THE S'UNDAT OREGtmA?, PORTLAND, OCTOBER 15, 1923
3
Mnmmen in Mnftl. by Philip Curtiss.
The Century company. New York City.
While the energetic autumn is
scarcely the time for 'light reading
and readers are impelled to .deeper
stuff, it is a safe bet that "Mummers
in Mufti" will go very well and will
be talked about; not as the solution
of any of the great problems of the
age, but In an enterta'ning vein in
. keeping- with the mood of the book.
It is a most delightful story, easily
rpad, thoroughly entertaining and
full of a merry kind of humor that
is implied but not written.
Arnold Eelsmith is the heir and ,
sole survivor of an old family in
Leicester and lives alone in the
family mansion, new. surrounded by
office buildings and a veritable
landmark. He is afflicted with such
utter boredom that nothing on earth
interests him, until his nerve spe
cialist tells him his cure is impos
sible and he meets a young lady on
the threshold of the doctor's office.
The lady is Miss Tilly Marshall,
Koubrette in a visiting musical
comedy. The doctor provides seats,
for the show and a letter of intro
duct'on to Tully, and the conse
quence is that Belsmith lands in a
party one member of the troupe is
giving.
At the party Bellsmith takes as a
joke a telephone message that his
house is burning down and replies:
"Let her burn." The report came
from a newspaper office and Bell
smith Is written up for all he is
worth; the son of an old family is
styled young Nero, and out of the
turmoil Belsmith emerges the owner
of a, musical comedy company and
a play headed for the rocks.
lie knows nothing about the busi
ness and finds himself confronted
with all kinds of situations, but
somehow he pulls that show out
of trouble and reaches Boston
triumphant. Back of all his trials
runs the story of Bellsmith and
Tilly Marshall, and Tilly is a most
interesting character; unusual even
In these days when the unusual has
become the usual.
Philip Curtiss has a style all his
own. He handles his simple plot,
the hardest kind to handle, superbly,
and his realism is so strong that
one can smell the unforgettable odor
of "back - stage," the talcum pow
der of the chorus, and veritably
&ee the reconstructed operetta on its
triumphant night.
A World Worth While, by W. A. Rogers
Harper & Brothers, New York city.
Something about a year ago James
1. Ford gave lovers of autobiogra
phy a treat with his memoirs, "Forty
Odd Years - in the Literary Shop,"
and, while W. A. Rogers' record of
"Auld Acquaintance" may not re
ceive the widespread attention Mr.
Ford's book did. for merely "some
reason or other," the comparison is
very good, and those who like the
former will likewise like this.
v nau a. xii a ix uux xiik iiim xix. e Liiiity
enjoys associations which include
such figures as Theodore Roosevelt,
Mark Twain, Thomas B. Reed,
George William Curtis, Alexander
Graham Bell, Edwin A. Abbey and
many others of equal prominence, he
may well have something to write
about; then, if he writes with any
charm at all, the fascination of his
book is assured.
The Rogers cartoons are well re
membered; the latest have not been
so many years ago. One of his first
assignments as a cartoonist was to
the laboratory of William Graham
Bell and, during the 60 years which
have ensued, loosely speaking, W. A
Rogers has sketched far publica
tions satires or commendations ii
picture many of the important his
torical events, whether they took
place in New York or at the Lead
vitle strike or any place in be
tween. Naturally, in such a career the
rolling along of such a celebrity
would gather a i ich moss of ac
quaintanceship, and Rogers did.
Now he writes about it; writing his
tory illuminated by the personal
touch and further enhanced by
scenes in such place as Mouquln's
and newspaper offices when politics j
seemed the primary purpose of pub
lication and even a more strenuous
game than at present
The whole book is rich in memo
ries, full of choice tidbits that prob
ably have never seen the light of a
reading lamp before. It might have
been named "tame. Backstage,' but
"A World Worth Whlie" it is be
cause in that span which encom
passes Rogers actiities most of the
old machinery has passed away and
been supplanted by the modern stuff.
Rita Coventry, by Julian Street. Double
day, Pagre & Co.. Garden City, N. Y.
An easy way to classify novels is
to draw a dividing line between
those which concern people and
those which concern some particular
phase or phases of life. The latter
is, of course, preferable from the
intellectual standpoint, while the
Tanner is more lightly entertaining.
Julian Street's new book, "Rita Cov
entry," Just misses the first classifi
cation, and for the sole reason that
ha does, as usual, concern himself
more with his characters than with
their problem. All of which may
or may not be in accordance with
the accepted teachings.
Rita Coventry is a prima donna,
imported. Richard Parrish is a
comfortable sort if idle gentleman,
and Alice Meldrum is the girl he is
In love with. When Parrish and
Rita Coventry meet the very firm
foundation on which he and Alice
Meldrum stand is shaken badly. It
is the eternal triangle on a little
different basis and in a story far
more vital than these triangle
stories usually are.
Some books are full of sympathy
some of passion, some of other kinds
of trouble; this is largely emotional.
Julian Street is in the upper class of
light fiction writers and very near
to the top of that. "Rita Coventry"
is a tremendously good book, one
of Street's best. The story is
frought vith climaxes and impor
tant situations. The characters are
very much alive. Terhaps it is bet
tor that the story is written about
three strong individuals than about
the triangle they represent, for the
individuals are dist tnct and novel:
wl.He it would require an enormous
ai iount of originality to write a new
sto-y on the triangle, and even then
it would be futre and probablj bore
some. As it sta mis trte book pos-
ses neither of these qualities.
Spellbinder, by Margraret Cu kin Ban
ning. The ii-orse H. Derail company,
,Nw YorK City.
