The times., 1899-08-20
KInIine on His TraveIs.


collection of letters written by the author
before his fame was fairly Won. The let
tiers relating to his travels in this country
comprising perhaps one-third Of the book
were published several years ago, with
out the sanction OF the author, in small
volume entitled American Notes" This
was extensively circulated in this country,
and had the effect of cooling Americas ad-
mirafion for the young AngIo-Indian sew
eral degrees Other letters published in
this new edition will be new to American
readers. and the American Notes" viii be
found to contain certain paragraphs and
chapters not found in the pireted edition.
At the time when these letters were
written, Rudyard Kipling was young man
OF twenty-three, just released from the
grinding toll of an Indian newspaper office.
At the age OF sixteen he had come to In
dis fresh from school. TO become Part
Of the staff of the Civil and Military Ca
zette" Of Lahore. He held this position
for several years. writing in his spare mo-
ments the poems and stories which event
ually made him famous. Then he served
for short time on the staff of the '.Pio-
neer," greatest OF Indian dailies, and then,
becoming independent of the necessity of
daily work, he started for a walk around
the wide earth"
During this tour he wrote more or less
frequent letters TO the Pioneer" and
these. with few other papers written at
about the same time, are now collected
under the title From Sea TO Sea" Most
of this matter was for several years left
out of the authorized editions OF the writ
er's works, because he considered il too
crude, toe boyish, and in some cases too
censorious TO be worth rescuing from
oblivion. Finding, however, that certain
ofsicious publishers had so rescued i. and
had issued these letters In q more or less
incomplete and garbled form, the author
determined 10 revise them and have them
brought out in an edition authorized by
him.
IL is necessary to understand the circum-
stances under which this book was written
in order fully 10 understand the book it.
self. Considered as literature il is of
course scrappy and uneven, and often
crude and superficial. Considered as a Sc
ries of newspaper letters hastily written
by youth OF from twenty to twenty three
with little experience of the world outside
India, IL must be confessed that there is
an amazing quantity Of good grain mixed
with the chaf.
The letters from America have probably
aroused more resentment here than any
thing OF the sort since the time of Dick
ems; but there was no particular reason at
that time why Kipling should be grateful %
this country. He was merely a newspaper
correspondent taking a flying trip from
San Francisco TO New York. and determin-
ed &c amuse his readers, II nothing more, III
his records Of what he saw. II was not a
case In which his writings were likely 10 be
OF international importance, nor was he a
critic likely 70 be regarded with much awe
and reverence. So he did precisely what
Americans have done In Europe and India
be praised the things which pleased him
and caricatured and vilified those which did
not.
This book comprises letters from Central
and Southern India, Burma Hongkcng,
San Francisco, the Yellowstone regions.
Chicago and several other places; and in
one OF them is recorded en- interview with
Mark Twain To those who have read the
authors other works with the enthusiasm
OF the true Kipling devOtee, there viii be
g fascination in tracing through the book
the beginnings OF many Of the Indian tales.
1t is particularly rich In "reminiscences of
1.-The Naulahka." One may find here the
original Mahara5 Kunwar and his father.
the Gau- -Mukh. or Cows Mouth; the hos
pital in which Kate Sheriff worked, and
nearly the whole of Rhatore as it appears
in the pages Of the novel. There is also
some information about the mysterious
dead city to which Mowgli was carried
by the Monkey People, and which Dick
Heldar pictured 10 Maisie. The Dead City
OF Amber has some Of the characteristics
OF this grewsome place. but more nearly
the description is fulfilled by the City of
chitor. This is that city;
Men had p4rceled the gardens Of her palaces
and the cOu-syards Of her temples into fields;
and cattle grazed among the remnants Of the
shattered tonnbs. But over all-over rent and
basfinn, splTI temple wall, pierced roof and prone
pillar-iay the shadow Of lis beauty while it
fourished in its pride" The Englislmsn walked
into : stately palace o. many rooms, whc-e the
sunlight streaned in through wall and root, and
up crazy stone stairways. held together, il SEEM
ed. by the marauding trees. In one bastion a
gind-soVn peepul had wrenched a thick slab
clear Of the val. but held il light pressed in q
crook Of branch, as man holds down a fallen
enemy under his elbow. shoulder, and forearm
In another place, strange, EncAnuy wind sprung
from nowhere, was singing AT alone among the
pillars Of what may have been Hal OF Audi
ence.
Il is in this city that the daring may find
lie Gsu-Mukh-ihe Cows Mouth-and see
uncanny things in the finding. The end
cf the chapter is this:
When YOU are too lucky sacrifice something. a
Beloved pipe for choice 70 Ganesh The English
man has Chitor by rnoorlight-not the best
moonlight truly. bnt the wstery glare of 4 nearly
spent mocH-and his sacrifice 20 Luck Is this lie
Will never Try 70 describe what he has seen but
VIII Keep Il as a love letter. a thing for one
pair a eyes only memory that few men today
can he sisarerz ia And does he, through this
fiction, evade insulting. by pen and Ink, scene
es lovely, Nlla. and unmaichable as any thai
mortal eyes have been privileged 70 rest uponf
Through all the Indian sketches moves
taciturn. imperturbable, resourceful. the
man who governs India. He. in all his
multiplicity OF character, is Kipling's
oemigod. We find him in Bombay. il
Calcutta. In the Native States. These ere
the English CT the Native States as Kip.
ling sees them:
Much can be learned from the talk cf the caste;
many curious, many amusing, and some startling
things One hears stories of men who take
poor, impoverished state as a man takes wife,
Tor betters Tor worse, and moved by some IN
comprehensive ideal Of virtue, consecr4te-tfai
Is not toe big n w0rd-cousecrste their lives Il
that state in al singie-hesrsedness and purity.
Such ncn few, but they exist today, and
their names are great in lands where no Eng
hEiman travels.
Such one was John Chinr, who made
the Bhil man." and became god riding
a Clouded Tiger Such one was Yardley-
Orde et the Head of the District
Border district which after his death was
given disastrousIy to the Bengal. And
here is more OF this caste:
Again. the listener hears tales of erizzled dip
lorats Of Rajputzna- -Aiachiayellis who have hoist
ee powerful intriguer with his OWE intrigue
nrc bested priessly cunning, simply that the way
might be clear for scheme which should
pot money into totterfng treasury or lighter
the taxation G; few hundred thousand men-oI
both; fer tbs can be done. One 1.-THE Of that
force spent on their Own personal advancement
would have carried such men very far.
Ifulys the Hat-maFked Caste are a strange peo
PIE They are few and 20 lonely and sC
strong They can st down in one place fol
years and see the works OF their hands and ths
promni.nCs d. their hralrs ornn 70 aotllal IN.