Evening Star Newspaper, January 13, 1929, Page 36

THE SUNDAY WATER COLOR CLUB EXHIBIT Thirty-Third Annual Event of Washington Organization Is Held at Corcoran Gallery of Art—Review of the Work—Other Art Notes. BY LEILA MECHLIN. HE Washington Water Color Club is holding its thirty-third annual _exhibition in the Cor- coran Gallery of Art. It com- prises 240 paintings and prints @and is set forth in the two galleries situated to the right and to the left of the grand staircase on the second floor. To see the coliection chronolog- jcally as it is catalogued, one should turn first to the gallery on the left. Herein are hung in a single line about | 70 water colors by artists of Washing- ton and elsewhere, for the most part fair-sized, colorful works. The remain- der of the collection, including the prints and work in black and white, is to be found in the galiery to the right of the staircase. The first picture, No. 1 in the cata- Jogue, and the first also to be labeled “sold,” is & painting of an “Old Mill.” by Dorsey Doniphan, an exceedingly | skillful and successful work, in which | @ great mass of leafy foliage is inter- preted with directness and veracity. Centering the same wall is a large| Sower painting by Elizabeth Muhlhofer, | decorative, colorful and witnessing in its | rendition to amazing command of me- | dium. Miss Muhlhofer also shows an | exquisite little picture of tea roses, han- dled =o reticently that it is a marked | contrast with this larger, bolder com- | position, and it shows the artist's ver- satility. Flower painting has distinctly a vogue today, and an excellent one—a vogue which takes in the most modern- istic expression and work which harks back to the decorative pieces of the old Dutch masters. There are, in addition to Miss Muhlhofer’s contributions, some excellent examples of cotemporary flower painting in this exhibition, a few of which may well be mentioned. Elinor Barnard shows a painting of fowers in a vase on a red cover, realis- tic in rendering, charming in effect. Frances Hungerford Combs shows sev- eral flower pieces, among them one of tunias, very delicately rendered, very ovely in general color scheme. Clara R. Saunders shows a still life, in which flowers are a chief factor, but which derives its artistic eminence, or, one might say, pre-eminence—for it is a brilliant piece of work—from its ren- dition of atmosphere indoors. Mrs. Kep- linger is well represented by & painting of ias, and Esther I. E. McCord (now Mrs. Chapman) by a painting of peonies, while Mary K. Porter makes a distinct departure in showing two gar- den pictures, “The Pool” and “Garden Shrine,” in both of which flowers are wepresented in great profusion. Landscapes as subjects predominate In this exhibition, and, apparently, to secure these subjects the artists have ¢raveled far afield. Dora L. Murdoch, for example, shows interesting pictures of Lake Louise, done with her charac- teristic skill, but distinctly in the old mode—realistic transcription — charm- ing. Emma Mendenhall shows “A Gate- way at Tangier” and also “A Gateway at the Alhambra”; Barbara Mactarlane; the gateway of “The Forbidden City, gktn." also & bit of the Villa Borghgse, me. There are a good many Portugtiehe subjects, among them pictures. of Cintra, where, it will be remembered, Henry B. Snell conducted a class last Summer; whereas several artists, amo them Lesley Jackson, Elizabeth Saw- telle and Gladys Brannigan, show sub- Jjects found in our own woodland and ‘open country. Miss Jackson has painted 4n the Berkshires, and one of her pic- tures bearing this title shows a broad stretch of Berkshire hills seen over the treetops and under a clouded sky—a very accomplished plece of painting. Elizabeth Sawtelle’s work is invariably strong and colorful, and her twa Rock Creek Park subjects are no exception to this rule. Eleanor Park Custis is represented by four examples, two Brittany subjects, the other two done in Italy. These are all extremely clever, well drawn, indi- vidualistic, picturesque, but they might just as well be block prints, for they are flat and without atmosphere. Miss Cus- tis has undoubtedly extraordinary gift, and while one delights in the clever- ness of her levement, one expects from her bigger work than this, work of more enduring significance. Margaret Lent, to whom has lately been awarded for the second time the New York Water Color Club's much- coveted prige in the joint exhibition of the New York Water Color Club and the American Water Color Soclety, now in progress in New York, shows three ‘works, no one of which, however, rep= resents her at her best. She, too, is & strong painter, from whom, because of it achivement, big work is confi- | dently expected. Jane C. Stanley of Detroit shows four paintings, among them one entitied “Valley of the Adige,’ is particularly picturesque, Wwith its stately cypress in the foreground, its dramatic cloud and mountain effect in the distance. More modernistic in expression than those ;nzvlmuly mentioned is Sara Bard of Indianapolis, who shows sev- eral homely subjects mede impressive through virile rendering: such, for in- stance, as “Cherry’s Barn” and ‘“The Cliff House"—ugly, but rendered with a bold assurance which makes them smemorable and gives them worth. Most modernistic are the works of Hobson L. Pittman, a comparatively new exhibitor, who shows four pictures in gray, with just a touch of brown, in sidewalks appear as undulating as the sea. Another novel note in this exhibition |is to be found in a group of old-fash- ioned paintings on glass by P. W. Hazls wood, such as were done more than a hundred years ago—works which take their place with the silhouette portraits “lhl(ih have lately had interesting re- vival Gertrude Bourne of Boston has con- tributed a number of broadly painted works, among them one of a pumpkin field. From Zimmerman of Philadelphia, has come a characteristic decorative painting, entitled *“Moon- light and Shadows”; from J. Howard Iams of Washington, Pa., & very inter- esting little study of an old lady read- ing. Catherine Morris Wright of Phila- delphia, shows two well rendered facades of old Philadelphia houseg one strik- 1r‘|gly resembling the Octagon in this city. Peter Wagner is well represented by a large realistic study of a sandy road through the woods, “The Mill Road in Maryland,” and by two or three poetic notes of passing effectsy—afterglow, sun- set, jotted down as mere impressions. They are in the gallery to the right of the stairs a row of little pictures—four, one above the other—all of which are y Elizabeth R. Withington: one is of a Pl . by Frank F. Greenawalt; the fourth is of “Virginia Red Buds,” by Edith Hoyt. These are pictures painted as memoranda, which retain and evi- dence the arti: initial enthusiasm. “Mount Adams, February,” by Rush Crompton Tuttle, is a very delightful work, as are Kate A. Willlams’ “Clear- ing Weather” and “Across the Valley.” Elizabeth Spalding of Denver, shows characteristic Western subjects— *Cot- tonwood in Autumn Gold” and “Pike's Peak Near Manitou,” done in her broad, direct, accomplished manner. Mabel Mason De Bra of Columbus, Ohio; Marguerite C. Munn, Sevilla L. Stees, Alice G. Locke and J. Howard McPherson, all make notable contribu- tion. Benson B. Moore shows one land- scape in color, but is best represented by his etchings of animals and fowls, of which he shows no less than five, three of which, incidentally, found pur- chasers almost as soon as the exhibition opened. Among the etchings, special note . Two of these are of Cintra, (! etchers, These, to an extent, represent his latest works. Among them is “Lace in Stone,” an amazing transcription of | the carving on the facade of one of the | | great European cathedrals—a tour de force—a work which, technically, has| never been excelled, if equaled. Of this | efching the entire edition was practi- | cally exhausted within a few weeks of its issuance, hence the catalogue price, |far in excess of others by the same | artist. Brilliant as is “Lace in Stone,” | some may prefer “Crown of Normandy" or “Pont Notre Dame, Mende” or “Le Puy” or “Chartres.” All are good; the majority are masterly. In this same group Lesley Jackson is seen almost for the first time as etcher, exhibiting an etching of “Pennsylvania Avenue” and also one of “Twenty-sec- ond Street Steps.” Marian Lane shows one of her skillful and very popular pencil drawings, “The Oldest House in Ogunquit.” Ruth Osgood is represented by several excellent works, which have the appearance of lithographs, but | {which are in reality drawings made with | water color and a very dry brush. Ma- | thilde M. Leisenring shows two sensi- |tively rendered portrait heads, John | Root a very modernistic rendering of | “Thistles.” "There are two charming {ctchings by Elizabeth O'Neill Verner of | Charleston, both of Charleston subjects, | though one is misleading, entitled “Philadelphia Street.” There is a clever | study, with the directness of a drawing |of a woodblock prin:, of a flock of | white geese ascending a bank, by Esther M. Christensen, and some very inter- esting silhouettes and black-and-white drawings by Beatrice Edgerly, purposed, in all probability for reproduction, most effectively rendered. One misses from the catalogue cer- tain well remembered names, and hark- ing back to previous exhibitions, may feel that the high standard this year is not fully maintained, but, as in all exhibitions, there are some excellent | works included, and such shows, set forth by a professional organization, should be invariably regarded in the light of annual report, in order that the ertists may themselves measure their strength and with the public may be enabled to keep in touch with current production. “FLOWERS,” BY ELIZABETH MUHLHOFER. should be made of those by Gabrielle ch | pe . Clements—one of the “Statehouse at polis”” another of “The Road at Folly Cove,” the third “A Rockport Quarry,” all fine works—works which compare