The toiler. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1919-1922, 1921-08-06

people who can Write successlui|
diary. By success mean to tel the
story without maring it with dis
closures of a personality more or less
embarrassing, unintelligent and un-1
attractive. Ones personality, injected
into page after page Of a book will
have to be strong one to beal the
wear and tear and shine as resplend-'
emily on the last page as does the
authors photograph on the front
cover.
The diary form of writing is one
which lends itself readily to an IL
lustration Of ones iamost self; and
it is because of this fact that, it seems
to me, much credit must be given Clare
Sheridan for choosing such an "acid
test" of character as trip to Moscow
and having the courage to tell US OF
her journey in "From Mayfair to
Moscow.
Singular, only describes in an in
finitely small way the book she has
written. 1t is singular in many re-
spects, and must be read to be appre-
ciated. The one singular thing Of a
cultured woman of the English bour-
geoisie venturing into Russia in the
fall of last year is enough in itself
to cause one to pause moment to
enquire what sort of person is this?
Indeed, the question arises even in
the first page Of the Introduction but
thruout the book one finds such salts
factory answers. For half the book IS,
in fact, Clare Sheridan and the rest
a charmingly told story Of an artists
unusual adventure into that myster-
iously enticing human maelstrom--
Soviet Russia.
MY intention here is to let the book
speak for itself and for its author.
Concerning the authors violation of
bourgeois good form, she writes on
page l. "There are people in Eng
land who are indignant at my sculpt-
ing Lenin and Trotzky. There were
people in Moscow who were mortified
because ] had done Winston Chur-
chill. love humanity with its force
and its weakness, its ambitions and
fears, it's honesty and it's lack Of
scruples, it's perfections and Geformi-
ties" That paragraph explains Clare
Sheridan and one feels after reading
it that here is an honest person whom
!. one .csn trust on all occasions,
tents Of the papers, thus voiding any
AS sculptor, depending upon her
work to support herself and children,
Mrs. Sheridan has learned to work
and OF the need and value of work.
Says she Of her early training: II
was brought up with the idea that
for girl it was only necessary to
know French, take care of ones hands
and do ones hair carefully in order
to get married and live happily ever
afterward." But she was rebellious
and took unkindly to the prescribed
formula. The qualification of her ar
tlstlc temperament consumed much of
her time tho she did eventually mar
ry, and: "For four years after that ]
lived in the country, and during those
four years | forgot everything except
the creation of forms was intent
upon. The two children which are the
result-are my best bits of creative
form, she writes. Then, in the
chronology of her life, came the
World War, broken home, the death
Of her husband in battle and few
days later, the birth of her son. Sure
~ here was test enough Of the
strength of woman. But in her work
she found salvation.
The Diary really begins with her
chance meeting with Kamenev and
krassin, then in England attempting
TO negotiate a trade agreement. I'll
was Kamenev who later invited herl
to accompany his encourage upon the
return to Russia. T thot he wasl
joking, and hesitated a moment. then
l said, Let me know when YOU are
going to start and / will be ready inl
half an hour That is Just what one
would expect her to say.
She sculpts the two Bolshevist Com
misars and enters upon a considerable
struggle in her effort to get PROPERLY
out of England. 1t appears that
Mother Grundy was busy as was yery!
likely. A relative informs her that she.
Us being criticized as having too much
freedom. Says Mrs. Sheridan. "II
the great band of people
who grudge me that freedom, because
they have not get it, and because they
know that freedom counts above
sverything." A thoroughly sufficient
The book is replete with scores OIL
pits Of conversations between the
author and the two Commissars and|
With others relative to them and what
hey stood for Speaking of a story oil
Aamanev's life as a revolutionist. ,
which he narrated, she adds: ut Is ak