Evening star., 1925-06-21
IDA GILBERT MYERS

itself. A sad story. AS real, how
ever, as plain life itself. And through
these pages, recording one mishar
after another, q gurgle of spontaneous
laughter runs. And you laugh, too
at the gallantry that sustains this
matter, at the keen sense Of humor
that saves it from a drab despair. A
person waywise to this ministers
household wrote the story, without a
doubt. 1t reads like a personal expe
rience. At the same time it reads sc
like a well conceived and well pro
jected adventure in lift that one hopes
for another story soon from this
same source.
AMONG THE BRAHilNS AMI
PARIAHS. BY J. A. Sauter
Translated from the German by
| Bernard Mall. New York: Bon
& Liveright
| A curiously vivid story to be gather
ed from the various aspects of native
! Indian life by an outsider. Not sc
surprising, either, when in the course
Of the story one comes upon the fact
that it's author lived in India as q
| native for a period sufficiently long tc
allow him to partake personally OF
! East Indian life in its outstanding
\ and characteristic features. The book
| therefore, is a record of actual ex
perience set down in clear and color
| full pictures that give wide range
of native interests-the various re
ligious systems in their origin and in
their spiritual and social significance
| to India as a whole; the followers OF
| these religions in their daily habit
and in their close linking up Of re
| ligion with the practices of everyday
life; the relation of the people to their
British protectorate; the STRINGS OF
| unrest among the natives, with a
glance at the possible significance OF
this restless milling of the masses
glimpse at education, such as 1t is
| and at industry in its most importan,
manifestations. However. this is nc
discussion of the politics and religion
and economics of an English-ruled
empire, but rather the intimate OBJ
servations of man mingling with the
people in no highly organized sense
OF ultimate exposition. Therefore
one meets the individual, representa-
tive of certain groups. Here is the
Swami, of whom we in the west have
only a misleading knowledge. Here
is the fakir, with his strange arts and
practices. Here are other people and
places-an opium den among the
latter. And here are descriptions OF
famine and plague. Then, on the
other side, are pictures of noblemen
and of the ceremonious life, the whole
blending in a very striking outsta nd.
ing panorama of India in it's diverse
and intimate ways of existence and in
| its fronting upon a new future.
BARBARA'S MARRIAGE AND THE
BISHOP. By Esther w. NeiIl
New York: The Macmillan Com
pany.
One of the oldest of stories-youns
love. early marriage, speedy disillusion
ment, making the best of a bad busi
ness. Whole libraries have been writ
ten upon this theme. The idealist has
made use of it, and the sentamentalist
the materialist, the psychologist
and the psycho-analyst. These
from their diverse points Of view
have succeeded in giving variety
to an otherwise monotonouS mat
ter. The idealist wrote the romance in
hand, young one at that. So the ole
story carries here the glamour OF
youth, the believing of unbelievable
things, quality OF faith that has lit
tie or nothing to do with actual cir
cumstance. AS young S the heroine
of this tale, and as suileless, is the
good old bishop. A fine friendship be
tween the two illuminates some pretty
dark days in this mess of young and
overhaSty love. Incidentally, this rare
friendship beguiles the reader into
dreams. There is no problem about
this romance-that is, no problem in
the modern novelist's conception OF
the term. The thing has been done
and is to be held to-in the Staid ole
fashioned way when respectable folks
did not play tag with the marriage
ceremony. However, the orthodox nov
elist has his difficulties no less thar
the free lance in storydom. The latter
provides characters with plain huma r
nature and holds them to this. The
former fits his people out with sc
much of goodness that. at the last, he
is compelled to work a miracle to in
sure the legendary reward of true
merit. In this particular case the re
ward lies in the offing, its shadow only
apparent from the last word of story
An engaging romance. especially fitted
to delight readers young in years and
in mind.
OLD PINK 'UN DAYS. BY ]. B
Booth. New York: Dodd. Mead &
Co.
Innumerable anecdotes and hun
dreds of personalities have beer
brought together here in the hope
of reviving the spirit Of the "Old
Pink I'm Days." when the Sporting
Times was a mirror of the Bohemian
life OF London. Everybody who lived
in the London Bohemia. everybody
who put a foot inside this hectic do
main, provided he be worth notice a,
all-and none other was allowed
there's held here for his own char
acteristic story or his own touch OF
difference and distinction. The races
the prize fights, the sports, the the
aters-these are the events that have
the right of way in the Times along
with the characters that support and
adorn them. A Kaleidoscope book. 9
panorama OF the sporting world and
a hall of fame for about all the
celebrities that f1ourished from the
closing days of the Victorian period
up to the opening of the World War
A fascinating book. even If one be
not a sport. for in 1t come and go a
hundred folks about whom curiosity
is always keen and around whom the
glamour Of notoriety of one sort or
another remains undimmed and ap
pealing.
A MIDSUMMER MYSTERY. BY
Gorden Hall Gerould, author OF
Peter Sanders, Retired" etc. New
York: D. Appleton & Co.
A double murder in Washington
again sets the reader of mystery tales
to prowling the streets in search of
exact localities, as crowds gather
around the scene of any mishap for
days after its occurrence. A double
murder, this turns out to be, with
specially grewsome accompaniment
In the way of formal and ceremoni-
Gus disposition Of the body of one of
the victims. The crimes provide oc-
casion for the assemblage Of a mixed
band of detectives, all working in per-
feet harmony and each going his own
way in pursuit Of his own individual