In the Public Eye

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 96, 27 April 1929, Page 28

In the Public Eye

Mr. A. J. Cook. . • Many people "sat up suid took-no-tice" when Mr. Arthur Jar.cs Cook, secretary of the Miners' Federation and a leader:Of considerable" standing in the ■more advanced circles .of the Labour movement, declared that ho had been "■„.. converted by the

Prince of Wales. " I'v 3 departed from my revolutionary op i iiions," ho said last week - end, because the Prince h as' departed from tho .orthodox conduct of Koyalty.'' Mr. Cook thus handsomely recanted his ■:, oft-expressed

opinions on revolution and class warfare, admitting that the Prince of Wales, in' taking up tho cudgels on behalf of the starving miners and their families,' had shown his humanity; It was only natural that the Communist section of the Labour movement should give a howl of derision at Mr. Cook's change of opinions, and they were not slow- to do so. On Monday of the present week the party telegraphed condemning his "fawning adulation" and "nauseating sla'vishness," ami calling upon him to substantiate certain of his statements. ■There is one thing about Mr. Cook which has to be commended by all, and that is that he has always had the courage of his convictions. As a.South Wales representative on. the Miners' Federation executive, Mr. Cook was one of the spokesmen, and ho opposed the 1921 settlement to the last.- Born iii ISSS, ~ at Wookcy, near Wells, in Somerset, he early moved to South Wales. T In .1924 he • was elected secretary of the Miners' Federation, and the following year he was one of the readers < of the threatened strike which,, was held .off for twelve months by .tlve granting : of a substaiil tial subsidy and the appointment of a ftoyal ■ Commission to. inquiro into the industry. He gave evidence before this Commission, 1 and during the lock-out of the following year displayed enormous energy.-. Being a fine orator, he-was able to influence.the .men to a great exfeu'f, aml'h is "personality; un doubtedly contributed'-to the long resistance of the miners...East year ho came to grips with the; executive of .tho federation, si ml was severely criticised, at the conference held-ajt'lilandiiariq,. during the summer months/He ably defended himself at-the: time, but it was becoming^ evident -that his opinions were chang-' ing, and. that this" would service to widen the breach'between himself and the' miners., -■.■-:■.'. . . _ . ■' . • Mr. Basil Dean., . . England's . foremost theatrical producer, Mr: Basil.Dean, announced this week that he intended to give up the legitimate stage and to proceed with thepvomotion-of "talkies," the latest thing .. in<■ modern entertainment. He ■ ■'■* '■■ .■';','"".' went so,far as to

say that "drama, comedy, and farce , are „ doomed, though:,big 'musical -'comedies will .livev" Twenty .-.years ago Mr. Dean was earning a precarious fel a week as a tour'hig actor, but today,-, when' barely . ,40 "years old, he finds himself one of the most not-

able and interesting behind-the-scenes personalities Of the.British stage. He. is • well qualified to express an^opinion on almost any matter relating to the theatre, especially/in regard to the public taste'in amusement and its financial effect upon'the profession. Among Mr. Dean's greatest''successes :! are "The Skiu Game," "A Bill of Divorcement," "East of Suez," "Loyalties,"' "R.TJ.8.," "Hassan,'| and several others.'- A couple.of.years ago, he was appointed m'anagmg'.'director of the Theatre Royal, generally referred to as Drury Lane, in which position he succeeded Mr. Arthur Collins. It is probably'the';biggest job.of.its kind irijEng--land to-day, and during the two years he has oeeupied the post he has been extremely progressive, often startlingly. so. Many people hold that he is a genius, but others'consider that he achieves results because he is able to'spend a great deal of. money in putting plays on the stage. On one hand he is loudly praised for the bigness of his conceptions, but on the other he is accused of a tendency to "swamp" the author. One set of critics hails him as England's greatest exponent of stagecraft, while another set declares that he is obsesse.cl, wtih colour and lighting—that he is" a man who primarily treats^ the theatre as a place in which.to experi-. m'ont witli the latest mechanical devices' that have, attracted him. There. is a .certain amount of truth in all these commendations and accusations. Mr. Dean is a combination 6£ artist and mechanic. Give him a delicate Barrie play to pro-duce-and' lie will-do it carefully and; gracefully, but give him a huge spec-! tabular piece and he will glory in the "effects" he is able to introduce. But whatever he,does, and however he does it, he can be depended upon to arrest attention and to "avoid that worst oftheatrical sins, dullness.. A tallish, dark -man, who wears glasses and speaks carefully, Mr, Dean gives the impression that he takes his work very seriously. Certainly he has no particular reputation as a humorist, but he exercises a big influence over those with whom he conies in contact,- and he commands respect and. confidence, probably because he usually succeeds in any undertakings he may have'in hand. •■•■.•''•;.'»'' Sir Rabindranath Tagore. •Towards the end oi" last month Sir Rabindranath Tagore, tho well-known Indian poet-phjlosopher, paid a visit to the United States, where he intended to remain for several months, touring and lftfthirhig-on philosophical and edu- ;,,.'/;,..', •: .'.;';.,. cational subjects.

