The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-02-11
ON SECOND THOUGHT
BY JAY 3. HOUSE
(From Philadelphia Public Lsassr.)

We have been reading Floyd Dell's
moon Calf" acclaimed by some as
the best first novel of the year. To
us the book seems to be a curious and
unnecessary case of arrested develop
ment. The author took his hero as a
baby in arms and reared him by hand.
At the end of twenty years and more
than 400 pages neither the hero nor
the author had learned anything.
"Moon Calf" we would say, is a trifle
dulIer than Mrs wharton's tAge of
Innocence and somewhat less pho
tographic than Main Street.
The moral of it ALL as we see it, is
that a Greenwich Village motif cannot
be successfully imposed upon Mid
die West background.
There may be those among our
readers who recall our distinct aver
sion to the hero of Wadsworth Camps
THE Guarded Heights" We openly
advocated killing him and offered per-
sonally to attend to the details of the
homicide. We have no great desire
to kill Felix Fay; it wouldn't be worth
while. But if any one else wants to
kill him and desires to make the af-
fair public, we can assure him of one
cheerful and approving spectator.
Meanwhile, our main reaction to the
seasons literature is that, with the ex-
ception of Booth Harrington. only
those who know nothing about life
are trying to write of it.
The news that our favorite editor,
Arthur Brisbane. has gone to Florida
to see MIR. Harding reaches US thru
the news channels. There is some
speculation as to the object of his visit.
Our own theory of it is. that Mr.. Bris-
bane has gone to Florida to tell Mr..
Harding who, with the exception of
Benjamin Franklin, is the greatest
man this country has produced.
Mr.. Brisbane said, some weeks ago.
that the great men of this country had
been Benjamin Franklin and another
Since modesty forbade him printing
the name of the other in his own
newspaper, he probably has gone to
Florida to whisper it to Mr.. Harding.
If that seems to you to be a ridicu-
lous conjecture we ask you to tell us
what else. if anything, there is for
Mr. Brisbane to see Mr.. Harding
about.
Having succeeded in landing Root,
Wood and Hoover in Mr.. Harding
cabinet, the esteemed New York Trib-
une is now pushing John Hays Ham
mond for the post of secretary of COM
merce. Mr.. Hammond would make a
dandy secretary, but, as we have hith-
erto indicated, the feeling is that three
cabinet places are as many as the
Tribune should have.
We note, quite Incidentally, of
course. that Mr.. and Mrs. Guy Spiker
celebrated the first anniversary of
their wedding at their home in Balti-
more yesterday by giving a dinner to
Mr. and Mrs Perley Spiker. Those
who recall the Spiker nuptiaIs will be
glad to learn that Mr.. Perley Spiker
finally was permitted to participate in
something.
You don't remember the Spikers?
Well, 1t doesn't matter
Meanwhile, we can't help thinking
the plan of the New York young man
who tried to kill himself in Philadel-
phia because he was tired of Broad
way was much too drastic.
We can understand that one might
grow tired of Broadway. But we
doubt that the sacrifice proposed was
justified in the circumstance If our
attitude seems cynical, we regret it.