A Sea Story
New Chum. By John Masebeld. (Heinemann. 9s. 6d.)
THE first term at school is always something of an adventure, and the experiences of a cadet, a "new chum," joining H.M.S. 'Conway' had all the ingredients in plenty—dangers and discoveries, heroes and villains, the feeling of companionship and mutual endeavour, the romance of a great seaport in the last days of sail, and; above all, the sense of exploring a new, strange world where the unexpected happened at every turn.
Mr. Masefield's book "is another chapter in his autobiographical series which opened with In the Mill," but I feel certain that the author had youthful readers very much in mind when he wrote it. It lacks all the usual historical element of an autobiography ; dates, names of people and places have been omitted ; and vith all other human beings shielded behind a nickname, official title, or collec- tion of initials, the interest never shifts from the author himself. Everything is seen through the eyes of a 13-year-old boy, and the greatness of' the book—apart from the fascination of its subject–,lies in the exactness with which Mr. Masefield has recollected and re- constructed the scenes of that first term in the 'Conway.' He has given just the thoughts, the amount of understanding, the impres- sions, likes and dislikes, that must have been his and every other new chum's ; little details, insignificant to grown-ups, but which bulk so large in the mind of a boy, are duly, set out with their proper im- portance and bring conviction to the story. It is beautifully told. The new chum joins the training-ship and is plunged into a frightening and unintelligible world ; the sense of strangeness fades as he grows accustomed to the life, and there is a feeling of achieve- ment when he slowly finds his feet, understands, and is lost no longer. Some of his shipmates, by virtue of a few months' seniority, seem the most weatherbeaten and graceless toughs that ever sailed the seas, whose only amusement springs from "reminding" juniors of their inferior status. But this is expected ; it is considered natural and proper ; no one is more aware of the difference between a new chum and the rest of the world than the new chum himself. What is more surprising (and delightful to the reader) is the kindness and assistance from unexpected quarters, the condescension of some superior, godlike being, displayed in a friendly act or interest. All this Mr. Masefield wonderfully recaptures, and his book should excite the imagination of every boy who reads it and make him long to set out for the Conway' and experience it all for himself. Some may be scared by the more fearsome aspects of the life, but they are not the sort of boy that the sea wants in its service.
G. P. Gatc•Gs.
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