The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1915-01-08

he was writing stories curiously
4 accomplished for so young a man,
it has been Mr.. Richard Harding Davis
misfortune to excite in many of his many
readers a slight prejudice, although they
should have. When writer is so, or
Whereabouts, and has published many
self revealing volumes, you may or may
rot like him, but prejudice ought long
ago to have disappeared.
In Mr.. Davis case the operation of
prejudice is easily described. Toward
the end of one of his books you come
across a passage which may be taken,
let us suppose, in either of two senses
You promptly take it in the sense less
favorable to Mr.. Davis. Prejudice in
clines you to this less favorable interpre-
tation, and it Is the author himself, in
earlier passages. who has unwittingly pre-
pared you to understand the later passage
as he never meant it to be understood.
1t is easy to find examples of this in
with the Allies" Mr.. Davis is prais-
ing the work done by certain Americans
in Paris: cat the residence of Mr.. Her
rick, in the rue Francois Premier, there
was an impromptu staff composed chiefly
of young American bankers, lawyers and
business men. They were men who in
herited, or who earned, incomes of from
$4,000 to $4,000 year, and all day and
every day. without pay, and certainly
without thanks, they assisted their be-
wildered, penniless and homesick fellow
countrymen." Mr. Davis does not intend
to imply that the nobleness of such con-
duct varies with the size of the income.
He does not intend to imply that the
nobleness is the same whether the income
be dependent upon the young bankers
Yet an unsympathetic reader is, by the
time he reaches this passage, prepared
to seek and find both implications
Mr.. Davis is a genuine admirer of cour-
ege, chivalry toward women and undem-
onstrativeness. He has an unaffected
natural talent for praising them in words
which inspire one with a passing dis
never, although you may be rather chiv-
alrous yourself in q modest way risen
from the perusal of Mr.. Davis on chivalry
with determination never again, no
matter how infirm the woman standing
in front of you might be. or how heavy
laden, to rise from your seat in the car
for her sake? And instead of thanking
him for releasing you from the bondage
Of chivalry. haven't you sometimes been
rather annoyed with him for cheapening
chivalry by his praise?
| Fortunately for chivalry, there is next
| to nothing about it in with the Allies
There is, however, and unavoidably. much
about courage Mr.. Davis describes with
vividness the undemonstrative curt cour-
age of British officers. and somehow you
get picture not only of this courage, but
also of Mr.. Davis himself. sitting oppo-
site each CURLY courageous British OIL
GER, filling himself with an admiration
which will overflow by and by, in roman
tic eulogy of courage so undemonstra-
tive.
| OF Mr.. Davis own courage, which Is
the real thing, which has been proved
over and over again all over the world.
there is in with the Allies" as In all
his other books. neither romantic euiogy
nor any eulogy whatever Something
deeper than prejudice against Mr.. Davis
some meanness in ones own grain, is the
onlv valid explanation of sneers at him
| for letting us know, indirectly, that he
| ia a brave man. In no way can wal
correspondent whose heart is in his worl
avoid imparting this kind of informa.
ton.
! There is, nevertheless, in Mr.. Davis at
titude toward his own courage, some
thing subtly self-contradictory. One gets
along with conviction that he is brave
and a conviction that he sincerely wishei
never to boast Of this fact. "a hint here
and there Of a hardly conscious wish t.
let us know that II the hour struck FOL
him he too would die like an English gen
tleman, without pose. laconically, sam
phase, as part of the days work, as 9
matter of course. One suspects him, II
his own case. Of wanting us to value Al
it's true worth courage which he Is tor
good an English gentleman to value 81
highly. He really possesses many Of tn,
fine qualities he praises in other men
and he seems dimly uneasy under tn
yoke of . code which does not permi