Judge Lynch. By George H. Jessop. (Longmans.)—This "tale of the
Californian vineyards " relates the very narrow escape that a certain Jack Scott had of meeting with summary vengeance at the hands of the Vigilance Committee of San Pablo. A certain Dick Morley, an ill-conditioned drunkard, is shot, and grievous suspicion falls on Scott, who, indeed, got as far as having the noose pat round his neck. A very exciting story, well worked out, with well-contrived surprises, and, indeed, contrived in a generally effec- tive way.—The Queen Anne's Gate Mystery, by Richard Arkwright, 2 vols. (F. V. White and Co.), is another story of a narrow escape of an innocent man from death by the hand of justice, only this time it is the justice of a regularly constituted tribunal. For a time the plot is traced on simple and effective lines ; but in
the course of the second volume, the threads become somewhat perplexed and difficult to follow. To put anything like a serious burden on the penetration and perseverance of an ordinary reader, is a sad mistake. When we read a novel, we do not like anything like a puzzle, though we may want a secret and a surprise. There are good points in the story ; but, on the whole, it is scarcely a success.
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