The Houston Post. (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 36, No. 15, Ed. 1 Sunday, April 18, 1920 Page: 57 of 60
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It hat set needed the careful retro-
. spectivV estimate that gnat writer's
r' death usually brinf to hia works for tke
'reeding pehhe to km come to tke eon-
dutoa years ago that Samuel L. Clem-;
"tnj bmmw up to vastly Mr eom-
v' plex figure In literature than th mere
. "funny man" that kis first and amas-
tagly popular achievements la authorship
wii to make aim sajs tke New York
Time
V Bock booka as kia "Joan of Arc." or
r . irrka"kUii mi Corrupted Hadleybarg"
'i give evidence enough of tke deep vein of '
' seriousness underlying mwm of kia work
." ' and tkat ia present asore or loaa remote-
: fir a la tna in practically an of tt we
uuunh loin oincr- ana nneuvoerrr
.:' . Finn" ma irresistibly "fanny" kooka; and
ao they are. kat not throne boat.
'The serious kfark Twain at ia them
' too era if not quite ao unmistakably
preeeat aa in tkat mordant satire. The
:" Mysterious Stranger" oi tkat gloomiest
of pbilosepbieal essays. "What fa Man?"
Thankful should we be too tkat thin
Ttia of aerioaanoaa waa rkaty overlaid
"' witk tke ence of laucktar eren tbdock
tkat aaacater doe aot oeem quite aa
. apontaaeoee and aataral aa ia tke day
wkea. we were fairly rolling over witk
' Ue mirtk of "Iaaoeeata .Akroad"
"Boncking It" "The Gilded Age" booka
tkat If they aaake aa laaajk at all today
make pa laagk at them not witk tbem.
daiaaa as a Hanaritt
Bat now tkere eoaaea kfr. Taa Ifyck
- Brook wko empkaaises and elaboratea
tkia Tiew of Mark Twaio'a geniaa witk
the aovel and farina ting theory which
- ke deretopa in an artielo appearing in
tkia Montk'e Dial to tke effect tkat
CJemeae waa a kaateriat pewely tkroagk
' force of eircuBvetanc; that by incUnation
- nature and to a certain extent by en-
vironment and upbringing be waa at a-
tiriat a sort of peecaleoa Hamlet op-
preaeed by the workfa miaenes or a
Deaa Swift lacking tke courage or tke
opportunity to flay mankind for ita
frailtiea.
Tkaa Mr. Clemens appears aa a man
wbp failed to lire to the world except
through intermittent elunre nasaea the
real truth tkat waa m him and who
forced kfanaelf instead to play the part
of a buffoon throughout bia literary ca
reer a part that in hia aecret heart.
he most abhorred. We call this theory
fascinating because of tke dramatic pic-
tare it leavea in the mind of a great lit-
erary genius who eondemna himself to a
sort of Jekyll and. Hyde existence; who
deliberately takes Upon- himself the role
of international funmaker when be would
far rather have "drowned the stage in
teara." .
Tragedy Back af Heater.
There ia always a strong appeal in
tkat perennial story of tke famous down
who made the galleries roar witk kia
ridiculous antics while his own melan- .
eholy thoughts were witk hia wife dying
alone in her desolate home. (
In all of ti there is enough of the feel-
ing for melodrama aroused to appreciate
the pathetic Hf e-tragedy back of that sort
of situation; and when somebody tells as.
paralleling this old-time story that one
of the world's favorite humorists waa
accustomed to laugh when be was really
ia a black mood just tke re Terse from
laughing we are attracted by the idea
and are more tkaa half inclined to beliefs
' it before weighing the proof.
. ' Moreover Mr. Brooks does faaoliih an
abundance of proof in support of kia
theory so mock so. indeed' that few of
ii reading bia article on the subject will
come away without a considerably 're
vised opinion aa to Mark Twain's genius.
Cmsmbs' Early Career. .
