New-York tribune., 1912-02-07

Dickens turned into a comedy ny 4 con-
| stantIv comic commentary upon the play
and players He grumbled to himself.
| well! Bad players always win" or. 1T
| is very easy to play when one holds all the
trumps!'
! On my first visit he remarked airily, Il
suppose that the aristocratic custom of
leaving all the winnings on the table for
| the servants has been adopted in Amer
/ leap
Don't mind HIM" Miss Hogarth inter
posed; "he is always like that!'
! The housekeeping at Gadshill was man
aged so perfectly that, except at dinner, l
never saw servant there. Miss Hogarth,
! as methodical as Dickens himself seemed
| to do everything
Dickens and George w. ChiIds.
In London one morning I received the
following note:
shipmate, ahoy! How am TO entertain
an American who neither eats, drlhks
| smokes ChewS nor sWears? Please 20 man
/ the lfebCat and come at once. = ~
Arriving at Gadshill ! found Mr.
| George Washington Childs of Philadel-
phia. beaming with cOntentment and re-
quiring no other amusement than the
! pleasure of being with Dickens. At din
ner Mr.. Childs ate little and drank moth
| ing but water. anC Dickens slyly pretend
! ed to shudder with horror every time his
own glass was filed. Perssting that Mr.
CbiIds must be amused. Mr.. Dickens asked
him TO play a game of billiards. Mr..
Childs did not play billiards. and Dickens
proposed "A grand international pool tour
| nament" his son Charles representing
England With much argument-"custom
Of the country" and so on-and much per
suasion Mr.. Childs was induced to back
me as the American champion for half
crown go Cents), an was appointed um,
pire as soon AS he declared that he knew
nothing about the game. Dickens was
marker and shouted after every break.
Two for the American eagle, Fluke"
Three for the British lion IIooray""
BY good work the American eagle won.
The clock struck TO- and Mr.. Chlds said
that he always went 20 cd at 10 o'clock. |
SO Dickens. with a low bow and Coun-
tenance expressing the deepest sorrow
and despair, handed him the two half
crowns Il was all like q scene from
"Pickwick," and as tho door closed upon
Mr. Childs We continued tho similarity by
holding hands and dancing around the
table
Presently the door opened and Mr.. |
Childs reappcared with his bedroom can f.
die and the two half crowns. In a speech !
that was so sincere as 10 he dignihed he
said that never before had he been guilty |
Of gam mbling; that when he attempted TO |
say his prayers the two half crowns
weighed upon his mind and interfcred ,
II c1- NTr oh
ems to take back the money.
Dickens regarded Mr. Childs very grave /
L. Was this a joke or a too sensitive /
conscience? Then he explained at great
length that the customs Of England did
not permit him to take back the half
crowns, but that he would consent TO
wager double or quit until the British lion /
had won. Mr.. Childs agreed TO this. uH-
der protest. and Dickens gave US an auda-
cious wink, which meant. PUT five shil-
linGs on his conscience"
Young Charles tried his best 10 lose the
game, but the balls symrathized with Mir I
Chids and the British lion was victorious I.
When Mr.. Childs relieved OF his gambling
gains, had retired smlliugly Dickens /.
asked. is it possible? Have | been /
dreaming And yct he les great man /
Looked Like 4 Sea Captain.
None Of the portraits published re- /
sembled Dicke..s at the prime Of life /
ard the height Of his fame lie looked .
like a retired sea captain and had an .
alertness and yigor that suggested .
'Heave ahead. my hcarties!' THIS sug- .
gestion was heightened by his ruddy. /
ria fI1TU
fecked hair and ocard, and his keen /
calm. serious eyes, that seemed 20 reflect /
the wonders Of the lacp. II, had a brother. /
Frederick Dickens. Who looked 50 Ike him /
that had often thought they were twins /
the same sailor-likc face and manner, the
same talent as an amateur actor, but with |
no literary ability IT was curious Z" I
study the two brothers. exactly alike. but |
one lacking the inspiration Of genius as
# nature had created duplicates and then |
decided TO endow Charl,s instead OF Fred |
crlck.
Dickens left no memoranda from which /
the plot OF his uncompl,;cd novel, the /
Mystery OF Edwin DrOod,' could be discoV- /
cred. But before writing this novel he
told me of a plot which he was consider
inp Painting 10 a building on the bank Ot /
the Thames. he said: That Is our poor
house A wcll-tO-dO J.orS,cr put his iathcr |
into that house under an assumed name
The old man revealed h. identity 10 the
bnsrd of managers, and they sent him back |
10 his son, whom they threatened to prose-
cute for fraud. Angry. mean and alarmed,
the overseer put the Gather into buggy /
and drove into the river, here at this spot |
His Intention evidently was To drown MS /
father and pretend mere had been an ac-
cIdent But the father clung to him ana
bofh were drowned. The Overseer had |
taken out insurance policies upon his own |
lie and that Of his father, and distant rela- |
tives applied for the money The insur-
ance company refused to pay. Litigation
eneusd and the court decided that the pol
lev upon the father was void, because he /
had been deliberately murdered. but the
policy upon the son must be paid, because
bo had not intended 10 commit suicide. !
There are hundreds OF such rCady-made |
piots In British Jurisprudence"