New-York tribune., 1908-01-05

A man Of quick wit. who worked with enthu- I
sissn and as hard as he played. who never .
failed in duty and in loyalty. big hearted man
whose sympathy and kindness were ineXhausti- .
he. 4 joyial man who ne'er wanted friend nor /!
= bottle to give him-such was Shirley Brooks, .
second editor of Punch the conlrade lieuten-
ant and successor Of Mark Lemon He was one
. the group gathered. week by week round the
famous mahogany tree-a group including
arlong others Thackeray John I.eeeh. Tom Tay-
~. du Maurier and Tenniel IL Of that notable
company Mr.. I-ayard has few new anecdotes to
tell us-in truth its members have been pretty
wei exploited already-he at least gossips with
genial feeling about old friends and we need
not complain that the gossip is often little
hackneyed and sometimes trivial. great deal
y unimportan: stuff is included; many of
If-ooks's letters of triling value Severe
c6lting in short. would have much improved this
s5zjch of one who himself uncommonly
t--r-Detcnt editor
j Is only in these pages and in the reminis-
.s--es Of comrades Of those days that Shirley
Brooks wIH live. For this man who was an in
5o-liiable toiIer. driving his pen necessarily,
les. nothing which has cherishing renem-
F-ance His novels made no success worth men
riaDfnE. his plays produced by such actors as
Charles Mathews the heeleys, and Charles
kan were temporarily amusing. but had no
lasting qualities. his clever verses turned off
.,=-r extraordinary facility admirably
45arted 10 the purposes Of satircal journalism,
-- mot IN rra--,e-,lat5on as poetry. For Punch
s-5e,-s r- was an ideal editor and contributor,
.-=r=rg and guiding the writing of others with
-..~- and generally with excellent judgment In
7e matter however that judgment certainly
~sfled He was Mark Lemons chief assistant in
ne wears during which America was struggling
through the civil War and Punch" was stead
iy making itself offensive toward the combat
ants shirley il is chronicled, had been one of
-ne worst offenders. Then came Lincolns as
sss-.natien. and mems eyes opened 10 the real
sTler6or Of the mans character, the difficulty |
and glory CT his achievement" In sackcloth !
and ashes Punch fnelt at that bier. Let il be
remembered always OF Mark Lemon that he |
y-frted the noble recantation Of Taylor's from |
,sfirh Va take these lines:
v.- - had ffv'd 10 shame me from my sneer,
To lar-e pencil and confute my pen
u r.Fe re own 1!is hind OF princes peer.
7'hss -ail-Sfl.trer = true-bo-n king OF men
" shallow judgment ] had learn'd TO rue
,so+71- nov 20 OCCASIONS height he rose.
f71zy his quaint wit made hcme-truth seem more /
tso, jr,B-lsks. his temper grew by blows
The azov.al that we have been a bit mis- !
-skar~ said Mark Lemon at the following
Punch dinner is manly and just Brooks
vyas one q the members Of the staff who did
with the e0ltoGr protesting liISI
..4,.,-.r- had not been blind and shallow. and /
eys1 = i had they ought not TO own II An
r--v n his diary records the utterance OF this !
r-,-ss+ against the verses IN which Punch was
--.- only made 70 eat 'unbles pie, but swallow
dish and an Oddly enough these fine verses |
were II many quarters attributed TO Brooks |
himself, and M. Layard has wasted much un-
-a.,essa-v time and ink in showing how he |
;-e6-itelv discovered that they were the work Of /
Tom TAYLOR The authorship was known here
long ago-and should, for that matter, have been /
g,.71efre6 by any one familiar with the poeticaI /
Ta-c5-rnances Of the two men We know Of
1..-Ltug from Brooks's pen which suggests the /
ability 70 produce those verses on Lincoln
brooks Is said L have been more humorous IN /
/ is ak than il his writing. Indeed, SO much /
store did he lay upon his reputation as a /
-a-z=~" says M. Layard. that before q dinner /
-a--y he would shut himself up for an hour in /
E-z study and prepare for The conversational !
C-ag Aud well he was rewarded. for he II was !
v4n. kept The table II roar, and with his hand
some face and charming voice put every one in /
9 good humor." We viii not say that the witt /
c-5rz which his biographer quotes smell Of the +
s-u[y lamp but they are certainly not Of the f.
t--Lart sort that VIII bear the ordeal OF repeti-
--a- IN cold type. At the moment they served /
10 doubt f4e had the art Of blithe nonsense, /
lie z-a-kIIre frorh upon the cup Of Gayety, ana /