It is only natural, therefore, that the writing of accounts of adventure should appeal to a student perhaps more than the writing of any other form of narrative. Material lies close at hand, culled either from his own experience or from that of those whom he knows; and he is eager to present that material so that his readers or hearers may feel that same thrill of excitement which he has felt so often. And yet in order that that thrill of excitement may be experienced to the full, it is necessary that he understand how to tell his story in the best way, how to begin at once with no unnecessary preliminaries which will retard the action, how to keep and to increase suspense in his readers, how to make the most of his culminating and climactic incident, how to conclude his story impressively so that his readers may not lose their eager interest before the last word. The selections that follow illustrate some of the best methods of handling adventure material. In _Wild Justice_ Mr. Townshend is recounting an incident so dramatic and stupendous in itself that he uses the simplest style possible in its portrayal. His sentences, for the most part, are short and direct; his words are simple and concrete. He realizes fully that description of scenery which is not absolutely necessary, or characterization of persons, except that given by their own behavior, are out of place in a narrative as absorbing as this one. The student must not think, however, that description is always out of place in an account of adventures. Sometimes, on the contrary, it immeasurably adds to the effectiveness of the narrative. In _The Attack of the Tiger_, for example, which depicts an incident of the jungle, a place in itself strange and exotic to us, Mr. Rosny increases the atmosphere which he would create of this “world of trees” by his beautiful use of description. Again, in the selection from Pierre Loti’s _The Iceland Fisherman_, the exquisite portrayal of the storm is used as the background against which, or perhaps better, as the setting _in_ which, Yann and Sylvestre move. The elements of the storm, the clouds, the wind, the waves, became, in fact, the adventurers, as well as the men who contend against them. And what a charming effect is given by the refrain which Yann and Sylvestre sing through their white lips! Indeed, both of these selections show what artistic heights the writer of adventure narratives may reach, what purely æsthetic effects are possible in his work. The following suggestions may be of assistance to the student: 1. Study the incident (or incidents) which you are to relate. If it seems to you to be so dramatic in itself that it needs little help from the style or diction, then choose the simplest and most direct manner of relating it. If, on the other hand, the environment in which the action takes place seems to you all-important, do not hesitate to employ means which will add atmosphere to your narrative.