JUDGE DARLING ON AUTHORS

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1651, 18 January 1913, Page 9

JUDGE DARLING ON AUTHORS

Some interesting speeches were made it tho dinner of the Society of Authors in ■London the other day. • ' .'■ ■ Mr. Justice Darling, : replying tp the toast of "The Guests,", which ,was proposed by Sir Mortimer Durarid;' said that thoso around him : .might have written books On various subjects,' and ho hoped they read ono another's'books'.' (Laughter.). Probably, having no jealousy, in the matter himself, he had read them all. (Laughter.) ; lie could not but know that the brilliant authors ho saw-around him did not devote all their time to writing books.-' (Laughter.) Time was when an author did nothing else but write books from morning to night.. That, did not •make the best kind.of authors. They wrote about affairs which they did not understand; they wrote about a world they ,had never visited; and, in despair, many of them wroto about the next world. (Laughter.)' Ho had picked up that bit of information when ho had teen staying in old country houses, and had seen rows and; rows of books upon theology. (Laughter.) But many people who had written the best books 'wero people who had been busy in other directions. One. of tb.e best or the worst—ho thought.it was dedicated to the Pope, and was afterwards put. upon the Index—(laughter)—was written by a. person who was; still affectionately remembered as "II Scgretario Florentino."' If they only mentioned him like that, nobody disapproved.. If they called him "Machiavclfi," everybody who had profited by his counsels held up his hands in horror'..' (Laughter.) That remark applied to' all the diplomatists of Europe. (Laughter.) .',.,. Another name which rushed to his mind at that moment was that of a man who lod :a tolerably active life. Ono wondered .whether Lord Beaconsfield would go down to posterity greater as a statesmarv«tian as an author. There had been others— for example, Burke—who had been in the 6ame category. Anyone.who wrote a bwk might po?sibly have to come before the present speaker in his'official capacity, and especially was that truo of anyone who wrote a little book. ' (Laughter.) Its'proper name was "libellum" (Anglice, "libel"). (laughter.) "Now," said Mr. Justice Darling, "I-can tell you how to secure absolute immunity, and to writo as many libels as you like without having.to nay any damages for doing it. Form the Society, of Authors into a trade union. (Laughter.) Why riot incorporate all the nowspapers with you, and publish everything, not with ■ its author's nam'o,.but.with tho name of the union?" (Laughter.)