Now the time-honored question of
how much a wo:ran gains and loses
lifton her ent-y into politics is put
nto novel form and discussed with
some fluency and some wisdom, with
the outcome a so!ut;on of sorts, but
for all that a very narrow passage
in the breakers for the sh'p of matri
mony to sail out of the rough and
stormy sea intc tht quiet waters be
hind, the reef.
Helen Flandon is one woman in
the case. Her husband allows poli
tics, but objects to her entry .into
public office. She merely says that
she has done nothing besides being
A .f tvi s" "
mm
Philip Curtiss. vrlioae Vnmineri
in Mufti" is one of the good
lightly humorous books of the
season.
president and secretary to a few
clubs, kept house and taken care of
her babies and that she will not
consider herself complete until she
has taken an active part In the
affairs of the nation. She is suc
cessful, but it ruins her husband's
business and his fortune.
She has an able manager. Miss
Margaret Duffield, to urge her on,
and Miss Duffield's own love affairs
drive a very fine man to suicide, be
cause she will not marry him for
the reason that her feminist admir
ers will say that she Is just like
the rest. There is a coterie of
women, politicians in the Btory, of
different types and various vigor,
each having her own problem ac
cording to her deserts, and each
influencing the central characters.
It is Freda Thorstad, the daughter
of an utter feminist, who has the
right- ideas. She believes in mak
ing women stronger and - giving
them a better place and is as much
fn the political mind as any of the
more radical spellbinders, but she
declares that love and marriage
must always remain an adventure,
no matter how thoroughly they are
analyzed and .subordinated. She ad-!
vises patience and adjustment as
the remedy, with mutual co-opera-ticn
in the effort to keep the home
and enjoy freedom at the same time.
To prove it she adventures into
marriage that is so purely romance
that it seems wrong for such a gisl
as Freda; the f limsfest sort of a
marriage, but she wins in the end
because of her clear vision and
comprehension of the problem which
most of the other characters make
a failure of.
There is a definite story running
through the book, which is' never
subordinated to the motive, and it
holds the interest. Freda is the
central figure and around her re
volve all the others. While "Spell
binders" cannot be said to surpass
or. even equal other important novels
of the season, it janks with them
and, because of its theme, it will be
widely read.
The Captive Herd, by G. Murray AtRin
The Thomas Y. Crowell company. New
York city.
There is no denying the clever
ness, the directness- and the beauty
of Miss Atkin's new book, but she
cannot help, but give the impression
of being a deep thinker of the silent
kind, too profound for easy utter
ance of her thoughts. There is a
certain halting quality In both her
sentences and her chapters, an
abruptness which would indicate
profundity of thought rather than
facility of pen. .
Her chapters stand out as indl
vMtial things Hkft telephone poles
In a line, connected by the wires,
w hich are the foremost characters
and twisted around little
glass
knobs, which play the part of cir
cumstances. And the plot, the whole
book, is as simple and direct as the
telephone line. Its idea is strong
and fundamental.
Vacla Melfort is a youth consumed
with one ambition, the accumulation
of wealth; an ambition that is dis
torted into a passion with which he
tries to smother out all other pas
sions and desires. While he is
striving to amass wealth he even
tries to shut out his growing love
for Natalie, a love that budded nat
urally at first sight of her. When
fails the idea that wealth is all there
Is to lie for, love fills the the vo'd
r.nd makes the life of discontent
complete.
There is woven Into the substance
of the book, unfortunately, a subtle
hint of propaganda against the Jews
and the Japanese. It strengthens
the plot, but to the unprejudiced it
may impart a bitter taste.
Love and Frndhip. by Jane Austen.
(An unpublished collection of manu
scripts written At the ag of 37 years,
with a preface by G. K. Chesterton.)
The Frederick A. Stokes Company,
New York city.
It would be interesting but not
essential to examine into the view
point which Jane Austen possessed
mt th tender aee of 17 years. Such
an examination is not needed for
enjoyment of the book or to make
us love Jane more, anq air. tnesier
ton has provided sufficient analysis
in his splendid preface. Whether she
wrote the fresh humor into her let
ters unconscious of it in the natural
naivete of a child oi 17 years, or
whether from a remarkable, pre
cocity, is something for psycholo
gists to worry about. The latter
case is probably correct, for no
matter how naive and natural her
observations for a child of 17 years,
it would scarcely encompass such
a perfect sense of burlesque, and
hat Is-what at least the first part
cf the book is. It is besides a novel
told in a series of letters. In addi
tion there are "Lesley Castle," an
unifinished novel in letters; The
History of England." from the reign
of Henry the 4th to the death of
Charles 1st, by a partial, prejudiced
and ignorant historian; a collection
-:.f letters and a number of delicious
scraps.
The necessary brevity oi mis re-
vie at precludes the possibility of do
ing the book justice, a new volume
of Jane Austen's writ;na:s is an
event in literary history, regardless
.,t :ti? content, but this one would be
famous written by any author. The
review will be coniinea 10 remarKS
on "Love and Friendship." since
thai part is most representative of
the whole and contains nearly every
phase of observation and thought
that the others do.
J'oor comparisons are both Daisy
Ashworth s book and George Chap
T'ell's recent "Rollo in Society." but
that is the kind of stuff "Love and
Friendship" is made of; only imagine
a child who would in the present
day be in a high school, voicing re
bellion and writing satire on the
scheme of things as it was in 1790.
Naive or precocious, when Jane Aus-1
ten was first getting the writing
itch, she saw the fallacies in things
as they were, and it may be that this
collection was hidden away because
she lacked the courage to show it.
Had she known it, it probably would
have been burned by some hard and
fast conventionalist.
For instance this scene, a straight
burlesque on 18th century lovers;
"Never did I see such an affecting
fccene as was the meeting of Ed
ward and Augustus.
