densed and sustained satire. Capek's latest play, "The Makropoulos Affair," an amusing comment upon longevity, was first performed at Prague in November, 1922, and shows that his dramatic powers are as alert and ingenious as ever.
Capek's short stories also reveal a strong and original talent. The volume entitled "The Crucifix" contains penetrating psychological studies, which indicate the direction of Capek's philosophical interests. The "Tales of Distress," in which Capek skilfully, relentlessly, but compassionately demonstrates how human it is to err, also maintain a high standard, both in the actual style and in the handling of tragic or semi-tragic situations.
Of Capek's miscellaneous works, reference may be made to his "Criticism of Words," in which his capacity for wit, irony, and satire, is exercised to the full. His future development will be followed with great interest. It is significant that at the period when Czechoslovakia is so triumphantly justifying its establishment as an independent State, Capek is beginning to obtain for Czech literature, of whose vigorous and progressive spirit he is a typical representative, the world-wide attention which it merits, but of which it has hitherto been deprived owing to the adverse circumstances of its development.
London, December 19, 1922.
