TALES OF AN EMPTY CABIN By Wa-Sha-Quoin-Asia {Grey Owl) Admirers
of Grey Owl—and they are many—will find Tales of an Empty
Cabin (Lovat Dickson, 10s. 6d.) one of his best books. Others will wonder why there seems to be no middle way in the treatment of wild-life themes : no mean between the brutality of naturalistic writers and the whimsi- cality of nature-lovers such as Grey Owl. It was commendable of the Canadian Government to instal Grey Owl in a log cabin in one of Canada's great Natural Parks where he could study and work for the preservation of wild life. And
it is understlindable that he should paint it in the attractive colours of a child's picture book, for few of his readers will ever be called on to face life north of the Great Divide—fortu- nately for them. But one deplores the sentimental haze which clouds the out- look of all such nature-lovers. Those who do not share their tender feelings for the " Little People " (e.g., beavers) cannot be blamed for doubting the genuineness of emotions which need such artificial stimulation.
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