LIBER'S NOTE BOOK

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 146, 9 March 1918, Page 11

LIBER'S NOTE BOOK

"Papys Up to Date." The first instalment of that most entertaining production, "A Diary of the Great Warr" by Samuel Pepys Junior, was fo popular that a continuation was inevitable. In his "Socond Diary," the twentieth century representative of the immortal gossipporof Stuartian days is as amusing as ever. Under the date Septembor 24, 1916 (Lord's Day), I find the following: This night Mr. Sloman, the parson, to sup with us, and brings his lady; and is, it seems, his first. But, Lord! she is the younger of them by a score of years or moro, comely withal, and is the sauciest wife of a parson that over I saw in my life. One thing she told me which did divert mo pretty well wns of a certain he-friend of ho'rs, who, having sudden need of n bomb-proof eal'o For fear of Zeppelin ships, telegraphs for a Miiner with combination fittings, but the clerk, misreading the name of it for n. milliner, a milliner was dispatched to him carrying samples of such combinations as they have, and such a to-do over it as never was. Domestic difficulties trouble the

'diarist as they did-his great predecssor. On July 26, 1916, occurs the following entry: . ' What surprizes me a good deal is cook would have my counsel in the matter of her greengroacer that she walks with, lie having, it seems, offered marriage; but she doubting of her lo.ftenant, prisoner in Germany, whether she be in honour bound to him or noe; likewise would ckuse rather be a leftenaot's iady than a greengroacer's; only siie can have the greengroacer now. but when she can have tho let*tenant God knows. As >" which, I did- give my judgment for the leflenant; and pray God she abide by it, being that all cooks, even the wori't of them, lie grown so hard to come by these times; The diarist's club friends, more particularly those famous war exports, General Pirpleton and Admiral Topper, are again introduced. The news of the first achievements of the tanks set the club in quite an uproar 1 of excitement: By letters .out of France, n most extraordinary thing related-of strange enwhich our men do now use against tho Germans, and by them named tanks, but wherefore God knows. ... So these taiiks coming upon them like fiery dragons, and spitting on them hot lead, the Germans be thrown into the greatest extremity of alarm, and presently, our soldiers falling upon them with grenades and bayonets, such of them as be not slam that instant made prisoners. The most splendid thing I ever heard of in my life. To the club, whero all the talk is of these chariots, and Mr. Tyke coming, he mentioned, what I was very glad to hoar, how the-Invention.'of them was done in the Navy Office, when W. Churchill was First Lord. At healing which, -Genii. Pirpleton speaks of tho tanks''most scornfully beyond everything, and will allow it: fr'bo nn merit in Ha' l ? that he.should nut faith in such fool's devices., ! . ' Tho increased interest in Spiritualism; which is an outcome of tho war, is pleasantly satirised in the following entry; . ' Jan. 8, 1917. Some, discourse I had uitk Squillinger concerning Mistress Brockway and other such rogues, and a great trouble lie mentioned that they have with an old woman, his J-aiint; sho bavins a tom-catt which she loves.better than her own kin, but dies of a chicken bone in his gullet. So she, convinced of it that his soul yet lives, goes to a woman that will .hold converse with tho dead for 2 giiinys; who straightway falls in a trance, and, being entranced, presently purrs aloud, like to a catt that is pleased. Whereby the old woman is transported with joy, believing sho indeed hears her Tom purr, and this to signify that he is a state of bliss. But what is the worst of it,--after this she do now pnv 2 cijinys every se'nnight to hear this Tom'pun-. to the mighty dismay of her own kin, having expectatiouns of her fortune. My final extract shows that Samuel is still as addicted to philandering as ever. .He has discovered a trim and attractive lady assistant in a chemist's shop, whom he playfully calls his "little white nun." Hence the following entry in the Diary: Feb. 12,-1917. So home, and by tho way, having a now onsett of the swim in my' lieaqV-cnd going to Miller's for .a fresh draught ngninsl; it,, there, is my little, white'nun; but.what vexes ine is slip serves loothbritshj's'to .I.Australian soldiers, 'si'U.d she laughing and.playing with theni,. no more than nods to me, but to cry. "shopp" and goes on with this philandering. So Miller comes and serves me. It is very observable' of wenches' that do serve in shopps how they bo taken with soldiers, to the npirlect of the citizens. My_ selections exhibit- the ' diarist in his purely humorous side, but the hook is by no means all comedy. It gives a clever picture of London's many-sided life in war time, and contains many shrewd and pointed comments upon political doings, tho solids as it wore of the menu being agreeably diversified .by humour and satiro. Sailors' Chanties. In the November number of, "Tho Musical Student," Dr. 11. R. Terry writes on "Sailors'-Shanties.'.' "Chanties" is the usual name for the swinging songs which sailormen, especially on the old "windjammers" used to troll out so lustily as they.'worked. But Dr. Terry tells us that, "chanty" (pronounced "tchahnty") is wrong, and that "shanty!'--rhyming, with ."scanty" is tho correct form.-. He quotes several old favourites, notably "We're Bound for theßio Grande," but gives one "De Hog's-eye Man,".which is-new to Oh," dp- Hog's-eye man is de man for mo; •■ He wink all day on do big levco. Oh, Hog's-eye, oh; Row do boat ashore fer de Hog's eye. Steady on a jig with the Hog's eye; Sho wants do Hog's-eye man. The above sounds distinctly American, and I question whether this- particular chanty was even popular with British sailors. - It. is many years ago now since "Liber" heard sailormen singing "chanties" (personally I shall stick to the old spelling), whilst a certain New Zealand Company's clipper was on her way to tho colony, and in my day the two special favourites were "Blow, Blow, Blow the Man Down," and.-"Whisky- for my: Johnny."- - I am afraid that in these days of- steam chanty singing is becoming a lost art. The Revived Riddle. In her very readable novel, "All the Joneses," Beatrice Kelston revives a class of riddle which was greatly in voguo before the war, but which is now quite out of mode. "Jolly had been busy with riddles. 'Now!'- she cried, and held up for publio inspection the legend, 'Why did tho orange ice scream?' printed in large letters. 'Because it saw the sausage roll under the table,'' said Elfrida. . . . 'My own is much better,' announced Jelly, evidently bursting to declare it. Sho was cordially urged to do so. 'Because it saw the lemon sponge on_ the dumb waiter,' sho proclaimed triumphantly. 'Quite nice and cool,' said Janet approvingly. 'The vista of possibilities you open up I' murmurod Peter. 'For instance, it might have seen the banana trifle with the maids of honour. Or the gooseberry fool with the nuts from Brazil. Or the cod offer tho shrimp sauce. All very painful to an orange of really nico feeling. But I liko your dumb waiter, Jelly. A pretty, pathetic idea. Quite Barrieish. One sees the acute lemon, acid and callous, touching tho poor speechless old fellow for half a seltjzer and a round of loaf sugar.' " Shakespearo Brought Up to Date. Commenting upon tho fact that the Gormans recently went "one better" (or worse) on Shakespearo* by producing "Tho Merry AVives of Windsor" as "Tho Merry Wives of Coburg," a writer in Cassell's "Saturday Journal" asks "Why not bring Shakespearo up to date in thorough fashion ? As thus: '"Richard 111, or Tho Boys Who Nover Grow Up." "Henry VIII, or It's a Different Girl Again." "Falstaff, or Just Another Little Drink." "As You Like It, or The Girl in the Breeches of Promise."

