A NOBEL MAN

Prizes are acceptable to Bernand Shaw, if not to Sinclair Lewis. A somewhat tardy consideration of "St. Joan" has resulted in the awarding of the 1925 Nobel Prize for literature to its brilliant and caustic creator. Mr. Shaw makes no attempt to conceal the fact that he is pleased at being the recipient of the honor, perhaps realizing that even though it might be considered as merely an additional title and therefore an additional burden. There is a material compensation of $32,500.

In naming the Shavian as winner, the Swedish Academy has not only shown its customary good judgment but it has also made what might be termed a concession to popular demand. Once hounded and reviled, Shaw is now at most a "lovable" character, with an enormous following. Time has proved many of his social radicalisms to have been sound and if he made false prophecies he also made lasting ones. When he announced his intention of writing a serious play built around the life of Joan of Arc, the critics laughed and settled back to await a Shavian monster, born of satire and nursed with venom. But "St. Joan", when produced, was recognized to be more than an expression of an eccentric personality. In its still short career it has been with the exception of Candida", the most widely praised of Shaw's plays. Now it has brought him one of the few "literary", prizes worth having, its permanency is only sanctified. "A saint," he says in the preface to 'St. Joan', "is a successful martyr." With his 32,500 dollars, Mr. Shaw can never be canonized.