The Catholic Man. By Mrs. Lawrence Turnbull. (D. Lathrop, Boston,
U.S.)—This is a novel with a purpose ; in it we are intro- duced to three people who are striving to reach an ideal more or loss. The doctor, all intellect, keeps in view the Science of Life ; the poet, the beauty of Life; and the heroine wants to be useful, but does not exactly know how to manage it. These three persons are presented to us with some definiteness, though their dialogues and searchings after the good tend to diminish our interest in their personalities. When the writer leaves this plane of high morality, she can talk about the commonplaces of life pleasantly enough. From the novel-reader's point of view, The Catholic Man is not a success ; if Mrs. Turnbull had condescended to infuse more of the human element into her story, she might have served her purpose better, and have made her readers think more with her characters.
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