It was his daughter (by an
Australian wife) who was suffering from an inordinate perplexity as to
which half of her blood had the real call. The Australian half suggested
that she should marry a gentleman-rider who won the Grand Prix in a
canter, but fell at the winning-post because his horse shied at the
irrepressible Pan. The French half--and both her parents--urged a
dissolute and anaemic aristocrat--blue blood and a gold lining. Her
grandfather, a strong unsilent sheep-rancher, was against this inept
decadent and converted to his view that saintly worldling, the gorgeous
_Cardinal Camperioni_. A neo-futurist of the most bizarre type prances
through the pages upon his head, causing enough "tumult" to satisfy any
one. So why drag in Pan? Miss VALLINGS can tell a story, cannot keep
down the volume of her puppets' talk, has a sense of movement and
colour, and ought to win for herself a good circulating library
constituency.
* * * * *
For myself I have never yet lived in a sailing barge, and under the
providence of Heaven trust to continue in this immunity. There are
however those who regard the matter differently; and for their benefit I
have no hesitation in recommending most warmly _A Floating Home_ (CHATTO
AND WINDUS), written by CYRIL IONIDES and J.
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