The Coming of the "Owl"
The "Owl," No. 1, has come our vay. It is a production which, in the language of the foreword, "will come out quarterly or whenever enough suitable material is in the hands of the editors." Charming idea, Elysium to a journalist who battles through life with six objectives a week, no matter whether ammunition be plentiful or otherwise. And while a journalist may envy the editors of a magazine such as the "Owl," he may also be permitted to admire it. It is refreshing, for there has been time to assemble much material, and then to make a careful choice. Again to quote from the foreword, "All owls are satisfactory,' Lewis Carroll begins his essay on these birds; we accept the omen gratefully. It must be understood that the 'Owl' has no politics, leads no new movement and is not even the organ of any particular generation—for that matter 67 years separate the oldest and youngest contributors."
This is the sort of thing we like. Not to be in the forefront of the battle all the time—which, of course, has its compensations in thrills' and enthusiasm—but to meander along the broad highway, making alliances with pleasant companions and ever and anon de-doring war upon an unmitigated bore, The "Owl" is the sort of thing a man—or equally well a maid—could dream over all an afternoon. Look at the list of contributors Thomas Hardy, John Masefield, Pamela Bianco, 'J. ©. Squire, Robert Graves, Siegfried Sassoon, William Orpen, W. H. Davies, Nancy Nicholson, W. J, Turner, Robert Nichols, Max Beerbohm, Randolph Caldecott, Eric Kenning" ton, George Belcher, John Galsworthy, Joseph Crawhall and Pearsall Smith. The illustrations are by F, Vincent Brooks.
The pictures by Mr. Brooks are distinctive. Right away there is a girl with red hair, and—then another girl of the same kind with another kind of hair, and eyes with possibilities about them, Then something entirely different, a head in charcoal, and still further delightful illustrations accompanying Riad of verse and fables. Like this Lady lovely lady careless and gay! Once when a beggar called she gave her child away.
The beggar took the baby and wrapped it in a shawl, "Bring her back," the Indy said, "next time you call."
And the fables:—"'An unfortunate piano-tuner was about to end his miserable life by hurling himself from a high bridge, when he paused observe a scorpion devouring her mate. Thereupon he became So interested in the operation that, forgetting his original intention, he hurried home just in time to notice his wife hide the sandwiches behind the parlour clock."
Or "The serpent and her mother."—"One day a young adder
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.