Page:Marie Corelli - the writer and the woman (IA mariecorelliwrit00coat).pdf/291

 *seller alone in another part of the country was for seven hundred and twenty-eight copies."

The other periodical, after making one or two attempts to stem the great wave of "Temporal Power," printed the following somewhat half-*hearted comment: "Although few reviewers have spoken kindly of this novel, its sale has reached a figure which it is unnecessary to repeat here; whether its merits deserve such popularity we must refrain from discussing."

In some quarters it has been boldly alleged that "Temporal Power" is like "The Eternal City." There are absolutely no points of resemblance. Miss Corelli has never read "The Eternal City" or any of Mr. Hall Caine's books except "The Christian." She declares, however, that she searched in vain for a real follower of Christ in that work. It is interesting to note, by the way, that although the two novelists met years ago at a social function, they are practically strangers to one another, and are probably content to remain so.

From a book containing scores of powerful passages which would well bear reproduction independently of the context, we only propose to make a single quotation. The following extract concerns one of the most touching events of the story, i. e.,