Children of Men. By Eden Phillpotts. (Heinemann. 7s. 6d.) With
Children of Men Mr. Eden Phillpotts completes his Dartmoor cycle. He explains in a foreword that his aim in writing it is to vindicate his belief in the upward trend of moral evolution, but the book itself is not didactic. It is the story of the clash between two highly emotional person- alities with conflicting religious views. Jacob Bulstone, a Freethinker, marries Margery Huxam, his kennelmaid, the daughter of two members of a narrow religious sect. Her mother is an ardent believer in the salvation of the few and the damnation of the many, among whom she includes her son-in-law. So fierce is her fervour that she does not scruple to hasten the end of her dying daughter in order that the girl's chance of eternal felicity may not be jeopardized by her forgiving her jealous and wrongheaded husband. The mellow outlook of the 'author is well represented by Billy Marydrew, a philosophical old rustic. Mr. Eden Phillpotts has not quite sustained the interest throughout the length of the story, but nevertheless he has written a powerful book.
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