17 FEBRUARY 1923, Page 23

A TENDERFOOT IN COLORADO. By J. B. Townshend. (John Lane.

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It is fifty years since J. B. Townshend was a Tenderfoot. He is now a master of narrative. The chapter called " Wild Justice," which occurs in the middle of his delightful book, is most interesting. It depicts a formal and sober lynching. A murderer is caught red-handed, tried by a suddenly elected judge, and found guilty by an emergency jury of twelve grave men intent only upon the safety of their mushroom town. The action occupies the early half of a summer afternoon. Not one word could be spared, yet the reader feels nothing is left out.. The illusion is perfect—s tour de force.