Mr. Clemens started bis literary career
writing for and as a part of American
pioneer life. Circumstances threw him
during his early impressionable years
into the rough nacultured environment
of tke Western mining camps and it waa
there fat defense practically of bis own
sensitive nature and longing for some
kindyof expression however remote of
bis artistic life that he became the
creator of an exaggerated humor that
won him instant fame and that he was
compelled to keep-on creating much as
he despised it to the end of his career.
Here we have the psychogenesis of
Msrk : Twain'e humor. An outlet of
some kind that prodigious energy of
his was bound to have and this out-
let since be kad been Unable to throw
himself whole-heartedly into mining bad
to-1 be one which in some way how-
ever obliquely expressed the artist in
him. That expression nevertheless
had also to be one which far from
outraging public opinion would win its
emphatic approval. Mark Twain was
obliged to remain a "good fellow" in
order to succeed in order to satisfy his
Inordinate will-to-power; and we know
how he acquiesced in the suppression of '
all those manifestations of his individu-
ality bis natural freedom of sentiment
his love of reading- bis constant desire
iVraaJaissaSaaaa
Mnc Tvvam J !Tom
Sawyer and "Huck Fuin"
for privacy that struck his comrades
as "different" or "superior."
Choleo af a Pea Name."
This choice. of a pea name indeed
proves how orgeatr ke felt the need of
a "protective coloration in this society
where the writer waa a despised type.
"Too sensitive to relieve himself by horse
play ke kad what ana might call a pre-
liminary recmrse ha kia profanity those
"scorching siageiag "klaata" he waa al-
ways directing at kia companions; and
that this in a measure appeased Mm we
can aee from kfr.Paine'a remark tkat
kia profanity seemed "the safety valve
of hi high-pressure intellectual engine.
When he bad Mown of ke was
always calm gentle forgiving and even -tender."
We can beat aee kia humor.
then precisely as Mr. Pslns seems to
see it in the phrsse "men laughed when
they could m longer swear1' aa the
expression in abort of a psychic stage
one step beyond the stage where he could
find relief in swearing as a harmless
"moral equivalent" in other words of
those acta of violence hich hia own
-eensitlveness and bis fear of conse-
quences alike prevented him from com-
mitting. By means of ferocious jokes '
and most of Mark Twain's early Jokes
are of a ferocity that wil hardly be be-
hoved by air one who has not examined
them critically be could vent hi hatred
of pfaneer Mfe and all its conditions
those eondiOoas that were thwarting bia
creative life; he could in this vicari-
ous manner appease the artist in him
white at the aame time keeping on tke
safe aide of public opinion the very act
That Kind of a Fellow
CONTINUED FROM PAGE THrlEB.
for printers nowadays to Join together
for price control 7" '
"Customary perhaps bat not com-'
pulsory."
"Well . I wouldn't pat it exactly in
those words but it is always considered
best"
"And if they should refuse V
"They. seldom do" returned the other
significantly.
"But if they did"
"Well I .suppose the other printers
would take measures to monopolise the
business leaving tbem nothing on which
to survive."
"Tour combine is transgressing on the
anti-trust laws and I see no reason
why I should Join."
"But the benefite r
"Are aot such that they could assist
me ia anything. My office is situated
on a aide street in the residence sec-
tion out of the beaten paths of business
and hsving established a precedent in
that I shall aot hesitate to establish
another ao far as the combine is con-
cerned." . -"I warn you if yon refuse to Join us
the printers will pull against you to a
"Then I shall pull against the Blay-
ton printers" laughed Crosby.. .
"Is that a boastr
"It waa not so Intended. I do not
care to have trouble with any Blayton
printers. Neither do I care to be co-
erced." "Is this final r
"Absolutely."
"You will surely regret it"
"I'll take a chance on that"
(Continued next week.)
Stolen Fame
. (Ceatiaaed from Preeedlag Pag a.)
author who has been missing for over
six weeks baa been determined. William
Benrgundy his' servant discovered an
envelope ft Mr. Pott' desk addressed to
him. As' Mr. Benrgundy did not start to
examine the study until this morning
hoping against hope for bis master's
return this letter bad remained entirely
unnoticed.
