Evening star., 1907-11-16
Mrs Pat Campbell Talks About Eng
lish Press Men"
SUCH IMPOSSIBLE PARSONS
Mrs. Elinor Glyn, English Novelist,
:. Delightful Visitor-Gothamite
Easy for Gold Brick Men.

Special Correspondence OF The Star
NEW YORK, November Is, 1907.
" HESE British press men what
are they They are supposed to
correspond. We know in a general
sort Of way. to our American species
more compacHy and expressively known
as reporters. But. to listen to the way
the British press men" are adverted
10 by more o" less renowned Britishers
who zephyr this wasrthe British press
men" must be about one degree removed
from catfish bait. they must I've scrubby.
raffish, servile pack of gaberlunzies. fore
| head-knucklers. sptlock -pu!iers. heel
coolers in mean yet haugh.y ante-rooms.
! We can derive no other impre ss!on of
them if We give Iced to the way they're
spoken Of by parsons of clahss who reach
| these beaches from Great Britain.
Mrs. Pat Campbell. who is something
of wairking gell herseif-she does stag
pieces for pelf. doesn't she? was the
most recent of the more or less clahssy
arrivals from perfid. Alb. to take this
tone with reference to the poor grubs and
hacks who. 1t seems. gather and colata
| the British naws.
IL
FOR one to convairse with press men,
yknow.' was her way OF putting ii, in
starting off-it was al her hotel suite. on
the evening Of her debarkation from the
Iusitania. and some twelve or fourteen
cleanly men, in dinner jackets. reporters
all. were interviewing her; not in the
| least because they wanted to, but be-
cause they'd been assigned to the job
One really docs not know what to say
to press men-that is. our press men
are different from our press men-perhaps
yes es-examining the reportorial crew ID
little more closely-''perhaps you are.
Our own press men. y'know. are so hope
| lesSly impossipie-oh. 50 vairy impossi-
| ble-such muckish buffers. really"
| The American reporters didn't appear
| to be chagrined. Rather, they were
mildly amused. They'd heard all that
| before, lots OF times.
Our own press men, yknow." the sun
| ny-tressed middle aged acting personage
| from Great Britain went on In rather a
| brittle tone. always diffuse such pair
| fectly vile odor o. spirits, and they are
| ything-oh. anything-but-er-gro
one might say. and seem to be terms
| of mortal enmty with all BARRIERS, and
| wear such broken boots. and-oh. they're
! SO pitifully abject. y'know! Really. one
cannot talk to them at all-ft is out of the
| tlemen-Why. 1t seems so extraordinary
| that you really are press men-but you
| are differently called. aren't you? Re-
| pawters, l believe. you are called?'
| Now, this seemed q bit like laying it on.
so to speak Mrs Campbell knew all
about American reporters a good many
| years ago, when she first came to this
country. American report rs certainly
were pro!ix enough at that time in their
yarns about Mrs. Pats rather weari-
| some dog Pinky Panky Poo.
Yes, I~agree that YOU are different
from our press men. Mrs. Pat went or,
OH SO kindly. "Er-is there anything
that you would have If l were to press
the button-thats what you call it
pressing the button, isn't it,"
Nope, none of the American press men
would nave anything" American press
| men commonly take whatever refresh
nlent they need otherwise than at the
expense OF persons whom they are sent
to interview.
But it was all vSry odd. this stuff about
the British press men. Mrs. Pat said
lot more things about them. She por-
trayed them as a sort of bunch of
p2rennialy soused, cringing lackays
who are fed" plenteously, not to say
copiously, on gin and water by pairs
| of quality with whom they come into
distant contactN but wfo are SO ut
terry Impossible" from all angles that
nobody ever talks with them. y'know."
Wonder il these clahssy parsons talk
that way about the British press men
when they are at home in Great Britain?
English. or Engl:sh-Irish. young 'uns
bring their proverbal appetites to this
country. right enough.
Mrs. Pats two children-or two of her
ciiildren-were in and out O. the hotel
rooms while this curious interview was
in progress. One of them is young
man. and the other is a young woman.
They are. of course. exceedingly tall. ex-
ceedingly taciturn. eXcae dinghy at a less
what to do with their hands and feet
exceedingly British. in brief.
Now. Mrs. Pat and these two of her
children hadn't yet dined.
These press men, said Mrs. Pat. ad
dressing her daughter, 'are asking me
about these hideous> American skyscrap
ers. Now. you like these hideous sky
scraperS,. my dear. So you may tell
them what you think
"Oh, the buildings are ripping enough,
| amma-but-dinner?" and the young
woman glanced around somewhat
santfully at the outfit of intervieWers,
who. theTs lives, Were ready enough for
their dinners.
A bit later Mrs. Pat fell to talking about
one of her plays-the Ibsen piece, II d.
da Gaber. While she was talking the
tall son stalked into the room and glanced
around a bit peevishiy.
oh, Allan" said the British actress
the press men say there is some sort
Of an idea on this side that H edda is
| inhuman. Do you think her inhuman?"
his trous RS pockets and stretched his
!eSs apart in the conventional British
fashion, ale samee those oid-tim, com
C. pictures by George du Maurier.
'IniiGnan?' he replied a Lit raspingly.
Don't know, I'm sure. It's an iahuman
long time to dinner-I know that and
out he stallled agail.
Then the reporters. who had been in
vited to this council, and who hadn't
attended hecausa they wanted to at all.
departed from there. neither limping nor
squnched but still mildly amused over
certain characteristic Britishisrns o.
which they'd been witness and auditors.
Quite the most delightful English
woman to visit the states in many
years is Mrs. Eiinor Giyn, the novelist,
who spent about a week in New York a
month or so ago and who is now tour
.nS the far west. This beautiful auburn
haired woman with the lovely, winsome-
iy classic face brought with her u this
country that amiability which. chilly IN