Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-01-25

Of one Of the frequenters of "The Mid
night Bell":
HE had been to oxford University,
and was a man of letters-mostly to
the papers. He wrote articles and
snort stories for the press, which were
this Turning Out Little Things from
Time to Time. An enormous Thing
perpetually in progress was postulated
but left in the dark"
The use Of capitals, as here exempli-
fed, is made an art
y u
THE Midnight Bell" is the sort of
thing most men would write if they
could write novel at all-and most of
them rather think they can, of course.
MOST men have an enormous Thing
perpetually In progress, in their own
minds, at the least, which they hope
to spring upon an astonished world
some day or other. Delve into the Sc
cret compartments of most desks, and
the chances are at least $3.50 that
you would bring out a manuscript, the
secret treasure of some sad heart.
Most men, granted that most men
could write a novel, would be forced to
do 1t In the style of Patrick Hamilton,
at once the easiest, from one stand
point, and at the same time the most
difficult, from another.
He has two main characters, three at
the most, and these he follows through
from meeting to meeting, from CONVEX
sation TO conversation. His waiter Bob,
and his girl of the streets, Jenny Maple,
meet to part and part to meet. The
reader finds himself rather surprised,
when about two-thirds through, to
realize that this book is but a chroni-
cling OF meetings, partings and talkings
Well, ttStakes skill to make so little
much, to make chitchat interesting.
The author here does it because he pic
lures a dramatic contrast, that of true
love, as exemplifled in his Bob, against
that of indifference, as set forth in the
vulgar, pretty Jenny. For all its humor
this is sad book. It is relieved by the
genuine love which the man shows for
the girl whom he could have pur-
chased, but refused to. And the girl,
without one sigh OF appreciation, calmly
takes his money, and deceives him even
more calmly, because she is by nature
utterly incapable of approaching any
thing in which aspiration has a part.
This Is real love story, one which
shows man as the romantic dreamer
which he is. 1t Is a good story largely
for that reason. A few doubling read
erS may be inclined to laugh at it be-
cause they will not have had enough
experience to realize that love is a
state of mind and that it lasts as long
as that state Of mind exists, and no
longer.
The perturbation of being in love.
with all that it implies, is sketched
in THE Midnight Bell" with a young
but sure hand. The third main char
acter, Ella, the barmaid yin the house
where Bob is waiter), is as good a
portrait, in her way, as the main two,
II perhaps not just bit better. She
loves Bob, but knows that he doesn't
care for her, yet continues to love him
just the same.
Elias part in the story consists of
fitting in and out of the scene, with
lightninglike remarks concerning the
growing, blind romance of Bob for the
blue-eyed Jenny. AS deft scene as
recent fiction has known is that in
which the love-lorn Bob goes to his
room on Christmas eve, after his
precious Jenny has accepted another
loan" without word of thanks, and
finds there a gift handkerchief left hy
the faithful Ella
This is the sort of thing life is made
OF; it helps make THE Midnight Bell"
a good story, although a slender one,
The author steps into his plot but
once, in an extraordinary paren-
thetical sentence, on page "a, which
might not meet with the approval of
Senator Smoot and other legislators
interested in spotless literature, but
surely Will win the suffrage of all but
the most SqueamiSh readers.