Evening star., 1938-08-24
NEW BOOKS AT
RANDOM
By MARGARET GERMOND,

colossal serving of flctionized Civil War
history, the reading public might rea-
sonably have hoped to be excused from
taking a second helping The author
and publishers of this newest Offering,
however, evidently reverted to the rea-
soning attributed to the hayseed when
taking prescribed medicine. If one dose
was good for him double dose ought to
be even better
Just why Gone With the Wind"
Should have taken the country by storm
is one Of the mysteries of public taste
Tor which out of dozens of answers not
any one Is probably correct. Granted
that 1t Is good story, it is not 80 good
as number of others that failed to at
tract attention while 1t made its record
as a best seller. 1t assuredly is not
great piece of literature and its length
exceeded all normal limits in the field
OF fiction, yet it piled up an extraordi-
nary record of success
Along comes another such volume bid.
ding for the same popularity and the
chances are that it will very nearly
reach the mark at which 1t aims If so,
the reason will remain as shrouded in
mystery as that OF its forerunner. The
only circumstance that gives g. and
Tell OF Time" hue slightly different
from the scores of historic American
novels OF the latter nineteenth century
is that its locale Is in section of the
country that has not yet been over
written.
Texas is the scene depicted by Mrs.
krey, and while the action is basically
hinged on the War Between the States
the story marches westward with the
heart-sick and weary army Of the South,
dlsbanded and homeward bound In
Texas. as elsewhere. journeys end was
merely the beginning Of a new march, a
new struggle against heavy odds,
mighty effort to preserve what remained
OF a crumbled civilization and to erect
upon those precarious fragments struc-
ture OF noble proportions and impreg-
nable strength
In general terms Mrs Krey's por-
trayal of the days Of reconstruction in
Texas vary only slightly from versions
OF the same period in other sections of
the South. On the strictly historic side
1t Is unquestionably rooted in fact, for
many OF its recorded events. both dra-
matte and trivial. are not unlike those
which took place on more familiar
ground. But where history is super
SSoSN w ANeAOIl GllC oUOl odko ldIIleuL@
ably IN spots and grows wearisome
The saving grace Of the novel is that
it deals largely with the people of the
Brazos country, descendants Of the
pioneers from Louisiana, Georgia. Vir-
ginia and the Carolinas. Brazos Texan
is picturesquely described as a man
with the Chattahoochee and the James
and the Santee and the Mississippi and
nearly eVorv other CONthorn ri,,or r,,r
ming in his veins"
Gavin Darcy. who went back to the
Texas plantation after the war with a
Georgia bride, is the central figure OF
the novel. Lucina Lyttleton married for
happiness and made success of it, She
typifies the woman who knows. how to
share hardship as we'll as comfort, whose
loyalty never falters and whose faith
never weakens. Against these two are
dramatized the various types OF man
hood and womanhood that go to make
the job of living in this world an un-
ending series OF complications resulting
from all Of the passions and weaknesses
with which the human race Is abundant
ly supplied.
Old hatreds flame and new jealousies
and prejudices develop among the
various characters drawn by Mrs. Krey
to typify the assortment of citizens who
fought Texas to triumphant representa-
tive government after the war. II the
ups and downs of these lesser units in
the human equation fail to add anything
either new or important to present
knowledge OF the reconstruction years
they at least do not destroy any concepts
OF the idealism which drove the heroic
men and women of the South toward a
worthy goal.
THE FUTILE ALIBI. BY Freeman Wills
Crofts. New York: Dodd, Mead e.
Co.
Mark Crewe. wealthy young man
suddenly bereft of his worldly goods and
obliged to work for living. is offered
and accepts job as social secretary to
millionaire financier. and thereby
walks into hotbed OF family hatred.
Andrew Harrison, believed to be guilty
OF questionable business practices. is
hated by mis- wife and their two children
as heartily as he is by countless investors
and others who miStrust him. He Is am
bilious socially and Is as pleased with
the good fortune OF having young man
who knows all about society pave the
way for him as Mark Crewe is to have
the job.
Shortly after Mark is established in
the Harrison domain the f1nancier goes
to Paris on business, disappears on the
way home and three days later returns
to discount newspaper stories to the ef-
feet that he is missing. The affair
smacks of irregularity of some sort, but
Harrison sticks firmly to the story that
he was keeping an appointment with a
pair of inventors during the period of
mysterious absence.
Harrison stocks slump on the market
with news of his disappearance. rise
again with the news Of his return home
and business goes on as usual, but tur-
MOL continues to reign in the household.
A few weeks later the family moves to
Henley to occupy the luxurious house
boat designed by Harrison and unlike
anything that any one has ever seen
af1oat. Then one fine morning Harrison
is found dead in his cabin with all evi-
dence pointing to suicide.
The local police-a likable and eff
cient ompany-investigate an inquest is
held and the coroner's Jury finds that
Harrison took his own life. Harrison
stocks slump again and panic prevails in
the financial world. Certain things
about the death and the circumstances
attaching to it make the chief constable
bit doubtful. He asks for an investi-
cation by Scotland Yard and gets it.
Inspector French, fine, thorough going
and admirable member of the Scotland
Yard organization is assigned to the