Evening star., 1926-05-16

| lence to the story as d whole. There
must have beeA temptation on the
| part Of the author, mindful of the
desires OF novel readers, to face about
and turn off the familiar miracle of
| the happy ending. However. If there
were such temptation Mr.. Francis sent
| the devil of makeshift story writing
about his business. while he let young
Bagley finish in his own way that
which he had himself begun. 1t is
| this that gives shape and color 10 the
romance as a whole. It is this that
| gives such excellent promise for the
next novel.
/ ON AN ISLAND THAT COST s24
BY Irwin S. Cobb author OF old
: Judge Priest" etc. New York
George II. Doran Co.
"WESEL, Germany. May GP) -
| The 300th anniversary Of the
! purchase OF Manhattan Island from
| the Indians by Peter Minuit for
| trinkets valued at about $24 was
| celebrated in this Rhineland town
| today. Wesel is the birthplace Of
| Minuit, the first governor of the New
| Netherlands, and the towns fathers
| today foregathered in solemn session
city of New York and to name one
! OF their main streets after Wesels
| distinguished SON" The $24 real
estate deal of 800 years ago stands
| today at $500. .000. 900. However
| while Irwin Cobb does make easy
| allusion to this stupendous compari-
son, his main interest here lies in
| the Manhattan of the present:
| largely, too. in the human side Of
the great city. And he invites us
| you and me-to so about with him
through street after street, into
places innumerabie, where human
stories go on endlessly the "a hours
| through.
1t is said that when Irwin Cobb
! first came TO New York to work for
a newspaper he spent hours and days
and years walking. up and down and
| across the city-maybe hunting for
news and sometimes maybe Just lone.
! some. AT any rate. he was pursuing
an acquaintance that year by year
deepened. finally translating itself
into one big personality of a place
| with special traits and moods and
| characteristics and manners, such as
| humans alone are said TO possess
! Thls parsonage Of town is that
! which he has put into this book. peo
.
| IN Its human essence. certain parts
of II have contributed particular atti-
tudes and special behaviors-hut
these have merely contributed to the
| erect OF the great New York as in
itself a complete organism. body and
soul acting upon each other. a book
or laughter. to be sure. despite the
genuine constructive artistry that it
| embodieS.
MORE CHANGES MORE CHANCES
| BY Henry W. Nevinson author Of
! thanges and Chances" New
| York: Harcourt, Brace & Go.
| a BOOK to take ones leisure in
walking about. or sitting. OF lean
ing against the chair.back listening
to the recollections Of this traveller
| writer, active man of affairs and
prince OF reporters. Wide experience
OF wandering and association come
out here. A host Of interesting people
crowd around. Chapters of important
history pass by Events Of the mo
ment, deep IN their true significances
assemble here. Not so much like d
vivid picture or pageant is this auto.
geographic study as it is like an actual
partaking OF the color and movement
of this mans own life. Better than
| romance, better even than history in
its lifelikeness, coupled with the rich
and ripe personality OF the author, is
| this book of memories. From the end
of the Boer War TO the immediate ap-
proach of the World War do these
pages stretch. There are special
chapters OF high interest-one on
India. one on Russia. and others of
equal import. Notable people animate
these. The whole is book that re
pays richly for the time put upon it.
BEFORE THE DAWN. BY Toyohiko
Fagawa. Translated from the
Japanese by l. kukumoto and r.
Satchell. New York: George II.
! Doran Co.
WE hear great deal of talk about
w a better acquaintance among ma
tions and a deeper understanding as
the surest warrant of international
friendship and cooperation. Sermons
are preached upon this subject.
Statesmen discuss it Histories are
written in support of this theory.
Just now and then a novel comes out
that is based upon this better knoWl-
edge as the foundation OF peace. Here
is a novel written by a japanese. Its
intent ia not to dramatize peace as
| the product of closer acquaintance.
| Rather Is it's purpose to give n true
picture of Japanese life, at the center
OF which is a man, young native
of the country, who loves his people
so deeply that he determines to share
| the sufferings of the most helpless
ones in an effort to ameliorate by
some little at least the miseries in
which they live. AS a story this is