Peanut Publicity

Sirs: . . . Anent the story of the Washington peanut vendor, it is the perfect publicity story. If said story was saved during election campaign, it could net candidate using it 100,000 votes throughout the country. The story is the acme of a pressagent's glorious triumph--pathos, human interest, and the milk of human kindness-- also BUNK. The story was obviously concocted to entrench more solidly the President with the ''masses," and of course it brought countless remarks from the gullible as to the kindness of the understanding pilot of the great ship of state. Would TIME report the natural sequel to this story--if it proves a boomerang--and what was done to the other hundreds of peanut vendors that took the executive order literally--and moved their stands to the vicinity of the Vasila- kos stand? . . .

R. C. BENWAY Toledo, Ohio

Up to last week no other peanut vendor had been alert or bold enough to poach the territory of "Steve" Vasilakos,. who gratefully donated one day's receipts ($9.45) to the President's Warm Springs Fund.--ED.

Sirs:

Nicholas Stephanos Vasilakos echoes with more than sentiment to some persons. It echoes with romance to me and many others who have bought the wares of this peanut and pop corn vendor. Across "the Avenue" "David Belasco's" theatre rests. Many a romantic couple have before or after the show bought of the man on Pennsylvania & East Executive Avenues. More romantic, however, have been the purchases of this man in the form of peanuts to be fed to squirrels and pigeons across the way, as cater-cornered to N. S. V.'s stand is a small park where many Washingtonites go during the sweltering days to court sweethearts, take wives and sisters, and feed squirrels and pigeons.

HAROLD J. RUTTENBERG Pittsburgh, Pa.

"By God, Sirs . . ."

Sirs:

This, to tender a long-due congratulation on your book reviews. Particularly do I wish to praise your Jan. 29 review of Ulysses. Intelligent, comprehensive, pointed, the reviewer smacks the head of the nail every time.

By God, Sirs, you have done an excellent job. I couldn't do better myself.

J. W. PRINCELL Minneapolis, Minn.

Sirs:

The review of Ulysses is a fine piece of work. I thank you for it. There is a comment that should be made on a line or two of it. Your last column on p. 49 tells us that those who learn life from books will find Ulysses preeminently valuable.

Who is it that lives like Bloom and his set? At present I know the inside of about five hundred homes. I have known a couple of thousand more scattered up and down the social gamut. I believe it is fair to say that about two in a hundred are somewhat like that of Bloom and the others. Perhaps it would be better to say that the Blooms are an exaggerated example of a couple of homes in a hundred.

Perhaps the Bloom type are found only in cities of a certain type. What type can it be? I was raised in a very large one and knew of few Blooms. At that rate, the denizens of Joyce's pages are not going to teach us life. . . .

How does such a jumbled and even pornographic idea as Joyce incurred from his unfortunate rearing represent the present life of people who are used to a degree of decency; used to normal temptations, struggle and a very perceptible victory; used to a decidedly pure life?

One cannot well say that Ulysses teaches life. I fear the comment quoted from your review was one that was based on the current creed of critics. Their rule of thumb for determining what is significant and what is insignificant is this: If it is not adultery, it is not literature.

As a maxim of criticism, this is like the virtue of Mrs. Bloom easy, too easy. It seems to me that the most one can say for Ulysses is that, as an experiment in the use of language, it is strong stuff. But it will hardly teach us life, except for a very crippled and segregated aspect.

WILLIS THOMPSON Hilton Village, Va.

Sirs:

Thanks and appreciation referring to the excellent piece on James Joyce and Ulysses in the issue of Jan 29. TIME always has treated Mr. Joyce in a dignified manner, another proof of the intelligence of your editorship. This is a great honor for you to lay up for the future, for Joyce is the greatest writer of our time and one of the very foremost artists in the recorded history of Western civilization.

Only one detected point of question: as to the physical size of Joyce's chirography ("to scrawl his own writing hugely" . . .), where did your excellent critic get the idea that Joyce writes "hugely"? I have two specimens of his handwriting and both are small, thin, fragile. Far from being scrawling, too.

Your book critic deserves a reward for one of the best pieces of the year and one of the best short pieces ever written on Joyce and his Ulysses.

H. K. CROESSMANN Duquoin, Ill.

Author Joyce's handwriting, normally small, varies to enormous size according to his inconstant eyesight.--ED.

Sex Changed

Sirs:

Just found my mislaid copy of TIME Nov. 20 where in the middle of 3rd column p. 12 you refer to my cousin Pierce Francis Connelly the sculptor as a woman, Frances Pierce Connelly. Frank has passed on so won't care but it is hard luck to have one's sex changed even post- mortem. . . . I was sorry to see that -- --* James Joyce get so much space for his ordure pile. HENRY CONNELLY SHURTLEFF, M.D.

