Mrs. Humphry Ward tells the story of a pretty, clinging Englishwoman, who learns through the war's hard lesson the essential dishonesty of clinging. Work brings her spiritual freedom, as it has brought spiritual freedom to hundreds of women since the beginning of the war. Missing might be a contribution to the contemporary literature about woman, as vital in its way as 'A Woman of Genius, ' but, like most of Mrs. Ward's work, it lacks reality. It is a cleverly staged, well-managed drama of the Pinero type. You look on, are interested, entertained, but never for a moment carried away. It is all a play. It might have happened, you are willing to admit, but that these very clever ladies and gentlemen are living it, not acting it that is too great a demand upon your credulity. Mrs. Ward can produce polished drama; but she cannot reproduce life
