The Washington herald., 1917-11-10

New York, Nov. 9.-Some one is
always picking on New York. And
the peculiar part of it is that those
who rap Manhattan most are those
who make more money here than
they could perhaps in most other
cities.
IL L. MsnCken, a sort of literary
revolutionist, has broken out in a
literary rash and declares that New
York has no nationality at all He
says it is simply sort Of free port
a place where the raw materials
of civilization are received, sorted
out and sent further on.
He points out that Chicago was
the first to start the Little Theater
idea, and now New York is claiming
] the idea. And all the good writers,
I too. come from Chicago. He pre-
sents George AIDE, Theodore Dresser,
Finley Peter Dunno and Henry Is.
Fuller.
Who is the chosen merry Andrew
of New York, the fayorite town
wag. the maker of the local joke
! Franklin Z. Adams, Chicagoan.
Even NcwYork hasn't any real cele b.
rites, 10 hear Menckcu tell it. In
other cities. he says, they point out
! real he-men who have done things,
but when a visitor comes to New
York they point out BIN the Button
I Man or a man all covered with dia-
mOnds.
/ 1t is quite true that one may train
for the Union League Club or one
may train for Parnassus. but the
average New Yorker likes the soft
things of life. and Eibbling at crusts
in a garret does not appeal to him
at all. And why should it?
/ After all. people get on better in
/ New York in a short length OF time
than any place else in the world.
Many fail and become secured and
then spend the rest of their days
pitying New York. No one ever
| heard of Irwin Cobb. James Mont
gomery Flagg, Arthur Somers
Roche and thousands of others un-
: til they came to New York - all
though they were doing just as
good work as they are doing now.
| one thing New York does: 1t turns
the goods.
Arthur B. Reeve. the writer of
mystery stories, is off of practical
| jokes for the rest Of his natural
I life. A sad violinist with a weeping
voice eddied into Mr. Reeves work
shop near Fifth avenue and told
such a soTrowfui tale of a quest for
work that Mr.. Reeve had TO put a
/ five dollar bill in his hand and push
u i'm, II hpA L inc n fe
stcnographer's heart.
| Mr.. Reeve followed him down the
hallway and told him that st. Clair
Lewis, another writer, would be in
! tercsted in his story. He sent him
up to Mr.. Lewis's apartments at a
Z hotel, and the sad violinist got Mr..
/ Lewis out of bed and also got ten
dollars by his story. A few hours
later it was learned that the violin
/ list was a fakir.
Mr.. Lewis went over on the East
Side and got hold of the toughest
loafing bounder he could lind. He
| told him how he could make ten
dollars. He said Mr.. Reeve was a
man who liked a fellow TO be rough
with him. Go over" he said. and
pull his chair out from under him
ana tell Nun you want SlV DtCduSe
you're broke. The rougher you are
/ the more he'll like it. And if he
don't give you the SO 1 will"
Let the curtain fall over the gent
demanding the ten spot. But news
from Mr.. Reeves workshop is that
he will live.
] Seen around the town: 4 little
Chinese girl knitting for soldiers in
| the Waldorf lobby. Amelia Bing-
ham begging cigarettes for soldiers
/ in a theater lobby. My barber at
the opera in evening clothes. A
red-haired girl with red hat leading
a red fox. 4 college boy waiting
| forlornly at the door of darkened
] theater with a box of flowers. A
stray dog dog bounding into limou-
sine. A French army officer kneel-
ing in prayer on the steps of Grants
tomb.
Women have entered railroad field
! in Kansas city that heretofore has
been occupied by men as one Of their
few remaining masculine endeavors.
Clad in ,overalls, American, italian,
Greek, Russian and negro women may
/ be seen daily in the Santa Fe shops
and the Pullman Company's yards at