CHAPTER XX

“What’s been the matter with me?”

“Nothing very serious, Lord Somerville,” cheerily replied Sir Edward Bartley. “You are all right now; but you must not excite yourself. Now, now, don’t look round in that way.” And the eminent surgeon laid his soft hand on his patient’s wrist.

“This is strange, Sir Edward. Have the carpets and curtains come back?” and two tears trickled down Lionel’s emaciated cheeks.

“Sh, sh! that’s all right.” Sir Edward turned to the valet, who stood close by. “Temple, you must put some more ice on your master’s head. That same idea is haunting him; and we shall have him delirious again if we don’t look out.”

“No, Sir Edward,” murmured Gwendolen Towerbridge, seated at the foot of the bed. “Lord Somerville is all right, leave him to me, and you will find him perfectly well when you return this afternoon.” The eminent surgeon took Gwen’s hand in his own and looked intently into her face.

“My dear young lady, you have already saved his life; for no trained nurse could have shown more skill, more tact, than you have done throughout this alarming case. It is a perfect mystery to me how a fashionable and spirited young girl like you could, in one day, become such a clever nurse and a devoted woman.”

“Ah! that is my secret, Sir Edward.” Gwen looked down blushingly. “But some day I may tell it you, if he allows me.”

“Well, well,” and he gently patted her hand, “I leave the patient in your hands; if you can bring him round to a saner view of his surroundings, you will have done a great deal; for he is quite unhinged, and I am not sure that his brain is not affected.”

“Oh dear, no! my dear Sir Edward, Lord Somerville is quite sane; who knows, perhaps even saner than you or I.”

“Poor, dear lady, I am afraid the strain has been too much for you, and we shall have you laid up if you persist in not taking a rest.” And Sir Edward silently left the room, followed by Temple.

“My precious Lion, you have at last come back to me!” exclaimed Gwen, as she threw herself on her knees and kissed Lionel’s hand.

“Ah! I knew it was all true,” wearily said LordSomerville, “for you call me as she did—Lion. But tell me, dearest, when did all these clothes and curtains come back?”

“My poor darling, these clothes, these carpets never disappeared. It has been a long dream—a long and beautiful dream.”

“All a dream—then Danford, the witty and faithful guide—?”

“Yes, a dream, my precious Lionel.”

“And all is as it was before that storm? But you, Gwen, you are not the same, you are the Una of my dream; I see it in your radiant expression. Tell me, dearest, how did it happen? Did I really shoot myself?”

“Yes, dear—but to go back to that night. As you remember, the storm was of such a nature as to prevent our reaching Richmond Park, and we turned back to town as fast as ever we could to Hertford Street. At about two o’clock in the morning father was roused by his valet, who told him that Temple had come to say he had found you in the library, shot through the head.”

“And you—?” Poor Gwen evaded the searching look of her lover by burying her face in the counterpane.

“My father never told me what had happened until next day.” She looked up at Lionel. “Donot ask me if I felt for you; I do not know, and I do not wish to remember. I only know that two days after, as I rode back through the Park, I looked in to inquire how you were. I came into this room, and found the surgeon, who told me your nurse had to leave, for she had been suddenly taken ill; and I sat down by your bed, just as I was in my riding-habit, to watch you until another nurse had been found.”

“Poor Gwen, it was a horrid ordeal, for you always hated sickness and loathed nursing.”

“Yes, and I was so mad at the surgeon suggesting that I should watch you, that I lashed your dog with my whip as he came running into the room. He set up a most awful howl which you never heard, fortunately. I sat down, and you began to wander. At first it seemed but the ravings of a madman and I did not pay much attention; but by the evening, I was amused at your suggestions, and told the upper housemaid to go and fetch my maid with my things. I had made up my mind to stay.”

“To nurse me, Gwen? Ah! how good of you,” interrupted Lionel.

“No, Lionel, I don’t want you to have a wrong impression of me, it was not at all to nurse you, it was in the hopes that you would renew that fascinating dream. You were most entertainingthat night, and I laughed outright at the funny things you said.”

“I daresay it was as amusing as the play you would have gone to that night,” laughingly remarked Lionel.

“Oh! my dear Lionel, I was so very tired of my social entertainments; and the whole show had lost a good deal of its glamour, for it was my third season.”

“So you thought my dream was more diverting, and therefore decided to remain in the seat for which you had not paid.”

“Yes, that’s it; I must confess the truth, for we must never deceive each other again.”

“Poor little Gwen, how you must have hated me, for I am ashamed to say, some of my remarks were anything but flattering.”

“No, Lionel; but you taught me how to know you, and I learned how to know myself. I have sat night after night in this chair, listening to your dream, watching every phase of your regenerated London. I shared in all your reforms, and at times you even answered my questions. I could start your weird dream at any time, and at a suggestion of mine you would take up the thread of your narrative just where you had left it the night before.”

“It must have been like a sensationalfeuilletonwhich you expected each day to thrill you anew. But how worn out you must be, sweetheart. How long have I been in this condition?” inquired Lionel.

“Two months, dearest; but instead of wearing me out this hallucination kept me alive and put new blood into my veins. I can quite well see that Sir Edward believes I am on the verge of a mental collapse. Poor man, he does not see what we see and cannot feel as we do; he is still hopelessly ignorant.”

“What a narrow escape I have had,” remarked Lionel.

“It was miraculous, and the surgeons said they only knew of one other case in which a man who had been shot right through the head recovered consciousness after two months.”

“I daresay everyone will say my brain is affected whenever I say or do anything out of the common.”

“Never mind, Lionel, you and I have seen into each other’s heart, and that is sufficient to outweigh the loss of the world’s approbation. You see, we cannot look to a storm to wash away all our world’s shams; so we shall have to pass for eccentric or unorthodox, if we mean to live in a world of our own.”

“But then, dear Gwen, you remember thatDanford said we should be followed in our social reforms by all the cads that surround us.”

“Yes, I daresay, but it will be a long time before that happens, and I have done my little work of reform personally, by dismissing my maid, and by sending all my wardrobe to poor gentlewomen. This old shabby dress is the only one I have worn for two months. Ah! Lionel, I am ashamed at appearing before you in such an indecent thing as a dress—but you know, we cannot reform the world too abruptly, and besides I was afraid Sir Edward might give me in charge!” and they both laughed heartily. It did him good to recall the old jokes, and his face brightened as he watched Gwen pirouetting round the room.

There was a gentle knock at the door, and Temple came in with Gwendolen’s luncheon, which he placed on the table. He handed to her on a silver tray a bundle of letters and cards.

“How funny to see letters again,” said Lionel. “Who are they from?”

