artistry of eXternals that
gives an added joy to the reading
of a mastery of significant symbolism.
THE SECOND GENERATION. BY An
thony NJ. Rud. New York: Double
day, Page & Co.
Characterization" is only another
one of the many words that through
overuse and misuse have lost COM
pletely their original point and force.
Otherwise, this word would give the
exact content of "'The Second Genera
ton" This is the story of Lief Merssen,
Scandinavian immigrant. come to
America a half-grown youth, set
tling in Wisconsin and moving finally
to Chicago, where he takes his place
as medical expert. In his derivation
the northwest. in his slow and some
what heavy adaptation to this special
environment, In his ultimate contri-
button to the good substance of
stands for the bulk of the Scandi
navian element with which this
northwest section Is so largely peo-
pied. The story begins with realis
tic picture of the little boy with his
mother. Hulda the herd girl. in the
an, this. from whom the boy takes
much good of virtue. Over in the new
country, somewhere, Is a father who
has to be sure, denied his fatherhood,
give the young Lief chances that the
hard homeland is sure to withhold.
And so the boy is sent on n chance
that proves to be meager one,
since 1t depends on the heart of Einar
Merssen, near" and grasping man,
like SO many who have had to wrest
living from some bare and reluctant
corner of the world. The boys father,
therefore, proves to be hindrance
rather than a help. Only another
Lief's metal. There are many others
work and women and the utter