The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-06-09
"FROM DAWN UNTIL DAYLIGHT"
A Good Plan for Reviving Interest in an AL
most Forgotten Book.

A Good Plan for Reviving Interest in an AL
most Forgotten Book.
Cincinnati Commercial Gazette.
If Mr.. Simon Yandes of indianapolis, desired
to revive public interest III an almost forgotten
book written by Mrs. Henry Ward Beecher and
published about twenty pears ago he could not
have taken more adroit course to bring it into
notice than that which he hit upon-of going to
the city library of Indianapolis and violently
taking away the two or three copies Of it remain
ing upon the shelves.
OF course Mr. Yandes had to give them up or
stand prosecution for larceny. They were the
property of the library, and he had no more
claim upon them than upon any other book on
the shelves. His remedy for anything written
therein of q libeious nature, OF that was irritat
ing to his sensitive feelings, was in another di-
rection
1t is curious, too, that Mr. Yandes should
after lapse of twenty years. have suddenly dis
covered that the book in question contained things
SO offensive to his feelings that in hseagerness to
suppress it he should have rushed into the
library and forgetful of all proprietary rights
have seized the volumes, against the protests of
the librarian, and made off with them under his
arm.
Mrs. Beecher's book is entitled 'From Dawn
Until Daylight" and is said to be surcharged
with the experiences of herself and husband
while they residents of indianapolis,
and he the pastor of the Second
Presbyterian Church. In the course of her
narrative she introduces, under fictitious names,
several members of the church, and to Judge
from such passages as have been quoted, the
most serious charges brought against them are
their failure to pay the preacher the full salary
pledged to him-a very common offense twenty
or thirty years ago, though we trust, for the sake
of minister's by no meanSso common now.
1t does not appear that Mr. Yandes was
particularly singled out as chief sinner in
this pecuniary delinquency, but he seems to
have constituted himself the advocate and
defender of those who are implicated, and
to have taken this extraordinary way of vindi
eating their financial standing in society and the
church. Why he did not do so long ago would
be profound mystery but for the aside informa-
ton that some evil spirit of mischief had I'M
proved the opportunity of filing one of the fly
leaves of the books with the names of the per
sons fctitiously introduced in their pages by the
author, accompanying the same with liberal
marginal notes and annotatiOns-
But Mrs. Beecher not responsible for
this, and there is no assurance that the mischief
maker more than guessed who the parties were
to whom she referred
If Mr. Yandes wanted the matter to rest in
oblivion, he should not have made the present
racket about the book 1t is highly probable,
had be been quiet, that the book and its con
tents, with the marginal notes and the blessed
fiy-leaf would have been utterly forgotten, or so
nearly SO that there never would have been any
comment or gossip about it. AS it is he has
aroused public curiosity. and there will probably
be a greater demand for Mrs. Beeeher's book
than there on its first appearance, or has
ever since been. 1t is plain that good common
sense will not perish from the earth when Mr.
YandeS becomes eherub.