Evening star., 1932-01-24

contact that is revelation and illumination.
Pictures OF Mr.. Edison, of Menlo Park, of
many busy experiment being worked out
to its test, pictures of Edison with his friends,
these all serve the reader well in his warm
desire at this ripe point of time to know all
that may be known of Thomas Edison, great
man of the world in a most practical and
beneficent way of greatness"
OLD MAN COYOTE By Frank B. Lnder-
man. author of American" etc. Illustrated
by Herbert Morton Stoops. New York
The John Day Co.
Tor along toward half century Frank Lin
derman has been friend and intimate
of certain Indian tribes of the Northwest.
Taciturn by nature, they have talked freely
to Mr.. Linderman. Books, half a dozen or
more, have come our way through this inter-
course American: The Life Story Of a
Great Indian is the most important and most
interesting Of the group. And following 1t,
the author here offers a book of legends of
the Grow tribe gathered, all of them, at first
hand straight from the Indians themselves.
Long ago, in forgotten times the Grows were
a very great people, living far away from
their home in the Northwest. For some cause,
lost in the long ages, separation into groups
came about. The prosaic historian of the
present would here find the cause Of such
disruption in a lack of food supply and the
search in various directions for sources
Of sustenance. But myth and legend and folk
lore do not deal in such pTosGic accountings.
Megcians and wonder-WO-kerS only can serve
them. And SO, here among the Crows are
tales of Old Man Coyote and his powers with
all manner of things in nature with all orders
of men and beasts.
Interesting tales" the passing reader
admits, "but upon the whole negligible, L
think" Well, who knows? In the rediscovery
of America, now vigorously moving forward
throughout the West and Southwest, 1t Is
beyond question that the American Indian will
not be left to his present status of indigenous
savage" He, too, will be found as something
remaining from a larger whole from dill
ferent stage of development than that TO WHICH
he is now assigned.
However here is book of deeply interesting
Indian lore that from a far past has come
down by word of mouth from one generation
to another body of instruction in ritual
and ceremonial to which the Indian pays re-
spect and compliance for its persisting vitality
and power in respect to his own OUTLOOK upon
life and its hereafter.
THE EVIDENCE FOR IMMORTALITY. BY
Don P, Halsey New York: The Macmillan
Co.
THIS title calls sharply to every reader. The
| word "evidence" in this connection pro-
vides the point of arrest Now evidence, to
the layman is something tangible convincing.
A concrete thing, in effect, to be handled.
weighed measured No wonder that such title
beckons. Moreover, the writer is lawyer. His
prime professional instrument is evidence,
sourced in its own principles, guided by its
own rules, supported by precedent backed oy
O vast body of authority.
The theologian af1rms the question by faith,
the philosopher by metaphysical reasoning, the
poet by imagination But here is the lawyer
who promises evidence. And then it turns
out to the layman's surprise, that probability
oFs sor@c
material proofs with which his mind Is
familiar.
This discussion, therefore, is summary Of
the wide and deep probabilities that the soul Is
immortal, and priori independence OF exper1-
ence 1t Is sourced, primarily, in mans power
TO achieve by virtue of an absorbing desire to-
ward certain ends 1t is this vital force OF &C
complishment that has urged man to an ever
ascending place in the scheme of life. And
no other preposseSsion of the human can COM
pare with that of continuing beyond the life
limit set by time. So upon this summary
of past pregressions and the passion of man
for immortality there is the probability of q
continuing spiritual personality, the probability
of Immortality. Ingenious as a theory and
with enough backing in fact to give pause to
ones thinking. Fresh in statement, vigorous
in seizure, tenacious and persistent in its hold
upon ones attention and interest
short time ago Andre Maurois wrote novel,
1.-THE Weigher of Souls" Here a scientist
sought to segregate the soul from the body, to
place it IN crucible for examination and the
test of weight, of ponderability Most interest
ing as invention and the adroit treatment that
Maurois would give. Yet he, like this writer,
leaves the subject In the air, so to speak, wait
ing mans growth from body into spirit, from
temporal existence to infinitely prolonged
term of spiritual personality.
THE CHINABERRY TREE: A Novel of Ameri-
can Life. BY Jessie Fauset, author Of
plum Bun" New York: Frederick A.
Stokes Co.
"A fITaIN thousands of American cities and
w towns there are, nowadays other cities
and towns made up of Negro populations.
Both races are engaged in much the same pur-