The Haunters of the Silences

"In the ancient wild there were three great silences that held their habitations unassailed. They were the silence of the deep of the lake, the silence of the dark heart of the cedar swamp, and the silence of the upper air, high above the splintered peak of the mountain."

A skillful and vivid report of the dramas of wild life beyond the range of ordinary observation, where the primitive instincts of the brute play their tragedy against a spacious and lonely background which...
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"In the ancient wild there were three great silences that held their habitations unassailed. They were the silence of the deep of the lake, the silence of the dark heart of the cedar swamp, and the silence of the upper air, high above the splintered peak of the mountain."

A skillful and vivid report of the dramas of wild life beyond the range of ordinary observation, where the primitive instincts of the brute play their tragedy against a spacious and lonely background which tremendously enhances the significance of every action.

"It is impossible not to envy Mr. Charles G. D. Roberts the freedom of this out-door theatre which years of devoted attendance have given him; but the envy gives place to gratitude, after all, for the competence with which he makes us see what we could not have seen for ourselves. His collection of stories reports with skill and vividness dramas of wild life beyond the range of ordinary observation, where the primitive instincts of the brute play their tragedy against a spacious and lonely background which tremendously enhances the significance of every action....Wrapped in the mystery of such surroundings, even hunger and bestial hate and lust of blood become tolerable dramatic forces, admissible for their very grimness and power. A more satisfactory resolution of the conflict between human and sub-human interests has seldom been given than in the story of the hunter who traps a lynx, but later is obliged to accept the lynx's help against a pack of wolves, and so gives the animal his well-earned liberty. For this large-minded fairness, as well as for the other reasons suggested, the book belongs to the small but fortunately growing class of the best nature story-books." -The Dial, Volume 42, January 1, 1907

"It deals in several chapters with the creatures of the sea and deep waters, such as the squid, the narwhal, and the swordfish...The result is entirely satisfactory, and the adventures in which these monsters are concerned read as vividly as any on land. We admire particularly the story of the encounter to the death between the polar bear and the narwhal in the vasty deeps. Among the best of these impressive narratives are those which deal with the polar bear in the frozen North, the salmon, the eagle, and the 'terror of the sea-caves.' But the book is full of good reading, and it is well written, like all Mr. Roberts's books." -The Athenaeum, July, 1907

"Professor Roberts is king in this field of literary achievement. His other animal stories were models unsurpassed until by his newest work." -New York Times Saturday Review of Books

"Others may have written successful animal biographies; but it has remained for Roberts to crystallize into a series of vibrant character studies told with graphic power, insight, and sympathy, the really salient features of the horizon-less life of the animal world." -New York Bookman

"Deserves great praise....This group of stories includes studies and depictions of wild life in the wilderness and in the ocean depths. Professor Roberts, who believes that the actions of animals are governed not only by instinct but also by processes essentially akin to those of human reason, has built his narratives concerning moose, bears, and eagles upon a foundation of personal observation." -The Outlook, July 6, 1907