■ tie has, however, had differences with the American immigration authorities, with the consequence that he suddenly made up hig mind to depart for Japan, a proceeding, which was announced by his business manager during the

present week. He lias spent most,'or his life engrossed in his literary-work,, living the life of a recluse On the banks of the Ganges., In his young days he would often spend his time in entire solitude, resting on a great sandbank in the centre, of. the Ganges where he used to dream and give shape .to his later writings. This was all! changed when what he terms a "call"'came to him to go out into tho world and help his fellow-beings. At that > time he did not quit© know what lino his work woujd-take, but .he was filled with love and sympathy for the young, '4Jid he soon collected round him a number of children. He had somo general principles in his mind to guido him. in his work, mainly of a philosophic "nature, which many Indians have inherited from their ancestors. Sir Eabindranath was fortunate when he first started his "school to have the as- £ . sistaiice of a. young man filled with real

enthusiasm for the eause'of education, and witli the ability 'to inspire liis pupils with a desire for scholarship. By his aid the philosopher-poet was able to. standardise, his methods of education, and soon " the schools luuler his, control grew to-such, an extent that, it became necessary :_to appoint inspectors and to frame rules and regulations for the guidance of teachers, He realised that to make his methods succesful uuder the conditions ruling in India he had to eliminate all.hmi of experiment, and for that reason- he drafted certain restrictions -that '.-abolished anything like persona] fredeoin Mid really made' for a 'machine-like education, but it fulfilled at the time the requirements and growth of thought in India. Sir Babindranath Tagore received the order of knighthood in. 1915, as a tribute to his great work oii'.behalf of modern India. He'wa's awarded the Nobel Prize . for Literature in'l9l3, and has since becoms .one- of the-, great figures of the British Empire. 'He is a grandson of Prince Dwarkanath of Tagore, and was born,in 18C1. At 24 he left Calcutta ■to manage his father's country estates, and there wrote many of his early books. At the age of 40 his chief lifework ,had become national education, and this lino of work he has remained' true to ever-since.1 ■ ' Sir Henry Segrave. • Everyone, whether directly ■ or indirectly interested in motoring,' or oven not interested at all, felt thrilled when they read of Major H. 0. D. Segravo's amazing exploit on Daytona Beach, when, in his powerful car Bluebird, ho • broke the world's

record for tnotorilriy'en vehicles by travelling at the Ijhenomcnal speed of 231.36240 miles, per hour. Nearly 1232 miles per hour is' a speed that even the most hardened road-hog must boggle, at, aild one has a fancy that asa record it will stand for a con-

