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GUIDE TO GOOD READING

Two: novels, one Soviet,
one British, ‘real thing

I READ Not Like This, by Jane
* Walsh, from start to finish with-
out a stop. It brought back to
me so many memories of hard
times in Lancashire, as well as a
vivid impression of the sufferings
“of the Lancashire: workers and
their families between the two
world wars.

I laughed over the description
of how Jane’s mother treated the
noble lady who tried to win votes
for her husband by “slumming.’’

I lived in Lancashire at the
time of that election and there
was a great headline in the news-
papers: “Lady So-and-So eats fish
and chips.” We were regaled
with a story about how she even
ate them from a piece of paper.

I loved the reference to Honey-

- suckle Lane. Why are the worst

slums called by such misleading

names? I used to wonder —

especially when I visited Paradise

- Alley and Angel Meadow in Man-
chester. :

, - Not Like This (obtainable here
“at the People’s Cooperative Book-
store, 337 West Pender, price
$1.28, including tax) is written in
a splendidly simple style, so mov-
ing, realistic and descriptive,

- and creating all the time an _,at-

mosphere of cruel poverty, the
capacity of working people to sac-
rifice their kindliness to one an-
other.

You can feel the damp of the
houses and understand what it
feels like never “to feel full.”
You can feel the resentment at
having to wear cast-off clothing;
what being on the dole meant:
what extra struggles and sacri-
fices are demanded when illness
makes its effect felt in the fami-

Kt is not given to many work-
ingelass men and women to pos-
sess the art, the deep feeling,
and the ability to write as simply
and movingly as Jane Walsh.

It is inevitable that in a first
effort of this character there
should be certain weaknesses.
Jane Walsh’s work lacks the
hardhitting class and_ socialist
propaganda of The Ragged Trous-
ered Philanthropists. But that
will come later in what I hope
will be future books as close to
the people as this is—HP. a

AN OUTSTANDING example
of the new Soviet novel is Ivan
Ivanovich, by Antonina Koptay-
eva (obtainable here at the Peo-
ple’s Cooperative Bookstore, 337
West Pender, price $1,03, includ-

‘ing tax).

This sort of novel is helping
to transform ordinary Soviet
men and women into conscious
and active builders of Commun-
ism.

Its subject is the struggle in-
side the human heart against the
relics of bourgeois — and even
feudal — ideas and particularly
against the dominating attitude
of men toward women.

A man who dominates others
cannot. himself be free, and all
our work for mankind’s libera-
tion will be held back if our own
human relationships are not bas-
ed upon equality and community
of ideals and work.

Such was the discovery of Ivan
Ivanovich Arzhanov, a_ brilliant
Moscow surgeon who had volun-
teered for work in a gold mining
settlement in the Soviet Far
Kast.

A devoted doctor, conscién-
tious in his work, always thought-
ful for his patients,.adored by
his colleagues, he yet failed to
realize in time that his wife had
a life of her own to live, talents
of her own needing encourage-
ment.

Antonina Koptayeva’s novel is
a brilliant and moving study, ab-
solutely convincing in its true-
to-life quality, of human relation-
ships among ‘a group of friends
in this small mining community.

In the main characters, while
we see clearly the weakness of
Olga, the wife, and the, “rust
stain” on Ivan Ivanovich, we see
also the strong growth of the
new Soviet man and woman out
of the old. :

The description of life in the
Taiga between the Arctic Circle
and the Sea of Okhotsk, where
most of the places mentioned are
too new to be on the map, will
be an eye-opener to readers in
this country.

Antonina Koptayeva herself
was born in an old mining settle-
ment in the Taiga and brought
up near the great Zeya River.
—M.B.

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Dancers at United Labor Picnic

a oe
One of the most popular attractions at the United Labor Picnic in North Burnaby’s Confedera
tion Park this coming Sunday is certain to be the Canadian Ukrainian dancers (above). The Canadian
Ukrainians will be one of several dance groups contributing to the program.

SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL TO BE ANNUAL EVENT

Spur to Canadian theatre
achievement at Stratford

SOME CANADIAN critics and
editorial writers have been cheer-
ing the Shakespeare Festival at
Stratford, Ontario, for having
caught the fancy of the American
tourist trade. For them, this is
the very touchstone of success,
theatrical or otherwise.

But there, are some good solid
Canadian reasons for cheering

the Stratford Festival as an im-
portant milestone in Canadian
cultural history. And not least
of these is the fact that a few
more festivals like the Stratford
one, and Canadian theatre would
really be able to break loose from
its derivative-U.S. fetters, and be-
gin to assume the mature and
healthy features of a truly 'na-
tional theatre, reflecting our peo-
ple’s life and consciousness. —

That’s high praise for one Fes-
tival, but I think the Stratford
Festival deserves it.