“A card from the Duke of Saltburn—Lord Petersham—”

“Oh! I must ask the old fellow if he is accustomed to sitting next to his butcher on the Board of Public Kitchens! Who next, Gwen?”

“There is your pet aversion, Joe Watson, with solicitous inquiries.”

“Gwen, I misjudged the old draper. There is a deal of good behind his insular self-consciousness.”

“Ha! ha! ha! Little Montagu Vane came to ask how you were!”

“Beg pardon, Miss,” broke in the conscientious valet, “Mr Vane never came himself, he sent round a messenger boy.”

“Oh! how good, just like him,” said Lionel; “he is adilettanteeven in sympathy, and prefers to get his information indirectly.”

“There are letters from Mrs Webster, from Mrs Archibald.”

“What can they want?” interrupted the patient. “These letters are of no earthly use; the first wants my subscription for some charity fraud, the second needs my name for some social parade. Throw them in the waste-paper basket.”

“Mrs Pottinger also sent her card,” went on Gwen, as she dropped the cards and letters one by one on the table.

“Excuse me, Miss,” again said Temple, “I forgot to say that Mrs Pottinger came to inquire everyday; and yesterday she left a small parcel which I put on the hall table.”

“Let us see what she says on her card,” and Gwen read the following words: “‘Mrs Pottingerhopes that Lord Somerville will accept and use the small pocket battery which accompanies this card. One of the most renowned New York surgeons has invented this wonderful brain restorer, and Mrs P. trusts Lord Somerville will give the discovery a fair trial, and that he will patronise the inventor and the invention.’”

“My first and only call will be on Mrs David Pottinger!” exclaimed Lionel, sitting up in his bed. “We shall see her yet presiding at the Palace of Happiness, and leading by the hand the American Seer.”

“Is my lord worse, Miss?” gravely inquired the valet, as he leaned towards Gwen.

“No, Temple, your master has never been in better spirits, nor has he ever been so clear in his mind. But it is—what can I call it?—a joke between us, and no one besides ourselves can understand it.”

“My good Temple,” echoed Lionel, with a joyous ring in his voice, “it is a conundrum which we are trying to guess. We have already made out the first part of the riddle, but the second will be more difficult, for it will consist in makingyousee the joke, Temple.”

“Oh! my lord, I always was a bad hand at guessing.”

“Ev’n News! Probable date of th’ Coronation!”The hurried footsteps passed in front of Selby House.

“What does that mean, Gwen? Is not the Coronation over by this time?”

“My poor boy, of course you do not know the news! Many things have happened since that night when you shot yourself. The war is over—thank goodness that is a thing of the past! But the royal tragedy-comedy was never acted. You shall read for yourself.” And Gwen went to fetch a bundle of newspapers and illustrated journals that lay on a console.

“’Ooligan murderer sentenced!” Again the hurried steps passed in the street.

Lionel read on and on, thrilled at the perusal of dailies and weeklies.

“The strangest of events brought the curtain down on our social pantomime. Quite as strange as the storm of London. If only it brought England to its senses I would not lament over the disappointment of the public.”

“I doubt whether England will take the hint,” said Gwen.

“This is all very strange, dearest Gwen, but still no stranger than my visions; and if it is true that ‘we are such stuff as dreams are made of,’ we can yet hope that our Society will save itself in time.”

The handle of the door was turned and Sir Edward walked in.

“Hullo! already reading, my dear Lord Somerville! You are a wonderful patient, and we shall see you in the Row before long.” Taking Lionel’s hand he felt his pulse. “That’s right, you are better, and you will soon resume your duties at Court. The King was inquiring after you the other day.”

“Very kind of him, I am sure, Sir Edward. I am sorry to disappoint you, but as soon as I can I shall start on a long journey, and England will not see me for many years.”

“My dear Lord Somerville,” and Sir Edward held his patient’s pulse firmly within his slender fingers, “we cannot spare you from London; besides which, this devoted young nurse cannot allow you to abandon her in this way.”

“I shall accompany Lord Somerville wherever he goes,” proudly said Gwen.

Sir Edward laid his patient’s hand gently on the bed and put back his watch into his waistcoat pocket.

“I never doubted for one instant that you would, Miss Towerbridge, but Lord Somerville has his duties to his King and to Society; and it would be quite unnecessary to take a long voyage when I can vouch for his speedy recovery, and canpromise that he shall take part in the procession.”

“My dear Sir Edward, I am so sorry to disappoint you again, but the royal procession will not include my unworthy person, nor shall I witness the royal pageant. It may be bad taste on my part, but I resign all my duties at Court from to-day. As to social duties—they only existed in our imaginations, and the sooner we emancipate ourselves from such bondage the better. Besides, my dear Sir Edward, who knows whether there will be a Coronation?”

“You are tired, dear friend”—the physician laid his hand on Lionel’s brow. “You have done far too much in one day, and need rest. But I will tell you just to put your mind at ease, that the date of the Coronation is fixed. I met the Lord Chamberlain an hour ago, and he informed me that we may look forward at an early date to our Sovereign’s public apotheosis.”

“Always the same incorrigible snobbery.” Lionel heaved a long sigh and lay back on his pillow. “My poor Sir Edward, England has missed the opportunity it ever had of learning a lesson; and we are ambling back to Canterbury on a Chaucerian cob.”

“Dear Miss Towerbridge”—Sir Edward came close to Gwen and spoke in a whisper—“I amafraid Lord Somerville is not yet out of the wood. I notice symptoms of the recurring fever. If by ten o’clock this evening the patient has not completely recovered his senses, call for me; for I fear the case will then be very grave, and one that will need the greatest care.”

“Do not worry about him, dear Sir Edward,” said Gwen, smiling her most bewitching smile. “Lord Somerville will never recover what you call his senses, and as soon as he can be taken away with safety we shall start for the Continent.”

“Good gracious! you do not realise what condition he is in! And what about your father? What about Society? You are very self-sacrificing, but you are reckless. Pray let me advise you, my dear young lady.”

“We shall start as soon as Lionel can be moved,” firmly answered Gwen.

“Yes, dear Sir Edward,” added Lionel, looking wistfully at the surgeon; “but we shall keep you posted up as to our whereabouts.”

“And we shall always sympathise with you in your tragic state of overclothing,” playfully said Gwen.

“My last words to you, Miss Towerbridge,” sententiously spoke Sir Edward, as he stiffly bowed farewell, “are these: You will very soon regret your rash enterprise.”

The surgeon went slowly out of the door, which he closed behind him with a sharp click; and as he crossed the hall he muttered between his teeth, “It is the first time I have seen an absolute case of contagious insanity.”