with the best that is done ind which 'ss wilth strength that deli- cacy which one finds in the works of the masters. These etchings are not in- cidental impressions of a painter, not the works of a dilettante, but elaborate compositions, rendered with the sim- plicity of effect which only one who is primarily an etcher and commands this elusive medium can achieve. In this section of the exhibition there is a group of 10 etchings by John Tay- lor Arms, formerly of this city, now of New York and Connecticut, who ranks which houses are rendered without re- gard to structural requirements and among the foremost of our American ‘This exhibition will continue through PFebruary 3. o * % % ‘HE stair hall at the Arts Club is gay at present with posters for the Bal Boheme, entered in the recent com=- petition. Though only two awards were made, almost every entrant was a “win- ner,” if mere admiration is to be laken into account, for the standard through- out is high. The galety provided by these posters is particularly weicome at the present time, as the exhibitions vccupying the walls both upstairs and down are ex- tremely lugubrious. In the front draw- ing room and adjacent dining room are to be seen paintings by Sarah Baker of this city and Lauretta Sondag of Washington State, and in the upper STAR, WASHINGTON, GALLERY OF ART. room is & collection of etchings by the Philadelphia Society of Etchers—good names, but r works, in extremely shabby, soiled and travel worn mats— by no means representative of the eichers’ best, or, for that matter, in company dress. ‘Those who are interested in the so- called modern movement—and who is not?—should see and study these paintings by Sarah Baker and Lauretta Sondag. Not that they will find it a cheerful task, but because it may pro- vide a certain. amount of enlightenment as to the methods employed, the drift of the movement. To suppose that there is no merit in the modern movement would be absurd. Already there is evidence, In the greater simplification and the increased strength of certain work, of a benefi- cent influence, but, even so, it does not follow that all who employ this formula are doing praiseworthy work any more than that every artist who holds firmly to traditions is a master. It is true, however, that a great many who have adopted the modernist vernacular have seemed, as do these two artists, to con- clude that it imposes an obligation to exalt the ugly. There is an extraordinary_ similarity between the works of Sarah Baker and those of Lauretta Sondag, therefore to an extent what applies to one woula apply to the other. They are both fol- lowing the cult of the commonplace and the homely. They have cast aside the amenities of beauty and grace, not only in subject, but in manner of in- terpretation. Their statements are set forth brusquely, their color is dull and heavy, their drawing by no means im- peccable. The present writer finds not one thing in any of their works to cause the least particle of esthetic de- light, not one thing that one would desire to remember. Both undoubtedly have talent and have had good school- ing. Their statements do not lack self-assurance, but they do seem de- vold of beauty in an elemental sense. It is perfectly ible for an ugly thing to be beautiful—ruggedness may represent strength, endurance; some of the finer qualities are rough, homely; but beauty is inherent—beauty of cha acter, beauty of suggestion. 'There is no excuse for a work of art in which this element is non-existent. There may be some, undoubtedly there are, who admire art of this sort, and for those who sincerely admire it, those who find & message in it, well and good. But for the few who do there are many who by just such works as these are turned from art complete One of the advantages of exhibiting art is that it shall have intelligent and thoughtful discussion, not mere praise or b!lme, but sincere inquiry into its deeper significance. If we are to get the best from the modernist movement we must be open-minded, on the alert for the best, but not willing to accept whatever bears the stamp of newness as indicative of progress. xR % & MICHIL JACOBS, painter, spulptor and color §xpert, who for a num- ber of years madeé his home in Wash- n, I8 to exhibit at the new Lorraine Galleries, Conn t avenue, from to- motrow through Haturday. the 26th. Mr. Jacobs has been “exhibiting in Dallas and Fprt Worth, Tex. * % x ‘HERE are now on exhibition in the section of photography, Arts and Industries Bullding. United States Na- tional Museum, 45 prints by George J. Hughes of Scotland, fellow of the Royal Photographic Society, who as a pictorial photographer has attained an interna- tional fame. His subjects include fig- ures, dogs and outdoor scenes. exhibition will continue until February 28. A GREAT exhibition of Dutch art is being held this month in Burling- ton House, London, under the auspices of the Royal Academy and distin- guished patronage. To this exhibition 16 paintings were sent