In The Shadow Of The Crag (A Story Of The North) And Other Poems - WHAT THE CRITICS SAY - Sfttt Bmttrfssu ll. We, for the nonce, world-forgetting, close the door and read on and on, feasting on the lotus of this new love poem by the youthful California poet, Miss Mabel Porter Pitts. She calls it In the Shadow of the Crag, and as it is bound in a book with a number of her beautiful short poems the title of the volume 1 names the long poem . Read aloud to yourself the beautiful lines in which Miss Mabel Pitts tells of the parting. To the eyes of some of those who are both loving and sensitive . they will bring tears when read under the full spell of the whole storys telling. It is a pity to have to isolate them here. , The short poems of which there are a large number in the volume, are more perfect works of art than is the long one. This , is, perhaps, solely because the author has practiced more at the work of creating short poems In the Shadow of the Crag is the first long one she has attempted-it contains many beauties and is full of promise of fine future . work of which California may have reason to be still prouder than of this which Mabel Porter Pitts sends forth from her prentice hand. There are so many excellent stanzas among the short poems that it is hard to make a choice of what to quote to illustrate the merits i f the work of this talented young woman. In fact its a volume of good things, and it s hard to quit talking about it. To realize all the promise there is in her work we must remember her youth-she is yet in the wee, sma twenties-and that she has been writing for only two years. Her friendsand California, may well have radiant expectations of the future development of her talents after this bright beginning. A group of poems of life and passion is by Mabel Porter Pitts, published in a handsome volume which is named for the first and longest poem in it- In the Shadow of the Crag. This is a story of the Northv-a veritable little novel in verse. The theme is the love of an Indian, a haughty prince of the wilderness, far a lovely maiden of another race whom he has rescued from the frozen death of the region. The action moves on musically, and the fancy of the wilderness returning to its p. ristine loneliness after the invading, maiden and her lover have been slain i s . poetic enough. A m n g the shorter poems which make up two-thirds . of the book are some that breathe. the true poets . fervor . Though the verses are in many meters they are rll tinged with a little shadow of bitterness. Though love is a god, his roses turn to ashes all too soon though life is desired, its wounds press deep and though woman be fair, she sins and suffers too. There is no mawkishness in all thisonly a sort of wrath with the Things that Be. Eu nfng V o t , fa an Bmntistn, In the Shadow of the Crag deserves more than a passing notice, for Miss Pitts has come to be known as a writer of unusual strength. Long . sustained poems may not be the fashion but this work which is deftly woven about an Alaskan redskin and a , miners daughter tells its story well with many beautiful lines. But it is to the short poems we turn nowadays, and these seem best to display the . writerzs temperament. Miss Pitts poems are peculiarly wpmanly, introspective, self-searching, many given to love in its various phases, day dreams and aspirations. Altogether, Miss Pitts book of verse is one of the mast commendable issued in recent years. Her verse forms contain no experiments and follow the lines that have been used by the older school. Yet in these days of word painting and... --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.