"My Life! my Soul!" (exclaimed
ihe former) "My adorable angel!"
plied the latter) as they flew
into each other's arms. It was too
pathetic for the feelings of Sophia
and myself we fainted alternately
cn a sofa,"
And a few pages further on, when
two tender young wives are nursing
Lheir wounded sensibilities in a
grove:
"?rom this Dilemma I was most
fortunately relieved by an accident
truly apropos; it was the lucky
overturning of a Gentleman's Phae
ton, on the road which ran mur
muring behind us. It was a most
foitunate accident as it diverted the
attention of Sophia from melancholy
reflections which she had been be
fore indulging."
Philosophizing to each other as
they dashed to the rescue they saw
"Two gentlemen most elegantly at
tired but weltering in their blood.
, . . We approached they were
Edward and Augustus . Yes dear
est Marianne they were our Hus
bands. Sophia shrieked and fainted
on the ground I screamed and in
stantly ran mad . We remained
thus mutually deprived of our
senses, some minutes, and on re
raining them were deprived of them
again. For an hcur and a quarter
did we continue in this unfortunate
situation Sophia fainting every mo
ment and I running mad as often.
These skits are fairly illustrative
of the whole delicious thing; perhaps
Jane Austen was driving at one
thing, a thing still prevalent today
and common ever" since Jane Aus
ten's time and even before, i. e.,
possession of the finest sensibilities
declared by word and then imme
diately denied by action.
Stubble, by Georgo Looms. Doubleday,
J-'affa & uo., uarden i;i i y, . J.
It is as interesting to peruse the
first book of a new author as it is
to watch any kind of raw material
made into finished product, and the
first attempt is always carefully
watched and scrupulously criticised.
Ii. this book George Looms has not
come off unscathed, but his colors
are still flying and he is to be reck
oned -with.
Mr. Looms has a mind fijll of
originality- and is. cle-r at two
kinds of writing, character depic
tion and description. However, hav
ing made his characters and per
fected them and put them in the
right place, he doesn't know any
too well just what to- do with them.
The story is of the south Louis
ville tov be -exact, and there are two
persons of primary importance
Joe Harper, a country boy, left un
certain and up in the air after the
war, and Mary Louise McCallum,
who, without the war experience,
is obsessed in the same way with
the futility of things. Joe Harper
doesn't see how his job gets him
anywhere, and Mary Louise tries to
dc useful and not an economic loss
and gets about as far as Joe, to a
place where she can see the light
but not quite really there. Mr. Looms
even leaves some doubt as to wheth
er she- and Joe will actually make
the grade, but this impression and
the whole book is very impression
istic, is largely because both have
been living with such a lack -of
.definite purpose.
Stubble can
be called a me
diocre novel of the better sort,
meaning that it discusses real
things but solves no problems.
On Tiptoe, by Stewart Edward White.
The G-s-orge H. Boran Company, Xew
York city.
It might as well be said right at
the start that most faithful read-
of Stewart Edward White's
books will be disappointed with "On
Tiptoe." It is not up to his usual
standards and. compared with "The
tJray Dawn," it scarcely seems pos
sible that both can be by the same
author. Mr. White has evidently
fallen prey to a common error of
master plotters of light fiction. His
proven ability to construct an en
chanting story around a simple plot
has caused him to adopt a plot so
simple that it is not water-tight,
and the story around it approaches
close to the fantastical.
The story concerns a very rteh
man, his daughter and a couple of
under dogs, who in a high-powered
motor car attempt a trip into, the
backwoods of California, where they
are caught in a terrific storm be
cause of a breakdown and are saved
by the timely arrival of a young
man in a homemade flivver.
The flivver is an electrically
driven contraption with a battery
Invented by its owner that has run
1100 miles on one charging. The
vry rich man attempts to get the
invention and there is some strife
in the attempt. Fortunately, the
magic automobile is driven off a
b.idge in an attempt to Becure it
and completely disappears. The in-1
ver.tor and the rich man's daughter,;
cf course, get married.
Mr. White does know the country
of which he writes, and his descrip
tions are accurate and wonderful,
v. hich saves the book to some ex
tent. Altogether there is left an
impression of "On Tiptoe' having i
been written in a hurry. !
One "World at Time, by M.irgffrct Fuller.
The Century Comi-nyv .w York City.
This is the third of three books
reviewed on . this page recently
which have no relation to each other
whatsoever, but which have much
the same quality of gentle and
whimsical beauty running through
them. They are "Abbe Pierre. "A
Vagrant Tune" and "One World at
a Time." The three sources of this
beauty are unique when compared.
The first is the reflections of Abbe
Pierre, a retired priest living In a
Gascon village, the second concerns
rather intimately a gpinster of 68
years, and in the one reviewed here
a child ifurnishes the vision of the
story. One would not dare suggest
that the three thought along the
same line, but certainly they pick
out the beauty of things in some
thing akin to similarity.
Margaret Fuller's book has per
haps a more poignant beauty with
a closer approach to the realistic
than the other two., but then a
cfi.id's impressions are more poig
nar.t and real tan those mellowed
by years.
It is a story of the south just
after the civil war. when conjurers
and medicine men provided - the
chief brand of entertainment for
small eea coast villages, when peo
ple were very poor and interesting
and society was just regaining some
momentum-. It concerns nothing
very definite, but just what an in
telligent girl would see and com
ment on, although she does see a
love story of exquisite flavor. Twc
sentences indicate its quality; "1
had never seen any sight so fairy
like. Flowerbells for earrings hung
from her ears. A weath of smllax I ,ar work; to the types of light
fringed her face with shadow. ; houses; to the various styles of
And she was gazing down on him ' lights, and also to elaborate sys
with a frown so lovely, so feigned terns employed by the government
tremulous in insecurity." ! in safeguarding ships along the 4S,-
As to the characterization, and it 000 miles of coast which have to be
nd the descriptions are gems, this
is one example: "He must have been
a trial to my aunt. too. She was
birdlike she was so neat and pret
ty, and she came and went like a
bird into a birdhouse, bringing flow
ers instead of straws." The uncle
that was such a trial was so absent
minded that he would keep running
a pen through his hair until it was
wet with ink and "knock over the
ink bottle in his abstraction, and
with absent-minded nicety sop up
the ink with his handkerchief, thrust
the handkerchief into his pocket,
and, still talking to his friends, dry
off his hands on his pantaloons."
