[from Mannin #9]

Notices of Books

A little selection of Manx songs for the use of Manx soldiers and sailors on service, has been compiled, and is in process of distribution. It will he remembered that Mr. (now Private) Walter W. Gill, when he published his recent volume of poems,. stipulated that the gross proceeds of the sale should be applied to the benefit of Manxmen serving with the Forces, and this is the form which Mr. Gill's gift has taken. The booklet contains all the old favourites, and a few national songs that are not so well-known as they might be ; it can be carried about anywhere, and it will enable our boys’ to sing the songs of Mannin in a strange land. Many a lad knows and loves the tune of an old Island air and knows the first verse of the words, but is ‘stuck’ when he gets beyond that. This little book will supply the gaps in his memory. The work of circulation among all the Manx lads serving in different units on diverse continents and oceans is likely to prove a task of much difficulty, and readers of MANNIN are invited to assist by applying for copies (to be had free) to Mr. W. Cubbon, Public Library, Douglas, and sending them with their periodical letters and parcels to their relatives or friends at the Front.

The prize of £600, offered by Messrs. Hodder & Stoughton, the famous publishers, for the best novel submitted to them, has been won by Miss Jessie D. Kerruish of Hove, Sussex, with a story entitled Miss Haroun-al-Raschid ; she also received a prize of £150 for being her first novel. Miss Kerruish is already known to Manx people by her little book on Fairy Tales and Legends of the Isle of Man in the Books for the Bairns series, and she is already known to readers of MANNIN by reason of her having made an appearance in the correspondence pages — independent of the article on John Wesley in the Isle of Man which appears in this issue. Manx folk will, one and all, congratulate her on the fine success she has just scored, and will look forward to the publication of her book.

The Weekly Tale Teller, a magazine devoted to the publication of short stories and to the encouragement of literary aspirants, some time ago published a couple of stories from Miss Dorothy Mona Kermode, who is a native of Tasmania, but who has been temporarily residing in England for some little time. The Weekly Tale Teller (which is now defunct) aimed more ambitiously than most magazines of its class, and both in plot and psychology Miss Kermode’s stories reach quite a creditable standard, while her description of an Australian bush fire is really vivid and impressive. Miss Kermode is a grand-daughter of the Hon.W. Kermode, member of the Tasmanian Legislative Assembly, who was one of the most prominent figures in the early life of the Colony, and indeed, was one of the most distinguished of all known Manx Colonials. Her grandfather, the Hon. Robert Quayle Kermode, was also a member of the Tasmanian Legislative Assembly, and a man of standing in Tasmanian affairs. ‘Mona Vale,’ which was the residence of the Kermodes for four generations, was at one time considered the finest private house in Australasia. Miss Kermode’s Father, the late Mr. William Arthur Kermode, died in 1901. In a letter to the writer, Miss Kermode states that she, with her mother and brother, hopes to visit the Island after the close of the War.

P.W. C.

Songs of the British Folk.—Mr. W. H. Gill has brought out a collection of folk-songs entitled Songs of the British Folk. It contains twenty-seven folk songs, mostly from Sussex, sung by the natives. One old man was prepared to sing any one of some four hundred solags asked for, from a list of titles which he used to show. The melodies of three : Colin and Phoebe, Collier Lads, and The Golden Glove, appear in Manx National Music. One, entitled The Father is taken from Dr. Clague’s collection, words by the late Miss Cookson of Douglas. The ornament on the title page is a characteristic one by Mr. Archibald Knox. Curwens are the publishers.

M.L. W.