THE ENDCOLSTON AND COY. LIMITED, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH

THE END

COLSTON AND COY. LIMITED, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH

CURTIS YORKE’S Latest Novels

OLIVE KINSELLA(Shortly)6/—DELPHINE(Fourth Edition)6/—THE GIRL IN GREY(Fifth Edition)6/—A FLIRTATION WITH TRUTH(New Edition)2/6

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MARY E. MANN’S GREAT NOVEL

IN SUMMER SHADEBy MARY E. MANNAuthor of“The Mating of a Dove,” “Olivia’s Summer,” etc.

IN SUMMER SHADE

By MARY E. MANN

Author of

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OPINIONS OF THE PRESS

Morning Post.—“For human interest and bright vivacity of dialogue ‘In Summer Shade’ is not likely to find many rivals among works of the same class.”

Speaker.—“Mrs Mann has given us a thoroughly readable and decidedly clever story, marked by humour, satires and tenderness.”

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READY SHORTLYGUY BOOTHBY’S ENTHRALLING NEW ROMANCEIN SPITE OF THE CZARBy GUY BOOTHBY

READY SHORTLY

GUY BOOTHBY’S ENTHRALLING NEW ROMANCEIN SPITE OF THE CZARBy GUY BOOTHBY

GUY BOOTHBY’S ENTHRALLING NEW ROMANCE

IN SPITE OF THE CZAR

By GUY BOOTHBY

Crown 8vo, Bevelled Boards,Price 5s.With Eight Full-page Half-tone Illustrations on Art Paper byLeonard Linsdell

With Eight Full-page Half-tone Illustrations on Art Paper byLeonard Linsdell

The name of Guy Boothby is one to conjure with. In this fine tissue of romance and realism, we have a wide range both in scenery and in incident. The invention of “Velvet Coat” as a distinctive sobriquet is an original idea, and whether in an English country mansion, on the St Petersburg pavements, or at Irkutsk, or in any other of the scenes so well painted, we are carried on from page to page with breathless expectation. All sorts and conditions of men, and of women too, cross the stage of this fresh drama, and it is full of exactly what delights the jaded reader—after turning from third-rate romance—namely the Unexpected.

MAY CROMMELIN’SPOPULAR NOVELS

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PHŒBE OF THE WHITE FARM [ShortlyONE PRETTY MAID AND OTHERSCRIMSON LILIESBETTINAKINSAHTHE LUCK OF A LOWLAND LADDIEA WOMAN DERELICTPARTNERS THREEA DAUGHTER OF ENGLAND

PHŒBE OF THE WHITE FARM [Shortly

ONE PRETTY MAID AND OTHERS

CRIMSON LILIES

BETTINA

KINSAH

THE LUCK OF A LOWLAND LADDIE

A WOMAN DERELICT

PARTNERS THREE

A DAUGHTER OF ENGLAND

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JUST PUBLISHED.GUY BOOTHBY’S NEW ROMANCEA Bride from the SeaBy GUY BOOTHBYAuthor of “Dr Nikola,” “A Cabinet Secret,” “The Lady of the Island,” etc.

JUST PUBLISHED.

GUY BOOTHBY’S NEW ROMANCE

A Bride from the Sea

By GUY BOOTHBY

Author of “Dr Nikola,” “A Cabinet Secret,” “The Lady of the Island,” etc.

Crown 8vo, bevelled boards, price 5s.With Eight full-page half-tone Illustrations on Art PaperbyA. Talbot Smith

Crown 8vo, bevelled boards, price 5s.

With Eight full-page half-tone Illustrations on Art Paper

byA. Talbot Smith

This romance is, in the opinion of those who have been privileged to read it in M.S., Mr Guy Boothby’s best and most sensational tale, and is probably the longest story the author has written. The hero is Gilbert Penniston, a Devon worthy; time, a year after the Armada, and themotifhis ardent love for a very beautiful Spanish girl, saved from shipwreck. Jealousy, plottings, duels and many totally unexpected sensations, carry the reader on enthralled and breathless to the last page. The local colouring is excellent, and the value of the romance is enhanced by Mr A. Talbot Smith’s splendid and realistic illustrations.

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BITTER FRUITREMEMBRANCEAN ILL WINDA FAIR FRAUDA PASSING FANCYROSAMOND GRANT [ShortlyMIDSUMMER MADNESSTHE CRAZE OF CHRISTINAA DIFFICULT MATTERA WOMAN’S “NO”

BITTER FRUIT

REMEMBRANCE

AN ILL WIND

A FAIR FRAUD

A PASSING FANCY

ROSAMOND GRANT [Shortly

MIDSUMMER MADNESS

THE CRAZE OF CHRISTINA

A DIFFICULT MATTER

A WOMAN’S “NO”

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Morning Post.—“Mrs Lovett Cameron is one of the best story-tellers of the day, and her pages are so full of life and movement that not one of them is willingly skipped.”

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Daily Telegraph.—“Mrs Lovett Cameron is a fertile and fluent storyteller, and an uncommonly clever woman.”

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Black and White.—“We have a few writers whose books arouse in us certain expectations which are always fulfilled. Such a writer is Mrs Lovett Cameron.”

London: JOHN LONG, 13 & 14 Norris St., HaymarketAnd at all the Libraries and Booksellers

London: JOHN LONG, 13 & 14 Norris St., Haymarket

And at all the Libraries and Booksellers

MR. JOHN LONG’SAutumn and New Year Announcements1904–1905JOHN LONG’S POPULAR NOVELSMr. John Longhas much pleasure in announcing the publication of the following important New Novels, several of which are now ready.Six Shillings eachTHE MASK[1]William Le QueuxTHE STORM OF LONDONF. DickberryBLIND POLICYGeorge Manville FennTHE AMBASSADOR’S LOVERobert MachrayLADY SYLVIALucas CleeveTHE WATERS OF OBLIVIONAdeline SergeantAN INDEPENDENT MAIDENAdeline SergeantTHE BOOK OF ANGELUS DRAYTONMrs. Fred ReynoldsRONALD LINDSAYMay WynneLINKS OF LOVEDacre HindleMERELY A NEGRESSStuart YoungTHE TEMPTATION OF ANTHONYAlice M. DiehlLITTLE WIFE HESTERL. T. MeadeTHE NIGHT OF RECKONINGFrank BarrettROSAMOND GRANTMrs. Lovett CameronTHE SECRET PASSAGEFergus HumeCONFESSIONS OF A YOUNG LADYRichard MarshTHE FATE OF FELIXMrs. Coulson KernahanLOVE AND TWENTYJohn Strange WinterHIS REVERENCE THE RECTORSarah TytlerLORD EVERSLEIGH’S SINSViolet TweedaleTHE INFORMERFred WhishawTHE FACE IN THE FLASHLIGHTFlorence WardenTHE WAR OF THE SEXESF. E. YoungCOUNT REMINYJean MiddlemassTHE PROVINCIALSLady Helen ForbesA BOND OF SYMPATHYColonel Andrew HaggardSTRAINED ALLEGIANCER. H. ForsterOLIVE KINSELLACurtis YorkeBENBONUNARobert BruceFROM THE CLUTCH OF THE SEAJ. E. MuddockTHE CAVERN OF LAMENTS (8 Illusts.)Catherine E. MallandaineLORD OF HIMSELFMrs. Aylmer GowinMADEMOISELLE NELLIELucas CleeveIN SPITE OF THE CZAR (8 Illusts., 5s )Guy Boothby☞Descriptive paragraphs of these Novels will be found inside1. Originally announced as ‘Both of this Parish,’ a title claimed by another author.

