New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-02-11
TRICKS OF THE TRADE
A Literary Journalists Endless
Chain of Material.
PEOPLE AND QUESTIONS. BY G. 8
street. limo, PIP. 3Ol. Mitchell Kenner-

PEOPLE AND QUESTIONS. BY G. 8.
ley.
Mr. Street, besides being clever
rovellst and essayist, is a more than oc-
caslonal contributor to various English
weekly and monthly publications. for
which he writes articles long and short
serious and in lighter vein. ranging. as
in this latest book of his. from COM
parison between the early Nictorians and
the English of the present day that is
eminently worth while. to n paper on
waiting for Dinner Whatever he
writes. long or short, in lighter or in
serious vein, he is always readable.
and often suggestive. His viewpoint.
sometimes deliberately whimsical, is in
variably worth considering. since often,
easily as he drops il to go on to other
considerations. IL either reflects current
thought, or adds TO its stock a germ
which the reader may develop for him.
self or not. as he pleases. Professionally
he has to be writing about something
all the time. and he manages generally
to have something 10 write about. In
other words, besides being literary
man OF parts, he is also an able literary
journalist.
His method Of finding these elusive
something's to discourse upon is enter
tainingly revealed by the contents OF
People and Questions" For instance:
Mr. Street has been out in a London
fog, which, Of course, suggests an article
for next weeks paper. What has struck
him most is the human nature of the
omnibus driver by whose side he has sat
out the worst of the fog, and the CHEEKY
helpfulness of the conductor who piloted
him to the sidewalk, and of the people
ne met on his cropping homeward way
cockneys most of them. So Mr.. Street
writes an article on cockneys. They are
an acquired taste with the Londoner,
one supposes, but the tourist prefers to
sample them merely, in the witticism Of
a cabby, say. and in 'Arriet's holiday at
tire, Of which Mr.. Street says:
The young womens finery pleased me in
tensely II was easy TO sheer at It's occa-
sional bad taste, but when one remembers
what a part of hard-earned wages goes to
procure il, and what part OF il-spared
time to keep il neat, surely the nnery Is
touching TO see! And l saw but little bad
taste: fresh white dresses were the rule.
and hats not more overdraped than one
sees in Bond street. one hears rich women
censure these girls for spending on thelr
dress money they should spend on 1000: III
may not be heartless, that censure' but nov
stupid and unimaginative 1t is. To think
of appearances before your stomach is I'M
wise, but surely it is pathetic-that strlv-
ing after what you think beauty, that eager
ness to make a fair show and be credit
to your sweetheart.
A deliberately rude or offensive COCK
ney is hardly TO be met, continues Mr..
Street, but they are quick to resent
tone of patronage Of superiority. And
so, the fog having led to the cockney,
the cockney leads to a paper on "Su-
perior People which, as a matter or
course, suggests others on inferior Peo-
pie" on "Other Peoples Manners" So
cety," the suppression Of the word
gentleman" and, last Of all, to dis
sertation, con Being Patronized.' The
social patronage bestowed by Mrs. A,
who is a vaguely aristocratic person."
briefly referred TO in this paper leads TO
full-length picture of her kind, Mrs.
Watt Parkinson" And here we will
drop the chain. 1t looks easy, does 1t
not. this trick Of the trade? But it is
very difficult, none the less, when ii is
done as well as It is done here. with a
touch Of humor and sound sentiment
md n Of ton "a.
philosophy.
There are. for instance, those wise
RULES for the Middle Aged" quotation
from which is difficult. because the ar
ticle is so closely knit:
Your address and conversation qua mid
die aged person will vary in accordance
with the age OF your companions, and your
chief difficulty will be with the young. Re
i member era always that to the young you seem
much older than you are. Sport and
games may very likely be as much your
preoccupa ton as a young mans, but do not
give him that impression: throw in a dash
Of politics or finance If you wish for his
respect. If the one object of your
toll is gross material prosperity YOU can
not expect TO be an attractive figure in
the eyes of youth without some pretence
OF idealism and altruism. Make that pre-
tence. Avoid it in the society of your av-
erage contemporaries. You need no
rules lOr your uiSCOuTSe WIN tHe aged
You have no rules for your discourse with
the aged. You have merely TO accept their
pleasant illusion that you are young.
Mr.. Street puts his best wares at the
beginning of his book. In his COMPARE
son between the early Victorlans and his
contemporaries he discusses manners
and morals, aesthetics literature politics.
but, most Of all, does he contrast the SUI
preme English self-confidence Of that
day with the English dubious indiffer-
encp" Of the nreSent