Letters, May 1, 1933

St. Louis Democrats

Sirs:

I have been a subscriber to TIME for a number of years and know that you wish to be 100% correct at all times.

In your issue of April 17 you state that Bernard “F. Dickmann was elected mayor of the city of St. Louis, but “The St. Louis Democracy’s victory . . . was far from complete” and further ”Republicans retained a majority on the board of aldermen.”

I desire to inform you that the only Republican elected was Louis Nolte, the candidate for comptroller. There were 14 aldermen elected and they were all Democrats. There were two Democrats elected aldermen last November, giving the Democrats a majority of 16 of the 28 aldermen composing the Board. And I might also state that Mr. Dickmann is going to be the best mayor St. Louis has ever had.

THOMAS F. O’HANLON

St. Louis, Mo.

Live Larson

Sirs:

I am very happy to inform you that you erred in reporting that my husband, Lieut. Robert W. Larson, was among those who met such an unfortunate end in the Akron disaster (TIME, April 10).

Long a subscriber to TIME, he will be greatly disappointed if copies of your magazine are not sent to him at the Naval Air Station, Lakehurst, N. J. where he awaits further orders.

ANITA WOOD LARSON

Balboa Heights, Canal Zone

Early dispatches of the disaster did not indicate that none of her airplane pilots, of whom Lieut. Larson was one. accompanied the Akron on her last flight. TIME congratulates Lieut. Larson on his escape. —ED. B.B.C.’s Silence

Sirs:

During the regular 6 p.m. news broadcast tonight, the British Broadcasting Corp. announced “with deep regret” the disaster to the Akron. Immediately thereafter, every broadcasting station in Great Britain was silent for one minute, as a mark of respect for the victims and sympathy for their families and friends.

A wider development and more frequent manifestation on both sides of the Atlantic of the spirit that prompted this thoughtful and graceful gesture would accomplish more toward peace and goodwill than many Leagues and Conferences.

JOHN J. WEST

London

Silver Dick’s Rage

Sirs:

Enclosed find money order for $5 in payment of my renewal order sent in some time ago—in spite of the giggle about our paternal grandfather Missouri nosepicker Silver Dick Bland (TIME, Feb. 6).

No hard feelings. As the current Dick Eland’s wife, I might tell you for data on heredity that Grandson Dick Bland picks his nose at table, but has all the other qualities of lovableness and generosity attributed to Silver Dick also. For instance, in a St. Joseph, Mo. hospital lay Silver Dick ill with typhoid and considerably nettled thereof when a green young interne attempted to minister to him. For days the young medico tried to please, but as he rushed into the room in answer to yells was immediately retreated by more bellows of rage and helplessness. You can well imagine the feelings of the young man then when he received from his first patient a $20 gold piece as Silver Dick left the hospital.

The medico, now a respected man—Dr. A. F. Maisch of this city—still has the gold piece and showed it to me the other day with the above story.

DIANE BLAND

Los Angeles, Calif.

Useful Critter

Sirs:

Yes, very nice. Thanks for the wreathes (TIME, March 20). What about your doing a little constructive work????

1) My Plow to Read is intended for a text-book and ought to be in use. It wd. debunk 80% of the idiocy in teaching literature in high-schools and colleges and 81 and one-fourth percent of literary journalists. Literary teaching and criticism ought to get the best stuff to the reader with the least interposition of second-hand yawp. crit/ic

2) You say I am a useful

and / ter but you don’t mention my having written two operas, i.e. the music. That is more important than my written criticism. I mean to say I have “set to music” a great deal of the best poetry of Villon and Cavalcanti with the intention of getting it out of books and to the consumer or recipient. When I can sit in the electrician’s kitchen in Rapallo and hear the words (I mean understand which word is which not merely hear a blurr of melodious noise) of Maitland. Marquesita, Ferrari and R. Collignon singing Villon’s poems in London I have done more than when I wrote a book about past literature.

(B.B.C. gave the Villon twice).

Whether anybody likes the tunes or not, there is at least the dimension or technical success of intelligibility. The music does not hide the words.

Naturally if I didn’t think my melodic line was stronger, “better,” had more guts than the general ruck of music I wd. have burnt the mss. instead of instigating its performance.

Several competent musicians admit its merit. . . .

E. POUND

Rapallo. Italy

Washington Dean

Sirs:

It is not often that a forester’s name appears in TIME and when it does, it seems too bad to have him labeled a “pharmacist” (TIME, April 10, p. 40). The acting president of the University of Washington is Hugo Winkenwerder. no pharmacist, but a forester of standing and dean of its College of Forestry.

A. B. RECKNAGEL

Cornell University Ithaca, N. Y.

Hugo August Winkenwerder was dean of Washington’s College of Forestry from 1912 until last summer, when the college was reduced to a department. TIME’S “pharmacy” was a tongue-slip. Able and respected, he was chosen Acting President three weeks ago after other deans, less estimable, had jockeyed blatantly for the job. — ED.

Brewmaster Krug

Sirs:

Knowing TIME wishes to print the truth, I wish to correct an error in your issue April 3, p. 46. You state Joseph Schlitz founded Schlitz Brewing Co. This brewery was founded about 1848 by a master brewer named Kruch. It was known as Kruch’s Brewery until his death. His widow married Mr. Schlitz (Kruch’s book-keeper). Mr. Schlitz did not live long to enjoy his new position. He was drowned at sea.