MR. JOHN LONG’SAutumn and New Year Announcements1904–1905JOHN LONG’S POPULAR NOVELS

MR. JOHN LONG’S

Autumn and New Year Announcements

1904–1905

JOHN LONG’S POPULAR NOVELS

Mr. John Longhas much pleasure in announcing the publication of the following important New Novels, several of which are now ready.

Six Shillings each

☞Descriptive paragraphs of these Novels will be found inside

1. Originally announced as ‘Both of this Parish,’ a title claimed by another author.

Mr. John Long’s New & forthcoming Books

THE MASK.ByWilliam Le QueuxThis extraordinary tale plunges the reader at the first word into a mystery so deep, a story so vital, that one reads page after page in the spirit that holds the reader of, for example, ‘Treasure Island,’ though the story is not a story of some distant and undiscovered shore. True, there are a treasure and a treasure-hunter. True, there are wreckers, traitors, villains. True, there are youth, innocence, beauty. But all these belong, not to the high seas, but to the restless tide of human life and love which seethes and boils on this dry land of England now. There is something in the author’s work which allies him with Dumas, with Victor Hugo, with the weaver of the legends of the ‘Arabian Nights.’ He holds you; he fascinates you. He brings the breath of old-time romance down to the HERE and the NOW.THE STORM OF LONDON.ByF. Dickberry‘Have you read “The Storm of London”?’ is the question which will be on the lips of everyone. No novel published within recent times is comparable with it for audacity. It is described as a social rhapsody, and the author certainly portrays with no flattering pen the worse side of high-class society. But it is something more. It is a work of imagination, daringly original, and set boldly in a frame of modern realism. Yet there is no sadness in the book—only laughter. The author possesses rare courage and discretion, and his story can give no offence to any reader with the saving gift of humour. Again we ask, ‘Have you read “The Storm of London”?’BLIND POLICY.ByGeorge Manville FennDaring in conception, masterly in execution, and strong in real human interest is Mr. George Manville Fenn’s new story, which deals with the amazing doings of fashionable London life. That such things can be seems almost past belief, and yet, given the actual circumstances, and the consequences are perfectly natural. The feminine interest is particularly strong in this particularly strong story.THE AMBASSADOR’S GLOVE.ByRobert MachrayMr. Robert Machray’s plots are conceived with an ingenuity that baffles the most practised reader. ‘The Ambassador’s Glove’ is a story of a formidable domestic conspiracy in which the Foreign Office, the Secret Service, and a peculiar society called The Brotherhood, are involved in a battle royal. The weapons employed are abduction, assassination, and blackmail. It is a story that cannot fail to go into many editions.LADY SYLVIA.ByLucas CleeveThe chief characteristics of ‘Lady Sylvia’ are passion and intelligence. It is a story of the eternal conflict between love and duty, and is rendered the more powerful because it is written with the consummate mastery which is now associated with the name of Lucas Cleeve.THE WATERS OF OBLIVION.ByAdeline SergeantMiss Adeline Sergeant is a writer who has endeared herself to countless thousands of novel-readers. Her books are always human, and she believes in happy endings, but the way is set with temptations and storms and difficulties before the haven is finally reached. In her new story, ‘The Waters of Oblivion,’ Miss Sergeant displays all her old qualities, and it must create for her a host of new friends.AN INDEPENDENT MAIDEN.ByAdeline SergeantIn Miss Sergeant’s new story will be found all those essentials which have made her name a household word in the realms of fiction, and readers of the present work will be delighted to make the acquaintance of so charming and sympathetic a heroine as Dulcie.THE BOOK OF ANGELUS DRAYTON.ByMrs. Fred Reynolds‘The Book of Angelus Drayton’ is not a novel set to the ordinary tune. There is a plot, indeed, and one that no one can read without sympathetic interest; there is comedy and tragedy in it. But the chief note of the book is its charm—its charm of subject, its charm of treatment, and its charm of style. It is a story of the country, and to all who love the sights and sounds of the country it will appeal with irresistible strength. It leads the reader through the changing seasons of the year, and of them all it has something significant to say in the manner of a poet. It is not only a book to be read: it is a book to be bought and read and re-read.RONALD LINDSAY.ByMay Wynne, Author of ‘For Faith and Navarre’This is an historical romance of the period of the Scotch Covenanters, and the background is filled with the fascinating though sinister figure of Graham of Olaverhouse. The book will delight all who have a feeling for the picturesqueness of bygone days.LINKS OF LOVE.ByDacre HindleTwo adventurous young men on pleasure bent succeed in convoying two charming girls, with their unsuspecting chaperon, to the hotel where the heroes of this fascinating romance of the Riviera are to stay. Realism is happily blended with a delightful romance which promises to be one of the most amusing of the season.MERELY A NEGRESS.ByStuart YoungMr. Stuart Young’s ‘Merely a Negress’ is new and original insomuch that it deals with the problem of the marriage of an Englishman and a Negress. The author treats his subject tactfully, and dwells upon the incompatibility, as well as upon the emotional sympathy of the senses. There is candour in the book, and yet restraint. As a new experiment in fiction, Mr. Stuart Young’s book deserves to be received with careful attention.THE TEMPTATION OF ANTHONY.ByAlice M. DiehlThe name of Alice M. Diehl is a guarantee for vividly-coloured and present-day society presentments, veined with romance and exciting incident. ‘The Temptation of Anthony’ will certainly take high rank among the lively and delightful novels by this well-known writer. Her portrait of Eve (Lady Waring) is a masterpiece in true and delicate female delineation. The story of Eve’s trial and sufferings should appeal to every reader.LITTLE WIFE HESTER.ByL. T. MeadeL. T. Meade’s new story, ‘Little Wife Hester,’ is concerned with the practices of Dr. Greenhill, a fashionable London physician, who effects marvellous cures by means of hypnotism. Her method is too well known to require description or eulogy. The story is written with great fluency, and ‘Little Wife Hester’ will add another to Mrs. Meade’s many laurels.THE NIGHT OF RECKONING.ByFrank Barrett‘The Night of Reckoning’ is a story of Doris, a young girl who, being left alone in the world, becomes the sport of relatives, who to rob her of her heritage do not shrink from the committal of the blackest crimes. But Doris has good as well as bad fairies to watch over her. All who like a rousing novel full of sensation and presented with an air of authenticity will greatly enjoy Mr. Frank Barrett’s new book. It places him at the head of the few writers of good dramatic fiction.ROSAMOND GRANT.ByMrs. Lovett Cameron‘Rosamond Grant’ Is the story of a woman’s life—of her illusions, emotions, hopes, regrets and mistakes. It is a theme admirably suited to Mrs. Lovett Cameron’s method. Her characters are human to a degree, and the charm lies in their refreshing originality and their bright and entertaining vivacity. The story will make many new friends for this delightful and sympathetic writer.THE SECRET PASSAGE.ByFergus HumeSince Mr. Fergus Hume became famous as the writer of the ‘Mystery of a Hansom Cab,’ he has steadily progressed in public favour, and is now regarded as a veritable master of strategy in fiction. The reader who takes up one of his books may depend upon finding an enthralling story and a plot of baffling ingenuity. In his new work Mr. Fergus Hume’s unusual gifts are displayed in their maturity. ‘The Secret Passage’ is, perhaps, the author’s best book.CONFESSIONS OF A YOUNG LADY.ByRichard Marsh, Author of ‘The Beetle,’ etc.Mr. Richard Marsh belongs to the younger generation of writers of fiction, and he can hold his own with the most brilliant of them. His qualities are originality of invention, a command over the weird and mysterious, a clear, straightforward narrative, and a bizarre humour, all the more telling because it flashes at unexpected moments across the page. In his new book, ‘The Confessions of a Young Lady,’ Mr. Richard Marsh’s remarkable powers are strikinglyen evidence. It shows him at his best in the plenitude of his varied moods. The book will add much to the author’s popularity.THE FATE OF FELIX.ByMrs. Coulson KernahanThe general reader loves a mystery. Mrs. Coulson Kernahan is evidently well aware of the fact, and caters for her public accordingly. In ‘Devastation’ she took the reader into her confidence in the beginning; in ‘The Fate of Felix’ she keeps her secret to the end. This book has a most amazing plot, and has a love-story running through it of a very unusual description.LOVE AND TWENTY.ByJohn Strange WinterThe qualities that created for John Strange Winter her immense popularity are pre-eminently conspicuous in ‘Love and Twenty.’ The book shows that the author can wield the pen with all her old mastery. There is the same richness of invention, the same simplicity of manner, the same warmth of colouring, and the same tender pathos. No woman writer indeed can contest John Strange Winter’s supremacy in her own dominion.HIS REVERENCE THE RECTOR.BySarah TytlerMiss Sarah Tytler’s new book deals with the personalities of an old-world type of county family, and incidentally discusses some semi-political questions and the problems of village life. Yet there is no lack of story, which is carefully constructed, written with the author’s accustomed polish, and may be recommended as among the best of the works of fiction penned by this thoughtful writer.LORD EVERSLEIGH’S SINS.ByViolet TweedaleThe love affairs of a modern peer best describes Violet Tweedale’s new book. It is a wonderfully strong story, is written with great cogence, and displays a grasp of character and a power of expression immensely in advance of anything the author has previously effected. In this novel the author has ‘found’ herself.THE INFORMER.ByFred WhishawMr. Fred Whishaw here presents a convincing picture of an honest Russian official who, opposed to the apostles of violence and bloodshed in his unhappy country, finds himself in a position which grows hateful to him. So realistic are many of the incidents in this Romance of the Discontented, that the reader will probably come to the conclusion, perhaps a correct one, that Mr. Fred Whishaw has drawn upon actual facts rather than upon his unassisted imagination.THE FACE IN THE FLASHLIGHT.ByFlorence WardenMiss Florence Warden’s new novel comprises a powerful study of the evils of gambling. The villain of the piece—a portrait drawn with great subtlety and skill—murders a dissipated youth to whom he acts as tutor, and attempts the life of his wife In order to gratify his passion for gambling. The story would be noteworthy if only for the presentation of ‘Mattie,’ who witnesses the crime, and yet is powerless to prevent the marriage of her friend with the murderer. The book is original and forceful, and the lover of fiction who omits its perusal will ‘only have himself to blame.’THE WAR OF THE SEXES.ByF. E. Young, Author of ‘The Triumph of Jill,’ ‘A Dangerous Quest,’ etc.It is safe to predict for Miss Young’s new story a phenomenal success, for it contains those qualities of the unexpected which straightway stamp a book. The story portrays the condition or affairs some thousands of years hence, when the male species, with a solitary exception, has become extinct. The authoress keeps her imagination within bounds, and the chief note of the book is its great good-humour. A delightful vein of satire winds its way through its pages, and the general effect can only be the unrestrained amusement which is wrought by high-class comedy.COUNT REMINY.ByJean MiddlemassThe name of Miss Jean Middlemass is a household word in the region of novel-readers. Her stories are conceived with great fertility of resource, and executed with the dexterity of the practised pen. Her new novel, ‘Count Reminy,’ is, perhaps, the brightest of her many works of fiction. It relates the story of a girl engaged to a man who cares only for her fortune; how she meets and falls in love with another man, and how her fiancé is mysteriously murdered. In the result, after sundry complications, all is well, and the book is bound to please the many readers of this popular favourite.THE PROVINCIALS.ByLady Helen Forbes, Author of ‘His Eminence,’ ‘The Outcast Emperor,’ etc.Lady Helen Forbes gives us in her new book a story of society, though not of ‘smart’ society. ‘The Provincials’ are a wealthy county family whose wealth entitles them to be leaders of society, but they prefer the life of the country. The authoress is well at home among her characters, and her vivacity and sense of humour invest the plot with real interest. Some vivid pictures of hunting help the reader along. ‘The Provincials’ may be deemed a landmark in Lady Helen Forbes’ career as a novelist, and shows that her work will have to be reckoned with.A BOND OF SYMPATHY.ByColonel Andrew HaggardLieut.-Col. Andrew Haggard may be said to possess one, at least, of the gifts of his distinguished brother, the author of ‘She’—the art of telling a story. In his new book he proves, also, that he has a happy knack of invention and a good eye for dramatic situations. There is an abundance of stirring adventure, and there is an atmosphere that will inevitably appeal to the sporting reader; indeed, the book is written by a true sportsman. It is full of high spirits, and will be greatly appreciated by those who like breezy, good-natured and healthy fiction.STRAINED ALLEGIANCE.ByR. H. Forster, Author of ‘The Last Foray,’ ‘In Steel and Leather,’ etc.This is a story of the rebellion of 1715—of the struggle between the Jacobites and the Hanoverians, which culminated in the Battle of Preston. The hero is entrapped into an apparent support of the Jacobite cause, notwithstanding that his sympathies are with the Hanoverians, and his attempts to escape from his captors serve as the background for many exciting scenes and romantic incidents, and for a charming love idyll.OLIVE KINSELLA.ByCurtis Yorke, Author of ‘Delphine,’ ‘The Girl in Grey’The name of Curtis Yorke is one to conjure with among all lovers of good fiction, for she possesses the higher gifts of the novelist—imagination, distinction, humour. She can play upon the emotions, from grave to gay, from lively to severe, with the consummate touch of a master. Her new book must fulfil the anticipations of her best admirers, for ‘Olive Kinsella’ is a fine story, finely conceived, and finely told.BENBONUNA.ByRobert BruceIn ‘Benbonuna’ we have a tale written in the easy, forceful, simple style that must appeal to lovers of adventure. The wild, strenuous, daring life of the Australian Bush is described with the fidelity of portraiture. Those who know nothing of this strange, silent land, where many of the laws of nature seem to be reversed, will find much to enlighten, as well as much to entertain them. The book is essentially for readers with strong minds and broad sympathies.FROM THE CLUTCH OF THE SEA.ByJ. E. MuddockA book by this well-known and favourite author is always sure of a public, and it may safely be predicted that ‘From the Clutch of the Sea’ will be eagerly sought after. The opening, which describes a wreck on the Devonshire coast, is written with such a graphic pen that the terrible and thrilling scene is brought vividly before the mind’s eye. The characters are pulsing human beings, and the story is indeed worthy the reputation of the veteran author.THE CAVERN OF LAMENTS.ByCatherine E. Mallandaine. Illustrated‘The Cavern of Laments,’ derives its title from a weird cavern in Sark, and the main incidents of the story revolve round that picturesque island and its old-world people. The scenery it traverses, and the people whose lives and loves it depicts, have this merit—that they are fresh and unhackneyed. Indeed, the note or the book is its strength and originality. The crux of the story is the marriage of Cecile and Breakspeare, brought about by a dishonourable act, and its sequel. The writing is powerful throughout, and the publisher believes that every reader will be grateful for the opportunity of perusing a novel possessing unusual qualities.LORD OF HIMSELF.ByMrs. Aylmer GowingThe moneyless heir to a peerage wins the Newdigate Prize at Oxford, and also, as he believes, a beautiful and dangerous woman who has saved his life. Betrayed by her, he fights his way, like a man, against all odds, a delightful young princess of ideal type being his good angel. A strong vein of humour carries the reader through an intricate plot, while vivid pictures of Oxford life lend colour to a stirring story.MADEMOISELLE NELLIE.ByLucas CleeveThere are few novelists whose works deserve more respectful consideration than those of Lucas Cleeve. She has written stories of a high order, but she has never surpassed in interest or in power her new book ‘Mademoiselle Nellie.’ It is a story of English and French life, and offers a careful study of the differing characteristics of the two peoples. The book abounds in felicitous phrases, in dramatic moments, and in deft touches of pathos.IN SPITE OF THE CZAR.ByGuy Boothby, Author of ‘Dr. Nikola,’ etc. With 8 Illustrations. 5s.In this fine tissue of romance and realism we have a wide range both in scenery and in incident. The invention of ‘Velvet Coat’ as a distinctive sobriquet is an original idea, and whether in an English country mansion, on the St. Petersburg pavements, or at Irkutsk, or in any other of the scenes so well painted, we are carried on from page to page with breathless expectation. All sorts and conditions of men, and of women, too, cross the stage of this fresh drama, and it is full of exactly what delights the jaded reader—after turning from third-rate romance—namely, the unexpected.