on request from America, and among this number sev- oral were lent by the Secretary of the Treasuty, Mr. Mellon, from his private collection. No greater evidence of our progress * ok ok ok jin the arts and the growth of appreci- ation in this country could bs found {than this, that the Old World is be- einning to turn to the museums and | the .collectors in the United States to supplement their great exhibits and to share in their delight. Tagalogs Emphasize 17 Ancient Proverbs Following are proverbs of ancient repute among the Tagalog people In and around Manila: Nothing but rust destroys iron. ‘Thorns thrust deep when the step is swift. Though you be far behind, wit may put you ahead. A drunken man may be twitted with impunity; not so he who is awakened from sleep. Noisy waters are always shallow. Never seek fortune; if reaily yours it will come of itself. Even water- soaked wood will burn if left long enough in the fire. Repentance never precedes the folly. The savings of to- .fl:y are the comforts of tomorrow. Lven a rag. put away in the closet, | will turn up for good use. The really | wise will always shame him who merely | pretends to wisdom. A small stool made of sound wood is better than a bishop’s chalr honeycombed with borers. When a pullet begins laying eggs, chickens may be expected. Criticise yourself be- fore doing so to others. Be the aim never so exalted, the shaft goes no farther than the strength of the archer, He who spits at the sky gets the spray in his face. Pounding wet rice in the mortar only besmears the workman, : | Dahl, R D. C, JANUARY 13 IN EXHIBIT OF LOCAL ARTISTS “AN OLD CAPE COD HOUSE,” BY ELIZABETH EVANS GRAVES. ONE OF THE PAINTINGS CONTAINED IN THE EXHIBITION OF THE WASHINGTON WATER COLOR CLUB AT THE CORCORAN THE PUBLIC LIBRARY Recent accessions at the Public Library and lists of recommended read- ing will appear in this column each Sunday. English Literature. Beerbohm, Max. A Variety of Things. Y-B383v. Portage, Wisconsin. Gale, Zona. Y-G 181 p. Judy, W. L. Men and Things. Y-J92m. Lanier, H. W., ed. The Thing Called Love. Y-9L27t. Mencken, H. L. Second series. Y-M523sa. Morley, C. D. Off the Deep End. Y-M82240. Pound, E. L, ed. The Exile, No. 3. Y-9P8 ed. Adventures in Litera- Y-ORT: Ross, J. " Rabindranath. Pireflies. ture, ‘Tagore, S Y600-T 124f. Warner. F. L. The Unintentional Charm of Men. Y-W244u. Selected Prejudices. History. Fay, 8. B. The Origins of the World ‘War. 2v. F30791-F2070. Great Britain, Forelgn Office. British Documents on theé Origins of the ‘War. 1898-1914. 2v. F30791- Lamb, Herold. Tamerlane, the Earth Shaker. F60-L 16t. Mills, Dorothy. The Book of the Ane cient Greeks. 1925. F32-M62. Rlvgmgs, G. B. Old London. F45L- 190, Thatcher, O. J.. and McNeal, E. H Europe in the Midde Age. F303- Architecture. Anderson, W. J., and Spiers, R. P. The Architecture of Ancient Greece. WF127-An2a. Andetson, W. J, and Spiers, R. P. The Architecture of Ancient Rome. WF129-An2. Anthony, E. W. Early Florentine Archi- tecture and Decoration. WF35-An8s. Jeanneret-Gris, C. E. Towards a New Architecture, WF-J34.E, Domestic Economy. Brown, C. M., and Haley, A. H. The ;‘:;e:flnt of Home Economics. RY- J. 0. Kitchen Man 1 YLD 13, e| agement. Dahl, J. O. Restaurant Management. RHY.-D 13 . HY -] . National Industrial Conference Board. gx“ &m—m Lunch Rooms. RY] O'Brien. D. J., and Couchman, O, B. Hotel Administration. RYH-Obs4. Steinbreeher, Mrs. E. A. ~ Household Efficiency Book. RY-St34h. Bridge. Carrington, Hereward. Bridge Simpli- fied: VOWB-Ca3. it Farrelly, Mra. T. C., and_Coleman, Work a‘ngthBTl’u' nxgxnl-mh' , M. €. Auction - ;rnnen. VOWE-Wsodaf. i Fictlon, Benson, Ramsey. Hill Country, Bojer, John. The New 'mmp‘z. Miln, J. The Flutes of Morley. & orley. C. D. I Know a Secret. Sabatini, Rafael. The Hounds of God. Schnitzler, Arthur. Theresa, su;;.i bedr-. E. G. L. A Marriage Was Wescott, Glenway. Good-bye, Wisconsin. . . .. L. | Colonies of Service Men Irk Ulsterites The itioh of Trish soldiers who fought m‘tht World War on the sme) of the allies and returned to Ireland to live 15 engaging the attention of their well wishers in both the north and south. In South Ireland many houses have been built for them and in some pll::el they form numerous little colo- nl However, while there is no objection here on “soclal grounds,” when a suit- able site 18 chosen for former service men’s houses In the north—as th~ Marquis of Dufferin and Ava stated in Belfast—they sometimes receive protests from residents close by who object ty fl':ll "lnvu‘l,on." “such objectors,” said | the marquis, “are probably those who cheered loudest when the troops march- ed to war.” Matches Boycotted So far as is generally known, the Croats have not as yet formulated and paragraphed their desires, but they {have once more indicated what they do not want; and that is no more o: no less than matches. The Croats have not foresworn to light their pipes, but there is a movement on foot rot to buy or use matches. This is supposed be an extension of the boycott against the Serbs and Bel- grade. 1If the Croats buy no matches then the loan from the Swedish match trust will be jeopardized and the Bel- grade government will be worried just that much. There might yet bz scenes of government officials watching out for smoke signs on the horizon and tracing the fire to find out who smug- gled in the match. The government, at least, has retaliated by announcing that the duty on lighters will be care- fully collected. People who should be working tn\oth-r to build to one of the potentially richest states in Europe are sgid by observers to be wasl their time in child-] futilities, " | ife. By Croatian People’ REVIEWS OF WINTER BOOKS About Those Tropic Seas by William Beebe, the Scientist. Wilde's “Ballad™ i a Ne w Form—-Sevcral Volumes of Fiction, Ol and New. IDA GILBERT MYERS. BENEATH TROPIC SEAS. By William Beebe, Sc. D, author of “Jungle Peace,” etc. Director of the Depart- ment of Tropical Research, New York Zoological Society. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons. CIENCE plus a positive gusto in| its prusuit transforms Willlam | Beebe upon occasion into Lhe‘ perfect go-between. On one hand, pure knowledge. On the other, the common reader. His job to humanize the one for the use of the other. This he does here in “Beneath Tropic Seas,” as he has already done through books of similar stamp, & dozen and more of them. As matter of evidence Willlam Beebe is an adventurer, a romantic one at that, having taken to the field of sclence, where his tribe as a rule goes into gallantry or warfare. Not that Mr. Beebe cannot be as dry and stodgy and learned as the regular simon-pure scientist so obviosuly feels in bond to be. Merely reading the title of this book and that which goes with it in- dicates that he can be. That is, that Ihe can be dull upon demand. However, this is not our concern. Our interest lies in the fact that in “Beneath Tropic Seas” William Beebe, adventurer, jumps right off the deep end clear down to the bottom of the sea. Soon, upon the surface, a thousand bubbles breaking sound exactly like—“Oh, to the devil with research. I'm off to find a mer- maid!” A plain libel that. Look at the top of this page in proof thereof. And, besides, nobody can hold a sea bubble to accountability. Better wait, instead, for Beebe to come up to be the reporter of his own undertaking. And such a story as he brought to the surface. It hardly seems as if any responsible society is going to accept his adventure as a contribution to au- thentic knowledge, as any part of ex- planation of the world-as-it-is. Yet, it turns out that the amazing discoveries of this deep-sea man are absolutely the truth and nothing else. It comes to pass that under the glam- our of the adventure—it is glamor- ous all right—is an amasing picture, a moving picture of life within the sea. An Infinite variety among the denizens of the deep, as great, taken by and large, as the puzzling differences ashore. And these, all these down there, have shaped themselves, are shaping themselves, to their surround- ings in the unending quest of all life for sustenance and self-perpetuation, food and procreation. Makes a man feel as if just, perhaps, there is nothing so special and sacrosanct about him, save what he has made up about him- self, pretty much out of whole cloth. However, that is something else. In- stead here is the story of Willlam Beebe down off the coast of Haiti hunting fish, primarily, examining them for the ways in which they have made shift with life, withy one another, with a long past of change and vicissitude in thelr approach to the present. In- teresting? No end_interesting—and so human. The fish I mean. And then, e day, being hot and tired and wet, Mr. Beebe went off by himself to loaf. It was a rendezvous, instead, to which birds and birds came flocking. And out of this day of leisure he came upon a new way to study birds—a fresh breath from the long lists and descriptions and things that go along with con- ventional bird study. You read about this, you bird student. It will interest you and give a wholesome and en- lightening turn to your present over- worn habit. The‘ book‘ll )I‘ refreshment in the way of putting knowledge across. is Willlam Be‘ebe. . hie: x ok ok K THE BALLAD OF READING GAOL. By Oscar Wilde, Conceptions by John Vassos. New York: E. P. Dut- ton & Co. TH[S is a picture book, its themes in- spired by Wilde's “Ballad” as last year his “Salome” brought out another picture book by John Vassos. And what about John Vassos? An artist whose genius is clearly of special source and cast. Read the “Ballad.” Sit beside the pictures that draw one part of it or another out into an objective front- ing upon destiny itself. At first you will say, “I don't see.” But in a minute you will begin to feel, to feel deeply and with & hint of panic upon you. Then sight and feeling combine in an illumi- nation that comes to be of staggering proportions. However, this is for your personal adventure. Let us instead talk a minute about what John Vassos did as a way of getting the “Ballad” into himself, through and through his heart and body and soul, before he saw it in these haunting symbols of the risoner—any prisoner, in fact. He imself went to jall. No, not under the law, but in free will to come by, if might be, some true reactlon to such a The dreary light, the grated cell, the deadening routine, the sense of hatred on the part of the good world outside, the hopelessness of the future, the homelessness, the lonesomeness—all this John Vassos sought. And then, no doubt, there must have come to him, as it certainly dves to us, facing these amazing conceptions, that everybody is @ prisoner—manifest walls or not—to that monstrous thing called destiny. He must have felt this, try as he might to study the literal prisoner alone, else bow could we be so overwhelmed here, not only with the actual state of the man behind actual bars, but by the bars around us as well, by the yawn- ing caverns at our feet, by the unan- swering skies above us, by the depths of the space toward which we are moving against our will? Wonderful concep- tions! And they put to us a_question. What will the answer be? There'll be none. However, who is John Vassos to do this thlng? A QGreek youth who has lived in the East, taking part in adven- tures, familiar with its art, so Oriental in spirit and manner. I have his pic- ture before me. Looks as if Praxiteles himself had had a hand in the making of this youth. Not important, that, save that John Vassos Is & fine bit of handi- work, inspired by a genius that con- ceives hidden things and is able as well to bring these into the open in an art that is Individual, beautiful, signifi- cant. “The Ballad of Reading Gaol” 1 lleonn;l{‘s here, by way of the conceptions | of John Vassos, something like the voice jof an oracle, the vision of a prophet— John dreaming on the Island of Patmos. * oKk K K ABBE PIERRE'S PEOPLE. By Jay William Hudson, author of “‘Abbe Pierre,” etc. New York: D. Apple- ton & Co. OU know Abbe Pierre himself al- ready through the intimate and friendly companionship of this writer jand that kihdly man. The acquaint- j ance §s bound to turn you, gladly, to- ward the neighborhood and the people roundabout in this Gascon corner of France Nothing much happens here— that is, nothing much when measured by the rush of events all over the world beyond this hatborage of peace and quietude. Just the day's doings—work in the sunny fields, chatter by the way- side, the restful nooning, the waning | day and lovely nightfall—that's about | all. About all, save for the simple folks | that animate the spot, gathering around the d old Abbe Plerre in confidence and love and cheerful following. A good hour, this, withdrawn into an atmo- sphere of amplitude and leisure, an hour without prcblems or anxieties. without rush and confusion—just a 60 minutes of tranquil feclings and surrounding friendliness, serene skies and the mel- low seent of the good nlreu growing. And some one stops to tell of this or that belonging to Gascony as apart from the rest world, Some old story, !the theme of the story in hand. There unbelievable yet fully believed, of hero or great action; some legend reaching far back of the tales about real peo- ple; some custom or way of doing that is rooted in an old belief—superstition we call it It is by way of Mr. Hudson, as familiar with the Abbe Plerre coun- try as I am with Weedsport or more so, that th!s sunny corner of France comes close o us in these innumerable little touches of friendship and long acquaint- ance. Talkative folks, but not more talkative than everybody is under the warmth of a friendly interest, so I am wondering how there came into Eng] two words—"Gascon” and “gasconade —to signify the “braggart” and “big talk.” 1 doubt if these Gascons are more Iree with speech than are any of the others along the warm lands of the Mediterranean, say those of Provence or of Italy. Well, never mind. The point is that here is a book of beautiful pic- tures drawn from a region of peculiar charm by the intimate hand of one who loves it. * ok K K York: Brentano's. QOR the making of this tale Arthur Weigall takes a day off from his | otherwise serious and important pur- | suits. Picking up a handful of oddments from the surface of modern existence, ! he here shapes these into that which, finished, he names the “Veracious Ac- count of the Somewhat Farcical Penny- worth Affair.” It is the business of marriage that engages the story in hand. To be married or not to be mar- ried? That is the question. Aunt Sarah sald “No!" with a sweeping gesture away from matrimony and toward any sort of substitute for such clear bond- age. Aunt Sarah was a feminist, a power, a spinster, rich, and the aunt of Camilla. But Camilla was in love. She believed in marriage, of course. So did Peregrine Penny. He was in love, too, with Camilla. What to do? Aunt Sarah’s money gone if they