WITH THE EYES OF WOMAN

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 185, 22 July 1911, Page 11

WITH THE EYES OF WOMAN

Two Books. By ths- time we have til lead The Broad Highway. ’ a<r> otirj •- Lavengm ' has ::■»» <t again JS'-nr minds. Many of us. prohahiv. have i drawn old Borrow from Ls da-ty I resting-place on the top'.;..?; sht If to refresh •>'. r memories, an t h übeen amused at. perhaps a lintn d. the audacity with which the modern realist has used his rece'pt. Of course, the result is not to be <•• impared to Borrow. The i>o >k. on first reading, strikes one as having been written b> a woman, but on the author s portrait appearing in some of tlie magazines that theory had to be forsaken. "Yet for a man to have so little knowledge of sport as to make glaring mistakes in recount mg it is disappointing. to say the least. In the hammer-throwing, for instance, it | is not made clear whether the dis tame of the throws is being reckoned by feet or yards. If the for-, nier. then the longest throw was not -o very long, after all: anti it the latter, the shortest was impossible. Ami the fight between Peter and the blacksmith, though filled with bloodthirsty details enough and to spare, is equallyabsurd. all things considered. And the author makes his strong men weep like children on the slightest provocation, which is always annoying to a woman, who regards tears as her especial property. The first half of the book holds one by its freshness and the spell of the open road that is through it all ; but the dialogue is too modern to keep the mind of the reader on the period in which it is supposed to have been written, so that the unusualness after a while sores him to sobs, and it is a blessed relief to skip pages and hurry along to the finish. Peter is a nice youth, but the bad London cousin is more of a man ; and the girl, though an impossible character if you consider her social position, is charming. At any rate, it is a hook to recommend your aunt or your young sister, and that in these days is a thing to thank providence for. The latest book by Mr. Justus Miles Forman makes delightful easy reading for an evening by the fireside, in one's own particular chair, with the cushions put just right. Surely he wrote it at his leisure, in just such a chair, and for no particular reason except that he had to write something. • The Unknown Lady” is perhaps a little long in appearing, and seems sometimes hardly excuse enough for the long and detailed account of the other man’s doings; but who can read the opening chapters of hi» childhood without tender, almost tearful recollections of his own ; and who would not love to hear even more about that beautiful eighteenth century mother ? The book recalls Du Manner's “ Peter Ibbetson.’ and has exactly the same charm. Library Books. Talking of books, who is going to supervise the circulation of books from the circulating libraries of our little town ’ For it is a very certain thing that somebody must. It is no use leaving it to the town authorities, for the mills of the gods are not the only ones that grind slowly. If fewer books —and better ones —were read, it would

not be so difficult, for a committee might be nominated to read and pass all books intended for public circulation. As it is, they crowd in by every English mail, too numerous by far to be even glanced < over before they are put on the' shelves, and sometimes a really pernicious book has been read by four or five (perhaps) young people before someone of a little more courage and intelligence condemns it. It is not the fault of the booksellers. They go by the notices, as; they must, and in most cases the| press notices are quite unreliable.' It is women’s work, this sorting of i the literature to be read by their sons and daughters, and the soon-, er they realise it and start a sori-1 ety or board for carrying it out the | better. • Spring Clothes. I

These warm days, and the drap ers’ advertisements, bring u.- very close to the question of our spring clothes, though we shall probably not be able t-» wear anything at all cool for another three months at least. How ridiculous is thus rush for the first new thing' We buy our furs in the middle of summer. try on our winter hats while the sun beats fiercely down outside. 1 and now. tn the middle of winter, we are wondering whether t«» make, onr summer ,-uit- of linen, which | crushes so unkindly. «»r <>f the less smart, but more duiable lustre.; There are coimr r<> Be such charm ' ins ■ ■•.ir- r;. - : short bolero- <>f M.i< k .-attn or wL ■ ver, wit! r !<ortn<>>;- nvrrt’.'. lo b>worn witi 1 hcht smart uowns : and | long black satin coat- with gay j and flowery linings, also with the

: laip reveis and often a sailor collar. I* usele-s t-> take any interest in evening gowns tints! a litth- more interest I- taken ill daniinit. I’ remains to be seen whether the Hunt Club Bal] next •A..-k will .iro.o ■ the ilagging en-thii'ia-m of the young people; for. so far. the few bails this winter have not been thrilling successes.