PAGE SIX THE MICHIGAN DAILY SUNDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1922
humored jest when opportunity pre- jewel, whether it serves' to illustrate
sents himself. Moreover, he knows his comment on the quality of the
0 0 k s a n ci W rite r s his h material. And what g does not writer under discussion or ho last
know he is not above gaining front some light upon the place he holds in
"Who's Who," both English and literary circles. And the setting it-
FOR RICHER, FOR POORER "After all," soliloquizes the hero, American. He is frankness person- self is firm and solid, holding the quo
Harold H. Armstrong "marriage can be no finer, no better, i ified. talion on tightly, and so smoothly
To the naturalistic literature of the than the two people it unites. Mar- But his comment is too limited .to tha thear
commonplace Harold H. Arsotrong niage is personal, individual; you can't be worthwhile. The nature of his If one is of the type spoken of by
pseudonymously Henry G. Aikman' generalize much about it. task excludes him from commenting Mr. Timothy Tubby in his "Journal,"
has contributed "For Richer, Fo' IORIAN G. SAYDER. critically upon the quality, artistic or (which has been appearing in The
Poorer," (Knopf) a uniquely interest- otherwise, of the work of the writers Bookman), unable to believe that a
ing novel of matrimony. Mr. Aikman "WHEN WINTER COMES TO MAIN he speaks about in his pages. If he man can write until his personality is
Is to. be remembered for the author- STREET" alludes to the art of the Doran writers an open book to him, "When Winter
ship of "Zell," and a more obscure By Grant Overton at all he must do so only favorably, Comes to Main Street" is just the book
novel of the Detroit automobile in- "When Winter Comes to Main so that, in general, he wisely feels it to meet his need. Indeed, it pretends
dustry, "The Groper." Street," a book of gossip about liter. to e the better course to deal with to be nothing more than gossip about
The Aikman mystery, which, since ary men and women, is published by biographical details and pure exter~ literary people, and it is no better
the publication of "Zell," has Inter- George H. Doran Co., dedicated to nalities. After all, the main thig is than it pretends to he. The piclures
ested us, was made patent by Mr. George H. Doran himself, ("who had to get the book and the author before( it presents are pictures, not portraits,
Knopf with the release of the present the idea"), and deals exclusively with the public. Other writers and other but they are intimate and interesting.
work. I need hardly say that Harold George H. Doran writers. Under such books are better suited to take sides.. In general the book is entertaining,
Armstrong is a 1905 graduate of Mich- conditions one hardly has a right to (. There is a fund of information, mornx attractively printed, nicely bound, and
(gan, was a repeater ,og The Daily, a expect anything which cannot be cor- or less inte'esting and more or less embonished. with rather good prints
a football nt0°fhsd a ahorrene for rectly classifi " under poqpa anda, or, new, scattered broadcast',uon the' of -several authors, The purpose -of
becoming a literary recluse, and las if yams wish 't be entirely andid, ad- book's creamy pages. If it is fdr 'in- the sketches is not noble, not pro-
been a Detroit attorney for te past vertising. formation concerning Doran authors found, not inspirational, but it cannot
fifteen years. He resides temporarily The book's title, a combination of that you are looking, this is the boolk be said that this purpose, however
in New York. the names of what have been consid- for you. And Doran authors are trifling, has not been served.
There are two things that the au- ered two of the best novels of the last many. Among them you will find, if M. A. K.
thor seeks to do: first, to delineate two years, attracts attention, which is you go down the index, such strange
the character of Kenneth Gramling, evidently what it is intended to do. associates as James' E. Agate, C. E. "Gargoyles," by Ben Hecht, (Boni &
the meticulous dreamer, and reveal Outside of this virtue it is difficult to Andrews, Elizabeth Asquith, (Prin- Liveright) is a frank narrative of the
his final emersion from the passive find any excuse for it. The rather in- cess Bibesco), Margot Asquith, Olive artifilcial life existing in any larger
shell; second, to demonstrate the genious attempt of the advertising Roberts Barton, William Rose Benet, city in America. Ben Hecht will be
sordid but veritable axiom that mar- copy on the paper cover to connect Arnold Bennett, Heywood Broun, remembered as the author of "Erik
riage to be successful, granting the up the need of "Main Street" with the Thomas Burke, Robert W. Chambers, Dorn."
