Adventure, July 1, 1928 — page 190: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

T he FRX YS Detail T HONESTLY warms my heart, and makes me feel that Adventure is doing a truly great work in the world, to see the way in which scores—on a bad break, thousands—of readers come right up with no hesitation, and criticize any mistake in our pages. Though there are times on any magazine when silly misrepresenta- tions get through, I think that this sort of thing happens less often on Adventure than—on what name you? Down here in the office we’re as careful as we can be. Any questionable story is read and re-read until it is well nigh worn through. All authorities at our command are consulted on doubtful points. Then, if still there remains an argument, the Ask Adventure experts are called m— always with the author’s permission. - In this way we feel that our fiction is kept clean of cheap, careless errors, at any rate—but even then, there come some slips. Here is a small one—important enough, however. One of our most popu- lar and experienced of authors is criti- cized, and admits the mistake. In the March 15th issue, in a story “Lost Le- gions,” Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson tells of American and British sailors having black braid on their collars. This he states because they Camp-FIRE A free-to-all meeting place for readers, writers and adventurers 184 are supposed to be in mourning for Lord Nelson! How come? On every blouse I wore in the Amer- ican Navy all I had was white tape. If it ever got black—well we certainly did not hear about it. Furthermore I heard it was that the neckerchief we wore for mourning. Maybe I’m wrong. Let’s hear from somebody that has some real facts on this. Too bad that slip came early in the story; it left a flat taste in what otherwise was an interesting tale. Tell Mr. Pendexter to stick to his short stories, they can’t be beat, but his serials, not so good. Give ts more of Tuttle, Bedford-Jones, Nason, Raine. They are all good. And how about a long modern story on some big city? Don’t tell me there is no adventure there. Sorry to have to butt in with a criticism. But wishing you well, I am, Sincerely yours—cHARLES REECHIA, 1636 Lexington Avenue, New York City. Dear Mr. Reechia: The editor of Adventure has forwarded me your letter containing the ““How come?” concerning my having ascribed black braid instead of white, to the American sailors’ uniforms in my story, “Lost Legions.” I must admit having stubbed my toe and landed heavily on my left ear, on this detail. What makes it worse is the fact that I really know better, although my knowledge of the Navy is rather limited, being confined to those rare meetings when Army and Navy would get together for a good old fashioned party. The resulting celebration was generally such that all details became strangely blurred! I remember meeting the gang from the Helena one glorious Fourth of July in Hong-Kong. Sometime I am going back to Hong-Kong and see what it really looks like . . I believe it to be a fact however, that the Amer- comicloooks.com