The letter is aa follows:
"November 13 18 To whom it may
concern: Reversed at every tarn I am
v despondent I have nothing to live for
and nothing for which to die yet death
ia a release and I choose it today. Give
to William Benrgundy all my personal
effects as provided for in. my will of
this date Orlando Potts."
In the envelope was also found a
' poem titleless undated and unsigned
Set without doubt from the pen of the
e ceased: V
Goodby old earth I say goodby to you
And whether you were false with me or
true
I do not care for aa yon fleeting sun
Completes its day my course is also
done. -
And will there be an after-glow to mine.
Borne soft elusive angel-painted sign
That I may look with opened eyea upon
And follow on and on and on-and on?
Or will my sense of sight and feeling
cease
To let me go without an afterpiece?
Tke sun has set and crimson is tke
sky
Forget tke past and only say goodby.
We can get no information further
concerning big suicide; after the. morn-
ing of November 13 we find no trace of
him. Possibly be was drowned in the
..Hudson or lumped into the Atlantic tor
' the lines written in saying goodby Savor
of the water.
Orlando stopped here and chuckled to
himself.- "Two columns more end this
is not a New York paper either. Wonder
how much spsce they give me there."
He continued the dispatch!
These 12 lines are considered by able
critics to whom they have been shown
to be grand both in treatment and con
ception. The comparison of himself to
the sun and the phantom touch given
in the expression of 'the after-glow are
perfect But for this there might be
some doubt concerning the suicide of
their author but it is plainly' evident
that no man could write such lines as
those without living the' thoughts there-
in expressed.
Again Orlando smiled to himself for
in the desire of the newspapers to make
a sensation and their eagerness to grasp
anything which might be embellished
to contain the great element of sensa-
tionalism be ssw that they were making
bis name a kousehold word. He skipped
a column and continued:
' "Mr. Pott's book. The Man Without
a Name' which has - barely left the
preM-es of Benton-Dey-Mjerj company
is a masterpiece. We have nlready given
it an extensive review in another column.
Although published only last week it baa
sold enormously."
"With the help of free newspaper ad-
vertising" added Orlando.
"Sad indeed it is that Mr. Porta
should pass away before the fame which
would have been sure to attend him had '
come and he could reap the' financial
rewards - thereof. Had he known the
future his rash step would never bave
been taken. But thus it is s real genius
never- sees' the results of his genius
but might get some satisfaction by re-
turning to earth - and listening -to the
applause. If Mr. Potta could only see
the spprecistion which has st last arrived
- it would amply repay him for all hia
labors."
"Then he will be amply repaid. He
foresaw the future and is going to. reap
every bit of the reward if you please.
And aa to hia book selling enormously a
curious public is a paying public."
"Mr. Jenkinson" called a voice from
the stairs "there? a gentleman here to
see you. He told me to say it was
William."
"Send him up."
William entered.
"Come to report air. I followed in-
structions telephoned the police that
you were missing and st the proper
time took the letter and. poem 'to th
newspapers. The Times published them
and papers everywhere copied them.
Then I waited sir snd took your will to
a lawyer. He went tfo Benton-Dey
- of transforming kia aggressions into
Jokes rendering them innocuous. And
7 what made it a relief to him made it
also popular.
Epoch of ladaotrlal Pleaeerisf.
The atmosphere of the mining camp
. does indeed pervade the typical Mark
Twain humor a humor that finds Ita ef-
fect that makea Its "point" in some gro-
tesque bit of exaggeration. It was bur-
lesque as a rule the kind of kumor tkat
' la least akin to nature bat usually. '
springs on the contrary from a dlator- -tioa-of
nature. And as Mr. Brook -points
out during tkst "epoch of indus-
trial pioneering tke whole
country waa as thirsty for kumor as it
wss for ice water" and aa a result "Mark
Twain's kumor fulfilled during its gen-
eration s national demand aa universal
in America a the demand fulfilled ia
Russia1 by Dostoevekr in France by Vic- .
for Hugo in England by Dickens."