did marry. The father of the boy, Sir Erasmus, gone if they didn't. What to do? An inspiration! Why, just take the little boy’s definition of a lle and hold fast to it through thick and thin: “An abomination in the sight of the Lord and an ever present help in time of trouble.” And so it was. And so it proved to be, in the hands, and mouth, of the pretty Camilla. It was through the artful dodges of Camilla, through her deft prevarications, through her plain Iying at exactly the right moment, that a turbulent matter, full of disas- ter coming head-on, is turned this way and that by this inspired pilot of a girl, who looked as angels are said to look and not at all like & hardy seaman. Clever and amusing, bringing out laughter, loud and long, about once & page, the story goes its devious way to the last triumphant moment, when Aunt Sarah was compelled to say, as she patted the shoulder of Camilia. “You're a damned clever girl.” Indeed she was, for she had steered Aunt Sarah herself into the safe port of matrimony. Delightful. Do you have to have & “lesson” with every book. even a novel? Are you that much of a Puritan yet? No iesson here, save to keep right on lying “in time of trouble.” * X % X STRANGE FUGITIVE. By Morley Callaghan. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. HERE is & first novel by a young Canadian writer. Not his first storles, but hic first novel. A strong invention, if it be invention, that strips life down to its nakedness down to the man driven by something more persistent, more powerful than the accidental and superficial influences around him. It is a plain record of Harry Trotter, foreman in a lumber vard in Toronto. Married and in love with his wife. Not a bad prospect, not by any means, to be settled in a home and having & good job. And so the matter would have gone, without doubt, to prosperity, a family, to somerhing of position within his own round of ton- ditions. It didn't go that way bccause, vou see, inside this man was a strange and restless fellow. driving him that way when he would go this, dictating this action when the outside man de- sired another, pointing to new scenes when the man himself was more than content where he was. A disintegrating fellow, this fugitive spirit inside, dis- turbing days and nights with beckon- ings of strange lure. The story turns out to be, in no very long time, the course set by this “fugitive” to Harry Trotter, foreman in a lumber yard up in Toronto, husband of a wife whom he loved. But what is work, what is love, under the drive of a restless and importunate spirit! So changes come in the following of such lead. Some- thing that looks like success appears. But it is not success, nor could it be, under the denials and shifts that marked its course. Not once does this author step aside from his place as plain reporter of a set of facts that make up the career of Harry Trotter. Yet, the reader, following this open ac- count, becomes in a degree haunted by the “strange fugitive” urging the man on, for somehow he finds in himself odd grippings of the same hand, clear beckohings of the same uneasy presence. A hard book, an uncompromising story, concerned only with its own special case—and yet, the case spreads to in- clude other men, other women, in its sinister utge toward—what? I'd like the next novel by this man, if there be a next. Ho® R SEVEN DAYS' WHIPPING. By John Biggs, jr, author of “Demigods.” New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. A STRANGE story with a strange title. Let's take away at once the puzzling character of the title by say- ing that this is the name of an Indian youth who appears, or seems to appear, at a late moment of revelation or sug- gestion. The matter itself has to do with incident in the life of Judge |La Place, rather with a state of mind and a course of action diametrically opposed to his honorable office of pass- ing judgment upon wrongdoers and to the carefully ordered ways of his daily life. One often wonders what is really golng on inside those impressive officials who sit listening to the details of this crime or that one and who finally de- cide the immediate destiny of another human, probably not-so different from themselves, not in reality. And this difference, or no difference, is exactly was Judge La Place, clear]y above the tides of human passion, déing his offi- cial duty and then taking his way to the calm peace of his home and his family. ‘Then in that retreat the judge is confronted suddenly with an appeal to the savage that is within him, deep down—the same savage that is within all of us, deep down. The response of this man, schooled for hundreds of years in the ways of civilized life, be- comes here a deep searching of the 2000 S Street Exhibition of Paintings INFIDELITY. By Arthur Weigall. New‘ mind, of every man’s mind. It becomes as well a w: if so it be taken, to an understanding in some measure of deeds that upon our hardened and veneered surfaces make no impression whatever save to bring upon such the full power of the laws of the land. A dramatic thing, conceived in subtlety and developed in fidelity to its plain psychological content. A puzzling story, not pointed uj popularity, but one that many readers will read in high appreciation. BOOKS RECEIVED HARRIET'S CHOICE. By Jane Abbott. Tllustrated by Charles A. Bryson. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co. | WHEN IT'S COCKTAIL TIME IN CUBA. By Basil Woon. Illustrated. New York: Horace Liveright. THE VAN BECK WILL. By Henry Wyans Jessup. New York: Walter Neale. |STELLA BALARINA; and Other Stories. By Angelo Ralph Alfino, Boston: The Christopher Publishing House. THE ANGEL THAT TROUBLED THE WATERS; and Other Plays. By Thornton Wilder, author of “The Bridgz of San Luis Rey,” ctc. New York: Coward-McCann, Inc. THE HEARTS OF THE WEST. By ‘Thomas F. Murphy. Boston: The Christopher Publishing House. OUTING LORE; a Guide for the Mod- ern Angler. By Edwin Thomas ‘Whiffin, author of “Samson Marry- ing,” etc. New York: Walter Neale. SHRINES OF THE GREAT IN EU- ROPE; a Unique Tourist Guide. By Edwin Robert Petre, author of “When_You Go to Europe.” New York: Funk & Wagnalls Co. THE LONE EAGLE; and Other Poems. By Elsie Emmons, author of “Sum- mer Songs Among the Birds" ete. Boston: The Christopher Publishing House. BROADWAY RACKETEERS. By John O'Connor. New York: Horace Live- right. 'rm:gnzw AGE; All Hail America, and Other Poems. By Ivory Franklin Frisbee, A. M., Ph. D, author of “The Beginner's Greek Book," etc. Boston: Meador Publishing Co. A CATHOLIC LOOKS AT LIFE. James J. Walsh, M. D. Ph. Litt. D., etc., author of “The Worl Debt to the Catholic Church,” etc. Boston: The Stratford Co. MASTERS OF MUSIC—WOLFGANG AMADE MOZART. By Dyneley Hussey. New York: Harper & Bros. THE GREAT ENLIGHTENMENT; a Satire in Verse, With Other Selected Verse. By Lee Wilson Dodd. New York: Harper & Bros. THE ELECTRIC WORD: the Rise of Radio. By Paul Schubert. New York: The MacMillan Company. THE SOUTH OF FRANCE; Gascony, Roussilon and Old Provence. By W. E. Walsh. Boston: The Four Seas Co. AMERICA'S PART. By Henry J. Reilly, Brigadier General, O. R. C. New York: Cosmopolitan Book Corpora- tion. A FAMILY AFFAIR; a Comedy. By L. Magruder Passano. Boston: The Four Seas Co. | AMERICAN AND ARABIAN LOVE. By Wilfred J. Angers. Boston: The Stratford Co. THE MASTER; a Life of Jesus Christ, By Walter Russell Bowie, rector of Grace Church, New York City. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. A STUDY OF THE MODERN NOVEL; British and American, Since 1900. By Annle Russell Marble, author of “The Noble Prizé Winners in Liter- " etc. New York: D. Appleton & C CUSTER; the Last of the Cavaliers. By Frazier Hunt. Illustrated by Capt. John W. Thomason. New York: Cos- mopolitan Book Corporation. HAPPY HEART SONGS; for Tots and Teens and In-Betweens. By Evelyn M. Watson. Boston: The Christopher Publishing House. COSMOS LIMITED. By Mary Keyt Isham, M. A, M. D. New York: Walter Neale. PROPAGANDA. By Edward L. Ber- nays. New York: Horace Liveright. By D. Cllario—; VRWaice Revival Thrills British Public Chariot racing is the latest fad in | England. The idea originated from the | chariot racing scene in the film “Ben- Hur.” It is claimed that the new at- | traction will supply more thrills than any other sport ever seen in this coun- try. The first meeting will be opened with a parade of 60 horses, 10 drivers, 6 chariots and 6 trumpeters all dressed in distinctive costumes. Each race will be of four laps and the thrills will be at the bends, for there the skill of the drivérs will be fully tested. By losing his balance, the driver may easily be thrown out. There will be six races on each program; in two races there will compete two chariots each drawn by four horses; the remaining four races will be contested by four chariots each drawn by two horse To insure fair play all the drivers will be placed In cages in the center of the ground before the racing begins. When four are re- quired for a race, the stewards will re- lease five drivers, who will be conducted to the chariots; at the last moment one driver will be returned to the cage and the remaining four will be allocated chariots by the stewards. Thus drivers will not know if they will take part in any particular race, and not until imme- diately before the start will the chosen four know their mounts. Their horses will be named on the program, just as runners in greyhound racing. YOUR ANCESTRY— If you are interested in your family history send 10c in stamps for 168-page priced cata- logue of our Genealogical Books. Goodspeed’s Book Shop 7 Ashburton Place, Boston, Ma: re () MRATH'S You pay a small rental fee! while the book is in your pose| session. You start and stop when| you choose. You read the latest' fiction and non-fiction, 1f new| and popular. Prompt rervice, mew and clean books, trained, courteous attendants. 3 Ireland—Belgium-—Italy by Lucile Howard _January 7th to January 19th ) i WOMRATH'S 53828Y sz