L. J. KREUTZBERG

San Antonio, Texas

Childless, Brewmaster Krug (not Kruch) had adopted his nephew August Uihlein. After Brewer Schlitz’s death. August Uihlein-Krug and his brothers took over the Schlitz plant. Mrs. Fred Pabst, whose husband helps direct Pabst-Premier. is the late Brewer Uihlein-Krug’s eldest daughter.—ED.

Hash !

Sirs:

Apropos of the formidable Greek word considered by your correspondent on p. 2 of your issue of April 17, the following word, also from Aristophanes (Ecclesiaztisae 1169), is probably the longest in any language:

lopadotemachosclachogaleokranioleipsanodrim-upotrimmatosilphioparaomelitoka-takechumenff ki-ck!cpikossuphophat’toper isteralek trumwpteg kc.pli-alokigklopeleiolagoosiraiobaphctraganopterngon.

It consists of 78 syllables, and 169 letters (in Greek). It is denned in Liddell & Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon (edition 1863) as “the name of a dish compounded of all kinds of dainties, fish, flesh, and fowl.” What a way to spell hash!

JOHN B. NICHOLS. M.D.

Washington, D. C.

Long Life to Lottie

Sirs:

Being myself in the business of helping some of my fellow citizens learn how to be authors, I have read with great interest your quotation from the Author & Journalist in your April 17 issue, which you entitled “Drivel Racket.” I know the author of the article you quoted and can vouch for his complete sincerity in his exposure of the gyp games in the literary instruction field.

Millions of Americans seem to possess starved egos. The other day a hungry man addressed a crude letter to 300 names taken at random from the Philadelphia telephone directory, telling them he had a newspaper clipping mentioning their names. He promised to send the clipping for $1. He got a 10% cash response and a quick arrest.

Get-literary-quick “returns” are easy to get. Sound literary instructions, especially by mail, at any price is one of the most difficult things in the world to deliver. No layman can believe that a professional critic pronounces upon literary work for actual money; the assumption is that because reading is a recreation, any talk concerning reading must be recreation to all men. No one who doesn’t like to work for nothing should ever become a literary critic and no one should answer offers to teach anything by mail without having a personal pedigree, bibliography and bank statement from the one making the offer.

The reason why most of the literary instruction gyp games are not wiped out is because it takes either an expert or someone who has been stung to see where the gyp is. Evidently federal postal authorities never write fiction.

Long life to “Lottie Perkins”!

THOMAS H. UZZELL

New York City

Game Josh

Sirs:

When Receiver Moore knocked down the sale of Cosden Oil Co. to Josh S. Cosden here recently Mr. Cosden’s answer to West Texans’ lusty whoops was not, “All I have to say is if anybody has $501,000 they can have the thing.”

Springing; Josh’s remark at that time was,

“All I have to say is if anybody had $501,000 cash they would keep it.”

Contrary, too, to TIME’S interesting account of the Cosden sale-and-purchase (TIME, April 10), and to reports published locally, Cosden leaped not from the shoes of a Maryland drug clerk but from the more thinly-soled footgear of a small-town newspaper reporter into the shiny boots of an Oklahoma oilaire. So said Cosden to friendly Big Springers who dined him the evening after the sale in their oil-built 15 story Settles hotel. . . .

“It was Harry Sinclair, not I, who worked in a drug store,” explained

Game Josh.

WENDELL BEDICHEK

Editor

Daily Herald Big Spring, Texas

Knights Templars

Sirs:

Please refer to your news item, under head Religion in issue April 17 regarding Easter service of Five Denver commanderies.

You speak of “Knights Templars.” The correct plural is Knights Templar. As TIME is supposed to be always correct, thought I would call your attention to this error.

F. KERR FFOLLIOTT

Johnson City, Tenn.

Sirs:

Pray accept my sincere appreciation of your use of the correct plural of Knight Templar. It is always a surprise to me that this form is not in more general use, as it is in every way more sonorous and dignified.

ALICE M. WOOD

Muskegon, Mich.

According to Webster’s International, Knights Templars is correct.—ED.

Lawyer Untermyer

Sirs:

TIME of April 10, p. 18, refers to Samuel Untermyer. Is this the Sam Untermyer referred to in Robbins’ New Jersey Equity Reports, vol. Ill, p. 36, whose transactions Vice-Chancellor Pitney pronounced “a palpable fraud?” Is he the Sam Untermyer pilloried in an editorial in the New York Sun of April 5, 1913? (See also Atlantic Reporter vol. 61, p. 843 and Dickerman vs. Northern Trust Co. 176 U. S. 181.)

Again Jan. 2, 1929, in a unanimous opinion handed down by the U. S. Supreme Court (Weil, and Thorpe vs. Ncary) are these words:

“We conclude that the contract set up by Untermyer in the amended petition, framed to meet the evidence, is in violation of public policy and professional ethics. Such a transaction between counsel calls for judicial condemnation.”

You will find this opinion cited in the New York Law Journal, January 18, 1929, p. 1.

If this is the Samuel Untermyer to whom you refer why hold him up as a shining example of righteousness?

G. DANVERS

San Francisco, Calif.

TIME did not hold up Lawyer Unter myer as a shining example of anything. Nor did TIME review his entire career. Merely recalled was the fact that he has long agitated for Federal licenses for stock exchanges.—ED.