Philadelphia, Pa. -- *Libel deleted.

Forensic Adventure

Sirs:

Despite the obstruction and discouraging prospect for the notice of the women in the gallery created by your description that leaves me a doddering ancient, indicating no compensations to the women in past procedure and no hope of any to myself in the future, I must express my thanks and appreciation for the generous spirit you all show in reporting my capacities and their application from time to time in the discharge of Senatorial forensic adventure (TIME, Jan. 29).

... I am bold to suggest to all of you to feel free to command me from time to time in something that may be of avail in your news work for something in governmental agency where I can make some slight return in the spirit of the big, broad, magnanimous kindnesses your frequent references indicate to the more substantial feature of life than the little persiflage naturally and justifiably indulged in.

J. HAMILTON LEWIS U. S. Senate Washington, D. C.

Guilder, Dollar, Tical

Sirs:

Assuming that your letter page supplement is to be published weekly, how is the traveler, who must necessarily be a newsstand buyer, to obtain copies without a weekly letter to I. Van Meter?

Until further notice, all issues of the Letters Supplement will be sent, as published, to each & every TIME-reader requesting any issue. Address I. Van Meter, editorial secretary of TIME, 135 East 42nd Street, New York City.--ED.

May I call your attention to another way in which TIME can be of great service to the traveling public?

During the past four years I have visited most of the tropical countries of the world and have, of course, been out of touch with important world news during the long sea voyages, except for the small amount which trickles in over the wireless.

What a blessing, on arriving in Bangkok, Mombasa, Sydney, Cape Town, Singapore to find a copy or two of TIME and to feel that one knows the important happenings of the world, at least up to March (even though it is April).

This feeling being shared by many fellow passengers, the small supply at the news agencies is quickly depleted.

Why not send a larger supply to foreign countries?

Dealers should now know that even back copies are eagerly sought and that a guilder in Java, a dollar in the Malay States, or a tical in Siam, is a price which would be gladly doubled.

J. E. RICHMOND La Crosse, Wis.

Black Star

Sirs:

What is the significance of the small black star always in the lower left corner of the front cover of your magazine?

ARTHUR W. SMITH New Haven, Conn.

The star appears only on copies of TIME containing liquor advertisements, warns the Circulation Department that such copies must not be shipped to newsstands in Dry States. But copies sent direct to subscribers may now contain liquor advertisements no matter what State they enter.-- ED.

WOW!

S i r s :

On p. 23 of the issue of TIME of date Jan. 22 under Medicine, top of second column, you list aspart &#quot;b&#quot;of Federal Cold Treatment No. I "swab throat with a mixture of one part iodine and five parts glycerine." Will you please advise the strength of the iodine to go into the mixture? I mixed some according to the printed directions and swabbed the throat, and WOW! The iodine must have been awfully strong--or else--. I may try again after I hear from you

CHARLES A. BRINTON

Morton, Pa.

If Reader Brinton used ordinary tincture of iodine (7% strength) even in a 2-to-I dilution, his throat must indeed be sensitive.--ED.

Swine Sirs:

No relatives of mine were among Milestones of Jan. 29, p. 41, and I suppose none of yours. And as far as I am concerned I hope to God none shall ever be. But where is your sense of propriety and decency? Do you suppose it savors the least of uncommon common sense or smartness to list the passing of a swine by gorging with the death, etc. of such an eminent list of men and women? Sprinkle your pages with more of brains and less of nonsense.

REV. ALFRED GILBERG Helena, Mont.

Milestones about eminent beasts are always separated from human Milestones by what printers call a hair line, after the end of the human list. The death of Blue Boy, star hog cinemactor of State Fair, was thus reported, as were the deaths of Rin Tin Tin, Balto, Khartoum the elephant, Psyche the laboratory monkey. --ED.

Cured

Sirs:

In one of your November issues under Medicine was an article in regard to the death of Texas Guinan and the epidemic of amebic dysentery in Chicago (TIME, Nov. 20). I read the article with great interest because I had visited the Fair a very few weeks previous. During the latter part of December I began to have internal disorders and my local physician was not concerned about my troubles, but having your article seriously in mind I told him the story and immediately we consulted a specialist and an examination disclosed that I had amebic dysentery.

Thanks to your news item and the thoroughness with which you try to cover news, my illness was cured very quickly and perhaps I owe my life to your magazine. I have read your magazine thoroughly from your very first publication so you see it has not been read in vain.

NELSON D. BOOTH Orange, Conn.

Farm Journal

Sirs:

See p. 28, second column, issue Jan. 29, about farm papers. American Farming is no longer published. Last issue was April 1932. We know because we were printing it. Your source of information, therefore, is two years behind the times. . . .

M. D. ZIMMERMAN Secretary

Kable Brothers Co. Mount Morris, Ill.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.