THE MASK.ByWilliam Le Queux

This extraordinary tale plunges the reader at the first word into a mystery so deep, a story so vital, that one reads page after page in the spirit that holds the reader of, for example, ‘Treasure Island,’ though the story is not a story of some distant and undiscovered shore. True, there are a treasure and a treasure-hunter. True, there are wreckers, traitors, villains. True, there are youth, innocence, beauty. But all these belong, not to the high seas, but to the restless tide of human life and love which seethes and boils on this dry land of England now. There is something in the author’s work which allies him with Dumas, with Victor Hugo, with the weaver of the legends of the ‘Arabian Nights.’ He holds you; he fascinates you. He brings the breath of old-time romance down to the HERE and the NOW.

THE STORM OF LONDON.ByF. Dickberry

‘Have you read “The Storm of London”?’ is the question which will be on the lips of everyone. No novel published within recent times is comparable with it for audacity. It is described as a social rhapsody, and the author certainly portrays with no flattering pen the worse side of high-class society. But it is something more. It is a work of imagination, daringly original, and set boldly in a frame of modern realism. Yet there is no sadness in the book—only laughter. The author possesses rare courage and discretion, and his story can give no offence to any reader with the saving gift of humour. Again we ask, ‘Have you read “The Storm of London”?’

BLIND POLICY.ByGeorge Manville Fenn

Daring in conception, masterly in execution, and strong in real human interest is Mr. George Manville Fenn’s new story, which deals with the amazing doings of fashionable London life. That such things can be seems almost past belief, and yet, given the actual circumstances, and the consequences are perfectly natural. The feminine interest is particularly strong in this particularly strong story.

THE AMBASSADOR’S GLOVE.ByRobert Machray

Mr. Robert Machray’s plots are conceived with an ingenuity that baffles the most practised reader. ‘The Ambassador’s Glove’ is a story of a formidable domestic conspiracy in which the Foreign Office, the Secret Service, and a peculiar society called The Brotherhood, are involved in a battle royal. The weapons employed are abduction, assassination, and blackmail. It is a story that cannot fail to go into many editions.

LADY SYLVIA.ByLucas Cleeve

The chief characteristics of ‘Lady Sylvia’ are passion and intelligence. It is a story of the eternal conflict between love and duty, and is rendered the more powerful because it is written with the consummate mastery which is now associated with the name of Lucas Cleeve.

THE WATERS OF OBLIVION.ByAdeline Sergeant

Miss Adeline Sergeant is a writer who has endeared herself to countless thousands of novel-readers. Her books are always human, and she believes in happy endings, but the way is set with temptations and storms and difficulties before the haven is finally reached. In her new story, ‘The Waters of Oblivion,’ Miss Sergeant displays all her old qualities, and it must create for her a host of new friends.

