Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 23, 1924 — page 104: what you’re looking at

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

262 interviewing rut and the article was really bright, quite free from the labored clever- ness which makes many things of the kind so well worth skipping. Of course she had been helped a great deal by the scenario which we had arranged. Harlowe had lib- erally salted it with glittering bromides and studied impromptus, all of which Tom Jervis had committed to memory, and he had really done it very well, the few breaks that he made being charged by Nell to the eccentricity of genius. It was impossible for anyone to read the article without coming to the conclusion that here was a phenomenally gifted being who did not take himself seriously and was as natural and unaffected as an unspoiled child. His pictures indicated that, in the matter of personal appearance alone, he had a legitimate right to think highly of him- self; yet it was evident that he was not as conceited as many’a runt who looks about three generations removed from his anthropoid ancestors. Most of the fellows were highly delighted with the way the interview had ‘turned out, and a chemical analysis would have shown slight traces of gratitude to me for having originated the scheme and helped them out of a scrape. Of course the satisfaction was not unanimous; that there would be mal- contents was to have been expected. Our host, Ben Gleason, was unable to conceal his feeling that a great wrong had been done and that, if there were any justice in the world, he and none other would be the subject of the two page article in the Bulletin, with the headlines about America’s greatest composer. The contributions of the others to the reputation of Seumas ap- parently were negligible in Ben’s opinion. Chub Burton was another dissatisfied party, and he considered it one of the dark- est tragedies in literary annals that the credit for his beautiful poetry should be given to another. Aside from these two assassins of joy, the opinion prevailed that they had all escaped a great peril; that the interview would set all doubts at rest, and that the name that they had made for themselves would be worth more than ever before. I knew that other papers and peri- odicals would soon start snooping around ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. for articles, so Harlowe and I arranged that our original synopsis of an interview should be typed in order that copies might be given out by “ Spinoza” Malcolm, to whom, as agent, all comers would be re- ferred. Tom Jervis soon returned from his walk, half a dozen assorted dogs making as much fuss over him as if he were the founder of the S. P. C. A. He seemed rather depressed; in fact his cheery and careless manner had vanished entirely. ‘“Ah! the new Admirable Crichton!” I greeted him, that being one of the sub- heads of Nell’s interview. “ How do you like your suite in the Hall of Fame?”’ ‘Tt’s all right, I guess,” he said in a re- signed sort of way; “‘ outside of it making me feel like a crook.” Chub and Ben seemed to think that was the way he ought to feel, but the rest of us all reasoned with him, telling him that he had wronged nobody and humbugged no one but the public who were used to it. “Just think of the good turn you have done for a lot of deserving young men,”’ said Harlowe. ‘‘ You’ve saved our joint repu- tation for us. But for you, a noble name would have been dragged in the mire.” ‘* Beside,” Roddy Blythe reminded him, “it’s a perfectly legitimate business deal. We go on gathering the coin and you go to Europe with a good salary to represent us.” Tom looked uncomfortable and seemed about to say something when Bert Hollister asked: ‘‘ When had he better start?” “The sooner the better,” I suggested. “The Bessarabia sails on Tuesday.” “Tl attend to the tickets,” McKesson volunteered. “ Much obliged,” said Tom calmly; “ but I can’t get ready by Tuesday.” “Well, then, there’s another boat on Wednesday,” said Harlowe. “ Not that I want to hurry you, but the sooner you $a)1—"" “T have an engagement in New York on Wednesday evening,” declared Tom cas- ually, playing with one of the dogs. “ Be- sides, I’ve thought the matter over, and I’m not going to Europe.” ‘““ Oh, yes, you are,” insisted McKesson. “ That was part of the bargain.” COMMCOOOKS (E(0)