Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-06-05
OUTSIDE POINT OF VIEW

The old saying that not one half of
the world. knows how the other half
live, is only another way of saying we
are not acquainted with our neighbors.
Not only that but there is in this world
of ours great many sets of people,
who each live in a little world of their
own, this referring to the realm of
thought, association and associates,
amusements and recreations. Nothing
illustrates this theory better than the
present epidemic of magazine puhlica-
tons. Each caters to a set" Some
wonder that the police Gazette and its
Xix thrive and prosper. 1t seems to 9th
ers hat magazine devoted to theatre
cal life and work, TO actors and actress
performances, to stage gossip and talk
of the green room would hardly have a
patronage large enough to afford profit
to publisher, And SO it is of athletics,
of physical culture, of Christian Science
Of Dowieism, of Theosophy as well as
osteopathy, Spiritualism and each sect
Of Christian belief, and all of the 'isms,
one and all, have magazines, almost ex-
clusively devoted to the advancement
of each particular form of belief, of fad
of the day.
The purpose of this scribe is to only
notice one of these sets" 1t is called
the fast set, the smart set, and the UP
to date crowd. 1t is composed OF men
and women, having the largest mem
bership in New York city, and has
charter members in all of the big cities.
AS the towns grow smaller, there is on
ly scattering number. But these men
and women in our smaller towns are in
full touch with the city members of the
organization, and they keep so by the
magazines devoted to their interests.
This old fogy writer has lately been
reading three magazines The principal
story this month, has for one of its he
roes, a prominent Washington politi-
clan, who decides the appointment of
his confidential clerk upon his (the
clerks) renouncing a mistress, she, the
wife of another clerk. This high Off
cial does not announce his decision on
any moral grounds whatever. Merely
objects to any clerk of his having a
wife, mistress, or "entanglement" that
may distract his attention from the
great public mans interests. One of
the heroines is a young girl of twenty,
with the form of the mond and the
soul of the demi-monde. She desiber-
ately engages herself to a pure high
minded young man, and an hour after
ward agrees to marry the prominent
politician. Finally in fit of virtuous
thought, throws over the old man, and
we are left to suppose marries the cher
ubic young man. At the house of one
of the first families, not of Virginia but
of New York, there is given an ac-
count ofdhe meeting on the lawn, on a
summers night, between the to be con-
tidential clerk, and the to be mistress
of the clerk, at present the wife of an
other clerk in Washington. This is
written in Il style familiar to those of a
similar account in Quo Vadis." And
not to use any further space the maya
zine each month is deovted to so-called
love stories, in which husbands deceive
their wives and vice versa. The soul
of the demi- monde fills the depicted
bodies of the heroines, and the heroes
are Don Juans, unless held up to ridi-
cules as 'softies." The whole object
and aim of each writer is to write
story, Just as near the line of decency,
as will allow 1t, I. e., the magazine use
of the mails.
Now the reader who never sees this
magazine must not imagine that such
publication, really is vulgar. Far from