This description is an unfair quo
tation, as the uncle was quite a
wonderful man and wonderfully
kind and understanding where his
niece entered into it.
The book will be widely read by
th. discriminative,
Viola Gwyn, by George Barr McCutcheon.
uoaa. Mead A Co., New York city.
After several - brilliant novels in
the characteristic vein of George
Barr McCutcheon, it is both a sur
prise and a relief to find that this
jatett one is different, at least in
place and time, and that, 'although
Air. McCutcheon has not deserted en
tirely his accepted scheme of writ
ing, he has woven something new
into "Viola Gwyn.
The story starts in the year 1S12
end, instead of a metropolitan ro
mance, either domestic or foreign,
the scene is laid first in Kentucky
and then around the fast-growing
town of Lafayette, Ind., and the
author deserves a great deal of
credit for the skill with which he
has drawn a picture of life in that
age and of the middlewest in its
formulative era.
So far as the characters are con
cerned they are George Barr Mc
Cutcheon characters pure and simple,
especially the hero and the lady fair.
The sheriff, "Jude" Billings, is
rather unique in his enforcement of
laws according to good, sound jus
tice rather than according to stat
ments, which he knows nothing
about. The trial following the mur
der of the horse thief's daughter is
one of the . brightest spots of the
book. The picture of the typical
Mississippi valley gambler as he
flourished in his day is very real,
and some of the other persons which
figure in this story of almost fron
tier !ie are decidedly unique.
While the plot is not especially
strong ,or probable, the story is in
teresting, as, all of George, Barr Mc
Cutcheon's stories are, and he has
drawn a very fine picture of the
arly life in the middle west.
Cretin Year Xame In Print, by H. S. Mc-
Cauley. Funk & W agnails. New York
City.
A ray of hope that Mr. McCauley
had filled an exact need in provid
ing an 'explanation for the public
as to how newspapers are run and
why names. get into print and why
they do not, was short-lK'ed. There
is a great need for just such a book
but this one will fill it only par
tially.
Mr. McCauley attempts and to
some extent does outline the rules
which govern the value "of news. He
takes the angle of the publicity
agent and goes carefully into de
tails regarding the best methods
of obtaining publicity. He outlines
what newspapers want; writes
good chapter on ethics of journal
ism, a poor one on how to treat
reporters and gives directions on
avoiding misquotations. This last
Is valuable information for any per
son much, in public print
But newspapers are more or less
personal, in the sense that no two
are ever alike and require .a dif
ferent sort of approach by pub
licity seekers in every case. While
the technique Mr. McCauley recom
mendsis geneal it will not always
fit the case. The book, however,
is valuable in an elementary way,
and the biggest difficulty will be
experienced in comprehending it and
following its directions intelligent
ly. Letters to a PJinn, by Grace Zaring
Stone. The Ceatury Company, . New
York city.
There are several flavors that
add to any book in this collection
of intimate letters, and the great
est of these is adventure. A young
American girl, visiting in Australia
sets forth for Singapore on a ven
ture that is almost a foot's errand,
to bring back to Australia a sick
woman. Upon her arrival in Sing
apore she finds the woman dead and
herself at the mercy of rather a
scamp of a husband.
From there her adventures touch
at Malaya, Ceylon, New Zealand
and Tahiti, and the descriptions of
Hie at each place are excellently
done. Through the whole story,
which is told in letter form, a vry
decent little love story crops out
and ends, of course, triumphantly.
The recipient of the letters is a
woman in New York, who is made
a kind of djinn and appears magi
cally before the writer whenever
the latter is in any kind of trouble.
The intimacy gained by the letter
style of story is there in its fullest
form, and Mrs. Stone writes with
an exceedingly sprightly pen. There
are some few flaws, such as certain
effusiveness in spots, not quUe com
patible with novel form, but which
!o not stand out so plainly in let
ters, and can be attributed to the
effect gained In letters.
The Second Flowering, by Samuel Gor
don. The Macaulay company. New
York: City.
Although the Enoch Arden idea
has been used a great deal in fic
tion, it cannot be denied that Mr.
Gorden has woven it into a book
of much charm and considerable
force. Of course, the idea is not the
prime one in the story, but it does
furnish the situation out which the
second flowering comes.
Briefly, the story concerns the
discovery that Hillary Balcombe's
wife has married him to spite an
other man of none too fine char
acter. He goes away, leaving his
wife to Indulge her renewed passion
for this man, and also his daughter
to grow up as she pleases. The out
come concerns mostly the daughter,
although Balcombe finishes a real
romance of his own with his wife's
very worth-while sister.
The characters are most ably de
picted, especially Grandcourt. the
man who causes all the trouble. He
is a villain if there ever was one.
The theme is handled to a nicety,
and Mr. Gordon's style is fairly in
teresting. For anyone who wants
good, straight reading, with excite
ment and suspense and sympathy
and no particular motive for thought,
the book can- be conscientiously
recommended.
Sentinels Along Oar Cot. by Francis
A. CoillnsL The Century Company. New
York city.
Those who believe that the United
States lighthouse service is pro
saic and those who have never coir
tidered it because it does not scund
particularly interesting on the sur
fact of things wilH
surpr'sed j
most mightily at the tnruiing ac
count that Mr. Collins has provided.
It is not a storr. but a very full
review of this branch of govern
ment work, which is the biggest of
its kind in the world.