But it was distinctly a forced humor.
Mark Twain waa aot alone in using H.
On the contrary it waa aha red by a
whole school of pioneer fun makers re-
called by Mr. Brooks Artemue Ward
Orpheus C. Ker Petroleum V. Nasby
-Dan de Quille Captain Jack Downing
etc And today how the national feeling '
for "fun" baa changed! Irresistibly
"fanny" as these writers all were with
Mark Twain at their head 60 years ago '
bow doleful is most of their humor to- '
day! .
Driakwater aad Arteas Ward..
Whea Mr. Drinkwater'a Iincoln gives
the historic reading from Art em us Ward
at a cabinet meeting hew many of bia
twentieth century audience find food for
laughter in what this famous fun maker
of the '50s and early "80s bsd to ssy?
But It waa Just the kind of kumor tkat
could best lighten the tragic burden borne
by the martyr president; if it has lost
the secret for producing laughter it is
because we not Artemua Ward have
changed. Most of the world's humor
indeed especially if it is born of a tran-
aient national mood belongs distinctly
to an age and not to all time. And that
is why perhaps the humor of Mark '
Twain does not bulk so large witk us
today as the satirical serious side of kis
work. For it is very certain tkat kis
work has its deep serious side and that
this reveals as Mr. Tan Wck Brooks
claims more of the real Mark Twain
than the aide given up to laughter and
literary horseplay.
Myers company with me and fixed every-
thing up without any more fuss. They
were jubilant slthough they didn't want
to let me know it being a mourner. Well
the book is on its fifteenth thousand and
they have calls for from 2 to 100 copies
from every town in the country. They
gave me the royalty on those sold and
want me to write your biography.'
"Good William very good." be said
stuffing the large envelope which William
bad given him into an inside pocket "I'll
go to work on the biography at once." He
atood absorbed in thought for some
minutes. "Go back .to New York" he
said. "Keep your fake solemn and con-
tinue to draw the royalties. When they
begin to run slack lea me know and I
wiU appear on the scene in the role
of a man temporarily Insane' and not
remember a thing that happened in the
blank space namely -the time spent here.
Fed God's sake don't let them get hold
of any of my pictures or they'll publish
it and ID be recognised."
After William had retired a bundle of
papers he had left caught Orlando's
eje. The Chronicle and Stereotype re-
printed the opening of "The Man With-
out a Name" for the edification of its
readers. A popular magazine bailed the
book as a masterpiece rsked out s poem
which bsd been submitted to it the yesr
before loudly bemoaned the sad fate
of the author and covered itself with
glorly generally. Orlsndo turned page
after page and at last advancing to the
mirror remarked nlesssntly "Dash this
glass! It isn't half big enough!"
His eyes wore a distant look as he
edged closer snd closer until bis long
hair almost touched the mirror. It
was a simple fest for imsgination to
run ahead of time. He was back in
New York the lion of the boar.
"Don't you bear tbem celling for you
Orlando? Can't yon bear them howling
for a glimpse of you? They want to see
the man who wrote The Man Without a
'Name' and was taken for dead so long.
They want to see the face of the genius
who was madly insane for two months
and can nqt remember anything that oc-
curred in the interval insane while the
-world thought bim a suicide. Insane
and while so wrote an immortal 'Fare-
well.' They want to see bim they must
see him.
"Before yon go out there to speak a
few words to those people you so ably
fooled. I want to be frank with von sir..
You don't know bow. to write you' .
never did and you never will. You are
not possessed of the smallest spark of
literary talent. But you' are s clever
business man Orlando Potts a very
clever business man."
j"reaawMoaa
HOUSTON jFOST SUNDAY n MAGAZINE; APRIL 18 1920
Page Nine
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The Houston Post. (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 36, No. 15, Ed. 1 Sunday, April 18, 1920, newspaper, April 18, 1920; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth606985/m1/57/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .