ife"--"Lodsen og hans Hustru"--appeared, a book in every
respect greatly in advance of its predecessors. Though written almost
entirely in an Italian village it has been justly described by an able
critic as "one of the saltiest stories ever published." It placed Lie on
a higher pedestal than he had ever before occupied, and brought him into
line with Ibsen and Bjoernson. "The Pilot and his Wife" made its author a
popular Norwegian writer, and as it has been translated into several
European languages--there are, I believe, two English versions--it was
the first step towards the wider reputation Lie now enjoys. His next
book was hardly a success. Leaving, happily only for a time, Norwegian
folk and Norwegian scenes, he attempted, in 1876, a drama in verse,
"Faustina Strozzi," the plot of which is derived from an incident in
modern Italian history. He returned to Norwegian subjects in "Thomas
Ross" and "Adam Schrader," published in 1878 and 1879, which deal with
life and manners in Christiania; but even here he was not quite at home
and these two novels are not of his best work. "Rutland" and "Go
Ahead!"--"Gaa paa!"--are much better, and these two stories of Norwegian
life as exhibited in the merchant navy added greatly to Lie's popularity
at home.

"The Slave for Life"--"Livsslaven"--1883, is in a different vein. The
plot is strong and the writer shows himself a keen and careful observer
of human nature. Without imputing to him any attempt at imitating
Ibsen, "The Slave for Life" certainly exhibits that pessimistic view of
existence which is at once attractive to many and repulsive to not a few
of Ibsen's readers. "The Family of Gilge,"--"Familjen paa Gilge"--is of
a somewhat similar character. Ethical objections to these stories are,
perhaps, superfluous; it must be admitted that both are popular and have
added very considerably to Lie's fame. They were followed by "A
Whirlpool"--"En Malstroem"--1886; "A Wedded Life"--"En Samliv"--1887;
"The Story of a Dressmaker"--"Maisa Jons"--1888; and by "The Commodore's
Daughters"--"Kommandoerens Doettre"--1889, which has enjoyed the good
fortune of being translated into English with an introduction by Mr.
Edmund Gosse, a most competent Scandinavian scholar. Since 1889 Lie has
published "Evil Forces"--"Onde Magter," a volume of poetry, and two
collections of shorter stories, "Otte Fortoellinger" and "Trold." He has
recently completed another novel, which will shortly appear, and is,