THE TEST MATCH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23157, 1 October 1938, Page 12 (Supplement)

THE TEST MATCH

By DENIS DUNN Sketches by MINHINNICK

IN London I have met some persevering men in my time, but for the king example of the unswerving, single-track mind, commend me cotisin, Jim Brick. He bought a sturdy little secondhand car for fifty.pounds, and as fat back as last January he began talking about the tour he would make during the summer holiday. The Ministry of Transport had other ideas. Five times Jim Brick tried to pass his driving test. The fifth time the examiner was in hospital for a week. At the depot Jim was known affectionately as • "Old Faithful." .. : , - About a fortnight - ago Jim Brick came into the club with his head bandaged. / . I had a woman examiner this time, Miss Cogge," he said, wearily. "She ordered me to pull up suddenly." '"That's, l'airly simple," I smiled. _"Oh, quite," he agreed. "But in my agitation I missed the footbrake and stood on the accelerator. -And you know that big plate-glass show-case which' is outside Horridges?" "Yes." "It ,isn't outside any more," said jfm dreamily. ,1 didn't see him for some time after that, and when I did ho was beaming all over his face.

"Do you know, old man, I nearly passed yesterday! I haven't much time left to get my licence before the hols, and it is most encouraging. I had Miss Cogge again." „ "A brave woman," I nodded. "Undoubtedly," ho agreed; "and I was doing splendidly. 1 had practically passed, and if 1 hadn't grazed the policeman—" "Hadn't what?" I howled. "Grazed the policeman," lie went on briskly, "wo would never have hit the horse-trough at all." "Otherwise 3*oll had practically got through," I ventured. "Oh, yes," he said, buoyantly. "Next time will be a cinch." ' The next I heard of Jim Brick was a greetings telegram. It 7 was sent from the Cottage Hospital, and read: — "Driving much improved. Should bo on road by June. Grateful send black grapes Miss Cogge, Ward 3. Love.— Jim Brick." I was so intrigued that I visited the devoted pair, i found Miss Cogge, a brown-eyed, competent littlo instructress, who accepted my grapes and asked about Jim. "Matron says he is sure to recover," I smiled. "What a pity," murmured Miss Cogge, and sighed deeply. Time passed, and the young woman returned to duty. An eye-witness tells me that within a week Jim Brick

arrived with a bunch of roses and an application for a test. Miss Cogge was seen to burst into tears. I am told she raved more than somewhat. She was heard to ask the high gods why she. of the thousands of testers in England, should be landed with a homicidal lunatic for the rest of her working days. She failed Jim Brick in the first hundred yards. He drew up on the wrong side of the road outside a fire station with his lights full 011 in broad daylight. Ho told me it might happen to anybody. ' - 11 More time passed, and occasionally news of the Brick-Cogge saga filtered through to me. There was the time when he got out on the offside to buy an evening paper and was knocked for six by an ico-croam cart. There was the time when he was practising reversing and reversed clean into the Public Library, with Miss Cogge in the back seat staring at linn with icy disdain.

And there was an epic tiino when, putting out his hand in a more than usually flamboyant sienul, he slapped a eart-liorse in the face. Therefore 1 gasped when yesterday lie smote me" on the back and announced : "Fixed at last!" • "You dou't mean —?" "I do," he chuckled. "The tour is on! .Miss C'ogge is going to drive jne on it. She thinks it would be better that; way!" - v "You mean to say that poor girl' is going on your tour with you?" I gasped. "Nothing else but!" he said, firmly. "But it just isn't done!" I complained. "Think of the proprieties. Yon can't gallivant all over the countrv with a young and single instructress 1" "Oh, but I'm marrying her, of course," he snid, absently. "Fixing that up 011 Thursday. I'm glad I've got this tour fixed at last. I was beginning to get a little bothered."