Evening star., 1932-04-30
THE LIBRARY TABLE
BY SARAH C. BOVERMAN.

three recently published books That
Was Yesterday" a novel by Storm
Jameson; "Only Yesterday" an infor-
NAL history Of the 1e2Os, by Frederick
Lewis Allen, and Return to YeSter-
day" "reminiscences by Ford MADDOX
Ford. The three books are in them
selves. of course, not comparable. Ford
MADDOX Ford, experienced English au-
thor and editor, now spending much
of his time in New York City, has in
no way lessened his reputation for fin
ished writing by his latest book, RE
turn to Yesterday" 1t should find
favor with American readers not only
for its excellence, but also because Mr..
Ford, an exception among his country
men today, is enthusiastic about the
United States, and especially New York
City. There was a personal reason for
his first liking for New York. He had
had nervous breakdown lasting three
years. While still very miserable, suf-
feriny from indigestion and general de-
preston, he came to New York. Per-
haps he found no time there to think
about himself; at any rate he recovered.
He says: 1T isn't then to be wondered
at that I liked New York 1 found
there new health and a new hold on
life. I do not believe that since that
time have ever feared anything very
much-except, of course, what Kings
Regulations calls the exigencies of
active service" The World War came
after this and he saw service in the
trenches of France.
Mr.. Ford's chapter on Gotham" is
one of his most interesting. He says
of this visit in 1906: 1T was during
that visit that I first considered New
York seriously. 1t was characteristic
that 25 years ago one cid not consider
the United States herself very seriously.
New York before that had been
a place through which one passed as
rapidly as possible to reach the Old
South. Bya1906. however, some
thing of what Gotham was going to be-
come was beginning to manifest itself.
She was still more like London than
any city outside London-and, indeed,
she still is. There was about her
and particularly about her old families
"a staid old-faShionedneSs and a per-
sonal individualism that you would not
have found even in London. It was the
note almost of Dickens" Part of the
Gotham story is an account of his as
sociation with S. S. Mcclure. Ida Tar
bell and Villa Gather Of McClure's
staff he liked exceedingly. Boston has
never met his approval. He says of it:
"It had, of course, William James. But
do you believe that one just man could
have saved that Gomorrah?
And the accent! When real Boston
man used to approach me uttering
sounds like those of a brick-throated
bullfrog it used to occur to me that If
the Cabots really had the ear of the
Almighty, He must bitterly have re-
gretted that He ever invented the vocal
organs of humanity" His conclusion
about New York is, however, that little
old New York has remained good
enough for me-" He attributes to New
York life and the advice of Mr.. Gilbert
Hare, given at lunch at the Players
Club, the pleasant change which has
taken place in his physique "On the
day of our meeting I weighed 1913
pounds and was caricatured as
The Animated Match At various
dates since then I have tipped the
scales at 215 pounds"
X X
Mr. Hare's advice, Just alluded to.
was: If you like things eat them. The
fact that you like them is natures sign
that you need them. If at first theY
disagree with you go on eating them
till they do agree. Your digestion needs
disciplining, just as if it were an un-
broken and unframed horse. If you
like grilled Holsters and they disagree
with you, eat a grilled lobster every
night for fortnight just before getting
into bed At the end of the fort
night you will eat Holsters without
alarm or i'll effects. AS for things that
,lN ~ sr -
drill yourself into eating them" Mr
Ford says that this advice helped him
to throw off his indigestion habit, but
confeSses that at least once afterward
he suffered from indigestion. without
apparent reason. He was being enter
tanned at Dartmouth and one morning
for breakfast ate dozen Cape Cod
oysters. three grilled sausages, griddle
cakes and maple sirup, about pound
of pumpkin pie" and quarter pound
OF cheese. The chapter Some Cures"
discusses ironically the efforts of physi-
clans to cure his nervous condition. for
which there was no discoverable cause.
He states that his illness was purely
imaginary, but that it was none the
better on account of its imaginary quail
ity. Without anything to be depressed
about, he suffered from intense depres-
sion and agoraphobia. He consulted 10
specialists and grew thinner and thin
ner. He was treated by diets OF pork
and ice cream and salad made with
lemon juice and white Of egg, with boil
ing shampooS and ice-cold foot baths,
and was psychoanalyZed 1nnumerable
times. Those were the early days of
that mania that has since beset the en-
tire habitable globe" The first help
that he received was from an old-fash-
ioned family doctor, Joseph Conrad'S
doctor, who told him to go ahead and
finish a Life of Holbein" he had begun,
that is. if he had time, for he would
probably be dead in a month. Mr..
Ford was so indignant that he said to
himself: Damn that brute, I will not
be dead in a month" went to Win
chelsea, finished the book. returned to
the doctor and said triumphantly: You
see. I am not dead" "He answered as
and hollowly as if he were
in despair at the Justification of his
prophecy: If I hadn't told you you
would be dead, you would have been
dead. He was no doubt right"
X X
Ford MADDOX Ford numbered among
his intimate friends Joseph Conrad,
Henry James, Richard Garnett, w. H.
Hudson and Stephen Crane and the
first part Of Return to Yesterday" is
filed with anecdotes Of his association
with them. He says of Stephen Crane:
For me, Crane came nearer the other
worldly than any other human being
have encountered. He was what Tre-
lawney made us believe Shelley to have
been. But he observed the little things
of life. He was the poet" The eccen-
tricities of Henry James furnish some
of the humorous episodes of the story
Mr. Ford's friendship with him was evi-
IDENTIFY not disturbed by the blunt frank
ness of the Master" Henry James ex-
pressed dislike for most of the more or
less distinguished group who formed
the circle Of Mr.. Ford's family. Ford
MADDOX Brown was Mr. FordS grand