The book is very complete. It de
votes space to the adventures of "the
keepers encountered in their regu-
provided with signals, lights and
tuoys.
The volume is replete with pho
tographic illustrations of all kinds
and the account Is written in a very
readable style.
The Van Roon, by J. C. Snaith. By D
Appleion & Co., New York City.
Novels woven around lost paint
ings by masters always make good
reading, providing, of course, they
are up to style in writing and put
together with some degree of skilL
J. C. Snaith has fulfilled these quali
fications and the result, therefore, is
an entertaining book with some
better than av-rage characters. It
all centers around the Van Roon pic
ture which William, the clerk in the
antique shop, happens to buy for
five shillings.
William and June play the heroic
parts and hold the sympathy, while
S. 7edge, antiques, who is William's
-employer, June's uncle and a misei
of unbelievable miserliness, Is the
keynote of the counterpart, William
buys the old picture in the faint
belief that it.amounts to something.
After it is cleaned and is discovered
to be the lost Van Roon, for which
search has been conducted for 25
years, the picture is stolen and re
covered and is the object -of red
hot pursuits and escapes extending
all through the book. The last
touches are particularly lively and
prove that Smith can handle a plot
and a fist full of details with re
markable skilL It is not his best
book, but it Is one which holds the
attention and provides Its value in
entertainment.
the Mountain School Teacher, by Mel
. viile Davisson Post, I. Apploton &
Co., New York City.
This is one of the most vivd and
most beautiful books of the year.
It cannot be compared with other
books except in beauty, because its
inspiration is so widely different.
The mountain school teacher enters
a Kentucky village, made up of va
rious kinds of people, and he reacts
upon them in different ways. By
some of these he is respected and
loved, and others despise and hate
him.
The publishers claim that he is
a Christ -like figure, which is rather
stretching a point, but he is un
doubtedly a great and true disciple;
and the book is almost an allegory,
in its simplicity and appeal.
Life in those Kentucky mountains
is made very real, in keeping as U
Is with the simple writing and di
rectness. The school teacher in a
shepherd in the truest sense and his
disastrous end makes complete the
story. He Is tried on faked charges,
trumped up by his enemies and ex
pelled from the village.
The Whelps of the Wolf, by George
Marsh. The Penn Publishing Company,
Philadelphia, Pa.
It fs evident that George Marsh
has lived in and knows intimately
the country In which his story takes
place, the land of the Cree Indians
along Hudson bay and nprth to the
.farthest trading post 'to where the
Esqulmox come south for their sup
plies. He has wirtten a stirring
tale, fnll of. keen adventure, hard
ship and the spirit of the north, and
with a plot that is firm and grip
ping. The story concerns a trip, north
to this farthest trading post with
exciting experiences in the hands
of Indians. Wolves are not the
least of the troubles encountered
and the far north is both friend
and enemy. There is sufficient ro
mance and a good love story wound
up in the plot, which is well-handled.
The whole book is very real
istic, and classified as light fiction.
Its merit cannot be questioned.
NEW BOOKS RECEIVED.
Non-Fiction.
Lincoln's Last Day, by Jhn W. Stanr Jr.
The Frederick A. Stokes Company. yw
York city. Some very common stories
are contradicted and a good bit of new
detail ts presented. In form the book
is a brief essay.
Education In a Democracy, by Dallas
Lore - Sharp. The Hougton Mifflin
Contpany, Boston, Mass. Upholding
the public schools as a national insti
tution. The Development of the Federal Reserve
Policy, by Harold L. Reed. The Hough
ton Mifflin Company, Boston, MaF. An
explanation, analysis and critfetsm, to
gether with the history of the federal
reserve system.
The Up-to-Date Waitress, by Janet M.
Hill. Little, Brown & Co., Boston,
Mass. A complete Instruction book for
domestic and commercial waitresses,
with recipes, forms of service and
. kitchen and pantry care.
The Family Physician, edited by Albert
Warren Ferris. A. M. , M. D., and by 19
TROUBLE WITH CALENDAR
STARTED BY JULIUS CAESAR
Effort Being Made for Adoption by All Nations of 13 Months Year
With International Holiday Added.
TTTASHIN'GTOX, D. C Oct. 14. I
W Julius Caesfer, by his unsci
entific Juggling of the calen
dar, has caused unnecessary confu
sion for centuries, say members of
the International Fixed Calendar
leugue. who advocate- ths adoption
ot a 13-month yeaT with each montn
containing 28 days and an Interna
tional holiday added each year to
make up the 365 days of the solar
calendar.
There Is really no reason why the
calendar should be so broken up,
league members say. In the days
of the ancient Egyptians, who orig
inated the calendar, working with
the shadows of the pyramids and
obelisks, the calendar was ar
ranged with 13 month of equal
ler.eth. with a five days' festival at
the end of the year to square things
up with the sun. The reason for the
pyramids and obelisks was their use
in astronomy and calendar making,
it is saJd.
Julius Caesar Makes Change.
In 46 B. C. Julius Caesar, dissat
isfied with tha moon-chasing calen
dar of his day. adopted the Egyp
tian system with modifications.
Thi Romans were superstitious
about odd numbers, so Julius start
en to do with the calendar as he
had done with the world, and when1
he was through the equal-length
mr i:ths were all broken up. the five
day festival was eliminated and the
months were arranged ,alternately.
with 30 and 31 days.
So pleased was the Roman senate
with Caesar's work it immediately
named the seventh month in his cal
endar in his honor, and the system
is known as the Julian calendar.
That worked for a while until one
o Caesar's successors. Augustus by
name, changed his forebears work
in B. C. 28. and when his heavy
hand was through the calendar re
sulted in its present state: tne oaa
and tven-numbered months
chpned around and arbitrarily
fixed, February was given a little
n.ore liberty than the other months,
and the baif years were set on un
equal bases the first half getting
onl; 181 days and the second 184.