couple to be most congenial, must long, cold nights "When Winter Irvin S. Cobb, Joseph Conrad, and so
have a foundation of cold cash, and Comes" is too thin to be plausible. on down the alphabet. . Who these
a rather strong foundation, too. Nor To my mind this book of comment men are, what they have written, and,
is this latter the ultimate purpose for on good, bad, and indifferent writers more particularly, what of theirs is
which the novel was written. It is is obviously trying to gain the pub- about to be published by Doran in the
incidental to the narrative. lic's attention by claiming relation- near future, such is the subject matter
The setting is, I think, Detroit. ship to two books which have already of "When Winter Comes to Mai
Certainly .not, as one reviewer con-, met public approval. This sort of Street."
tends, New York. Of course I have, dodge is hardly the thing one expects One thing Overton does to perfec-
no positive basis beyond the evidencq from Doran, even Doran the adver- tion. He introduces quotations where
that Gramling and Miriam, his fiancee tiser. . they will do the most good. I mean
stand gazing at a boat which is mak- The writing is clever enough, to be this seriously. He has a happy facul-
ing its way up the river for Duluth. sure. Grant Overton is sprightly and ty of choosing an interesting quota
But the spirit of the whole is Detroit: entertaining, full of amusing incident, tion and setting it down in his con-
there are just such law offices, apart- quick enough at making a good text so that it shines there like a
ments, sweltering days, and similar S
adjacent towns as West Haven. IIIIIliit1U illllI tllllliI - -
oenneth K. Gramling, in part one,
is a law clerk in one of the city's old- "
est legal establishments. He has A Banner Year or Health
great ambitio'ns and intentions, which
never materialize because of his ter- An early selection of shirts
rar of contact with the world. He h
extenuates, procrastinates, does ev- = Pas many advantages.
erything to avoid trying a case. Then Gain Physically as well as M entally You have a wider choice of
comes Miriam Shaw, the daughter of S the moat desirable materials
a bankrupt scoundrel, but an Intel- dpliated.
igent, amiable woman. Even thought which cannot be duplicated.
Gramling has decidedto marrywh ou are certain to have new
heiress, he proposes to Miriam when=ri k M e P re M k
she lets down her hair.. Shirts when you want them,
Marriage does not make the hero and this detail of your
more intrepid, but instead, he fears Wardrobe has been attend-
that his wife will discover his coward- And insist on its coming from the
liness. Domestic disturbances begin' ed to
on account of Gramling's fancied a
wrongs, and at times we should feel A A r D
ntensely gratified were his wife to
fur 4th and Catherine DON t ALDSON
u coat, finances run lower and s likeDONAL
wise Gramling's courage, until finally,
he comes home one evening to learn 224 S. State St
that his wife is unconscious in a chari Phone 424 Near Godma's
ty ward of the city hospital. It takes
rather a stiff blow to knock some ag iUII gIiflIIIIIliligliilfilli l i r
gressiveness into him, but everythin
ends felicitously.
Although I am averse to 'compari-
sons, It is only just to admit that one A
will not find the delicate child pay< AI + I '1
chology, the irony and the quaintD
characters, that lifted "Zell" to a
place beside Floyd Dell's -"Moon Calf,"
"For Richer, For Poorer" has, how COME IN AND LOOK THESE OVER
ever, Kenneth Gramling and a number
of scintillating miniatures, which are
traced with satisfying artistry. GREBE RECEIVERS WESTINGHOUSE RECEIVERS
Mr. Armstrong is admittedly a re- REMLER PARTS RADIO CORPORATION'
porter, The atmosphere of the law WESTERN ELECTRIC WORK RITE APPARATUS
office, which Is presented so lucidly in ________
"For Richer, o Poorer," was ore FROST HEAD SETS BALDWIN HEADSETS
ously taken from first hand impres- F O TH A E S'B L WN H A S T
sion and reaction. But reporters have BRANDES HEADSETS BALDWIN LOUD SPEAKER
an innate preference for content over MURDOCK HEADSETS UNITS
style, frequently to the expunging of
the latter. Though there is none of MYERS TUBES FEDERAL HEADSETS

the charming, music of the decadents
in the author's style, such a discrim- MICA DIAPHRAGMS FOR ALL MARES OF PHONES
mating selection of words is evident
that his prose is always robust.
"For Richer, For Poorer" is neither THE K AND K RADIO SUPPLY O* Next tC . Arade
a commercial epic nor a psycho- -
analytic etude of matrimony. Those
long fatuous dissertations upon mar- PHONE 793-R 711 N, UNIVERSITY AVE.
riage so popular among contemporary
novelists are happily absent . . . ,