I became convinced of it after
talking to some of the actors,
musicians and crews who are
participating in the two plays,
Richard Ill, and All’s Well That
Ends Well, which are being pre-
sented this year (the festival is
planned as an annual event).

From what they told me, Can-
adian artists are thrilled at the
opportunity of being able to
study and develop under artists
like director Tyrone Guthrie, ac-
tors Alec Guiness and Irene
Worth, and stage designer Tanya
Moseiwitsch. And it’s significant
that these people came to Can-
ada to work with a Canadian
cast, reversing a process that had
been _ sapping’ the cultural
strength of our country for a
half century, and has been par-
ticularly accented in the past de-
cade.

The Canadian artists who par-
ticipated in the festival showed
themselves capable of handling

the most difficult roles, eve?
though they lacked some of the
experience and, skill of the stars.
But more than that, they got @
new feeling, a feeling that there
is an audience in Canada that 16
athirst to see great drama pel
formed.

Some 60,000 people have see?
the two plays and the rapt at:
tention and enthusiasm with
which the audiences have vieW
ed and received the plays is com
parable only to: what you witness
in the theatres of the Peoples

Democracies.

This feeling is not merely co?
nected with the quality of thé
performance, although there L
everything in the performance
to warrant it, it comes from 4
realization and appreciation 0
the fact that in Canada, Can®
dian actors in the main, are PF

_ senting some of the finest Shake

spearian drama to be witness¢
anywhere.—ALLAN SCHWAM.

en

WHAT: PRECAUTIONS YOU SHOULD TAKE

was meant was “although it
goes round a family, probably

reported in B.C. this year —
so. it seems seasonable to
take a look at poliomyelitis,
both to consider what precau-
tions it is wise to take and to
get its dangers into proper
perspective.

The fact is that even in a
bad year, the chance of any
child developing polio is very
small, compared with many
other dangers, and the chance
of: death of course is much
less.

But we now know that for
every case notified something
like 100 go undetected, be-
cause there are no particular
symptoms, above all no sign
of paralysis.

This explains why for so
long it was believed that polio
was not infectious in the way
that such diseases as measles
or chickenpox are infectious.

“Tt doesn’t go round a fam-
ily,” it was said. But what

only one member will show
any recognizable symptoms.”

Those who have it without
knowing it can affect others,
in fact they pass on quanti-
ties of the virus in their
faeces, which is now generally
accepted as being how the in-
fection spreads. ;

But once they have had it
they are immune from further
attack.

x * *

RESEARCH in the last few
years has shown that’ polio-
myelitis is a virus disease,
caused by a living organism
so small that-it is very hard
to find or locate, and living
only in living matter—in this
case the nerves of the cells
which control our muscles.

However, last year the virus
of polio was grown artificially
—in living tissue in test tubes
—for the first time, and three
different strains have been

found, which gives the possi-
bility now of producing three
different vacines to give per-
manent protection, and ways
of killing the virus without
killing the patient.

But this research is badly
hampered and delayed by lack
of funds.

* * *

MEANWHILE, how can we
«best protect our children from
polio?

If a child—it is usually a-
child, though quite often
young adults are attacked too
—develops- symptoms of polio,
he should go to hospital, both
for the protection of others
and for his own better care.

Recovery of muscles para-
lyzed by the disease depends
tremendously on proper rest,-
which may involve special -
splinting for the muscles in
question, an expert job. ©

Where one or two ‘cases
have been notified in an area
it is wise for parents to keep

/

*

their children from swimming
pools, theatres and other

Facts about polio---nearly everyone has had it -

THE POLIO season is here

: above all in summer, and raw
again — 178 cases have been

fruits and salads should be

crowded places for the rest of
the summer.

Local authorities do not nor-
mally close these places ex-
cept in a severe epidemic, but
most mothers will not want
to expose their children té
that much risk.

In fact, some . authorities
tend to keep quiet about a
single case, pleading that noti-
fying parents causes unneces-
sary panic.

The result is sometimes ex-

agerated rumors and more»:

panic than there would ever
have been if parents had
simply been informed of the
facts and helped ‘to decide
what precautions to take. .

* * *

FOOD CAN BE infected
with the polio virus by un-
clean hands, by flies, and so
on. It should be kept cover-

ed against flies always, but

thoroughly washed.

Children should be taught °

to wash their hands whenever
they have been to the toilet.

Finally, if a child does seem
off-color, feverish and mildly
unwell, don’t just dimsiss it
as a “summer cold.”

Put him to bed,) keep him
quiet, and don’t let him run.
about and get tired.

For if one thing is certain
about the development of par-
alysis symptons, it is that they
always tend to attack those
muscles that are tired, strain-
ed or injured.

Keeping a child who may
have been in contact with the
disease from undue muscular
exertion and fatigue is of im-
portance in reducing the symP-
toms, if they do appear, and
making full recovery of af-
fected muscles far more prob-
able.—M.D.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — AUGUST 7, 1953 — PAGE 8

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