A TALENTED WRITER

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 16, 19 January 1924, Page 17

A TALENTED WRITER

- Broken- Bridges." By .Madeline Linford,' London: Lepnard Parsons. (From Robertsfon and Mullens, Ltd., Melbourne.). ' Tte portrait, 'which Miss.'. Linfdrd;, a Manchester .journalist, has delineated' in this.:n'qyel' of Rachel Silver is full of beautiful-descriptive touches/ The writer's observation and1 love of nature is keen and sincere. There is" a wealth of original thought in many directions in her work. The gradual development of Rachel, from the shy, modest, student girl at > St. Faith's, with her deeply religious-, feelings, is artistically tendered. Although, from her early training and yearnings, it might have been sup-' posed .that the girl Would take, up a religious; life in some order, she. goes out' into thre business, world. Her return home, ; and the up-raising of the little altar,' and a special sanctuary in " her room,^from which she removes the'.oldfashioned "enlarged photographs" of the family and other pre-historic relics; is a word-picture in itself) The history of the engagement and .marriage of Rachel's sister brings into existence a curious development of" girl-life,"Which' is-" not followed up later. After rejecting a manifestly eligible suitor partly , on the ground of shrinking from matrimony;" the heroine enters into office life, the declaration of war having robbtd her mother of a considerable part of her income." . ',' . Perhaps , the story' of the . boardinghouse.- with -the "kind-hearted Rita Thornton, who, aghast at the obvious innocence, and. ignorance of Rachel in the ways of the world, enlightens her. as to possibilities in office life for a pretty, fascinating,. and simple girl, is meant to point a severe moral to those mothers who deliberately avoid their dutj- and turn out thfeir daughters absolutely, unprotected :by the knowledge' which no one but themselves should impart. The denizens of the establishment are drawn with a keen edge to the pen, which, no doubt, shows a type of the useless arid rather brainless woman of the world. What is not quite understandable in this book is the incident of two married men who make love to Rachel, and who each receive a measure of her toleration and interest.. This seems alien to a., girl brought up at an institution-Mike St. Faith's, and\vK6 was well iwarned_ by '% womah. ; whb "knew" of the'realities, of a certain kind inlife. TJie fact'of Rachel-"seriously conl templatihg "the altogether" in'the way of surrender to a married man, whom she knew to be married, and only bfiing saved by.the knowledge that his wife was expecting a child, does not seem quite consistent with life' as it is:

Madeline' Linton shows in this that she can write'a Very beautiful book, and one: well worth while. ">Tn "Broken Bridges"; she' has allowed the failing 01 a number of novelists to mar a potentially fine work by| introducing sordidness. Thai such exists is^well known, but women writers can do^omething to lessen it by refraining from spreading unpleasant stories broadcast. Suggestion is of immense power. The fact that Ttachel escapes from' her self-made toils, and, while "V^A.D.-ing" in France comes to the ;tfue' and fine love \vhich such a girl should look for, does not quite mitigate the flavour of the story. ; : Madeline"' L'inford's talent for imaginative and descriptive writing is undoubted, and it should carry her far into the region of succeEe among the best sellers^ \ ■