BOOKS AND PUBLICATIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 13990, 20 February 1909, Page 5 (Supplement)

BOOKS AND PUBLICATIONS.

The Profligate: By Arthur Hornblow. Illustrated by Charles Gumwald. G. W. Dillingham Company,. New York. " The Profligate" is not of the profoundly analytical school, which has become so largely responsible for the American, novel. It is of the more popular sensational type, common to both sides of the.Atlantic. There is a disinherited profligate heir and a murder, the wrong man is suspected' as usual, but as is natural, the real murderer turns out to be the : father of the profligate, who was only the adopted son of the murdered man. The plot is well worked and the story never drags.

The Bias: Marguerite Curtis. Blackwood, Edinburgh.—ln this distinctly " up-to-date" story, two men, one a. student of psychology, the other a famous surgeon, become the guardians of a young girl, and agree to prove through her a point that they have argued. The psychologist eays that the bias in a woman's nature is towards evil, and this the surgeon denies. They determine to test their views by experimenting upon their ward. For six months of the year she shall lead a gay life in London and for the other six she shall stay in a quiet country village, where there is nothing to do but to look after the poor. At the end of five years she shall choose which of the t*j'o lives' she prefers. The girl, of course, comes well out of the experiment, and in spite -of its unpleasant subject the book makes a good impression. There is power in the writing, and the characters are well drawn.

Together: Robert Horrick: Macmillan, London.Mr. Merrick presents to the public an excellent example of the American analytical novel, in which conditions are carefully and meticulously." set out, and the development of given' characters vividly exhibited. The setting includes railwayman and St. Louis, and the successful ones gravitate to New York. The problem is modem marriage, and though some of the marriages are a success, most are distinctly failures, and some of the 'women would hardly have been received ' in' early. Victorian society. Slowly, for there is a vast amount of .work in it,, the .story opens out into a terrible indictment' *of American social conditions; and, -in-particular, of the selfish, feverish, and neurotic American woman. The reverse of the medal is shown in the commercial immorality of the men.< One shrewd and ambitious general traffic manager has been slowly moulded into, a " railway grafter" of the worst type, and is finally completely and shamefully exposed. In America-, occording to the author, the money power is the next worst thing to matrimony.•• "Together" cannot be called a cheerful story, '"but it shows Mr. Herrick has unmistakable courage, as well as great literary ability.

.Winged Dreams : By Helen Colebrookc. Blackwood, Edinburgh.—This is a readable story of fashionable society, '■'■ replete- with excellent characterisation and- witty- dialogue. Lady Diana, the heroine, is a young -widow with whom falls in love her father's (Lord Stevenage) private, secretary,-one Anthony Heath. ..The. young man..,is, a good-looking " bounder/ who ultimately marries a suffragette. Lord Stevenage," a political potentate : who, to, the disgust -of his wife, prefers loss of office, to sacrifice of his principles, is a capitaL character, and the heroine is a . very charming, though wayward, woman. -The" dialogue is fresh, bright, and witty, and the story as a whole is excellent. ... . , ;-,«. '

The Red City: Dr. Weir Mitchell. Macmillan, London.—This charming storyis a tale -of Philadelphia in the days of Washington's second administration. The hero is a young French aristocrat, driven, with his mother, from his native land : in the terrible .days of the : Revolutidn./'The heroine is a delightful Quaker, girl. There is a little duelling, in the story; to add a. dash of blood-red to the romance, but the general development is almost idyllic.' The personages are not only life-like, .but essentially human. ...Washington , himself lives and moves in its pages; Hamilton, Jefferson, and John Adams are here, a.nd the life of the city is vividly reproduced. One of the most . striking characters is Schmidt, a mysterious- German, , shrewd, generous, kindly, and self-possessed, . a strong man who dominates the little world of Dr. Mitchell's novel.

Lonely Lands : By Francis E. Birtles. New South Wales Bookstall Co Sydney. Mr. Birtles bicycled through the heart of 'Australia, and the result is a book, written in unpretentious style, i but' full of interesting descriptions of travel, adventures, and way-back people. and..scenes. The author, who was bom in -Melbourne 25 years ago, is decidedly. of an adventurous disposition. He had been twice round the world before he was 17, he served in. the Field Intelligence Department in: the Boar war, and afterwards' in the native constabulary. Returning to Melbourne he settled down for a time as a lithographic artist, and then decided to essay a bicycle ride right across Australia from the Indian Ocean to the —making altogether a circuit of 8000 miles. The book ib" a- -record of the trip, its interest being greatly enhanced by a, number of photographs taken by the author. Incidentally it may bo mentioned that Mr. Birtles' is* strongly of opinion that the Northern ,• Territory ought to be settled by. -people, and that it can be done.v.i -d'i' "Isis: .

Amabel Chaxnice:* By ,Anne Douglas Sedgwick. Edward Arnold r London.—A clever and carefully written but- unpleasant story. Amabel is married young for her money, by a bad man who neglects her. She runs away with an artist, who wearies her. Peace is made between her and )ier husband bv her brother, and she lives for 20 years the life of a saintly recluse, worshipping the absent husband she imagines to be the soul of generosity, and devoting herself to the rearing of the- artist's, son. Her husband spends her substance'in riotous living, and finally'a'woman; of .bis world explains him to the disillusioned wife, who refuses the complete reconciliation he tardily offers. Then she tells her story to her son, and is pleasantly astounded when he tells her that she'cball be glad that he was born.'' ■".' ' .'."'

The Red Stain: By Sir >Wm. Magriay. Ward, Lock, and Co.; London.This belongs to the "detective' class of story, and breaks quite new ground. ..villain, is a sporting friend of the hero, an English country gentleman, .attempts.', to murder him. In reality he murders somebody else, and the hero conveniently, disappears in the secret passages of his "bouse, devoting himself to the unravelling and exposure of his false friend's .perfidy and crimes. Meanwhile the heroine, who lias been forced by her family into a betrothal with the wealthy hero, decides '• to elope with her true lover, but is carried off. by the villain. Naturally she is rescued in the nick of time, and full justice is done to everybody in the end, the villain perishing in a miserable way. The interest of the story is well-sustained, and the. complicated plot is well worked out.

Sidelights: By J. B. Atkins. . Christopher's, Lancaster Place, Strand, London, W.C.—This pleasant book of journalistic causerie. consists of a number of papers and essays which originally appeared in the Spectator, the Manchester Guardian, and other English papers. It opens with an imaginary conversation with " The _ New Cat," and it includes sketches -of holidays spent under exceptionally happy circumstances— rural England, yachting, Paris, and Madrid. ■ ■■•• '

Whitaker's Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage, and Companionate, 1909. 12, Warwick Lane, Patei-naster Row, London, E.G. —This popular handbook of the formal honours is brought up-to-date and contains a great amount of useful information concerning them, as well as complete lists. Of special interest to Aucklanders is the pre-face-note that " two dormant Baronetcies have been resuscitatedthose of Makgill .., and Speelman.' The former family is intimately connected with the history-of : Auckland. The Makgill baronetcy-dates from 1627, and "was granted 'to 'Jas.,M&kgill, of Pranstoun-Makgill, who subsequently became a Lord of Session/ Vic. of - Oxford, and Lord McGill of Cousland, the. remainder being to heirs mule whatsoever.; But on the' death in 1706 of the second holder, the titles became dormant, the wei** • ages apparently extuict."- „ " . ;:., : ' ' ' "V . " '"''/' I /■.'■' ■V ' . : : - '■■■'.■:..:■:■' .■r'vA.-vU'-