The Roman senate retaliated ' by
changing the name of the- eighth
mccth to honor Augustus, as that
different physician oa different sttb- I
Jects, Gorge Sully Sc Co.. New Tor ,
city. The treatment of alt illnesses od '
injuries; a series of 19 papers.
Tbe Reign of Rubber, by William C. !
Geer. The Century Company. New
York city. A history of rubber from
th time of it discovery to the pres
ent, with explanations of Its uea and
the processes by which it is prepared.
New Fiction.
Tbe Last Mile, by Frnk A. McAllister.
Doubleday, Page St Co.. Garden "iity.
New York. Another novel on the re
adjustments' and problems of the re
turned soldier: better than tbe average
and the author's first attempt.
Assorted Chocolates, by Octavu Roy
Cohen. Dodd. Mead A Co.. New York
city. A compilation of Mr. Cohen's
humorous mafasina stories about ne
groes. The Green Goddess, by Louise Jordan
Ml!n. The Frederick A. Stokes Com
pany, New York city. An adventure
story concerning three English trav
elers amongst pagans In the Himalaya.
Short Stories by Present Day Authors,
edited by Raymond Woodbury pence.
. The ilaeMfllan Company, New York
city. A compilation for the purpose of
pointing out tbe different types of
short stories.
The Amazing Inheritance, by Frances R.
feterrett.. 3D. Apple ton & Co.. Ne
York city. Tessie, a department store
clerk. Is willed a South Sea kingdom
by an uncle and baa a Jolly little time
with it.
Witch Doctor, by Charles Beadle. Tbe
Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston
Mass. A story of th superstitions.
dark deeds and savagery of the Jungle.
or. the adventure type.
The Cat's Paw. by Natalie Sumner
Lincoln. D. Appleton A Co., New York
city. A mystery story.
Tales of Chinatown, by Sax Rohmer,
Doubleday, Page A Co.. Garden City,
N. Y. Scarcely fiction since the stories
are drawn from actual happenings,
but with a master pen that puts them
In the adventure class. Very good.
A Knight Among Ladies, by J. E. Buck
rose. The George H. Doran Company,
New York city. Sir Francis Is an eli
gible bachelor and la besieged in the
new village he moves into. He finally
auccumbs to a romance developed over
a garden fence.
P.lchard, by Margaret Bryant. Duffield
Co., New York city. A splendid piece
of charactorlxatlon In an ingenious
story, the whole revolving about one
particular incident in an Interesting
manner.
Hirondelle. by Henry C. Rowland.
Harper & Brothers, New York city. A
tale of picturesque America In the
1800'. as good and probably better
than any of Mr. Rowland a several fine
books. v
In Jeopardy, by Van Tassel Sutphen.
Harper & Brothers, New York city.
good story concerning a sinister evil
which lurks over a haunted and to
herited bouse.
Cryder of the Big Woods, by George Gr
Shedd. Doubleday, Page at Co., Garden
City, N. Y. A story of a great lumber
corporation and its struggle rrtth
mountaineers who refuse to sell their
land for a song; the scene la in the
northwest. . w
Polly the Pagan, by Isabel L. Ander
son. The Page Company, Boston,
Mass. A vivacious series of letters be
tween a rather frivolous American girl
coin the capitals Of Europe and
you-ig American man at home; a good
and JWely picture of the gayer life io
tne European centers. ,
Book for Juveniles.
Rosemary,- by Josephine Lawrence. The
Cupples & Leon Company, New York
city. For older girls; a veritable
"Little Women" modernised, -interest
ing instory form and highly useful In
the lessons it provides In sugar-coated
plli laAmon.
Nobady's Girl (En Famille). by Hector
Ma lot, translated from the French by
" Florence Crewe-Jones. The Cupples, A
Leon Company, New York city. One of
the best stories for children ever writ
ten; about a little girl who shows her
splendid ideals through many distress-
Love Me, Love My Dog. by Carolyn
Verhoeff. The Page Company, Boston,
Mass. A story of the south for chil
dren from 10 to 14 years of age
Our Little Feudal Cousin of Long Ago,
by Laura E. Richards.. The Page Com
pany, Boston, Mass. Being the atory
of the little master, Alan 6f Morven, a
boy of Scotland in the time ef Robert
the second.
Little Glad Heart, by Linda Stevens
Almond. The Page Company. Boston,
Mass. A story showing the advantages
of a iiunny disposition In children by
comparison between on so disposed
and one who has been spoiled by as
sociations. , -
Judy of York Hill, by Ethel Hume. The
Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston,
Mass. A story about boarding sebcol
girls In their middle. teens.
Peggy Raymond's) Way. by Harriet Lum
mls Smith. The Page- Company, Bos
ton, Mass. Another addition to the
Peggy Raymond series. .
The Mystery at Number Six. by Augusta
Hulell Seaman. The Century Company,
New Yosk city. A combination of ad
venture and mystery taking place In
the phosphate mining regions . o.'
Florida. .
The Pussycat Princess, by Edward An
thony; illustrated by Harry Whittier
Frees. A delightful fairy tale of a
fascinating kitten on an a venturous
lark; to be read to little children.
Kid Kartoons, by Gene Carr. The Cen
tury Company, New York city. One
hundred of the Metropolitan movie pic
tures by Gene Carr; will bring strife In
the family because the old folks will
probably want to see It first.
was his birth month, as July was
Julius'.
"Constantine the Great." says s
league publication, "conferred the
ever-welcome Sabbath rest each
seventh- day on Europeans, but the
unequal lengths ot 28 and 31-day
months imposed by Julius and Au
gustus have since forced the Con
stantine weeks yearly to slice
months into different weeks, and at
mrnth ends almost split weeks Into
parts. Incessantly but ' needlessly
confusing weeks and months."
