Low on Flu

Irvin S. Cobb paid for his memorable appendectomy many times over with the book he wrote about it: Speaking of Operations. Ring Lardner discovered last spring that the tedium of a sickbed could be profitably relieved by writing a radio colyum for the New Yorker, datelined "No Visitors, N. Y." Last week U. S. readers of the London Evening Standard perceived how an anonymous staffwriter aided by square-faced David Low, peerless New Zealand-born caricaturist, had made amusing copy out of Britain's influenza epidemic. The writer was personified as "the celebrated journalist Mr. Terry," a character assumed occasionally by several humorists of the Standard's staff.

It appeared that "Mr. Terry" had been persuaded by Caricaturist Low to catch the disease. In an article well sprinkled with Low drawings, "Mr. Terry" explained :

" 'It's your duty,' Low said. 'Influenza is the topic of the day, and we shall be expected to deal with it, and how can we deal with it unless you have it?' I couldn't understand why I should have to have it all by myself. Why shouldn't he have it too, 'l said? But he explained that one would be enough and the one must be me because how else could I get my facts correct? He could draw pictures from looking at me. He said he thought I should look very funny in extremis.

"I sat in cinemas next to bad colds and underneath sneezes. I left warm rooms to go to the pillar box and post letters without a coat. Exactly where I caught it, of course I can't tell. ... I crawled home to bed.

"Before pushing the sheets apart, I rang up Low. 'I'be god id,' I said. Then I sneezed several times, and, being unable to find where I'd blown the telephone to, I had to leave it at that and bimble upstairs. So I never knew till afterward about Low having caught influenza, too. . . ."

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