New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-08-21


Reprinted by Special Arrangement
from Brentanos Book Chat)
w- INDIA is the land of the story
n teller; no other country ever had
such tales or such a host of
heroes to make them up about. In
every village in India. after the days
work is done and the cattle are all safe
inside the village fence, men sit around
under some great tree and listen to
long tales of gods and men and maidens.
And that is preserving India from being
overwhelmed to-day by the "dismal
science" of modern economy, while
enough of the yeast of modern thought
is working to arouse her congeries of
nations to their new place in the sun.
We all know that the remedy for
drabness is bright color. Nobody ever
saw lame man cured by thinking
about lameness, or a bankrupt restored
to solvency by rehearsing past mis-
takes. The cure for melancholy is good
humor and the way to forget ones own
troubles is to enjoy another mans sue
cess. That is why the Fairy Prince and
Cinderella have survived and why the
Indian village still holds the germs of
a mighty nation. Men who can be
thrilled in the midst of poverty by
stories Of successful heroes and vii
lalny overcome, so that they even for
get their own troubles for while in
the glow Of other mems achievement
have in them the seeds of greatness.
So India has a rod in pickle for the
world When three hundred million.
unseduced by western notions, uuietlv
begin to think and presently express
themselves there are likely to be
strenuous events. We shall hardly be
able to stem that tide when it comes,
but we may as we'll be ready for it,
and prepare to swim
India as whole (they talk more
than fifty languages) began her self
expression seriously when she sent
hundred thousand unconscripted free
---~--
Flanders mud. There are at least a
hundred thousand Indian troops at this
minute thousands of miles away from
India, doing the worlds police work
and not grumbling about it over much.
But they are doing tremendous deal
of lnking-mainly about US; so it
isn't exactly unreasonable for us to do
little thinking about them, unless
we propose to behave like the tabled
ostrich with our heads stuck in the
sand. These men reared on tales told
under the pipal trees will make short
work of our appended posteriors in
that event.
And, after all, the only way to under
stand people is to discover some way
first of all of liking them, because dis
ike and apprehension never mix. So
II distance lends enchantment to the
vlew so much the better The way to
study India at present is her own
way; not in terms of dry statistics or
propaganda (Which is deadlier than
cobra bitc), but by way of romance
which is midas chief commodity. If
India can entertain for US for an hour
or two, even as she proved she could
fight for us in the war, it may be we
shall be in better mood to understand
her when her hour strikes and we have
to deal with her across the table
whether we like or not.
she is the most entertaining coun-
try in the world. Never mind her
scattering of propagandists, they're no
worse than ours; and as for her dcs
tiny why worry? Dame Partington
taught us the fuiiity of sweeping back
At'antlcs with Il broom. She's as
human as we are. There isn't n prob
lem, social or political, anywhere in
the world that hasn't it's replica in
lndla' not crime anywhere that
hasn't It's cxponents: not creed with