Evening star., 1924-08-24
Reviews of New Books
GREAT WATERS. BY We're Hutchin-
son, author of Sea Wrack," etc.
New York: The Century Co.

GREAT WATERS. BY We're Hutchin-
son, author of Sea Wrack," etc.
New York: The Century Co.
A NY new sea story that is at all
~ considerable is bound to be
"A measured, for some time to
L y come at least, according to
the standard set by Joseph
Conrad. To write of the sea with
even something of the divination of
Conrad, with something of his SYM
pathy: to be able to seize only a part
of his power to picture its Stupendous
vastness and its eVer-impressive
moods; to possess in some degree his
insight into its effect upon the soul
of him who follows it: to have the
gilt of gathering all this up in the
drive and force and variety of real
scar -farinE-this, in sum, is TO be
the mea sure of ones success in the
domain of literary sea adventure.
Yet in the case of Great Waters
and Sea Wrack" the first Strikinsly
impressive point has nothing of Con-
rad about it. Rather does it rise out
of the fact that it is a woman who
here ventures upon a theme hitherto
accepted by men as their own eXclu-
Sive domain of fiction. Not only does
We're Hutchinson venture here, but
she achieves as well in the story of
Peter, the pirate. An English boy
this, whose fronting upon the COM
monplace existence of all boys of his
class was suddenly changed by the
accident of kidnapping at the hands
of his own father. At least he called
himself the father of Peter. How
ever mistaken he may have been
about this item of parentage, there
was none whatever about his oCcu-
patton of buccaneering. The methods
employed by him to make pirate of
Peter, the ups and downs of this
enterprise. the effect upon the Charac-
ter of Peter himSelf-theSe lay down
a course of action that is promoted
or hindered or completely overthrown
by the SuDer-action and control of
the sea itself. a story outlined
against a bigger story set by the
omnlpOtent sea. Any one would call
this masculine Story-a brawny.
lustful. devourins tale. romance
that, put beside IF Winter Comes,
declares We're Hutchinson to be the
man of this literary household of
HutchinSons.
FANILS: Novel BY WayIand
Wells Williams. author of The
Whirligig of Time" etc. New
York: Frederick 4. Stokes Co.
This story of New England family
of May Flower origin and pattern
than the Sketchy attention that suf-
fees for tale of mere diversion.
Here one pauSes often for identfica :
tionS and acCeptanCeS. \ story of
quaIi,y. this, which centerS upon the
life of Nathan Deere, modern repre-
sentative of a line of DeereS that
started in Puritan days on the coast
of New England. II is. in effect, a
study of the inhibitionS imposed by
<1 ilN- h.a ind 1iN.iI 70 /
fCation of the fact that ones great
est battles are not with outside enc
mics, but rather with the blood in
ones own veins, with the traditions
of his own Inherited views and as
SumptionS. The New England family
of long and unSullied descent pro-
'-'ss good opportunity-the best that
&h.eriCa offerS-fOr study of family
exclusions and prejudices. So it is
upon one of these that Wayland Will
liams exercises his very considerable
Go~'er of analysis. his decided skill
In portraiture and his excellent sense
of the salient points of dramatic mar
ratire. \ story way above the com
ron run of stories in actual substance
and convincing appeal to diScrimi
mating readers steps out here for con-
sideration, Nathan Deere is himself
modern. but his forebears, in solid
phalanx behind him, are too much
for his own newly acquired strain of
modern outlook and desire. So while
not fitted by temperament for the
law, ii is to the law that he turns
under the tradition of family profess
sional life. And so it goes in every
direction-in business, in love, in
marriage, in final mature fronting
upon the social world of which
through the ariStocratic exclusions of
the Deere family, he is profoundly
ignorant and CorreSpondingly un-
social. To be sure, he does take a
stand for himself now and then-as,
for instance, in his marriag age-but
these departures from the family code
are accompanied and carried through
In the face of an opposition that
cripples action, wastes effort and
neutralizes effects. The whole is an
admirably conceived and projected
study of the power of tradition am.
the hard awakening of the conscious
ness that one must after all develop
his own self for any measurable part
in the life around him. The honesty
of this story. its skill. its effect, are
of an order to excite enthusiasm.
THE LAST DITCH. BY Belle Wiley
Cue. author of "Interludes," etc
Boston: The Stratford Co
The particular last ditch" that
here provides occasion for romantic
adventure was dug by the reverses
and defeats of the Continental Army
in its struggle with England for
political independence. The turn of
the Story-aS we'll as of the historic
situation itSeIf-ComeS through the
fiery gallantry of MariOns men, who
speedily changed the desperate for
tunes of the Colonials in the South to
Immediate victory and to ultimate
complete triumph. a romance out of
history itself. one whose obvious
purpose is to give a consistent pic
ture of this single phase of the Revo-
lutionary War and of the Southern
life in which it was projected and
brought to issue. South Carolina
provides the background for the war
movements of Gen. Francis Marion
and his men against the royal troops.
who were in practical possession of
the whole of the colony of South
Carolina. Cypress Lodge is the
smaller background against which
the author has drawn a consistent
and interesting picture of plantation
life. Within this narrower field are
presented the antagonisms of fealty
TO one side or the other of the great
struggle, such as separated so many
families at that time. good story
in keeping with the manners and out
look of the period works it's way
through this turmoil of war The
central figure is that of Marion him
self The plain intent of the whole
Is, however, not SO much that of
merely telling a story as it is that
of revitalizing incidents of history
through the general appeal and in
terest of romantic adventure. The
author has. without doubt, striven
for authentic reports first. Upon
these she has built a romance whose
purpose is to re-animate history for