Evening star., 1938-09-25

ROBERT NEUMANN,
Author OF "A Woman Scream
ed." (Dial PresS)
education would have gotten around
over 1t in the course of centuries, if
for no other reason than that of its
physical limitations. But no-there is
always a new backward race cropping
up from the backWoods districts of the
benighted continent and, one sup
poses, the play will 60 on forever Or
until Africa decides to send mis-
sionaries to darkest Europe to teach
the natives there that freedom does
not lie in ideologies or peace in arma-
ment. Or other facts Of life, obvious
and elementary. In the meantime,
Austria laments and Americans can
well take warning from Herr Fris-
chauer's book. The effect of the eX-
ploitation of the peoples distress by
corrupt leaders is shown in it in an ex-
treme form, to be sure, but the lesson
is not the less vivid for the extremity
quite the contrary.
A WOMAN SCREAMED. BY Robert
Neumann. New York: The Dial
Press.
THIS excellent. wise and beautiful
novel has occasioned the reviewer
more delight than any work Of fiction
which she has read in long time.
However, she does not recommend 1t
madly to the general public; it is
book which many readers will merely
find puzzling. 1t is a satire on poll
tics-on revolutions. and leaders, and
liberators and great popular move
ments and ideals as ideals are in
terpreted into political action. 1t Is
devastatingly contemptuous of such
manifestations: it is a novel for cynics.
And it is written with humor and
tenderness and gentle pity for the
wretched humankind, and with un-
versatility which makes its story COM
mon to us all At the same time. it
tells superb tale. That it is work
Of genius should, by now, be obvious.
1t is the tale Of Kossuth, the Hun
garian patriot. and Of how he be-
trayed his helper, Rosa Sander, the
great bandit chieftain, who put his
wild horde of fighters at the "liber-
ator's" service and heroically cleared
the way for freedom"
Kossuth is shown to be q vague
sort Of fellow. gifted simply with a
magnificent tongue. THE only thing
he could do" says the book, was
to intoxicate the public. He went about
the country like tight-rope dancer
in a circus, thrilling the public with
his neck breaking feats." And the
public, not the least distressed by its
oppression" but bored and responsive
to oratory. listened to the Intoxicating
words and rose as man. A war
was so pleasantly exciting! One
among the lot got the idea that the
var was, somehow, to end injustice.
This was Rosa, the bandit, himself
driven into banditry by an injustice.
He enlists with his private army, and
much of the book tells Of his epic
feats in battle. Then the matter
flattens out, as is history, and Rosa
is left to receive the mockery.
It could be banal, Of course, but so
could anything. The point Is that this
is not banal 1t is astringently wise.
The author has seen all his characters
as puppets; he treats them as puppets,
too. He knocks them all about. But
Rosa is the puppet who briefly breaks
your heart. He has all the properties
of the hero, except one-he does not
win. He is brave as lion, generous,
faithful and lofty of SOUL But he
puts his faith in a demagogue. He
believes in the silver -tongued orator.
A simple man himself he reveres the
professional patriot-the liberator.
The reader sees this folly of his
from beginning to end of the story.
The author does not trouble to conceal
his puppet strings. But when Rosza
is finally flung aside, it is srievous
though it has been plainly indicated:
Such is the lively sure quality OF this
authors work.
But. as said. the reviewer does not
incontinently urge her readers to fall
upon the work. It is inf1nitely-im-
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS to Miss Esther
Forbes novel reviewed elsewhere on
this page, for example. but Miss
Forbes work will go to the best seller
class and "A Woman Screamed" will
not. To those who perceive what
might be back of the statement, the
book is recommended. Such readers
should enjoy it, There has not been
a better novel in a long time.
THE GENERALS LADY. BY Esther
Forbes. New York: Harcourt Brace
& Co.
THE accomplished author of last
L years best selling novel, Para
disc" has given us here another
romance of early New England. 1t
hardly has the proportions of q novel;
it is a single episode, effectively told.
It is the story of sin. its motivation
and its expiation. It could have been
a sultry, tragic romance; it has the
material for such q one. But Miss
Forbes has told it in a truly New
England vein and has watered her
tempestuous wine considerably. She
seems to have been so concerned for
local color" that she has hindered
the course Of her narrative to bring
localisms in. She introduces rustic
characters to comment on the action
of the principals, she relies great deal
on the conversation of servants and in
cidental folk to tell her story for her.
The result is gallery of what may
well be true early New England types"
and also a badly retarded narrative.
The story is of the guilty love of
Morganna Milroy (the generals LADY,
for young officer who has deserted
from Gen. Burgoyne's army and is
hiding both from British and Amer
ican authorities. He takes refuge in
the Milr0v home. the general IL ofY