27 DECEMBER 1913, Page 23

Undergrowth. By F. and E. Brett Young. (Martin Seeker. 6s.)—This

is a Welsh novel dealing with the construction of a dam. The hero, a Scottish engineer named Forsyth, finds himself quite unable to believe in the sinister fate which overhangs "the job" and all connected with it, but finally succumbs in much the same way as his predecessor. The story would have been more interesting had it dealt more fully with the details of the engineering work and less with the mysterious accidents which mark its progress. Nevertheless, there is a certain charm in the book as a whole, though it would have been improved by more careful construction.