C URRENT LITERAT ETRE
CLARA. IN BLUNDERLAND.
Clara in Blunder/and. By Caroline Lewis. Pictures by S. R. (W. Heinemann. 2s. 61)—So many parodies have been written of the best-known passages in "Lewis Carroll's " " Alice " and "Through the Looking-glass "—especially of the verses—that the reader takes up 8, fresh parody in an extremely
critical, if not in an antipathetic, spirit. In this case, how- ever, he will be at once reassured. This is an extremely witty skit ; the closeness with which the original text is followed, and the originality and humour with which the points are made, are equally admirable. It is, of course, a satire of present-day politics, nearly all the well-known personages of the two "Alice " books being fitted to the characters of politi- cians now in the eye of the public. It is difficult to make a selection of the best when all are so good,—perhaps the Dalmeny Cat, and Crumpty-Bumpty, who falls off hie wall and immediately breaks into Twiddle-Thumb and Twaddle-D, joined by a hyphen, are the most amusing. "As it was speaking, the Cat began to flicker and change just like the pictures of a biograph, but whenever it seemed likely to turn into something interesting it always faded and went out with a fizzle, leaving nothing behind it but the sneer, which was always there." The Rocking-Horse Fly, labelled Foreign Policy' in the picture, is as amusing as any- thing in the book. " Why are you called that ? ' asked Clara, `you don't look as if you could fly.'—'Ah, but I can though,' answered the Insect, proudly, 'you should just see me flying in the face of Providence; why, I'm at it all the time.' Are there many more beautiful flies like you in the world ?'- `No!' !' said it, with great dignity. am essentially one-horse.'" There is nothing ill-humoured in the satire, though one or two publicists come in for sufficiently drastic treatment. We must add a word of appreciation of the spirit in which " S. R." has treated the difficult task of reproducing situations of the day in burlesques of Sir John Tenniel's drawings.
Previous page
