Evening star., 1925-10-23
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

icy mountains. II Is this sea in the
brain that a writer must set before
us IL he would have us grasp the in
mensity. the grandeur, of the living
ocean that rolls around the world.
The moods Of this tickle mistress of
all sailormen Conrad sets before us
In colorful page after colorful page,
replete with images al the more subtle
because their birth pancs are hidden
from us.
IT is the sea revealed to us through
the minds OF its interpreter man. the
psychology of the sea, il you viii, that
Conrad places before US in that long
draWn-out but none too elabora ted
description of the great storm that
furnishes the climax of The Niger
of the .NarciSsus'."
Forty pages is not too much. We
could wish 1t were longer, except we
are glad to see the sailors get back
into their watersWept forecastle at
last and greet there the ships cat.
THE cat came out from nowhere.
He had an ovation. They Snatched
him from hand to hand. caressed him
in a murmur of pet names. They
wondered where he had 'Weathered il
out: disputed about il. A squabbling
argument began.
Two men brought in a bucket OF
fresh water, and all crowded around
it. but Tom, lean and mewing, came up
with every hair astir and had the first
drink
Conrad knew his cats as well AS his
men, you see. To every one who owns
cat that stroke about Tom puts the
seal of authenticity upon this whole
story A writer who gets his cat right
will get the rest of IT right,
Wherefore. I accepted, as thousands
upon thousa nds of readers have before
me, The NiGger Of the 'Narcissus "
as breath of the very sea itself. as
near as any human being can put It
into book.
Putting the ocean into n book il a
rather ma n-size job. if you stop To think
about it! Ii is this that Conrad does
Read this book. and YOU will know
why the critics have united in singing
! his praises through the years He
| puts wet water on dry page. accom-
| plishing a miracle in writing.
And so easy. There is no effort. The
man knew his sea, and he knew his
medium Of expression, and he knew
how TO work hard. He loved the Eng
| lish language. 1t fascinated him. The
powers of expression that are in it
| the sound and color of words. the ap
peal of sentences. called to the genius
| that was in him.
| Wherefore he evolved for MS an un
| forcettable picture OF storm, ir
which the old captain stuck TO his
post, refusing to allow the masts tt
| be cut down: in which the sailor!
| clung hour after hour TO the water
| lashed decks. In which the malinger
| ing James Wait, the niger lay II
his cabin.
| The "nigger" became the pet obses
| sion of the sailors. in that stra
| psychology which Conrad makes rea
TO US. They put him TO bed, and cared
| for him, and then when he demanded
| after the storm. to be allowed to work
| they Clamored for the captain to lei
| him work. Whatever Jimmie wanted
to do was right with those sailormen
! | have made no attempt here to tel
| the story of this book. but rather to
| set forth it's total effect, in the hope
! that those. who have not read it vii
| do So and that those who have will he
! glad to share with me this belateo
| praise Of great book.
Here is what Conrad said Of it:
| Its page are the tribute OF my
| unalterable and profound affection fol
| the ships. the seamen, the winds and
the great sea--the molders OF my
| youth. the companions of the best
| years of my life"