The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-09-19

IN GODS LAND, by Martin An
dersOn Nexo, translated from
the Danish by Thomas Settler.
Peter Smith, Publishers. $3.50.
This novel, written by one of
the first proletarian authors of Eu-
rope (born 1869, Nexo's early life
was spent as a city proletarian; a
left Social Democrat, he rallied to
the support of Communism after
the Russian Revolution), deals with
the Danish peasantry during the
period of the imperialist war. With
splendid objective artistry Nexo
traces the development of these
people during this epoch of swift
social change.
The central character of the
story, Jens Vorup, stands for the
new farmer of the new generation.
Ebbe Fisker, his father-in-law,
typities the older generation of
peasants, who chung to the soil and
the old methods of life, who were
devout followers of Grundtvig, the
religious peasant leader of the
north, sort of Luther of the 10th
century, who initiated widespread
educational reforms for the peas
antry of Denmark.
Typical of Danish Peasantry
Jens represents the new bourgeois
farmer who is interested not in
tradition, but in new money crops.
Affected by the fall in the prices
of farm products before the war
and deprived of a share in the
profits which the capitalists Of
Denmark reap as neutral nation,
Jens becomes involved in middle
class agrarian protest movement
which resembles the earlier Granger
movement in this country. Jens
Cherished honest resent m n
against the clique in Copenhagen.
If they wouldn't let him share with
them in the good things of life,
then he was not against helping
to knock those good things out of
their hands" "But an opposition
movement that ultimately must
look for support from the lower
class was no good"-and Jens soon
abandoned the Defense League"
when opportunity enables him to
share in the war profits. He
launches into reckless speculation
and soon becomes a rural financier.
But he is caught in the economic
backwash which follows the war
and is stripped of wealth and social
position. Although Jens and his
father-in-law typify the Danish
peasantry, they possess the indi-
viduality of outstanding characters
in world literature. Valuable les
sons regarding the technique of
the social novel may be learned
from "In Gods Land"
Depletion of An Entire Society
AS a proletarian novelist, Nexo's
understanding of social life is not
confined to single class. 'In
Gods Land is an objective depic-
ton of an entire society, 1t deals
not only with the middle class farm
err, but with the poor peasants and
the farm laborer, the domestic SER
want and the proletariat. Thus
one listens to the rumblings of the
workers movement, which run like
an ominous undercurrent through
the novel.
Another character type in the
novel is old Ebbe's son, Niels, the
sincere radical intellectual. Schooled
in the religious Grundtvigian tradi-
ton, Niels is troubled with "ques-
tions at which the teachers baked"
He returns from school q skeptic
and a "freethinker." When the au-
thorities attempt to GUST him from
his teaching position for his athe-
ism, the Grundtvigians rally round
him. But when he begins expound-
ing Socialism-that is a different
thing. He is quickly expelled by
the same staunch defenders of re-
ligious freedom.
Niels agitates among the laborers
and takes IN a coura peous attitude