Evening star., 1933-12-06
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
MWgares Cermond.

MWgares Cermond.
MRS. HANEY. By Foxhan DANGER
field, author of THE Linden Walk
Tragedy" etc. Illustrated by Hor-
tense Ansorge. New York: william
Farquhar Payson.
There is something acutely pathetic
In the telling of this simple story of
his own short span of life experienced
the depths of illness and pain. His
understanding of the type which Mrs.
Haney represents was born of knowl-
edge, for he had spent much of his
time In those parts of the country
where life and comfort abide on the
right side Of the fence and misery and
mere existence on the other side.
Perhaps it is a blessing that there
is such large number of people in
the world whose only contact with pow
erty Is through a generous gift to char
ity. On the other hand, 1t may easily
be regarded as a pity that every hu-
man being has not at some time been
privileged to know one of the thousands
OF Mrs. Haneys who may be found in
every community and In the neighbor-
hood OF every country estate. If there
were Mis- Nan" for every Mrs. Haney
surely there would be less blindness
among the children in the mountain
regions, fewer crippled boys and girls in
the remote districts and a lower death
rate among the fathers and mothers.
who before they are forty years of age
have grown into old men and women.
Mr.. Daingerfield may not have in
tended to moralize on the obligation
OF the financially and socially secure
10 salvage the poor white family from
the morass In which it somehow thrives.
He was thoroughly familiar with the
utter utility OF the type and knew that
the task OF raising the level of existence
is almost hopeless. In ectual words
he does not moralize, nor does he make
direct appeal to those WHOSE lives
hold more of happiness. but no, anv
individual can read this deeply p,ovinp
story without acquiring a new sense
OF obligation to those whose pain
racked bodies somehow survive the
hardships and the cruelties of poverty.
Mrs. Haney lived on the wrong side
OF the stone fence. Her one acre of
barren land ran along the back fields
and marshes of the thousand acre es-
tate of Col. Armstead Carol. On the
brow OF the hill, from which she could
see young John Carol hunting duck
and snipe, stood the bleak and ricketv
snack which was Mrs. Haneys home
With its sagging door and rag-stuffed
windows. 1t presented the appearance
OF peing the counterpart of its mistress,
ior Mrs. Haney possessed a badly
twisted back and all of the erotesme
contortions of the body which accom-
pany that painful affiiction.
John Carols first knowledge of Mrs
Haney came when he was but six wears
OLD. Some parts of the conversation be-
tween his nurse and another servant
Wnne ne was playing on the edge of
the brook penetrated his small brain
ana remained there. He did not under
stand the disdain with which they men
toned dem Haneys." nor the remarks
about Big Idy," but the house on the
NIL and its occupants became imme-
diately a source Of mystery and awe.
Living on the right side of the stone
renee and not possessing a keenly ad-
Venturous nature, young John often
ponoereo over the unexplained queer
ness OF his neighbors, but it was not
until ne was grown lad of sixteen that
he became acquainted with Mrs. Hanev
Not until then did he learn that she
had twisted back, that she had a
drunken and worthless husband and
two sons of the same ilk, one club
footed daughter and several other chill
oren. She had also q sister, Big Idy
who had stolen her husband and to
whom all Of his meager earnings were
devoted
Again, when John was a little chan
he had accompanied his mother to q
| hospital with Christmas presents fol
the sick and crippled children. For
the remainder of his youthful days he
played hospital" with himself as the
physician healing the patients. He
never wavered from this passion in his
| choice of profession, and his friend.
ship for his crippled neighbor and hel
deformed child served to strengthen
his determination to become great
enough to correct their Affections.
Like Sherwood Anderson in his very
human short stories of the people O.
! the back country, Mr. Daingerfielc
presents reality. 1t is not all tragedy
for there is beauty and humor as vel
as pathos in this novel, which come.
after the passing Of its author There
Is nothing particularly new in the theme
of portraying the lives of the securel,
well-to-do against the lives of tn,
perennially poor. but in creating th'
character Of Mrs. Haney the writer oi
this stoFy has given finer and deeper
|
erty. suffering and endurance.
THE MASTER MURDER. BY Carolyr
Wells. Philadelphia: ]. B. Lippin
colt Co.
On an October evening in the ole
home Of the Everett family in New
York City, with few guests ans
friends present, the rightness or wrong
ness of the so-called mercy death
becomes the subject Of discussion. II
the circumstances 1t is not extraordi
nary that such q topic should develop
as Mrs. Everett, the mother of thre,
grown children, has been i'll for lont
time with an incurable disease accom-
panied by constant suffering.
1t is not unusual for those who stanc
by and see q loved one tormented b,
endless pain to hope within their heart.
come. But the approval OF mere,
death Is still not quite proper attitud,
on the part of those who will be tn,
survivors of the one thus placed ou
of misery. The Everetts are a strang,
lot, however, and it is not SURPRISING
to behold them sitting in the old hom,
talking about the eventual demise o
their mother. Two of the three chill
dren and several others present ap
prove Of the practice of death as al
act of mercy and one son and othe
friends disapprove most heartily.
| All three children, two of whom ar
married, will inherit some of tn,
Everett millions upon the death of thei
mother, and, being q rather avariciou
lot, they are somewhat impatient a
being denied the use of their wealth s,
long as their mother lives. So, afte
much discussion, they retire. Early il
the morning the nurse attending Mrs
Everett prepares to give her patien
the usual treatment at the usual tim,
and finds her dead. The event havinl
been expected at any momCrr for /
long time, the nurse determines not II
arouse the family, but to break tn,
news to them when they arise.
Upon entering the room of Daphne
to inform her Of her mothers death
the nurse finds the girl apparentl!