In An Easy Chair.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13811, 23 January 1909, Page 2 (Supplement)

In An Easy Chair.

BOOKS AND AVRITERS. The "Scotsman has lost its principal leader writer and assistant editor in the person of Mr. William lliach, who commenced life as a schoolmaster, drifted into Indian journalism, and predicted, a week beforehand, the Cavagnari massacre at Kabul, when lie was a. made man. In the early Victorian days there was another Scots 'journalist in London, Angus Reach by name, who was the Augutus Sala of his time, and once he found himself at the same dinner table with Thackeray, who pronounced his name as if it rhymed with "teach," while its owner explained that the "eh" was guttural. "Oh, very well, then, Mr. Re-ach,'.' aaid Thackeray, "will you kindly pass me a pe-ach" Riaeh is but a variant of Reach, and both come from the Far North.

One cannot always be jokin, and in "Whither Thou Goest" we have the author of "Wee Macgreegor" in sentimental mood. The difficulties his hero and heroine have to encounter are, of the sort that might have been cleared away by a little plain speaking. But even in real life speech is sometimes impossible, and we must not deprive the novel writer of' the fruitful source of ' plot that lies -in misunderstandings. Mr. Bell lays his scene-partly in Glasgow and ijartly.do.wii the Clyde, regions with which he is very familiar; and the theme is the unsmooth course of Dick Balmain's true love for' the heiress, Ruth Lennox. Dick, with a widowed mother and sisters to think of, was in serious financial difficulties with Ins business, and it was certainly the thought of 'Ruth's money that prompted his wooing to start with.' Hence arose most of the trouble out of which Mr. Bell weaves an pld-fashiohed romance, brought up-to-date by the introduction of such things as luotoriboats and suffragists. AVe hope, by the wnv, that Glasgow does not boast many women of the type of Mrs. Lyon,. Ruth's aunt.

Charier Garviee is a popular novelist, and his latest "In Wolf's Clothing" should have a big nm - Elliot Graham and Nora K.val.l were deeply in love with one another, and as thev had no one but themselves to care about one would have thought that thev might have married and settled down without much, difficulty. -But in that case Mr. Garvicc would have had no story to tell; and thcreluro Nora when she ran away from home after being slapped in the face by jier drunken stepmother, instead of going to Graham, who would have been delighted to welcome her, elected to rig herself up in boys clothing and allow her lover to suppose she had gone oil to London to be married to another man. This strikes us as not only foolish, but cruel behaviour. But -worse

was to follow, for when Norah~iuw posing as Cyril Merton, found • herself cooped up with Graham.on a smali-is-land:off trie coast of Cornwall;,she still continued to deceive him,f:and finally came to the conclusion ; (which, in our opinion is quite beyond the pale 'of criticism.,; tiiat as her ;Jovev had seen her in -boym e othmg, maidenly. modesty would forbid her ever him again iis Norah Ryall. A seebnd time,therefore, she vanished from'poor "ot only a m.strefc, but a .dear Sd

tlnn^'; i by r GerS t l,aS-to t»J+ S° ln S a»v-day;' and abetter than swaithy that—according to herself—when she .wears Mrowif holland, "vou Wn'^ l^' 1 -? r ? t T l ' b I drcss enils'and I v£ Ihat is Paddy.. As to.lovely In S S, i e + T asadt 'ean,er/a, poet-who looked at the mountains 'and • adored them with one eye and half her brains; the other eye and other half she rcsenv edj-for more mundane affairs. ~T3esidesTaddy and Eileen, there are Jack and Lawrence, and a little bit of Ted and many others;'sotluit nobody jreeil dread monotony! It is just subb. a story as -girls .would love to-read, 'So-if ■■■anybody as pining to make airy number of girte happy they, had better buv it arid send it on.. It is alleged to bo'W Irish story- but that needn't, worry'anybody tor somehow, it conies out GOsniopdlitjiui'. Ihere arc things in it, -too, "that. wjll make those girls who. read it think, but they, are neither "mawkish" noi* "iji'issisli," but always presented in the heist possible way.- ■ ■:£■

Another 'novel conies, ibo' hand • written by Mme. Albanest's dainty v 'pen ; . In her previous books she. rofteh-dealt. [in her inimitable way with* striking character contrast's. But in .this 'volume she has done' more -than-tliatj Ybr perhaps we should say she : is dealing now with characters of : ,greatjer stibtJcy.. The plot, too, is intricate, • and- ifo its happenings' very true to life". Pal, mela, of course, runs a little, on' the \ 'sterotyped lines. ,of the.■'. !VouldJbc- ' smart," shallow, girl, but Pamela Vis not even half the story—-just a tbit ;of' it,- and not. the best "of it/ : ..Y'ou, se'o there is Annej- sister,;,'Aiihb/' wholly sweet and .self-sacrificing—fMm'e. Albanesi has cbniHved to; depict -her thus, without making'her inane, and enerynfeing to the''reader. ~ Then there is butspoken, clear-headed Sarah, who summed' up the sisters , : thus:""ono wpuld be' obliged'ib flirt with--Pamela, but Anne is•,quite, another l i»arttcrl'* 'Tliis indomitable' Sarah- is- very well drawf}! The -story is 'bf igbo'd length, but for, an adequate- development of «bme' v bf the phases 'through"'■' which''--' Barbstn'u passes even mora pages would'-be needed. It is a story that compels one to think, and' thk .nrore we - tliink of' it the moro we'likteit 1 . 1 * *'''■■■'*'■;