The Topeka state journal., 1922-08-01
ON SECOND THOUGHT
BY JAY e. HOUSE.
(From Philadelphia Public Ledgsr.l
A Letter From the Chief.

Friend Dodd-I am perfectly will
ing that you shall take a motor trip p
column, especially the latter. Your
letter reminds me of something that
happened to me when I worked for
another great publisher in New York.
He sent for me to come and visit him
in Bar Harbor, and when arrived he
said: IT suppose you think sent
for you to tell you what fine editor
you are, but didn't. You're awful" :"
haven't noticed the column is not so
good, you are wrong. I have noticed
But don't ascribe it to the same
cause that you do. Hard work is
what you live on. The harder you
work the better you are. I haven't
given you enough to do. I'm just
spelling you. There's another thing
you are wrong about: that idea that
the readers of the Public Ledger
would worry about you if they didn't
know where you were every day.
received two letters this morning from
readers Of your column. One & OF them them
one wasn't so pleasant about it.
Yours, J. J.
His thought processes" writes a
reporter who analyzed Charles Gar
land, seemed to be aided now ana
again by the wiggling of his toes in
golf stockings that were unhampered
by shoes"
Mr.. GarIand's motto is, BE your
self" Who shall say 1t is not appro-
pirate to the point of revelation?
We make no forecast of the result
of the fight, but Bennie beat Lew in
the joint debate.
We do not wish to appear boastful,
but we claim that for a man who has
s.I- III IAclr ~
who is run down physically to a
poundage of 195 and q waist meas
urement of thirty-nin inches, this
isn't such a bad column.
It is Will Hays talking of their art
to a bunch of motion-picture men. 1T
can fill a necessity, the necessity for
entertainment says Mr. Hays. 1T
can and will instruct, which is a most
precious power. 1t can do more than
any other agency to unite the peoples
of the world to bring understanding,
not only between man and man, but
between natio nand nation"
Now, the first and natural reaction
to that is that Mr.. Hays is sold" on
his job. But we sense in his observa-
tions a somewhat deeper significance.
There is SO much hokum in the pic
lures that those associated with the
work of production become inocu-
lated with it. An old-time Snowman.
top-notcher who had drifted from
the legitimate into pictures. came in
to see us the other day. He talked
the same way about it.
The pictures are all right. They
please and entertain many intelligent
more for his money than any other
form of entertainment ever devised.
Thus far we are willing to go. Is It
too much to expect that those engaged
in their projection will be equally rea-
sonable? .--
Ring Out Wild Bells, Ring Out.
Sir-Wel1, I'll be blowed!xf You big
stiff, you went and spoiled the whole
thingl II you didn't consign my let
ter to the scrapbasket along with your
cigar ashes and burnt matches have
another look. Typewriting it instead
of penning it, so that you would be
sure to get it right, said, rs it not
true that his personal equation is en-
t1rely exoteric?'' and by Allah you go
and make it "esoteric." Are-you try
ing to make monkey out of me? If
SO. you're too late. Did you do it
yourself, or are you going to blame it
on the proofroom. as usual? Evil
entirely "esoteric." I'm almost sorry
said that last, because I've listened
to your public discourse on occasion
and know you're a clever guy. Your
L. G.
Never mind the emollient; let's look
at the facts. 1t was "exoteric" in L.
G.'s letter and "exoteric" in the COPY
we sent upstairs. And so the plausi-
Bile deduction is that the proofreader
has been editing the column again.
OF course. we prefer typewriter
manuscript. Everybody does. But
L. G.'s precaution was not absolutely
necessary. W can read writing, too.
What we really thing about it is that
it doesn't make any difference. Prob
ably not one reader in a thousand, as
suming there are so many, noticed the
bull" Not one in ten thousand will
pay any attention to the correction.
If you think you have trouble, give
a. thought to Miller Huggins. He has
to manage Babe Ruth and Joe
Dugan.
HEART and HOME PR0Bl Ems