r fertile. Except Fritz Reuter's
Stavenhagen, I know no small town in fiction which is so vividly and
completely individualized, and populated with such living and credible
characters. Take, for instance, the two clergymen, Archdeacon Sparre and
the Rev. Mr. Martens, and it is not necessary to have lived in Norway in
order to recognize and enjoy the faithfulness and the artistic subtlety
of these portraits. If they have a dash of satire (which I will not
undertake to deny), it is such delicate and well-bred satire that no
one, except the originals, would think of taking offence. People are
willing, for the sake of the entertainment which it affords, to forgive
a little quiet malice at their neighbors' expense. The members of the
provincial bureaucracy are drawn with the same firm but delicate touch,
and everything has that beautiful air of reality which proves the world
akin.

It was by no means a departure from his previous style and tendency
which Kielland signalized in his next novel, "Laboring People" (1881).
He only emphasizes, as it were, the heavy, serious bass chords in the
composite theme which expresses his complex personality, and allows the
lighter treble notes to be momentarily drowned. His theme is the
corrupting influence of the upper upon the lower class. He has in this
book made some appalling, soul-searching studies in the pathology as
well as the psychology of vice.

Kielland's third novel, "Skipper Worse," marked a distinct step in his
development. It was less of a social satire and more of a social study.
It was not merely a series of brilliant, exquisitely finished scenes,
loosely strung together on a slender thread of narrative, but was a
concise and well-constructed story, full of beautiful scenes and
admirable portraits. The theme is akin to that of Daudet's
"L'Evangeliste;" but Kielland, as it appears to me, has in this instance
outdone his French _confrere_, as regards insight into the peculiar
character and poetry of the pietistic movement. He has dealt with it as
a psychological and not primarily as a pathological phenomenon. A
comparison with Daudet suggests itself constantly in reading Kielland.
Their methods of workmanship and their attitude toward life have many
points in common. The charm of style, the delicacy of touch, and
felicity of phrase, are in both cases pre-eminent. Daudet has, however,
the advantage (or, as he himself asserts, the disadvantage) of working
in a flexible and h