The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-12-16
QUEEN 0F ENGLAND VORAC|OUS READER Books Are Chosen For Her
 By Court Librarian POWERED" DURBAR Miss Edna Ferber Has Won Deyotee In Neil Lyons, An English Au-
 thor-Queer Names of
 Friendly Society
POWERED" DURBAR

London, DeoemDef lo.-lH aii N'iiS Georges domain there is said to be no more voracious reader than his gracious consort," Queen Mary. In spite of the innumerable demands on her time, her majesty manages to read most Of the novels of today that really count. and almost always has a serious work on hand, too, such as book of biography or one devoted to science or travels.
 But the queen does not choose her read ing herself. The business of selecting 1t and also that of Princess Mary and the young princes, with the exception of the heir to the throne, is in the hands Of court official. This is Jack Fortescue who is a younger brother of Lord For escue and the author of several books. Since 1906 Fortescue has been librarian ot Windsor castle, and he went to India with the royal pair and wrote the official account of the durbar, which was se- verely "roasted' by the newspapers on account of its authors tendency to dilate on the color of ceremonial carpets and the length of court trains to the exclusion of more human details However, there was some excuse for Fortescue, for it Is hard to imagine a more thankless job than writing about such a ceremon al with a whole battery of royal and official blue pencils ready to bounce on the slight est "indscretion" or disclosure of what went on behind the scenes.
 One reads every now and then that Queen Mary has accepted a copy of So- and-So's book, but whether she ever reads it or not depends on Fortescue. Every week he sends her a list of works which he believes she will enjoy reading, includ- ing suggestions about books for the royal children, and hear that he has his work cut out to keep up with the literary lppe- tites of the queen and her youngsters, all of whom, the little princess especially, are inclined to be boolkworms. Nor is Fortescue's job al exceptional one There always is someont at court whose busi- ness 1t is to recon mend the right books to the young princes and princesses, and probably Queea Mary has no time 10 bother with book reviews and is glad to be told what is worth reading. As for King Gorge he rarely takes up book, and when he does wants a straightaway story of adventure. King Edward, whose own favorite reading consisted of French novels, in spite of all the nonsense that has been written about his fondness for intellectual works, would never allow his daughters to read anything that had not first been perused by their governesses es, while the Duke and Duchess of Con- naught trusted to Madame Albanesi o prescribe what reading was suitable for their daughters while they were Tn thelr schoolgirlhood.
 Miss Edna Eerber Cat least we assume she Is "Miss') whose high-spirited volume "Buttered-Side Down" was published in the United States recently, has made conquest on this side of the water, and one on which she is entitled to plume herself. Nell Lyons, who is one of the most promising of the younger school of authors and playwrights over here, has fallen in love with her, as a result of reading her book. He says so himesf without any beating about the bush, de- claring that Miss Ferber is his sweet heart and that he would like to call her Edna.
 Lyons is best known as the author of "Arthur's" and "Sixpenny Pieces, two delightful collections of character sketches in short story form, and two one- act plays of his have just been produced here and been warmly praised. He is one of the mainstays of Robert Batehford's socialistic but eminently readable weekly, "rhe Clarion" and it is in 'The Clarion" that he tells of his love for Miss Ferber, to whom and her book he devoted 1early a page. He says that he realizes chat she may be married; 50, in fact, is he, but that has not prevented him from declaring his affection He believes Miss Ferber to be young and pretty. though he knows that she may, on the other hand, be ''one of those manly American girls of 45 whom one sees in front of Shakespeare's sup posed birthplace at Stratford-on-Ayon." Anyhow her book obviously has delighted him. He describes her as "a Transat- lantic Tchurgenein" in"-there are about fifty ways of spelling this Russian authors name-and he declares that he would have given the eyes out of his head to have written some of the stories in "But- tere l-Side Down." That volume, by the way. apparently has not been published over here, though Lyons does not explain how he came across it. It is up to Miss Ferber's American publisher to introduce her to the British public. which loves nothing better than American slang when t can understand 1t.
 As a result of the new system of state insurance in this country there is a rush
 o join friendly societies. whose member
 lip is growing at a record rate. Most of
 hese societies are old-establshed. and a lot of them have queer names. The society of Blue Females is one Of them, while another calls itself the Honorable order of Peaceful Dove. There is A Flower Pot Sick and Dividend society and Leg of Mutton Friendly society; also Grand Or0er of Caledonian corks (who soInd like roysterers), not to mention the Hope at the Fountain Lodge. and the No. 1 Society of Makers -Up--who apparently have nothing to do with the stage. The Brothers of Truth also appear in the off, cial list of approved societies." as they