Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-13
~ IDA GILBERT MYERT
II Study Of Medie0alLite, ART and Thought
II IarIev Of Novels for the Reader
Wh0 Prefers Fiction.

is q story 70 be told, one wherein these are
but elements and agents. And here it iS-the
story of the Higgins dynasty living out across
the mountains, yet in the near East just
story of carrying in the human fashion
loving and marrying, getting children and
gaining some property out in the new land.
And, since this is Higgins record, it is the
story, also, of running the town, debating its
ways of life. 1t IS the story of a mans world
q curious dearth Of women. These, in the
main, of dynaStic usefulness. Yet SophiSticate
and adroit, Mrs. Andrews suggests by way of
two of these women, that the race is not
always to the swift, nor the battle to the
strong. Eendy's wife is wise young woman.
beautiful, too, who makes woman'S Roadway
here. And Ellen-God bless her!-old and fat,
with warts and things on her face, dumpy
like Queen Victoria, looks like her, too
Ellen is wise enough and kind enough and
stanch enough TO win, finally, the heart VI
every Higgins, even the hard-Shelled heart of
old Henderson himself High moments hard I.
moments and tender ones illuminate the course
of this story of an American family living in
the circumstances of a century ago. A novel
to delight readers who enjoy good work. q
dramatic imagination, the Sophisticate outlook
of q waywiSe intelligence. ready wit, quick
turn of word, a gallant outlook of confidence
in the human, no matter how outrageOusly he
may act up now and then. A finely COM
petent piece of literary work steps out here for
our acceptance and appreciation.
ARROWS OF DESIRE BY Judith Clark.
New York: Mnton Balch & Co.
JUDITH CLARK merits attention Not by
virtue of her name nor her individual self.
Chance has brought her this way, 50 1t Is as
Judith CLARK, representing a new idea in the
business of writing, of literature, that she is
invited to stand up here, for the minute type.
How plain 1t is growing to be-that the young
woman is coming on. Coming on IN the right
way, too. In the only way. This Is college
girl. Armies of these are growing Educated
as the name, of that university experience
rlnS-she is now, only now, ready to begin. NTo
begin what? To learn a profession-in this case
the profession of novel writing-whoSe fOunda-
ton Is the training of that college course. So
fiction-making is "a profession? That's what
she sayS-many, many of her are now working
upon this theOry-and they are going to make
the grade imposed by this very logical exaction.
No longer does some inspired maiden turn out
best sellers on the thin I've just scrubbed all
my life," or other such futility. Tw0n't do.
Not any longer This Judith Cark-these
hundreds of her-znowadays work like cart
horses over suitable themes, what they hope
to do with these, Whereof, where?-fto find
the characters, the line of action, the back
ground for the whole, the outcome, the literary
imagination for bodily projection of this
rounded and proportional vision All of this
and infinitely more goes into this architectural
dream of writing to- the young woman of the
day. Here is a Sample-this of the and
only Judith Clark. The type has disappeared.
The young woman, in her own body and mind,
Is now offering ARROWS of Desire" her first
novel, the first fiction in proof of her prepara-
ton as an actual student in a real college.
The World War chang sd life in many striking
ways Only one of these startling divergences
from hOnored convention comes into this novel.
However, it is rather vital; SO suppose we pick
it out from its surroundings for a closer look
at it. Here young woman, deeply in love and
faithfully in love, changes the tide of human
behaViOrs by way of making the marriage pro-
posal herself. This is at the very end of the
story, of course-itS climax, in fact-but the
narration is at the moment of less account
than the incident of which we are talking.
The young is reluctant to accept the
offer-indeed, comes near to turning it down
completely. Now, what do you think of that
as q bomb thrown straight into the closed
garden of maidenly reticences and withhold
ings? I've read the story-in deep delight
throughout-and, having read it in a good
seizure of the circumstances, in a thorough
enjoyment of the excellence of its conception
and structure, I'm for the girl, convention
no convention. You will be, too when you
follow the fun course of this war period as it
worked its strange ways here in Washington
and across the bridge in Virginia Fully at
home here, Miss Clark creates a thoroughly
realistic picture Of this locale at that time.
minor matter, but you Washington readers will
take a keen pleasure in these familiar streets
and houses and ways of the folks roundabout.
The war tension comes into the matter, not
ro,tcIy b1ff1 nh hon
there is the news-bad news and fair news
and finally the serious wounding of that one
young Virginian who counted so completely
with the girl of the story, Barrie Chamberlain.
The great war wasn't SO much-not to this
girl-compared to the fight she had to put up