In 1582 another change was made,
when Pope Gregory XIII found Ju
lius had been wrong in his arith
metic and made an error In com
puting leap years, and that as a re
sul ten extra days had ' piled up
from somewhere in the meanwhile.
Thr sun and the earth, according
to that time table.' were not travel
ing on the same schedule. So Gre
gory did what many other people
have often wished they could do
he dug out ten days from one month
October of that year and threw
thtm into the discard. In order to
readjust the 21st of March to the
equinox and the rest of the calendar
to the seasons.
Since then we have been traveling
ui.oer me uregorian calendar. In
consequence, the league complains.
Gregory moved the Christian year's
end (which ever since the establish
ment of the Christian era had-been
celebrated at Christmas) from
Christmas o January 1 one week
farther away from "natures year's
enrt. December 23". r?t..-ia ...a
Greece alone did not comply with
mar, edict, and continue as of old.
International Conference Called.
After several national and Inter
national conferences during 1922 ot
those interested In the new move
ment, a final international confer
ence was planned to be held some
time during the coming year. It
will be held here at the president's
call. Many representatives of world
nations will attend to discuss a pro
gramme, which includes:
Location of the "year day." re
moval of "leap day" to be a midsum
mer's holiday, the best arrangement
to fit the present 52 yearly weeks
into permanent months, a name for
the proposed month "Sol," the best
permanent date for Easter, the best
date on which to begin the "yearal"
or equal-month year (tentatively set
I THE LITERARY PERISCOPE I
BY JENXETTB KENNEDY.
AOTiatant la th. Circulation Department
Public Library.
J VST th
ronnei
theate
VST the name of John Drew In
ection with book of the
r appeals to the Imagina
tion of the playgoers cf several
generations and a book of his Ufa on
the stage la fore-ordained to contain
much rich material. From his ver
satility in interpretation of stage
roles, one also expects that he could
not write a dull book. Therefore,
when his autobiography. "My Years
on the Stage," appears, his wide
audience will look for a book of
uncommon flavor from the man as
sociated In his time with Kdwln
Booth. Maude Adams, and Kanny
T'avenport In leading parts, as well
as being Daly's leading man for
years. w
The author of "Invincible Minnie
and "Rosaleen Among the Artists"
has produced a new novel. The Ln
llt Lamp." which has absorbing qual
ities if the advance notices are an
indication, for Elizabeth Sanxay
Holding's latest volume.
.
When Elsa Barker's "Letter From
a Living Dead Man," appeared more
tnan half a doxen years ago. both
the title and content of the book
aroused a sort of breathless Interest
in readers attracted by
l&tlons; how the aut
by psychic rev-
thor of that
work is writing a novel "Fielding
Stxrgent." which presents the gist
cf psycho-analysis in story form.
It has been estimated that the
number of combinations rn a pack"
of 52 cards is half a million million.
This statement In the Saturday He
view is made by a card expert who
e.lso Is In sympathy with the whims or
superstitions which many players
hold about cards, namely, that they
are subject to "tempers" like people,
tus accounting for the freak hands
sometimes encountered; that only
certaa color combinations are very
lucky (blue' and pink being con
sidered the classic shades); others
maintaining a prejudice for "win
ning seats." "good card-holders. or
''bad card-holders, or "lucky part
ners.' It Is interesting to learn that Hon-
ore Willsie who writes so many
novais of "the west, of the mines,
deserts, mountains and forests, has
lived in Intimate contact with the
types and scenes she presents In
such stories as "Heart of the De
sert,", "Enchanted Canyon," "Lydia
o; the Pines," "Still Jim" and others.
Soon after her college days she
n.arrted a consulting engineer whose
work led him Into the desert region
of Arlxona for a couple of years.
Since then their time has been d.
vided between New York and the
c.:tlyihg districts of the great west.
That Rostand's play "The Woman
kf Samaria." has occupied the French
stage every Holy Thursday for the
past 20 years. Is noteworthy In view
of the fact that the play has never
bten translated Into English until
Mrs. Norman's recent translation in
poetic form.
A 1 -year-old girl who wrote some
amusing articles for the Manchester
Guardian. on "How Parents and Chil
dren Can Improve." gives some
illuminating suggestions on be
havior: "Be clean and decent at
meals, say 'please' and thank you'
often, and never stretch unless your
father is absent-minded. Don't lean
at 1S28), and to "draft recommenda
tions concerning the above into
legislative form for adoption by all
nations, and remit that standard bill
to their respective governments to
Insert their national holidays there
in, and together make it law for
their respective nations.'
Benefits la Cfcaage Outlines.
Interested In the movement, ac
cording to the league, are: Inter
national chambers of commerce. In'
ternatlonal conferences of European
calendar advocates, the Intern
tional Astronomio union, Interns
tlinal Roman Catholic churches
(through the Vatican). The govern
ment of Canada, the Royal society
of Canada and the International
ci inference of United States snd
Canadian calendar associations have
all unanimously indorsed the "in-
ttrnatlonai 'fixed-calendar plan" as
tne Dest thus far devised to remedy
the defects In existing calendars.
Practically. It Is said, the revised
calendar would aid In agriculture In
preventing crop failures by plant-
n at incorrect times becsuse the
calendar calls for it. It wduld be
of value to labor and capital alike.
t is claimed, and would aid Industry
generally- It would equalize dating
systems throurhout the world, and.
finally, the 2S-day month would
free about per cent of monthly
money now held for 0 and 11 days.
SOME GOVERNORS GABBY
Idaho Kxecutives Charged Wltb
Living Too Much In Pullmans.
Idaho Statesman.
Governor Haines never learned to
make a speech, so he kept on ths
Job and gave Idaho ths best admin
istration she ever had.
