"PANJANDRA."

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 13, 23 December 1911, Page 6

"PANJANDRA."

The, "Manchester Guardian" is very happy in its reviewers, 'i'lie other day one of them, Mr. Dixon Scott (some of r'n° prose has been reprinted DomimonJ used the word "panjandra," and a correspondent wrote this pleasant letter of protest to the editor:— Sir,—l was reading one of your admirable reviews recently, when my heart suddenly stopped still on my coming to the following passage:—"Whether because ot the cheapening of print'or of the spread ot proficiency. in penmanship, or simply because the tremendous tribe of Tounysoiis, liuskins,, Carlyles, and so forth fairly exhausted the demand, it is certain that our appetite for l'anjandra is sated, that we—the laymen, the readers—no longer look with, wonder, and awe when we see An Author pacing moodily apart." 1 carefully wiped my glasses with an old silk handkerchiel which I keep for that exclusive purpose, and read the passage again, once silently and once —so far as an appropriate emotion would permit—aloud. There was no mistake, "l'anjandra'"—oh, sir! It brought back a happy day, years ago, v;hen first 1 heard of the gentleman.who .-poke of the Manchester "oinnibi." "Omnibi!"—and now "l'anjandra!" And yet nien saythat the world is drab and dull! Mr. Dixon Scott was invited to reply, and he wrote:— "I might plead prosaic license, but it will be ever so much plcasdnter all round if I crush your correspondent with A Law. For there seems 'no doubt- whatever that- 'J.M.D.' has come such «i cropper simply because ho has forgotten his l'oote. 1 mean, of course, the great Footc—that light, fantastic, pre-C'arrolline l'oote who first kicked 'Panjandrum' into existence. May I recall the simple but historic scene? I will have to quote from memory,' and-may mangle a. word here and there, but I think I can get it fairly right; for the■:passage' is one of those pieces of English which linger in the mind like old music:— 'So she went into the garden to cut a cabbage leaf to. make an apple-pie; and at tho same time a great slie-bear .coming past put its head into the shop. •'What! No soap?" So he died, and she very imprudently married the barber; and the Joblillies and the Garyulies came, and tlie Great Panjandrum himself with the little round button at top,, and they all fell to playing the game of cntch-as-catch-can till tho gunpowder ran out of their toe-caps.' '"That is a long piece of ■ literature.'to force on '.I.M.D.'s' attention, but it must really be borne in mind if the full flavour of my fine 'Paiiiandra' is to be enjoyed. For 'Panjandrum' is just a jolly nonsense-word, and therefore ruled by very different laws from those which govern 'omnibus'—that heavy piece of slightly snobbish pedantry.. They are as; far removed from one another ,as Joblillies are from Arums. To writo 'ar-a lilies' would be naughty, but to say 'panjandrums' would be positively dull. It would be liko jugging tlie March Hare, or parsing Lear (Edward), or teaching school children Lear (King), or playing blindman's buff on a system, or taking M.M.D.V delightful old silk handkerchief seriously and suggesting the superior virtues of a little piece of wash-leather. No, no. Wo must preserve the unities at any cost; the orthodox's would be lieresv here: wo must make an imaginative effort and endeavour to apply the strict Foot-rule. Tanjandra!' It is perfect. It is ridiculous, yet unmistakable.'Above all, it reproduces unblemished—nay, if anything, even a little enhanced—that sumptuous aid of mock-latinity from which so much of tlip rich aptness of tho singular is derived. I declare that when I now consider the number nf nice considerations among which one'ij leaving typewriter was secretly pirk'ng its way when it cluttered down that 'dra' instead of 'drums' 1 am filled with a certain simple pride. Auil to 'J.M.D..' for aiding at i.lie autopsy, T am sure f a»' mortally obliged. A dull world, indeed!"