Evening star., 1927-11-08
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM

GALLONS REACH. H. NJ. Tomlin-
son. Harper & Bros.
All Sunday afternoon a week ago I
sat in thrall to Gallons Reach"
That same night its author came over
the air from New York. a transit
which to me, at that moment clear
Tomlinson saturate, had the effect of
much more than the mere voice OF
the man himself. A day to remember.
And what is Gallons Reach? a
novel by name and such, too, it is in
fact. Yet one so unlike the average
run of that tribe as to give pause
TO decision concerning it. Certainly
like every romance it has a hero. this
one faring out across the world from
a London shipping office to somewhere
in Malaga on the specific and supreme
errand of following the lead of his
own soul and spirit. his own vision
and dream. To be sure. too, here is
adventure, but of a sort so different
from these familiars of the usual novel
as TO set the book off pretty much
alone and by itself. A story of sea
and jungle whose commerce with the
human is carried on chiefly by way
of one Jimmie COlet, London shipping
clerk. Another stand.off between this
novel and most others is that the
larger group is of cumulative intent.
stralning ever toward some surpass-
ing climax, some conSummating final
outcome, whereas this one novel has
thousand points of interest, sus-
pense, delight, wonderful conclusive
for the moment, all stepping outside
the immediate run of action for
climax in "Gallions Reach" is no more
than the right-about of Jimmie Colet,
away from the jungle back to the
London office. Such radical differ
enceS between the novel in hand and
most others rise from their separate
sources. The average novel is ex-
ternal, objective, an absolute projec-
ton, more or less complete, on the
part of the author. This one, how
ever, is an inside matter. 1t is the curl
Gus, questing soul of II. NJ. Tomlin-
son, alias Jimmie Colet. that over sea
and land gathers innumerable CON
facts which it converts into ilIumi-
mating human stuff of clear and gem
eral significance. Here. besides. is an
ina ginatiOn. original like a poets.
firing at n thousand simple and
familiar points. Moreover. Tomlinson
has q way of kindling things by the
mere choosing of words and linking
them together. Here is rugged speech.
bluff sounds that cast off hard
chunks of truth. Then come soft and
singing tones that turn an impene-
trable jungle into aching stretches of
human feeling, or a mastering sea
that stirs to sheer panic of fear
Try it. Get aboard the Affair and
go through that storm in the Indian
OCean-the storm that wracked and
finally wrecked, the Affair, whose
every part agoniZed in human pro-
test. showing a courage that could not
prevail and an ultimate despair that
VIII wiring your own heart. To sit
under the lamp and read that storm is
an experience of personal terror and
dismay.
A great writer. Like Conrad? No.
Like Melville? No. Just like H. NJ.
Tomlinson, instead. a new man and
writer winning clear and general
accolade for "Galions Reach" for
Tide Marks" for THE Sea and the
Jungle" and for what is yet to come.
* x X
THE SENTIMENTALISTS. Dale Col
Inns. Little, Brown and Co.
Another romance of the East. It's
foundation, however, lies wherever
human nature is at work. I'VE are all
Sentimentalists at heart'--such is the
inclusive claim upon which Dale Col
Inns builds finely entertaining novel
OF excellent quality throughout. A
baby, a man, a woman, constitute the
material chosen by the author in
support of general statement. The
background for the drama of evidence
is the brig. Hirondelle, at anchor
in Malay river. Its captain is a big
gross creature to see; hard-b boiled is
that Cap'n Abel Whelan. He is the
man in the case. Tina. the woman,
is hard, toO-bea utifuI. though-a free
lance of her kind. every mans pocket.
book an oyster for her opening. No,
they are not together not at first.
Each is pursuing life alone, at first.
In drifting canoe near the Hiron.
dele a white baby is found, all by
itself The baby becomes not only
the center of the story, but star wit
ness. finally. to the truth of the con.
tention underlying the romance itself.
The captain takes the baby He does
more than that, for in spite of her.
self he drafts Tina to its service
aboard ship. And both give living
evidence every day in support of the
theme in hand-evidence from the
most unlikely of sources at that. To
these two unusual characters the
author devotes n most discriminating
attention, turning them out alive and
notwithstanding them out, too, as
variants of the common
run. There is romance in this tale.
but no love-making between the cap
tain and Tina. Her job is sternly
held to be that of caring for the baby.
for whom Cap'n Abel has formed
dcvouring passion. platonic as you
please toward each other, these two
bent alike upon feeding and caring
for the waif. The exotic setting of
the Malay coast is as much i'm the
authors hand as is the thread of adj
venture itself. With these two orders
of intimacy he turns out u romance
of high quality as attractive To look
upon as it is to weigh for its real
substance and dramatic beauty.
X X * X
Will Lexington Comfort.
lloughton Alttiin Company.
Samadhi is a lovely retreat in the
northern heights of India where royal
elephants and their hereditary ma
houts have, through clean lineage
and true facing upon life. come into
an understanding of much that life
Itself really means. Fanciful? Maybe.
Yet. in this remote region and with
these living elements of intelligence
and intuitiOn, Will Lexington Comfort
has created picture that remains in
the eye, that even more persistently
stays within the mind and heart. Long
after the story is read and put aside
there comes again and again that cool,
simple, clean Himalayan retreat where
wisdom grew through the intercourse
OF animal and man. the elephant and
the nahout, till 1t became both rule
of conduct Nnd a philosophy of life
hat would serve man himself to mans