AN INDEPENDENT MAIDEN.ByAdeline Sergeant

In Miss Sergeant’s new story will be found all those essentials which have made her name a household word in the realms of fiction, and readers of the present work will be delighted to make the acquaintance of so charming and sympathetic a heroine as Dulcie.

THE BOOK OF ANGELUS DRAYTON.ByMrs. Fred Reynolds

‘The Book of Angelus Drayton’ is not a novel set to the ordinary tune. There is a plot, indeed, and one that no one can read without sympathetic interest; there is comedy and tragedy in it. But the chief note of the book is its charm—its charm of subject, its charm of treatment, and its charm of style. It is a story of the country, and to all who love the sights and sounds of the country it will appeal with irresistible strength. It leads the reader through the changing seasons of the year, and of them all it has something significant to say in the manner of a poet. It is not only a book to be read: it is a book to be bought and read and re-read.

RONALD LINDSAY.ByMay Wynne, Author of ‘For Faith and Navarre’

This is an historical romance of the period of the Scotch Covenanters, and the background is filled with the fascinating though sinister figure of Graham of Olaverhouse. The book will delight all who have a feeling for the picturesqueness of bygone days.

LINKS OF LOVE.ByDacre Hindle

Two adventurous young men on pleasure bent succeed in convoying two charming girls, with their unsuspecting chaperon, to the hotel where the heroes of this fascinating romance of the Riviera are to stay. Realism is happily blended with a delightful romance which promises to be one of the most amusing of the season.

MERELY A NEGRESS.ByStuart Young

Mr. Stuart Young’s ‘Merely a Negress’ is new and original insomuch that it deals with the problem of the marriage of an Englishman and a Negress. The author treats his subject tactfully, and dwells upon the incompatibility, as well as upon the emotional sympathy of the senses. There is candour in the book, and yet restraint. As a new experiment in fiction, Mr. Stuart Young’s book deserves to be received with careful attention.

THE TEMPTATION OF ANTHONY.ByAlice M. Diehl

The name of Alice M. Diehl is a guarantee for vividly-coloured and present-day society presentments, veined with romance and exciting incident. ‘The Temptation of Anthony’ will certainly take high rank among the lively and delightful novels by this well-known writer. Her portrait of Eve (Lady Waring) is a masterpiece in true and delicate female delineation. The story of Eve’s trial and sufferings should appeal to every reader.

LITTLE WIFE HESTER.ByL. T. Meade

L. T. Meade’s new story, ‘Little Wife Hester,’ is concerned with the practices of Dr. Greenhill, a fashionable London physician, who effects marvellous cures by means of hypnotism. Her method is too well known to require description or eulogy. The story is written with great fluency, and ‘Little Wife Hester’ will add another to Mrs. Meade’s many laurels.

THE NIGHT OF RECKONING.ByFrank Barrett

‘The Night of Reckoning’ is a story of Doris, a young girl who, being left alone in the world, becomes the sport of relatives, who to rob her of her heritage do not shrink from the committal of the blackest crimes. But Doris has good as well as bad fairies to watch over her. All who like a rousing novel full of sensation and presented with an air of authenticity will greatly enjoy Mr. Frank Barrett’s new book. It places him at the head of the few writers of good dramatic fiction.

ROSAMOND GRANT.ByMrs. Lovett Cameron

‘Rosamond Grant’ Is the story of a woman’s life—of her illusions, emotions, hopes, regrets and mistakes. It is a theme admirably suited to Mrs. Lovett Cameron’s method. Her characters are human to a degree, and the charm lies in their refreshing originality and their bright and entertaining vivacity. The story will make many new friends for this delightful and sympathetic writer.

THE SECRET PASSAGE.ByFergus Hume

Since Mr. Fergus Hume became famous as the writer of the ‘Mystery of a Hansom Cab,’ he has steadily progressed in public favour, and is now regarded as a veritable master of strategy in fiction. The reader who takes up one of his books may depend upon finding an enthralling story and a plot of baffling ingenuity. In his new work Mr. Fergus Hume’s unusual gifts are displayed in their maturity. ‘The Secret Passage’ is, perhaps, the author’s best book.

CONFESSIONS OF A YOUNG LADY.ByRichard Marsh, Author of ‘The Beetle,’ etc.

Mr. Richard Marsh belongs to the younger generation of writers of fiction, and he can hold his own with the most brilliant of them. His qualities are originality of invention, a command over the weird and mysterious, a clear, straightforward narrative, and a bizarre humour, all the more telling because it flashes at unexpected moments across the page. In his new book, ‘The Confessions of a Young Lady,’ Mr. Richard Marsh’s remarkable powers are strikinglyen evidence. It shows him at his best in the plenitude of his varied moods. The book will add much to the author’s popularity.

THE FATE OF FELIX.ByMrs. Coulson Kernahan

The general reader loves a mystery. Mrs. Coulson Kernahan is evidently well aware of the fact, and caters for her public accordingly. In ‘Devastation’ she took the reader into her confidence in the beginning; in ‘The Fate of Felix’ she keeps her secret to the end. This book has a most amazing plot, and has a love-story running through it of a very unusual description.

LOVE AND TWENTY.ByJohn Strange Winter

The qualities that created for John Strange Winter her immense popularity are pre-eminently conspicuous in ‘Love and Twenty.’ The book shows that the author can wield the pen with all her old mastery. There is the same richness of invention, the same simplicity of manner, the same warmth of colouring, and the same tender pathos. No woman writer indeed can contest John Strange Winter’s supremacy in her own dominion.

HIS REVERENCE THE RECTOR.BySarah Tytler

Miss Sarah Tytler’s new book deals with the personalities of an old-world type of county family, and incidentally discusses some semi-political questions and the problems of village life. Yet there is no lack of story, which is carefully constructed, written with the author’s accustomed polish, and may be recommended as among the best of the works of fiction penned by this thoughtful writer.

LORD EVERSLEIGH’S SINS.ByViolet Tweedale

The love affairs of a modern peer best describes Violet Tweedale’s new book. It is a wonderfully strong story, is written with great cogence, and displays a grasp of character and a power of expression immensely in advance of anything the author has previously effected. In this novel the author has ‘found’ herself.

THE INFORMER.ByFred Whishaw

Mr. Fred Whishaw here presents a convincing picture of an honest Russian official who, opposed to the apostles of violence and bloodshed in his unhappy country, finds himself in a position which grows hateful to him. So realistic are many of the incidents in this Romance of the Discontented, that the reader will probably come to the conclusion, perhaps a correct one, that Mr. Fred Whishaw has drawn upon actual facts rather than upon his unassisted imagination.

