Faithful and Unfaithful. By Margaret 'Lee (Macmillan and Co.)—This is
a novel with purpose—as Mr. Gladstone's review of it will show to every one—but in spite of its excellent purpose, its literary skill is -not of a very effective kind. This want of effectiveness is due ,to various causes. it is wanting in skill of construction, and, generally, in subtlety of observation. There are incidents which, as far as we can see, have no bearing on the dramatic development of the story ; there are descriptions of social life which somewhat take off war attention from the general purpose. For these defects the _author is responsible. It is not her fault if her story loses much of its effect when it-is read in a country where the circumstances on which.it relies for its force do not exist. The catastrophe of the story occurs when the wife finds herself divorced. She has suffered much from her husband, a man whose whole moral nature is vastly inferior to hers. He adds to his other vices folly and extravagance in money matters, and bankruptcy follows. One result of this state of things is that while she remains in New York, he seeks to retrieve his fortunes in Connecticut. A period of sixteen months passes, and then one morning she finds herself divorced ! That the laws of the States of the Union differ, we all know, and that divorce is easy in some and difficult in others. But that a Court in any State should pronounce a decree of divorce incualita seems monstrous. Miss Lee, however, could hardlyhave introduced the circumstance without authority. But our point is, that it cannot touch an English reader, except with AS vague indignation, somewhat tempered by incredulity. The merit of the book is the evident sincerity of indignation with which it is written.
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