siderable time. The honour of knighthood which , has now been conferred upon Major Segrave by the King is a fitting reward for the man who carried into the country of his opponents Ms successful'attempt to exceed the existing speed record. '"Even ■America,'however, could not refrain, from paying her tribute to. his ability as a driver at , more than racing "speeds, and before ho | ; returned to; England Major.Segfave was I feted andmado much of in the country of thoJStars. and Stripes. It was perhaps a pity that in no part of 1 the British Isles could'a: track be f'ouild sufficiently straight and flat for the full "opening out" of the, most powerful car the world has ever known.. And ;yet it was; not, after all, inappropriate that the mighty performance should have been done on : Daytona Beach, Florida, which has been the scene of many previous speed records which now' seem puny when placed side by side j with Sir Henry-Scgrave'si tremendous ! figures. America is a land of big tilings, and it is all the more striking' ;tliat this great effort should: have electrified all parts of the world'at once. However great and wonderful one must consider the machine which -rendered! the feat possible, one's most intense admiration must very njitiirnlly be reserved for the man-who to what in essence was merely, "a," scientific experiment the superb daring "a!nd?eodF skill of, the trained motor?driver. 1' ■ To those who are content to. drive small, and low-powered earstho act oik-tread-ing upon gas sufficient to command the strength of one thousand ■\vborses,.'re-j quires more than a little .courage.!as .well' 'as considerable desterityvtb,:"6biitj;oi the,.' result. Sir Henry SegraVe vAyqs''boni in the' Uhitcfd'States, his 1 father-being-an Englishman.' ■He was educated at Eton, one of England's most famous schools, and joined the Royal Air Force during 'the period of the war, where he -■first' learnt to, love"'- the' thrills -. of excessive specd I.' Since .th'cn.hc has many, feats to his credit on the earth, but none in the air. Mr. Rudyard. Kipling. • .. Strange to . say, Mr.. Budyard Kip- , ling's first baptismal name is not in I "Who's Who," or ;on the title page of the early! editions of the tales. Even the volumes published at a rupee in. the Indian Bailway Library are described , ":.-■!. . :■. .'.. '.' i.' as by i "Budyafd

Kipling." Nevertheless," there is a "3' before the Rudyaid, and it stands ' for Joseph. The grandfather of the novelist, -was a Wesleyan minister, the Rev. Joseph Kipling, a Cumberland man, hailing from Ullswater. He it was who gave

Kipling, jhis first name. The origin, of the;;"Rudyard", is interesting. When John Loekwoo.bV Kipling, the novelist's fattier,-was a ybung'man lie sat under the Key. F. W. Macdonald, another Wesleyan minister, with a church at Burslein, in the Potteries, where young 1 Lockwood Kipling worked as a designer of pottery i His association with Mr. Macdonald resulted in a meeting with 'the minister's sister, Alice, which was followed by courtship and marriage. Hard by Burslem there is a picnic resort, Rudyard Lake, and during a visit to the lake LockwQod'Kipling and Alice Macdonald becamo:.'engaged. / It was .thei'ef ore'- not strange .that V their/first ; child';.should be;-christened? "Joseph Rudyard'^by/his godparents,', Frederick and Louisa':• Maedoniild.:: ;Miss/ Louisa Macdonald later' mamed 1 Alfred Baldwin, and her son was Stanley Baldwin, the Prime Minister. Mr. Kipling recently celebrated his* 63rd;,;birthday, in the peace and quietude of Burwash, his home in the Sussex Downs. On his birthday, which .practically coincides with hi's .wife's .bii'thday.jSthe novelist will see no one'^The luxul'y which Mr. Kipling .' covets,';ni:ost is-> this very freedom from visitors. ..Tourists;, drove Kipling from Rotti.ngdean.' ■ It' was seven miles from'" a •'railway station when lie went there first, but trippers in touring ears and motor chara-bancs discovered the place at last. So.far the motor has spared Burwash, and Mr. ■ Kipling can still enjoy a quiet walk in company with an aged Scotch terrier aud his thoughts.- Occasionally ' Mr. Kipling comes to London, possibly because' he has promised: to deliver one of the addressps which fall to all authors of note at times—a speech to the English Association, the Classical Association or the British Academy. When ho turns into a West End club it is the Athenaeum or the Carlton. If he accepts a social engagement, it is usually a small 'Junchon or dinner party, arranged by his cousin, Mr. Baldwin. I'ame is nothing to MrrKipling.l, There, is a Kipling Society, with, a membership of 5000, to watch over his fame, without any special attention from Mm» At Burwash Mr. 1 Kipling , has been known to take his turn with the haymakers, always doing his full share of the job. Harry Hicks, of Burwash,. has said: "Sometimes he would throw his rako down and pull out a bit of paper and begin scribbling on it. It always thought he was reckoning upour wagesj but they tell me he writes books and that sort of thing, and he might have j bcenputting down s.oine odd fancy that had just coaio into his head.