Duel With Ink

New Zealand Listener, Volume 17, Issue 432, 3 October 1947, Page 9

Duel With Ink

WAS vastly entertained when 4YA presented a BBC feature, This Correspondence Must Now Cease, in which two redoubtable writers crossed pens (a mightier thing. often than the crossing of swords) in the public Press; no less a correspondence than that between Benjamin Disraeli and the Editor of The Globe. The Editor declared that

Disraeli’s political coat was reversible, and accused him of attempting to get into Parliament as a joint of the tail ‘of the party represented by Mr, O’Connell. Mr. Disraeli, in answering, began in mildly gentlemanly fashion, merely stating that he had never made application to Mr. O’Connell, and that his opinions had never changed. But gradually we find the correspondence warming up. The Globe finds itself disinclined to break a butterfly on a wheel; Disraeli dismisses the simile as being as trite as the phoenix. The Globe quotes O'Connell himself; Disraeli accuses it of quoting documents which don’t exist, says of the Editor that he is indulging in "rheumy rhetoric," and adds that the Whig Party shall never subdue him with ‘the jawbone of an ass," But this time the listeners (as possibly were also the original readers of this correspondence) are completely unconcerned as to who is telling lies, but are relishing the ease with which, seemingly, Mr. Disraeli con-. tinues to beat his opponent on points. Disraeli is obviously enjoying himself immensely. I listened with the liveliest satisfaction to this programme and only hope the future instalments will be as good.