Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-09-19
/ REVIEWS OF THE NEW BOOKS |
Travelling Through the Countries of Central Amerca-A Few
of the Latest Burke Brings Out Another
Volume of Stories.

interesting, both of them. Here
Thomas Burke looks more like-I hate
to say II, since O. Henry has become
stereotyped as standard for Ger.
tain literary habit-but Thomas Burke,
nevertheless, does look more like o.
Henry than like any other American
short story writer. You'll see 1t at
once in the first story Of this group,
THE Dream Of All Lum." The COM
monplace situation, the ,artless de.
velopment Of an everyday matter, the
plain story turning at this point or
that one, but only a shade Of q turn
at that-then, at the last moment Il
perfectly tremendous second, yet a
second that is as plausible as tomor-
rows issuance from today. And out
Of the simple matter some very big
and pressing thing that is urgent upon
all life-East London, West London
all around the town-accosts one with
That's you, too" Like this first
story are all the others in their deep
general interest. in their peculiar
Burke development. ). g.
THE DICE OF GOD. BY Cynthia
Stockley, author Of "Ponjola," etc.
New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons.
CYNTHIA STOCKLEY'S literary
~ stock in trade is the African back.
ground, against which her various ro-
manceS are cast. At home in this set.
ting the author has used 1t to the de.
light of readers in both the sweep and
intimacy of its projection. And here
is a new story, one not so concerned
with the many faces and moods Of
Africa as it Is with a situation that
one would call melodramatic and un.
convincing If 1t were not for the fact
that any issue OF the daily paper car
ries on it's front page items Of fact
that represent human nature to be
just the revolving thing In certain of
its behaviors as that recorded here in
one Of Miss Stockley's African tales.
1t is impossible, therefore, to pro-
nounce against the consistency Of the
story. 1t might have been true, liter
ally true. All the same, read one of
her really admirable novels of South
Africa in place of this hectic romance.
IN BAD WITH SINBAD. BY Arthur
Stringer, author Of Lonely O'Mal-
ley" etc. Indianapolis The Bobbs-
Merrill Co.
GIT down for a half hours laugh
~ over the adventures of honest
Laban Lindhagan In his attempts to
deliver a package addressed to one
WI Fang Low. COZ Pell street. New
York. The bundle had been handed to
him on the train by a meek and in.
offensive looking man. Arrived in
New York, Laban's first business was
TO rid himself Of his obligation to his
good train companion crossing the
country from the West Coast. These
attempts. covering single night. are
all there is to the adventure. 1t is a
highly concentrated business, the tell.
ing of this tale. Into it has gone
enough of trickery and intrigue to
bulk a volume like THE Rise and Fall
Of the Roman Empire" if such night
had been undertaken by a full -ha nded
writer like. say, Theodore Dresser or
some Russian telling his story. Impos-
sible things happen. ust as they did
with Sinbad when in old BaSdad he,
too. tried to carry a burden through
certain street" that proved to be
the most uncertain thoroughfare
mag inable. Reading here and then
casting back to the days Of Haroun-
alRaschid. one realizes that Bagdad
has no show beside Manhattan and
that Sinbad beside Laban Lindhagan
looks like 80 cents, or less.