Evening star., 1924-07-15
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
REDnURN. Herman Melville. Til
st. Botolph Society,". Boston.

REDBURN. Herman Melville. The
ST. Botolph Society, Boston.
They were fellow travelers-stran-
gers to each other. One was Clifford
Pinchot, deeply absorbed In the last
pages Of little book, dusky red
IN color ana plant to the hand. As
Mr. Pinchot gathered up himself and
his belongings to leave the train he,
IN easy and unpremeditated gesture,
| handed this book over to the stranger
across the way. a little smile going
along with 1t. One more move, weeks
later. and the book came to me-
'Moby-Dick," Herman Melville's story
| OF tho great white whale. Since then
rye read "Moby-Dick" more than
once. and "Typee" and "Omoo" and
others of Melville's South Sea ro-
mances. And always, upon taking up
one Of these, I reconstruct that Rra-
cious and friendly little drama Of the
train, by way OF which "Moby-D Dick"
set out to make new friends for itself
| ana Tor Its author. The very poetry
2f q circulating library. this looked
20 me then, and does now. Casual, to
be sure, and, in danger now and then
OF missing the perfect contact hoped
for IT, but an original and beautiful
and useful way Of releasing q new
pleasure to wing its course here and
there till 1t settles for little upon
some welcoming mind and heart
| then on and away again in many
similar flights.
Herman Melville missed the popu-
| larity that, in these later years.
O'Brien and Safroni- Middleton and
Vaughan and Rupert Brooke and
another and another writer on the
South Seas. not excepting DIR. Trap
| rock himself, have gathered out of
this field of adventure. This lack on
his part. as we'll as the gain on
| theirs, does not depend, however,
wholly on deservings. Popularity de-
mands, above all else, a theme upon
which there is already a keen and
general interest. Melville's romances
| came too early, or too late. Too late
to catch the highest glory of the
clipper ship era, whose romantic
world sailings stirred a widespread
| excitement Of interest. Too early for
the modern speed Of communication
that has, in effect, moved the South
| Sea Islands up within a ships length
| of the Golden Gate-easily accessible
to romancer, poet, artist, yagabond.
| News OF the islands was pouring in
even before these writer's began upon
them. People were keen to the sub
| jecs. They were ready to meet even
these f1orid stories of lovely native
| a flaming hibiscus nodding invitation
from braids of dusky hair. They
were ready for the pageantry of the
sunsets, for the panorama of the
| Pacific dotted with these island gems
| Of iridescent sheen and soft .seduc-
| ton. So popularity met these adven-
| turers of the pen more than half way.
But sober folks never did accord to
them more than part of the depth
| and splendor of the work of Herman
Melville. And sober folk are increas-
| ing in number. Many more are read
ing Melville. Many more are payin g
| him the tribute that circumstance de-
| layed. The circumstance of being
| out of joint with his time, not that of
| doubtful genius and power.
| The book of Melville's that l love
best is 'Redburn' John Masefield
talking. Until lately hard to get, and
not nearly so well known as "Moby-
Dick" "Typee," "White-Jacket" and
"Omoo." "Redburn" is "a boys book
about running away to sea-" accord
ing to Masefield. And SO it is, the
| boy" being Melville himself, who, a
/ dozen years after that adventure,
wrote this clearly autobiographic ac-
count of it Words and. phrases
| turned to the uses of literal pho
| Biography spread out here the details
of this first voyage. These details
are often hideous. They are always
exciting and adventurous. One stands
| out as the very top notch of daring
to me, since the last rung of very
short ladder measures the limit OF
| my infrequent excelsior-ing. But
| tons, my boy" said the old Dutch
| sailor. IT'S high time you-be doing
something; and it's boys business
Buttons. to looze de royals, and not
dye see dat leetIe fellow way ur
dare, just behind dem stars. dare:
Well, tumble up now, Buttons. I zay
and looze him; way you go. Buttons
to be done about 1t. he jumped into
| the rigging 'It was long road ur
| those stairs, and 1 began to pant and
breathe hard before / was half way
| Jacobs Ladder which took me al.
most into the clouds. At last, to my
| own amazement, found myself
| hanging on the skysailyard holding
l
the rigging as If they were another
pair of hands. From my lofty perch
the sea looked like a great, black
gulf. seemed alone. treading the
| midnight clouds. Every second 1 ex.
pected to find myself falling-falling
A gull was flying around the truck
over my head; it frightened me tc
hear it: it seemed so much like a
spirit at such a lofty and solitary
height. I heard distant, hoarst
| 7 hot
| the mate was hurrying me. So, trem-
| bling, I went to casting off the gas.
kets, and when all was ready suns
out, as had been told to do, Hoist
too, along with the yard and sail, TO,
l. had no time to get of. 1t seemed
like magic. There I was going high.
er and higher, the yard Rising under
good deal of danger, without know.
ing it, for it was so dark could MOI
see we'll enough to be afraid. only
held on hard, and made good the say.
person to fall overheard from the rig.
ging is the landsman, because he grip!
the ropes so fiercely; whereas old tar.
are less careful, and sometimes pay
the penalty. After this feat I re-
ceived something like a compliment
from Max the Dutchman." Deserved
it, too. Weeks later, after much Of
hardship and nothing at all Of ease
the Liverpool docks came out to NEE
this youthful seafarer. Here are pic
lures, vivid and speaking, Of tn.
water front, of the dark and narrow
streets, of the sailors boarding houses
with their scant fare and their ques
tionable diversions. In distaste tn,
boy turns away, remembering latel
that the truck horses of England
made the finest sight that he saw
$50 grave, dignified, gentlemanly ant
courteous did these fine truck horses
| IaoL-1o full of calm fntellirence n anf
sagacity-that often tried to ge
into conversation with them as the1