FIRST THE BLADE

Here's an unforgettable slice out of America's building in the story of a girl, reared in Missouri during the period before and during the Civil War, transplanted to the comfortable serenity of the Santa Clara Valley in California, and thence to the battle against nature in the San Joaquin Valley. It is grand reading, a stirring picture of pioneering in California, and a full-bodied portrait of a woman. Women will like it better than Stewart Edward White's early California stories. It is a very satisfying book, a compelling story of conflict without and within, a colorful picture of the period. A sure best seller on the Coast, and a good candidate for big sales everywhere.