Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-09-25
A Daily Bible Thought
MIR. BOK's GRIEVANCE

! nR. EDWARD BOX has a grie'
vi ance which looms large in h
mind. He thinks it has an intern;
ional significance. He has bee
ibeled by the Saturday Review {
london. Mr.. Box always did tax
himself very seriously. He is
publisher Of a most popular mag
inc and a millionaire. But let tt
vmpathetic Philadelphia Recor
eli the story Of Mr.. Bok's grie,
nee against the London newspape
I says:
In that remarkable best
seller, "The Americanization
of Edward Box" the modest
author told a story (apropos
of what we do not now recall)
of the scurvy trick adopted by
a young man attached to a New
York publishing house to make
. pot Of money selling Bibles
among certain residents OF the
southern states. The unscrupu-
lous youth secured the south
ern territory for the sale Of a
particularly flashy edition OF
the good book. In the illustra-
tions with which the book was
plentifully adorned, he had an
artist color the angels a deep
chocolate. The Negroes in his
territory fought for the privi-
lege Of paying So for one of
these Bibles, which cost the
selling agent just eight cents.
That, in a nutshell, is the
story. Now, what happened?
The Saturday Review, Of Lon
don, in reviewing Mr.. Bok's
book, said, among other things,
ION one page we find the enter
prising Mr.. Box selling illus
trated Bibles purchased at
eight cents apiece for So to the
Negroes in the southern states
through the device of having
the white faces Of the angels
in the pictures painted choco-
late"
Naturally, Mr.. Box was
shocked and Mortified. He
adopted what has long been
considered in England the only
proper first step to correct an
evil and check further trouble
he wrote "a letter to the
Times" 1t appeared in The
London Times of August rs.
It begins: "To my readers in
England" and it tells the whole
horrid story. IF his engage
rnents here, he says, were not
80 many and important he
would 60 over to England at
once and institute libel suit
against the Saturday Review,
and he concludes:
There Is no other course
left for me, therefore, than to
appeal to the fair play Of the
English public in this attempt
to hold me up to public ridicule
and fasten upon me an instance
Of trickery and dishonesty
which I denounced in my book.
I deeply regret that this should
have happened at a time when
every effort is being made to
create friendly feelings be-
tween the peoples of the United
States and Great Britain"
Mr.. Box, of course. is ex-
cited, but with good reason.
We cannot speak out too
strongly against this effort to
drive another wedge between
"the hands clasped across the
sea-" We trust that the gov
eminent At Washington is
fully alive to the dangerous
possibilities. We feel, too, that
we should take advantage Of
this opportunity to express the
pious hope that the sales of
"The Americanization of Ed
ward Box" are progressing
faxorably both here and abroad.
1t was certainly disreputabl
journalism on the part OF the Satur
~ Review to print such a mis-
representation Of Mr.. Box If /
as done knowingly and malicious
;. The Saturday Review Of Lon
On has always been very hostil'
, the United States and loses n.
pportunity to ridicule or denouuc,
and Americans, 80 tina
lere IL some excuse for Mr.. Box,
1arge that the falsehood was mali
lous. Still we find it hard to be