"Pericles, Prince of Tyre, or The Mystery of tho Missing Petrol." j '"Measuro for Measure, or How to Give Your Tailor Fits." "Much Ado About Nothing, or The Government Brew that Never Grew Hale." "Taming of the Shrew, or How to be Happy Though Harried." The Best New Novels. From a long list of "The Best New Novels,"' compiled by the editor of "Books of To-day and To-morrow," I eelect the follpwing:—"The Bagots," hv William Wallas; "The Tret' of Heaven," by May Sinclair; "Tho Com- ] Mg." by J. C. Snaith; "Coelebs. the Love-Story of a Bachelor," bv F. E. alills Young; 'Twinkletoes: A Tale of Chinatown," bv Thomas Burke; "The Discreet Adventure," by Helen C. Roberts; "The Gulf," by H. F. Spender; "Hawk of the Desert," by G..E. Mitten; "The Third Estate," by Marjorie Bowen; "The Long Trick,"'by "Bartimeus"; "All the Joneses," bv Beatrice Kelsten; "The Dwelling Placo of Light," by Winston Churchill; "The Kingdom of Waste Lands," by Sidney C. Gner; "The Road to Mandalay," by B. M. Croker. Several of theso novels have; not as yet reached- the New Zealand bookshops. Bramwell Bronta's Poetry. Everyone who has read Mrs. Gaskell's "Life of Charlotte Bronte" will remember the sorry figure cut therein by Patrick Bramwell Bronte, brother of the three famous Brontes—Charlotte, Emily, nnd Anno. Poor Bramwell; (the Patrick was generally dropped in the Bronte circle) was, 1 fear, a terrible "waster," but there are thoso who think he lias been harshly judged. Writing to "The Times" apropos to the hundredth anniversary of Bramwell's birth, Sir James Criohton Browne claims that although "Bramwell's poems have been called trash by those who have never read them," some of them are "touching and meritorious." Sir James draws attention to tho last two verses of Bramwell's poem on the Afghan War, verses which _ seem appropriate to events of much' later days:— England, rise! Thine ancient thunder Humbled mightier foes than these; Broke a whole world's bonds asunder, Gave thee empire o'er the seas ; And while yet one rose may blossom, Emblem of thy former bloom, Let not age invade thy bosom—. . Brightest shine in darkest gloom! ; While one oak thy homes shall shadow, Stand like it as thou hast stood; While a spring greets grove and meadow, Let not winter freeze thy blood. Till this hour St. Georgo's Standard Led tho advancing march of timo.; England! keep it streaming vanward, Conqueror over ago ami clime I An article entitled "Mrs. Asquith's Lovo Letters" is advertised in a-Lon-don paper as one of tho attractions of the November issue of "Pearson's Magazine." . Mrs. Asqiiith, then Margaret Tonnant, stood, it may ho remembered, for tho heroine' of Mr. C. F. Benson's novel, "Dodo." The story goes that maiiy years afterwards the caricaturist and the victim met at a reception. Benson, naturally 'disconcerted, apologised for having put the lady in his book. "Have you written a book?" Mrs. Asquith said, very calmly, "how clever of you!" The same lady, it may also bo-remembered, was, it is said (indeed the poet admitted the fact), the original of Sir William Watson's ."The 'Woman With, tho Serpent's Tongue " ..,