Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-21
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRAcEWELL.

Dear Sir: We do not find ourself
convinced by your article of recent date
concerning your reactions to Strange
!nterluoe. Eugene ONeill could well
have gone to China for many other
! reasons than hatred of women. His
tory records quite few genuine woman
matters who never took the trip.
Scnopenhauer spent most of his eX-
lstence In Germany; Heinrich Heine
Travelled much, but twas from an exile
brought on by political activities! Ana
toie france lad bare some women's
Souls, as has D'Annunzio. Nor are we
swung over to your viewpoint that
O'Neil must hate all women.
Inc dellneation by means of drama
OF type OF woman does not imply a
hatred OF the entire sex, nor the length
OF a Strange Interlude. Nina dared
not bear child by her husband, yet
she desired children. We see no evil
dence OF oversex in such innate wishes.
the DOCTOR was physically fit for IA
therhood; the dreamer-rnust have
Deen Harvard man, 1 know so many
like him-couldn't figure in the scene
until Nina had reached q state of mind
wherein the dreamer fitted. The hus-
bands dilation over fatherhood is not
dihcult to find in real life.
"A great deal of emotion at variance
with the precepts of the Old Testament
mas oeen classed, by experts, too, as
love. IT ones premise of definition
rests on the biblical precepts pertaining
to love-omitting, of course, the Song
OF Solomon-we wonder where the
except in pagan lands?
AS for men falling in love with de-
caoent women, you doubtless recall
Pierre Louys' powerful drama, ruined
by bad advertising in New York:
'Aphrodite.' Here was emphasized the
feature in many great loves: A saving
grace. The sculptor wished to love
where he believed his love was most
needed.
Furthermore, decadent women are
often very we'll equipped mentally.
Many real good women as mental COM
panions fall short. This does not pre-
sumo to be final answer to your ques-
ton, but 1t may allay your quandary
somewhat.
LAS for three men loving one woman,
we recall viewing the late Lillian Russell
IN her box seat at the race track, sur
rounded by many prominent and brainy
men from New Yorks business world
We still have with us one Peggy Joyce
just bloSsoming into literary circles
The doctor might well have had
love fame born in his bosom because
OF fatherhood. Recall the character in
Huneker's Painted Wells Wasn't it
Remy de Gourmont said, Women begin
by loving man and end by loving love
whereas men begin by loving love and
end by loving a woman?'
To sum up, since We agree the sub
ject Is profuSe. an adjustment Of art to
real life is quite an undertaking, rank
ing with the search for perpetual mo-
HAu'oVAF fOr ha os~
believe you have written a most COM
forting article. Real life is eminently
much higher in ethics than the life
portrayed upstage by playwrightS. We
wipe from the slate of recollection, since
to keep would spoil the picture, the re-
cent Gray-Snyder case in New York and
yours, Up. M"
Unfortunately our correspondents
erudition does not allay our quandary
at all. QuanoarleS, ours or others, are
not in the habit Of being allayed so
easily.
The big why of our previous query
still stands The big why's" of most
arguments continue to stand. That is
where all the fun comes in. If one
human being could convince another
(about anything) half of the pleasure
In life would come to an end.
Politics, for instance, would quietly
cease to function. Religion even might
become back number. In the former
men argue with each other about ideas,
ana IN the latter more often they dis
pute heatedly about the meaning of
words.
Our correspondent. therefore, need
not expect to convince us, any more
than we seem to have convinced him.
There Is something in the soul Of man
which refuses to be awed by a p1ling