A Welsh Witch. By Allen Reim. (Hutchinson and Co. Bs.>
—There is always a certain charm in Mr. Raine's novels of Wales. The mountains and the sea—for inland Wales is obviously no favourite with Mr. Rains—provide him with an atmosphere of romance which he is quick to seize and skilful in bringing before. his readers. But—and this is a "but" which almost necessarily follows when an author absolutely confines himself to a particular genre—there is a certain sameness in hie work. Of course Mr. Raine provides a complete new set of characters and circum- stances for each book ; nevertheless, there ie a good deal of A. Wash Witch which the critic seams to have real before. The types of character are the same, and the whole mise-en-scene is quite. k familiar to readers, for example, of "Torn Sails," which, by the way, is, in the present writer's opinion, by far the most charming of Mr. Raine's works. The two best chapters in the present book are those in which Catrin goes a-wandering with the gipsies. As for the description of John Lovell's new gipsy van, it is calculated to make all lovers of the open road green with envy. Even to read the description of it in the springtime is enough to make the. born wanderer long to answer the great Invitation to the Road. "Curtains in the window, a seat with a velvet cushion all round, pots and pans, all brand new, in the boot, plates and cups and glasses fit for a king." How delightful it would be to escape from the daily comforts of life and set forth in sueh a van as that to wander through the length and breadth of the land. The mere thought of it is pleasant, and we must perhaps forgive Mr. Raine the slight sameness of his work,—for were he not same he could not continue to give us such attractive pictures of life in the open air.
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