Along came "Mom," stung by the
gab bug. going hither and yon to
orate. No place was too small, no
place too far for him. If Its people
would only listen to ons of his
speeches. Ha was a- regular Wan
dering Gov.
Then cams our present governor.
He found, something to his surprise,
that he, too, could make a speech
and away hs went; wherefore, Al
exander ts now saying that the
present administration has been
conducted from a Pullman car.
It. is wonderful how soon that
man can forget!
Now Governor Davis has been on
the move a lot, though he has dons
some things for Idaho that really
did call him away from ths state
house. But the transportation
vouchers in the auditor's office at
the stats house suggest that Alex
ander as governor passed sbout 200
days in Pirllman cars. t No wonder
the democratic platform denounces
the practice.
Charlejr Moore, the republican
candidate, cannot , make a speech,
and hs promises not to make any at
tempt to learn, une luxury among
ent afford Is a rahbv rovernor.
Mary Roberts Rinehart
THE BREAKING POlf.T
"TjROM thousand of hearts and homes the cry
X will go up: Thank God for Mary Roberta Rine
hart!" declares the New Republic.
"In this, her latest book, she is at her very best,"
says Hildef arde Hawthorne, in the New York Hera Id.
Thm matt widelyrcotmwea Doom
At AH Bookshops.
out of windows la the train, some
one might give you a shove ....
1 you want to make your parents
In a goed temper buy them some
sweets. If these do not succeed, ad
mlrs tbe fine stitches oi your mots
er's needlework, or exclaim on how
excellently you- father manages his
money accounts At meals
away, eat as fast as you decently
tun, for visitors alwavs get left be
hind, which annoys their hostesses.
If you have a cold while staring
away, retire to bed at once, for it
is trying for your host cue to have,
to Introduce a person who sniffs a
great deal Never sleep or
live in a dirty room. Complain to
the housemaid. If your mother la In
competent," The combination of wordiy wisdom
and childishness In the.e precepts
suggems couslnshlp with Dal.y Ash-
fcrd. The author. Catharine w. Aiem
ander, approached the subject from
a reasonable viewpoint, namely, as
she herself states: "People who are
r.oat likely to know how to bring
up children are girls of about II to
1. They are Just old ensuch to see
reason and understand why It la
good to sometimes make children do
what they do not wish to and are
yet young enough to know what It
Is to bs a child and to know which
things a child likes and understand
which things It doesn't.'
e e
In a recent production of Joha
Maaefleld s "Esther" In the gardens
of Wadham college. Mr. Masefield
himself played the role of the ghost
"in most uncanny fashion." It Is re
ported. e e e
An Australian Idyll "Kurd Creek."
has been written by Havelock Ellis,
well known as a paychologtat and
scientist, but In this story bs Is In
troduced for the first time ss a
novelist.
see
"The Dead Do They UveT Is
of the latest contributions to psychio
science snd Is a translation from
the French In the form of Interviews
by the author. Professor Jlense. with
such students of psychlo phenomena
as M. Camilla Flammarton. fair Arthur
Conan Doyle, Mms. Curte. Maurlos
Maeterlinck. Professor Charles Rl
chet and others.
see
Another South H.a stor-r In which
ths whits man la Interpreted through
native ys Is Ralph Stock's "Uouth
of the Line."
s e
It la stated by ths English pus
Ushers of "Kimono" that the Japa
nese government has :onf!eoated all
copies of ths boo!, which has
reached Japan owing 10 its outer
criticism on the statua of Japanese
women. Later dlapatcbes (ailed to
verify this statement, for Toklo
bookstores still have ins dock on
sale, and ths supposition Is offered
that what was Interprsted as a sup
pression of ths book may simply
have been a shortage In the supply.
e e e
It Is reported that the composer.
Richard Htrauss. Is working on a
book about Mosart, for whom ho has
long had a confessed admiration,
e e e
"To look st clouds Is a superb
pastime." says Edmund Lester pear
son, apropos of M. Luckelsh's new
volume, "The Book of ths Hky." "To
be among them." he goes on," Is
something I envy nobody. They are
too much like the laundry on Mon
day morning, with a chill added."
However, he concedes ths possi
bility of 'interest In what la above
them.
Fuel No Item for LittU
Hawaiian Community.
A Irak o I Mass Frnaa Malaassa
applies All DesaaaaW.
MAMAKUAPOKO. Island of Maul,
T. II.. Oct. It. Coal strikes,
warnings that the forests of ths
world may soon disappear If con
serration Is- not practiced, predic
tions that ths petroleum supply of
ths world may soon bs exhausted
and the high pries of gasolln havs
no terrors for ths Inhabitant of this
small community, for they rook,
heat their houses and run their au
tomobiles on alcohol which Is gen
erated by a newly discovered proc
erus from molassea.
Tho process wss evolved by J. T.
Foster, head chemist of ths Maul
Agricultural company ruid has baea
patented In all of tha sucar produc
ing courrtrtea ot ths world, ha said.
Heretofore, molasses always had
been considered a waata product In
sugar milling.
Originally, ths alcohol produced
by Foster waa uad orjy In ths com
pany trucks and automobiles, but
later, enough was manufactured to
supply employes of ths plantation,
who lived In Hamakuapoko. A
simple apparatus composed of a few
thin pipes and an open burner Is re
quired to burn tha alcohol to supply
heat for cooking, and these hava
been placed In all ot ths homes her.
Foster said that Maul can produr
only enough alcohol In this fashion
to supply ths needs of ths Island
population and that no surplus
would be available for uss on ths
other Islands ef Hawaii
A tret
for fiction raiLdsri
world ncnoN
-fcdaYs Bast Sarins FVwn AO kfWnl
New Martes Br
IBAfrEZ. RAUL BOURGETi
H. GRANVILLE BACKER
JAMES BOYD
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