Letters, Aug. 22, 1938

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(6 of 6)

TIME did not say that no traveling salesman would ever get to Heaven—but gave that as a public impression.

And TIME did say Messrs. Carey & Murphy thought the salesmen would like their plan. Not willing to set, itself up as a judge of traveling salesmen's morals, TIME is willing to leave such judgments to what they say about themselves.—ED.

Crum Elbow

Sirs:

OVER 3,200 LETTERS, POST CARDS AND TELEGRAMS HAVE JUST BEEN FORWARDED HERE FROM CRUM ELBOW. OVER A THOUSAND WERE RECEIVED BEFORE I LEFT. OUT OF ALL THESE, ONLY FOUR COMMUNICATIONS—TWO LETTERS AND TWO POST CARDS ALL ANONYMOUS, CONTAIN ADVERSE CRITICISM AND ABUSE IN THE RECENT EFFORT TO TEST THE ECONOMIC THEORIES OF PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT AND FATHER DIVINE.

NEVER MADE ANY SUCH STATEMENTS AS YOU QUOTE IN YOUR ISSUE AUG. 8. AT NO TIME DID I THINK, MUCH LESS "CHATTERED," ABOUT A SALE OF CRUM ELBOW AS AN ACT WHICH WOULD "ANNOY FRANKLIN A GREAT DEAL." HONEST, HARDWORKING, DEBT-FREE PEOPLE COULD NOT ANNOY OTHER HARD-WORKING DIRT FARMERS AND WOULD DIMINISH RELIEF. THAT THE TRANSFER TO FATHER DIVINE WAS CONCEIVED IN SPITE IS NOT TRUE AND IS TYPICAL OF NEW DEAL DEFENSE PROPAGANDA SENT OUT BY SMUT AGENTS DREW PEARSON, WALTER WINCHELL AND ROBERT ALLEN UNDER THE DIRECTION OF SMEAR MASTER MICHELSON. WHEN AGAIN THEIR CONCEITS ARE SERVED UP AS AUTHENTIC QUOTATION GET OUT YOUR FLIT GUN. ROWLAND SPENCER

Palm Beach, Fla.

Thimbleriggery

Sirs:

TIME'S answer to observant TIME-&-Chronicle Reader Olsen (TIME, Aug. 1) that book stores do not commonly include juveniles on their best-seller lists to newspapers, explained precisely why Ferdinand has not appeared on the Chronicle's, list. The Emporium, unlike many of its customers, considers Ferdinand a juvenile.

But Mr. Olsen has put his finger squarely on one of the tender spots in book-publishing, bookselling and book-page-editing. With its sales-figures reports from bookstores, TIME can manage the cold truth, though not weekly. Newspaper book-pages must rely on impressions served up as facts by worried booksellers who, only human, may sometimes let the wish father the thought. Might not TIME at its convenience poll a) book-publishers, b) booksellers, c) book-editors to ascertain whether they do not, like Pearl Buck, regard this best-seller business as half nuisance and half outright thimbleriggery?

JOSEPH HENRY JACKSON

Literary Editor

San Francisco Chronicle

San Francisco, Calif.

TIME is happy to inform able Book-reviewer Jackson that its researches into best-seller lists have already shown that booksellers, at least, agree with Pearl Buck and him.—ED.