Evening star., 1931-03-14
THE LIBRARY TABLE
By the Bookloper

A few years ago E. H. Young in the
novel william" created q delightful
mellow character, wise in the ways Of
the world but tolerant and kindly to-
ward those which he did not approve,
humorous, gently satirical, understand
ing in his relations with family and
neighbors-in short just such person
as We should all like to know well.
In 1.-The Malletts," Moor Fires" and
"The Wears Daughter" E. H. Young
wrote novels of some excellence. but
failed to do again what was achleVed
in "William"-the addition of really
original character to the personages OF
fiction. In Miss Mole" William has
been given a sister, almost feminine
counterpart. She has the family char
acteristics Of humor. charity, and the
wisdom of common sense. Miss Mole
has reached the age CT 40 and surveys
herself serenely as an "old maid. ="
Insatiably addicted to romance, she has
not been without 1t in her own life, and
the fact that her own romance has been
both arid and acrid has not embittered
her concerning romance in general. She
has a pasta brief one-which she
attempts to conceal In the interests of
conventional decency, but not to the
extent of becoming a hypocrite about
most violent antagonism of which her
tolerant nature is capable. Poor and
obliged to earn her living, she is moved
by sentiment to come to RadStoWe, 81
town on the edge Of Somerset, a place
of docks along a busy river, slums, con-
Ventional parks and squares, lighted
shops along business streets, somewhat
dusty but dignified churches and
vlcarages, blatant non-ccnformist chap
els, and spruce new villas without any
elegance on the edge Of the Downs
She might have found more attrac-
tive place and the presence there of
her cousin, the rich Mrs SpenSer-
Smith, had nothing to do with her
choosing RadStowe. Her fathers farm,
on which her childhood was spent, had
been near Radstowe in Somerset, and
to good school in RadStowe she had
been sent by her father, at a cost of
big depletion of his small farm earn
ings. Miss Mole herself owns a small
cottage on a scrap of the land which
had once been her fathers farm, and
this cottage shelters the mystery of her
life. 1t contributes Importantly to the
plot Of the story.
Everything in her life at Radstowe
Is an adventure" to Miss Mole. Just
to stay out an hour longer than is
necessary and to eat a bun in a tea
shop. when she has been sent to match
a sample of cloth by her employer,
sour old woman to whom com
panion" means slave, is the biggest
kind Of adventure, because she knows
that she is likely to lose her position
when she returns. She does lose it
ana her greater adventures begin. As
housekeeper in the household of the
Rev. Robert Corder, non-conform-
iSt minister, she finds unlimited OPP
portunitieS for her humorous inter-
probation of life. Mr.. COrder has an
illusion that he is all that is righteous,
charming and superior, but is unable
to make his own family believe in that
picture of him, though he has sue
ceeded with his congregation. His do
mestic habits are rather upsetting for
even humorous housekeeper. Robert
Corder'S work took him out of the
Eouse for great part of the day
but 1t also brought him back at times
when business man is in his Office
and knows nothing of domestic affairs
until he returns to find meal await
ing him and the work of the day
apparently done. Robert Corder was
conscious perforce of the doings of the
household. He would swing down the
garden path in the morning and meet
the butchers boy carrying a recognize
able joint, and If the JOINT did not app
pear in cooked condition that even
ing he would wonder where it was
and why Miss Mole had ordered it
a day before ii was needed, or he would
ccme back and see half the drawing
room furniture I'm the hall and get a
glimpse OF Miss Mole doing something
with duster or feather broom. His
study was never disturbed in this man.
ner" Miss Mole does not admire
Mr.. Corder, but she feels sorry for
him because he has no humor and
does not SEEM to secure much salts
faction from life. Mr.. Corder OH his
side does not approve of Mss Mole,
though he admits to himself-never TO
her-that she has worked many needed
improvements in his household. IF
she had to be plain and thin, she
should also have been meek. and he
supposed it was possible tc be domes-
tically Intelligent without looking as
though she had some secret source of
satisfaction in herself"
y
1t Is the greatest satisfaction to the
reader that, after playing the part of a
bene1cent, II satirical angel i'm the
family OF Mr.. Cor6er for a time, Miss
Mole Is swept unexpectedly into be-
lated romance OF her own-a real one
TINS time. without any bitterness, and
We feel sure there will be no disillusion.
Well. you know everything about me-
tHannah says to her mature and pro-
sale lover). No. he said, and l don't
think / ever SHALL q speech more sat-
1Sfying to Hannah than any more lover
like proteStation." Her departure from
the Corder home leaves every one help
less and forlorn, or would If the author
had not, with Victorian consideration,
arranged for the welfare of the two
daughters, Ethel and Ruth, the son
Howard. and even Mr.. Corder himself.
This Victorian quality, mixed with
pleasant dash OF modernism, constitutes
one of the charms of the book.
\ 4
With Katharine Cornell in the lead
ing role, the play. The BarrettS of =,
Wimpole Street" has awakened ex-
traordinary interest in its New York
opening. During the next weeks and
and Robert Browning will be III many
peoples minds and the books by and
about the two poets will be eagerly
turned to. For sensitive and illumi-
mating study the two books by Frances
M. Sim are to be recommended: Robert
Browning: the Poet and the Man" and
Robert Browning: the Poet and the
Browning is "The Seen and Unseen in !
Browning" by Emma j. Burt, not so
much biographical as interpretative of |
his poetry. An interesting Browning |
item is the play "Caponsacchi," by Ar |
thur Goodrich and Rose A. Palmer, in !
which Walter Hampden has had such |
a success This play is based on |
Ring and the Book" And !
then there is the poem in Vachel Lind |
says Going to- -the-Sun,' accompanied |
by one of. the American poets char |
acteristic drawings, which runs:
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Sat gossiping with Robert
(She was really raving beauty in her