NYT Feb 23, 1907 By the Light of the Soul

From New York Times (Feb 23, 1907)

English Opinion of Mary Wilkins.

W. L. Courtney in London Telegraph.

Miss Mary Wilkins, whom now we must learn to call Mrs. Wilkins Freeman, is a somewhat baffling artist. She used to do one thing supremely well; she could write a short story, which, for grip and intensity, for literary finish and dramatic skill, rivaled the almost incomparable work of Nathaniel Hawthorne: The little story called “Silence” is one of Miss Wilkins's gems; so, too, is “A New England Nun,” which perhaps made her reputation. To this succeeded “Pembroke” and “Madelon,” the first remarkable for its firm psychological drawing, the second for its inherent strength and vigor. Then came the first hint of another Miss Wilkins in “The Portion of Labor,” a novel which many have admired, but few have accepted as a characteristic example of the authoress's gifts. The doubt that was felt then is the doubt that we feel now, when we have in our hands her last work, “By the Light of the Soul.”