Evening star., 1926-08-21
SAbAT|N| WOULD
FORGET FIRST BOOK
"The Tavern Knight" Was
Terrible, He Says-Last
Is Always Best.
BY JOHN GUNTHER.

LONDON, Aug 10 Correspondence
What was your first book" |
asked Rafael Sabatini.
Il wish" he murmured mournfully,
that / could forget"
So far as | know. of all those authors
who have sold hundreds of thousands
of books in America. Sabatini remains
the least known. We have national
genius for curiosity, But somehow the
author of captain Blood" and "Scara-
mouChe" has eVaded il. He is pretty
much Of a mystery. And he is some.
thing of a myth.
Part of the glamour of his novels
comes, I suppose, from his name. Ra-
fael Sabatini is a pretty good name
for Il romantic novelist. What is more,
it Is his real name. But he doesn't
look like that name. He is a tall
ruddy- checked youngster of 40 or so,
as English as the sea. He lives in an
English house in very English
suburb. Somehow he reminded me Of
Cesare Borgia in English tweeds.
Born in Italy.
He was born in Italy. His mother
was English. his father. the late
Maestro Nincenzo Sabatini, Italian.
They were musical people. When
Rafael was born. in JEST, tiny town
were wandering troubadours. He told
me one Of his earliest memories is of
his mother singing "Rigoletto.
When still an infant he was left
with an uncle in a monastery. The
blond baby became something of q
legend even then. He was known
scandalously as "the friar's SON.
Rafael was sent to England when he
was 2 years old. He lived in England
with his maternal grandparents until
he was Z. His father and mother
meanwhile were in Spain.
"At the age of T." Mr.. Sabatini says,
II had enough of England. I wasn't
very big. but 1 got out. 7 went to
Spain. My family had moved to Portu-
gal. ] went to Portugal and found
them there"
He stayed in Portugal and was edu-
Gated there. lie learned. as he says,
all languages but English. and the lit
tie English he knew he soon forgot.
He did not come to England again
till he was 81. He has never been to
America. He is the only English nov
elist l have ever met who doesn't
want to go.
BY the time he was "a he had re-
learned enough of English to enter
journalism and to begin writing books
in IT.
'Dhat first novel-NTr. Sabatini says
it is a very terrible novel-Was called
THE Tavern knight There have
been about 20 since. All of them are
historical romanceS on the same pat
tern. most of them dealing with life
in England or the Latin countries in
the seventeenth and eighteenth cen
turies. (which is the best?' al
ways the last one" said Mr. Sabatini.
His house in Hampstead is one Of
the most charming 1 have seen in
England. 1t Is staggering with books.
Mr.. Sabatini takes an intimate inter
est in the historical background of his
own novels, and to make that back
ground accurate he finds good deal
of research essential. His house is
crammed like pirates den with doc
uments, weapons. ship models, parch-
ment maps and even, L dare say,
few gold moidores.
Stresses Personal Side.
What 1 try to show in every book
from first to last is the personal side
of history said Mr.. Sabatini. That
and the realities of romance"
Sabatini has lost sleep at various
times over American moving picture
concerns and their antics. Even so.
he thinks that "The Sea Hawk"
.'Scaramouche," and especially Cap
tain Blood" were filmed splenddly.
asked him how he came to write
"Scaramouche," and discovered an in
teresting story as genesis of this best
known of his novels.
II was doing some translating for
my friend Martin Sedker, the pub
Usher. In particular l was translat-
ing a book by French scholar named
Sand on the history Of the harlequin
ade. 1t was an interesting book and
to me a labor of love. When it ap-
reared my name wasn't even on the
title page.
We'll, somewhere deep in that man.
uscript | came across the name Scara-
mouche. He was evidently historical
character The name fascinated me.
I decided to write a book called
'Scaramocche.' Thus the title came
first Then the character
II thought of the phrase, He was
born with a gift of laughter and
sense that the world was mad After
that | settled on revolutionary France
as background, chose a simple. ele-
mentary plot and began. l wrote it in
eight months"
Mr.. Sabatini is so absorbed by the
romances of the past he has little
acute interest in scenes of today. 1
asked him If he would ever tackle a
novel about the great war. He an
swered:
Not in this reincarnation."
D..A,,~,,>c> Do,,& HL,~oeo D.ra%>.