The White Mice
(Scribner's, 1909)
While lunching at the O Kin San tea-house in Japan, four Americans make a solemn pact to combat tyranny and save human lives. This begins the Secret Order of the White Mice. Two of its members are Roddy Forrester and Peter De Peyster. Roddy's father owns the Forrester Construction Company, a big concern which builds lighthouses in remote areas of the world. To give his son a taste of business, he sends him to Venezuela as a foreman. But he doesn't want Roddy to know too much about company policy-- least of all its political intrigues. The F.C.C. is trying to get Alvarez, the current president, pulled down. They hope to put Colonel Vega in his place. But what the country really needs is the patriot Don Miguel Rojas, who was deposed and put in prison by Alvarez. It seems little likely that anyone will bust him out. That is, until Roddy and De Peyster hear about his plight and decide to do something about it.
Roddy arranges clandestine meetings with Inez, General Rojas's daughter. Together they form a plan to get Rojas out of the fortress. This kept strictly secret, as Inez's mother is against Roddy. She thinks that Inez will marry Colonel Vega. But Inez doesn't even love Colonel Vega. She loves Roddy. Roddy and De Peyster, aided by others-- including Pedro, Inez's manservant, and Vicenti, Gen. Rojas's physician-- soon form an elaborate scheme to burrow through a forgotten underground tunnel. This passage leads from a disused garrison right into General Rojas' cell. But look out, Roddy! Your old man suspects what you're doing, and has sent Caldwell the Vice President down to straighten you out. Then, too, he hopes to get you on Vega's side. But the capitalists are entirely mercenary, caring little about human life. Therefore, Roddy determines to do the honorable thing. Besides that, there's his love for Inez, which he hopes will bud into fruition-- once the pass is cleared and General Rojas is free.
Here's an interesting and well-written adventure that has really all the ingredients of a great story. You've got exotic locations, beautiful women, romance, intrigue, and action by the armload. Heck, brother! what more could you possibly want? As usual, Davis keeps the plot simple and fast-moving. Although the mechanism is a bit superficial, and at times far-fetched, we can't help but admire this work, which abounds in ringing sentiment and high dramatic touches. Altogether it stands as one of Davis's better longer works. It's a little more lengthy than his usual novels, but never does it grow tiresome or meandering. Of course it is somewhat dated, as all fiction of this sort is. Taking the Teddy Roosevelt outlook on life, it may rub against the grain of certain modern readers. But all the same, it's a humdinger that can't be lightly pushed aside. For some reason, it strongly reminded me of Rex Beach's 1916 work Rainbow's End. Did Beach get his ideas from this novel? Whether yes or no, there are striking similarities.
If you like a good politically-oriented adventure tale, by all means get in league with The White Mice. They won't bite. And who knows but they'll help you to while away your midwinter blues? Copies of this novel are easy to find, usually ranging from $5-$20. The one I have is part of a set of Davis's works, which was issued by the Scribner's Company in 1914. As such it carries the original illustrations. These are courtesy of George Gibbs, an illustrator of note-- and also an author in his own right. But the story is so graphically illustrated by the pen of Davis himself, that the pictures stand as just a conventional part of the packaging. And the package is a nice one. The whole kit and caboodle brings us back to the world of 1909. A vanished epoch, in which heroism and sacrifice were in high regard, and the feats of brave men never went unrequited. May it even be so today. Long live the White Mice!
--B.A.S.
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