Baboo English as 'Tie Writ. By Arnold Wright. (T. Fisher
Unwin.)—This little book, which professes simply to give the curiosities of Indian journalism, is very amusing in its way, and none the less amusing that its author does not aim at making it too grotesque. It is the easiest thing in the world to make stupid fun out of the Baboo ; it is one of the most difficult things in the world to make good fun. The value of Mr. Wright's book lies in the fact that he does not aim at being merely farcical. Thus, in his chapter on "Free-and-Easy Journalism "—and native Indian journalism can be very free-and-easy—he gives us nothing worse in the way of oddities than, "Our next papar-day falling on Christmas Day, the next issue of this journal will not appear ; " and, " Owing to illness among our editorial staff our loading columns are a blank this evening." Not the least pleasant feature of native journalism in India is the airy, out-at-elbows, Dick-Swiveller Bohemianism which characterises it, and which exhibits itself in such announcements : "We beg to inform those subscribers on whom we have lately called for payment of their subscriptions that editors and newspaper servants do not live on stones, but on diet almost similar to that which subscribers feed on." Very good, too, are Mr. Wright's chapters on "The Native Descriptive Reporter," "Native Humour and Poetry," "Petitions and Bogging-Letters," and "The Contents of an Anglo-Indian Editorial Box." Of course the native journalist makes sad blunders in writing English, such as, "It is certain that many crowned heads must be trembling in their shoes ; " but our in- spectors of schools give every year much more serious mistakes made by pupil-teachers and other lads who ought certainly to know better. Altogether, the reader of Mr. Wright's little book will leave it with the belief which he himself wishes to impress,
that the Baboo newspapers, in spite of their efforts to disseminate disloyal sentiments in bad English, are not quite so black as they have been painted.
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