THE FACE IN THE FLASHLIGHT.ByFlorence Warden

Miss Florence Warden’s new novel comprises a powerful study of the evils of gambling. The villain of the piece—a portrait drawn with great subtlety and skill—murders a dissipated youth to whom he acts as tutor, and attempts the life of his wife In order to gratify his passion for gambling. The story would be noteworthy if only for the presentation of ‘Mattie,’ who witnesses the crime, and yet is powerless to prevent the marriage of her friend with the murderer. The book is original and forceful, and the lover of fiction who omits its perusal will ‘only have himself to blame.’

THE WAR OF THE SEXES.ByF. E. Young, Author of ‘The Triumph of Jill,’ ‘A Dangerous Quest,’ etc.

It is safe to predict for Miss Young’s new story a phenomenal success, for it contains those qualities of the unexpected which straightway stamp a book. The story portrays the condition or affairs some thousands of years hence, when the male species, with a solitary exception, has become extinct. The authoress keeps her imagination within bounds, and the chief note of the book is its great good-humour. A delightful vein of satire winds its way through its pages, and the general effect can only be the unrestrained amusement which is wrought by high-class comedy.

COUNT REMINY.ByJean Middlemass

The name of Miss Jean Middlemass is a household word in the region of novel-readers. Her stories are conceived with great fertility of resource, and executed with the dexterity of the practised pen. Her new novel, ‘Count Reminy,’ is, perhaps, the brightest of her many works of fiction. It relates the story of a girl engaged to a man who cares only for her fortune; how she meets and falls in love with another man, and how her fiancé is mysteriously murdered. In the result, after sundry complications, all is well, and the book is bound to please the many readers of this popular favourite.

THE PROVINCIALS.ByLady Helen Forbes, Author of ‘His Eminence,’ ‘The Outcast Emperor,’ etc.

Lady Helen Forbes gives us in her new book a story of society, though not of ‘smart’ society. ‘The Provincials’ are a wealthy county family whose wealth entitles them to be leaders of society, but they prefer the life of the country. The authoress is well at home among her characters, and her vivacity and sense of humour invest the plot with real interest. Some vivid pictures of hunting help the reader along. ‘The Provincials’ may be deemed a landmark in Lady Helen Forbes’ career as a novelist, and shows that her work will have to be reckoned with.

A BOND OF SYMPATHY.ByColonel Andrew Haggard

Lieut.-Col. Andrew Haggard may be said to possess one, at least, of the gifts of his distinguished brother, the author of ‘She’—the art of telling a story. In his new book he proves, also, that he has a happy knack of invention and a good eye for dramatic situations. There is an abundance of stirring adventure, and there is an atmosphere that will inevitably appeal to the sporting reader; indeed, the book is written by a true sportsman. It is full of high spirits, and will be greatly appreciated by those who like breezy, good-natured and healthy fiction.

STRAINED ALLEGIANCE.ByR. H. Forster, Author of ‘The Last Foray,’ ‘In Steel and Leather,’ etc.

This is a story of the rebellion of 1715—of the struggle between the Jacobites and the Hanoverians, which culminated in the Battle of Preston. The hero is entrapped into an apparent support of the Jacobite cause, notwithstanding that his sympathies are with the Hanoverians, and his attempts to escape from his captors serve as the background for many exciting scenes and romantic incidents, and for a charming love idyll.

OLIVE KINSELLA.ByCurtis Yorke, Author of ‘Delphine,’ ‘The Girl in Grey’

The name of Curtis Yorke is one to conjure with among all lovers of good fiction, for she possesses the higher gifts of the novelist—imagination, distinction, humour. She can play upon the emotions, from grave to gay, from lively to severe, with the consummate touch of a master. Her new book must fulfil the anticipations of her best admirers, for ‘Olive Kinsella’ is a fine story, finely conceived, and finely told.

BENBONUNA.ByRobert Bruce

In ‘Benbonuna’ we have a tale written in the easy, forceful, simple style that must appeal to lovers of adventure. The wild, strenuous, daring life of the Australian Bush is described with the fidelity of portraiture. Those who know nothing of this strange, silent land, where many of the laws of nature seem to be reversed, will find much to enlighten, as well as much to entertain them. The book is essentially for readers with strong minds and broad sympathies.

FROM THE CLUTCH OF THE SEA.ByJ. E. Muddock

A book by this well-known and favourite author is always sure of a public, and it may safely be predicted that ‘From the Clutch of the Sea’ will be eagerly sought after. The opening, which describes a wreck on the Devonshire coast, is written with such a graphic pen that the terrible and thrilling scene is brought vividly before the mind’s eye. The characters are pulsing human beings, and the story is indeed worthy the reputation of the veteran author.

THE CAVERN OF LAMENTS.ByCatherine E. Mallandaine. Illustrated

‘The Cavern of Laments,’ derives its title from a weird cavern in Sark, and the main incidents of the story revolve round that picturesque island and its old-world people. The scenery it traverses, and the people whose lives and loves it depicts, have this merit—that they are fresh and unhackneyed. Indeed, the note or the book is its strength and originality. The crux of the story is the marriage of Cecile and Breakspeare, brought about by a dishonourable act, and its sequel. The writing is powerful throughout, and the publisher believes that every reader will be grateful for the opportunity of perusing a novel possessing unusual qualities.

LORD OF HIMSELF.ByMrs. Aylmer Gowing

The moneyless heir to a peerage wins the Newdigate Prize at Oxford, and also, as he believes, a beautiful and dangerous woman who has saved his life. Betrayed by her, he fights his way, like a man, against all odds, a delightful young princess of ideal type being his good angel. A strong vein of humour carries the reader through an intricate plot, while vivid pictures of Oxford life lend colour to a stirring story.

MADEMOISELLE NELLIE.ByLucas Cleeve

There are few novelists whose works deserve more respectful consideration than those of Lucas Cleeve. She has written stories of a high order, but she has never surpassed in interest or in power her new book ‘Mademoiselle Nellie.’ It is a story of English and French life, and offers a careful study of the differing characteristics of the two peoples. The book abounds in felicitous phrases, in dramatic moments, and in deft touches of pathos.

IN SPITE OF THE CZAR.ByGuy Boothby, Author of ‘Dr. Nikola,’ etc. With 8 Illustrations. 5s.

In this fine tissue of romance and realism we have a wide range both in scenery and in incident. The invention of ‘Velvet Coat’ as a distinctive sobriquet is an original idea, and whether in an English country mansion, on the St. Petersburg pavements, or at Irkutsk, or in any other of the scenes so well painted, we are carried on from page to page with breathless expectation. All sorts and conditions of men, and of women, too, cross the stage of this fresh drama, and it is full of exactly what delights the jaded reader—after turning from third-rate romance—namely, the unexpected.

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