The Schoolmistress of Haven's End. By Ella Edersheim Over. . - ton.
(R.T.S. 2s.)—Joan Harding, a lady by birth, makes up her mind to take charge of a village school. This is a thing often talked about, and sometimes done. What it really means few people know, but we imagine that Miss Overton is one of them. Joan does not find that the Hertfordshire village where she has her work is in Arcadia,—perhaps we should say that it is not the Arcadia of the poets. She has a hard time of it, but wins through all her troubles by dint of courage and patience. Perhaps her story is a little crowded with tragic incidents—this is a fault which it is hard for the tale-writer to avoid—but it leaves the impression of reality upon the mind. There may be a certain exaggeration in the plot, but not in the descriptions or the drawing of character. Joan is a good and strong woman, and leaves her mark upon the place, but we are not asked to believe that she worked miracles.
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