The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-12-01
1t Seems
to Me
by HAYWOOD BRoUN=

fact, the man is practically a tee
totaler.'
I'm sorry to admit that your
friend is quite right. I wanted to
preserve and cherish my weakness.
which consists of Boosting about
vices which I don't possess.
Possibly 1.-THE word "teetotaler" is
just a shade too strong I often
take a glass of sherry before din
ner, and on many of the better
known public holidays I take two
And if anybody can prove to me
that it really is her birthday I
might be tempted to indulge to the
extent of an entire cocktail.
But, since I do the bulk of my
work at home, I run into COMPARE
lively few birthday children.
Voter for the Worker
A GOOD many years ago I dis
"A covered that the newspaper
craft is a hard one and that the
man who wants to get his daily
stint in on time will do we'll to keep
a clear head about him The bust
ness of sitting down at the type
writer and actually starting to work
always has been hard for me. I am
inclined to daWdle
But I have cured myself of that
failing by the use of a neat device.
On such mornings as I find even &
tendency in myself to linger in bee
after 8 I remark sternly, Nov. if
you don't get up this instant and
snap into your column you must
drink a nice, long glass of cold
water"
At times it has been necessary for
me to take two of these invigorat-
ing drafts before plunging into
what 1 like to call my daily sermon.
So far it never has been necessary
to take three glasses.
If a column were merely a matter
Of dashing off seven or eight hun
dred words at random the job
woo he simple enough. 1t is my
custom . gather each night, before
retiring, sufficient material for
three essays. This material may be
in the form of newspaper clippings,
marked passages in reference books
or notes made on yellow scrap
| paper during the week. This ma
terial is then shuff1ed in a large
wire basket and divided into three
groups 49, political, sociological and
inSpirational.
Every morning take thought
and make decision as to whether
I shall be political sociological or
inSpirational. This decision rests
on what I call "the trend of the
times 1t rests upon an evalua-
ton Of the needs of the world for
that particular day.
This I say to myself, 'is what
readers ought to have whether they
want it or not"
Three Drafts to q Column
EIRST comes the rough draft.
l. then the revision and after
that the revised revision.
This third process requires the
greatest amount Of time, since it
entails the search for the mob iuste.
Naturally, not any word at all will
90. 1t must have the right length,
| thickness, texture and color. Natur-
ally, if the cadence of the paragraph
requires a pear-shaped phrase pear
shaped words must be found. And
that takes time and often a vast
amount of research.
Given this background. it seems
to me natural enough that on GER
tain very rare occasions I feel like
throwing all the reference books out
the window. am even tempted to
toss my own notes on the floor.
To-day" 1 mutter, Il just want
to let my fingers flutter over the
keys as if I were a faun on a dewy
| meadow or an author of mystery
stories for the pulp magazines"
Your duty to your serious
minded public" says the voice of
conscience.
To hell with himl" 1 answer.
A Spree in Fantasy
a ND then 1 drift into fantasy.
4 n Instead of being a studious
commentator on the current scenes
IN the world about me I think of
myself as a Broadway butterfly. 1
am the man in evening clothes who
saunters up to the bar and says,
"A double martini"
In this dreams world of mine
keep outrageous hours and even reel
a little as I picture myself rolling
home at l o'clock in the morning.
Sometimes it is even possible to
carry the dream beyond my waking
hours
Absentmindedly I set the alarm
clock for 7:30 and turn out the.
lights, as usual, at 10 p. m. But the
bed is taxicab, and I am telling
the driver to stop at the stage door.
Slumber becomes deeper and I am
doing the tango on a vast dance
floor. sit out the next one and q
girl with castanets prances in front
Of my table. The sound becomes in
sistent. The alarm clock is ringing
1 rise, dress, drink a tall glass of
cold water and sit down to write
Throughout the history Of the
world the gold standard has always
BEEN
And even yet I seem to hear from
great distance the sound of the
violin. Indeed, on certain morn
ings the fantasy has been so very
vivid that I could almost swear I
had hangover. Naturally have
/ read Of the symptoms. The human
imagination, if taken straight, is a
very powerful thing
Copyright 1888 BY The Timesl