Evening star., 1927-04-30
THE LIBRARY TABLE
BY The BookloUer

Hurricanes, with tidal waves, in
the tropics and Winter blizzards in
northern climates both render human
beings helpless in the face of destruc.
ton of their property and menace to
their lives. Such storms are often
the subject of powerful scenes in lit
erature. Joseph Conrad has described
many tropical storms, most famous OF
which is the storm at sea in '"Iy-
phoon." Frederick O'Brien and Som
erset Vaughan have also recognized
the telling literary material inherent
in tropical storm. The demoralizing
psychological effect on man from
outside Of a tropical rain continuing
day after day is the theme used by
Somerset Vaughan in Miss Thomp-
SON" which was dramatized in the
play Rain
x X * x
A terrible storm in the mountains
of Sweden on Christmas day of 1880
is described by Selma Lagerlof in
"Iiliecrona Home; Nov, do not
say that no doubt there have been
storms as bad both before and since,
and, above all, do not let any Of the
Lovsjo dwellers hear you for they
have known from their earliest child
hood that the like of this storm could
never even be imagined. They can
still count up all the fences that We're
torn down, all the thatChed roofs
snatched off, all the COWhouses blown
over. so that for days the poor beasts
lay buried in the ruins. And they can
point TO all the places where fire broke
out and was famed by the wind until
the whole village was in ashes. And
they have been on all the heights and
mountain tops, where tree after tree
fell. until they stood naked and bare
as they are today" The storm almost
keeps Little Maid from reaching the
Christmas feast at her uncles at Nj
CORD. in the Svartsjo Parish-almoSt,
but not quite, for Little Maid is re
sourceful and very determined.
X X X X
"From the north it (the wind came,
too, as cold as though it had been
dancing with death. so strong and
sharp that it pierced through sheep
skin and homespun and laid its icy
fingers on her skin. And, although
she did not heed such trifles, she felt
her toes grow stiff inside her waXed
boots and her fingers numb in the
woolen gloves, while her ears tingled
under her kerchief. But, needless OF
all. on she went right down the long
hillside" The great Broby pine. tall
enough to be seen for miles around,
stons her progress for a time. for 1t
has blown down across her path, but
she manages to crawl under 1t.
Across the bridge over the sound be-
tween Upper and Middle Loven she
creeps on all fours, because the Wlnd
would have blown her into the water
When she reaches the frozen lake, on
the farther side of which lies Nugord,
her hopes rise high, and she no longer
doubts that she Will arrive in time FOR
the roast wild geese, the sweet soup
with raisins, the cakes, jam, cohee ana
pastry, But here the wind roarS ana
rushes more wildly than anywhere
else. and the strength of her brother,
Little Lad, Is almost gone. 1t Is I'M
possible to go back. Death begins TO
seem more near than the Christmas
feast Then Little Maid looks up at
the pine trees on the hillside sloping
to the lake and remembers how she
and Little Lad have often coasted.
She breaks off pine branches, piles
them in two heaps and pushes the
heaps down to the frozen lake. Then
she and Little Lad seat themselves
on the heaps. hold up broad pine
boughs for sails and are swept across
the ice by the now friendly wind to
Nugord and the Christmas feast.
Lm