New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-09-24

- shock to many English writers
~ and artists of the older genera
ton. | say Of the older generation, be-
cause for the last ten years or so the
place has ceased to be rendezvous
for interesting figures. Jacob Epstein,
the sculptor, is almost It's sole remain
ing pillar" Augustus John, once an
habitu6, has practically given 1t up,
and literary peopleexcept for very
young poets fresh from Oxford-are
now rarely to be seen there. The
glories OF the cafe have, indeed, long
since departed, though SO widespread is
its reputation that, like the Cafe
d'Harconrt in Paris, it remains a place
of pilgrimage for visitors to London
in search Of Bohemia. Perhaps it's
greatest days were in the '90s, when
brilliant people talked and quarreled
over its handicapped tables and
launched their carefully prepared cpl.
grams. fancy that it was at the Cafe
Royal that Wilde, in an unguarded
moment, observed to Whistler latter
the painter had made q bon mott, 81
wish I'd said that" To which Whistler
replied; you will, Oscar, you will!'
The cafe was founded by a French
man, Daniel Nicolas do Nicol, during
the Franco Prussian War. Nicol made
an enormous fortune out of the place
he died, in 1897. The cooking has al
ways been admirable, and the cellar Is
still the finest in London, despite the
fact that much OF the stock was dis
posed Of during the war TO other res
taurants. The cafe has, for the last
few years, been the property Of a
limited liability company No doubt in
it's new building it will continue to be
financial success; but when the house
breakers destroy the familiar rooms,
with their smoke grimed, painted
ceilings, they will inevitably destroy
its "atm osphere" and dislodge forever
the ghosts of all the poets and painters
which still haunt II.
It was in the summer Of 1907. when
I was a boy of twenty, that I first
went to the cafe, in the company OF
James Elroy Flicker. / have not en-
tered it for many months. When. I
last went in ] found two poets who
had also been lured there once again
by loneliness and sentiment-Herbert
we mourned over it's departed glories'
The death Of Mr.. George r. Sims
cannot accurately be described as "a
loss to literature, but it removes from
the London writing world q figure Of
great energy, kindllness and common
sense. Sims was nothing II not bust
nesshke; he had no patience with
,, "this nonsense about art" His melo-
dramas, some Of which brought him In
large sums Of money, were complied
simply and solely with view to hit
ting the public taste. He knew what
the lower middle classes liked. and
gave it to them. Probably the best
piece of literary work he ever did was
his translation Of Balzac's "Contes
Drolatiques "a labor of love, which
addition to the paper which he edited
and to which he contributed, Cor forty
years without break, weekly eau
serie, and to the books and plays
which he produced, Sims also found
time to dabble successfully In com
merce. A famous hair restorer Is
connected with his name, and he was
one of the founders Of the most pop
ular Bohemian restaurant in Soho
! sonalities like this seem to have been
typical of the Fleet Street Of the
sos The breed is now almost ex-
tinct. A. generation Of hard-faced
men has taken its place who shun
pleasures and live laborious nights
| Despite their efficiency. l THINK thelr
position is far less enviable than was
that Of the older London journalists
who held themselves directly RESPONSE
BILE to their public. The modern man
alas, is responsible only to his
''owner," Perhaps that Is what makes
him look 90 worried.
One of the things about G. r. s
which, endeared him most 60 his Cock
ney audience was his amazing knowl
edge of London and of Londoners. His
native bonhomie and his Unsuitable
curiosity took. him everywhere
Mr. John Cournoa, author Of 9Th,
Mask and "The WALL" tells me that
he has now completed the third move
of his trilogy. The title Of the new
book is Babel" and it continues the
adventures of John Goucharon. Cour
nos seemed much relieved to have got
this big undertaking, on, which he has
been at work for several years, "of
his chest" imagine that all three
books are to a large extent auto
Biographical and that his novels vii
be more objective in future.