The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-11-29
CHAPTER xxxI

hR. PLANISH felt confused as D he telephoned the news to Col onel Marduc, on his farm in Dutch ess County, but the Colonel sounded jubilant:
 wen wipe out all those little yellow devils in three months, and maybe I'll go back into the Army and accept major-g generalShip, and then make Tom Blizzard pres ident = I've decided to let him have it. I want you and Winifred and Belden to meet me in my office to- night, sharp, and we'll make plans. Hooray!"
 The Doctor walked painfully home. He was loyal to Marduc, but during all the years when he had been making living out of shouting that he loved America, he really had loved his country, and it made him sick just now to go on peddling that love for profit. He was willing to quit the DDD and enlsit. He was even willing to keep silent.
 Yet when he came into the house and found, his daughter Carrie talking with young Co., lunbia graduate student, the Doc tor snapped back into his lifelong habit of being professional wis dom-dealer - fact-softener brain picker - formation-retailer lay high-priest unofficial censor of al officials critic 50 skilled in Judgment that he did not need to know anything about anything in order to tell everybody everything about everything.
 Carries young man was nerv- ous of hands, widely spectacled, and probably scared, put his eyes were steady.
 The Doctor roared, Well, fella, can't tell you how l envy you this hour of opportunity. l wish I were young enough 10 shoulder a musketr'
 Carrie purred, Now isn't that funnyi I was just telling Stan how important you and Colonel Marduc and Mrs. HomeWard are. He ought to study you had your influence instead of ancient Rome"
 It sounded all right, but Dr. Pla- niSh was suspicious. He couldn't, however, waste this audience.
 "Yes, it's great chance you have, my boy. It's up to you young folks with such aid as I can continue to give you-to win the war and win the peace.'
 The graduate student remarked, five got to be getting back up- town,' astounded the Doctor by kissing an unresistant Carrie, and walked out. Before the Doctor could get under way, it was Car rie who attacked:
 out any more slogans to my friends not even win the war, win the peace"
 My God. to think that l could have daughter who can be friv- olous at a time like this, when men are fighting!"
 T won't stand your saying that! We're not frivolous! That boy who was just here six months ago he was a pacifist, three months ago he was an isolationist, and to- morrow he'll enlist in the Marine Corps, if they'll have him. He used to- use slogans, like you. Now he wants to use machine gum
 But we have to have slogans! This is an theological war the first war in history that's entirely between two different sets of ideas. We got to have slogans - and trained leaders to coin them!'
 Didn't the French Revolution ists think they were fighting for a set of ideas, too, and didn't they have slogan - Liberty, Equality, Fraternity? Maybe if they hadn't had so many perfectly swell songs and so many powerful orators and leaders, the Revolution wouldve had a better run"
 T told you you were frivolous you and all your friends-shame- fully frivolous in this dark hour of need"
 Well, most of them are going to be frivolous Tn khaki, in a few weeks They'll fight-like the Civil War. But to people that try to get publicity for themselves out of tell ing the soldiers how noble they are, they'll just say, So what! Can't you see that?"
 T see that my own daughter has become dippant to the point of blas- phemy!" said pr. PlaniSh, and walk ed out of the house.
 But he could not, as he sat in the Lafayette Cafe, go on hating her. She was too serious, and for once, m uyl1 Ia q nf preaching seriousness was actually serious himself.
 TN his hotel, MT. Johnson of Il Minneapolis was writing to his son, who was now corporal in the United States Army:
 Dear Son:
 Well, it has come, with Pearl Harbor, you were wiser than l, getting into the Army so early, to- morrow Monday morning I shah go out and see if I can enlist in some branch of the service, it would be fun if We could be to- DR. PLANISH had walked little, A~ the past lew years, but on thlS restless Sunday of Dec. 2, he walked all the way up to Colonel Marducs office. He was wretchedly wondering if he always did know what was go- ing to happen.
 But he lost his idencision when he came into the buoyant pres ence of Colonel Marduc, who put a new rose in his buttonhole, lighted a gigantic cigar, pounded his desk and roared:
 Heres our chance. Germany vii come in, and war must in- evitably make new political set up, and Tom Blizzard and I are ready to step in But I'm not so much interested in office during