The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1917-07-10


Diary and asked US to furnish an in
PRODUCTION for It, advises US that
there are q great many lies in II.
They were necessary, he explains
IN order that the protagonist Of the
drama might continue to command
the sympathy Of the author.
And he has adopted the proper
method OF approach. in our opinion
We have known him for years: he has
just put his autobiography into our
hands; the book exhAles himself; II
smacks and smells of his personal
flavor and aroma; the book and the
man are OF q piece.
And he has attained this unity Of
himself with his utterance through q
conscientious classification Of the mere
brute facts Of his external life.
In order to write a thousand pages
Q man must keep enthusiastic con-
corning the subject Of his narrative;
and II the subject is himself he will
SCARCELY be able to draw the material
for this continuing enthusiasm from
what he has actually done so largely
a. from what he should have done
and what he intended to do.
Perhaps a quotation from the Diary
itself will assist in illustrating our
friends literary method. The fol-
lowing sentences are from Chapter "a:
Il never argued with my wife'S
mother, nor answered any of her. fan
tastic accusations; and on this occs-
sion, told her courteously, but with
hnalIty, that while It was not true
that had set FIRE to the sheets and
10 her daughters night clothing by
smoking in bed, yet It would be none
Of her affair had I really done SO,
and I insisted upon my right to
smoke at any hour and in any place
that pleased me. added that In
case she was not prepared to &C
quiesce in this would be compelled
to leave her house at once, taking
my wife and the nve children with
me: and told her plainly that II
were forced to this radical step she
need not expect to be q welcome
visitor in whatever home It might
be my fortune to establish Ny
wife's mother broke down and wept
At this, withdrew her unjust charges
and begged me to stay and use her
humble house as my own until such
time as I should be solicited to ac-
cept some employment compatible
with my talents and dignity. A.
nally consented to forgive her and re-
main, but warned her, too, that she
must see to IL In the future that the
boarders treated me with more con-
6ideratton-
Grossly speaking. our friend lied.
The facts were that he confessed
70 having smoked his pipe in bed,
setting IRE to the covers and burn
ing his wife, who ran through the
corridors of the boarding house, be-
tween double row OF alarmed
guests. screaming, and with
screaming baby In her arms, to her
mothers room
The mother ordered the author of
the Diary from the house at once:
himself, his wife, and his two older
children pleaded with the old lady un-
til daybreak before she would relent
and allow him to remain
Grossly speaking, we say, our
friend lied. But the world should
learn to speak and Judge more gently
and more truthfully.
The fact, our friend felt. aid not
represent him His lady dwelt in that
house, among Drawing relatives-in-
Law, interesting children OF whom he
happened to be the father, and guess
ing boarders-but that was not the
truth, as he himself knew; his soul,
his essential ego, lived otherwhere.
beyond the accidents Of fate and un-
touched by the insults Of chance and
circumstances. Should he not be true
TO his soul, which was Of q quality
that rejected such scenes as false to
itself, automatically expunging all
that was alien to It'll
Had he related the mere physical
facts he would have lied about his
spirit, that eternal thing; but with
superior honesty he chose TO deny the
irrelevant, the material, the temporal.
There are two sorts Of truth about
an Of US. There IL that which the
world sees, and that which we know.
Our deeds, which are known TO all
men. too often appear to Us 70 be
strange, inexplicable libels on our
selves
rs by life.
And should we begin TO accept them
as the truth, we are dead spiritually.
For II we DO not feel today stronger
and more courageous and more menAl
than we were yesterday-than the ac-
eidents Of yesterday mendaeiously
made US out TO below shall we be
able to face tomorrow
The great lesson iS to forgive your
self.
These that We are always writing
let US steadfastly believe that the
point Of view In them Il the same AZ
that adopted By the Recording Angel
Look at each day and say. this r.
another dayI Ny sin and Bloth and
foolishness OF yesterday, utterly re-
pudiats. It was not !. Ny soul ala
not do that nor consent 70 IL I was
caught In Q corner by circumstance.
and dubbed into doing this or that
but the deed does not represent me,
/ am something better today. will be
something better tomorrow.
This r. another dAY!-shAii we
cloud the new dawn Ger with q mist
of signs and useless reGrets1 Let US
forgive our own trespASses, as we for.
give them that trespass against US.
DON MARQUIS.
RITES FOR 7. J. ePIKER.