The sun., 1919-04-06
"Out and Abo"- London"
By HARRY ESTY DOUNCE


u writes of London as Kipling wrote Of
India-to the extent that Mr.. Burke's
roundabout sketches, without being in the
least limitations or emulations, repeatedly
suggest the collected signed newspaper
letters Of Kipling's emergent youth. They
are enforced, unlabored and except as
this young Irishman is a natural born
writer cf originality and charm, they are
free of everything literary. Each page
OF them is stepped In the life, including
fine physical atmosphere, Of the obscurer
London districts where Mr.. Burke strug-
e'ed up and began to write and which he
loves.
Such material at the command of such
ability ought to yield some remarkable
Successors to Limehouse Nights. The vol
ume before US follows Nights in London.
like that fascinating collection and like
the Koling stuff above referred to, Ont
and A5oM London on newspaper man
at least makes the impression of the author
being q first rate reporter-and that is
the beginning Of creative authorship. He
i markedly self-unconscious by the way,
tins differing from the sometime bright
Young man of the AllahGbGd Pioneer.
Not because it is the best thing in the
book, which it is not, but because long
Suffering and seeptical Americans deserve
10 see British man Of letters reprodue-
ing their yernacular with fidelity and re-
10 H. aho,
ter on the Army VS.. Navy ball game. Its
tit!c is 1itdboy!
.. l know OF no keener pleas
IRE than that of watching a man do some
thing that he fully knows how to do
whether it be Caruso singing, Maskelyne
juggling, Balfour making an impromptu
speech or Swanneck Rube
pitching. Oh, pretty to watch, Sir, pretty
to watch! No hesitation here; no feeling
bis way toward a method; no fortuitous
hsirsbreadth triumph over the nice diff
Guilty; but cold facility and swift, clear
answers to the multiple demands of the
situation. Oh, attaboy, Rubei
81 was received in the Army's dressing
room by MimIns, their captain, who said
he was mighty glad to know me and
would put me wise TO anything in the
game that had me beat. The whole thing
he'd me beat. I was down and out before
the umpire had cried first Play ballr
Then the game began and tie roofing
began. There was, for example, an ex-
plosive, reverberating Ah-h-h-h-h! which
] now practice in my back garden in order
10 scare the sparrowS from my early peas.
But my attempts are no more like the
real thing than Australian Burgundy is
like wine
81 mad never imagined that this hard,
shell covered, business people could break
into such debaueh of frerzy. You should
have heard the sedate Admiral Sims when
= the Navy made n homer, with his Alta
boy, Oh, attaway to play ball Zaaaa
Zaaa, Zaaar and when his men made
wild throw he sure handed them theirs.
Here are few of the phrases hurled
at The offending players:
"'Aw, well, well. well, well, wellr
All, you pikers, where was you
rsisedF
Hey. Pitcher, is this a bah game or a
corner lot gamef'
Say, DO, you can play ball-maybe'
Hey, catcher, quit the diamond, and
lie me iii brldder teach yeh.'
"'Say. who's that at bati What's the
good Of sending In dead MANI
"'Aw, dear, dear, DEAR Gimme some
barb wire. / wanter knit sweater for
the barnacle on second
"'Oh, watch this, watch this! He's a
bad ACTOR. XII the bad actor
More ivory-more ivory, On, boy.
love every bone in yer head
Get a stepladder TO it. Take orr that
pitcher. He's pitching over a plate in
heaven
Now show EN- where Won hive, boy.