The Literary Digest – Page 25 – Old Magazine Articles

A German Champion of American English
(Literary Digest, 1908)

Having made a twenty year study of the English spoken in both Britain and the United States, Alois Brandl (1855 – 1940), chief Professor of English literature at the University of Berlin, found himself in an advantageous position that would allow him to make definitive conclusions about the evolution of the English language on American shores:

Mr. Brandl has been comparing English as it is spoken by Englishmen and English as it is spoken by Americans, and has come to the conclusion that the former is not a whit purer than the latter… the English of Americans was not only improving, but was already as good as that of our English cousins… He is very severe on the Cockney accent, and declares that the English of the ordinary educated American is quite on an equality with that of the ordinary educated Englishman…

Professor W.W. Skeat (1835 – 1912), chair of Anglo-Saxon Studies at Cambridge University, entirely agreed with the German savant and went on in greater detail along similar lines.

No mention was made as to what unit of measure was applied to reach their deductions.

Public Murals: the Art of the 1930s
(Literary Digest, 1935)

A quick read on the subject of that uneasy union that existed between art and industry during the 1930s. References are made to the work of muralists Dunbar D. Beck (1902-1986), Arthur Watkins Crisp (1881 – 1974), Kenneth B. Loomis, Charles S. Dean and Charles Louis Goeller (1901 – 1955).

German Schools and the Teaching of the War
(Literary Digest, 1922)

It was discovered in 1922 that when the German school system made mention of the recently ended war (if they addressed the topic at all), the subject was often white-washed or inaccurately characterized. When approached by a foreign reporter concerning the matter, teachers claimed that new books were too expensive and that the prevailing political forces could never agree on an accurate history of the war:

When do you think you will be able to begin studying the history of the war in your schools? I asked.

Not until this generation dies…

Clemenceau
(Literary Digest, 1922)

Georges Clemenceau (1841 – 1929) served as one of France’s wartime Premieres (1917-1920). The following is an excerpt from his letter to the American people imploring them to share in his outrage concerning Germany’s open defiance to the Versailles Treaty. Clemenceau would die seven years later, fully convinced that another devastating war with Germany was just around the corner.

Click here to read more articles about the German violations of the Versailles Treaty.

A Post-War Visit to Metz
(Literary Digest, 1919)

This is a letter from an American infantry Major, James E. White, who wrote home to explain that there was still much to do six days after the armistice.

The major’s letter relayed his experiences as being one of the first Allied officers to enter the formerly occupied city of Metz, in order to evacuate wounded American prisoners:

The following Tuesday the grand entry of the French troops took place, but no welcome was more spontaneous than than that given to the group of American officers who on that Sunday peacefully invaded the fortress of Metz.

The Difference Between Brits & Yanks
(Literary Digest, 1919)

The author of this piece interviews the poet Robert Nichols (1893 – 1944) and finds the writer was convinced that the differences between the two peoples rests in their understanding of the idea of freedom.

A New Deal for Women
(The Literary Digest, 1933)

This historic article appeared during the opening weeks of Roosevelt’s first term administration announcing that the new president was taking a novel approach in granting various appointments to government positions of leadership by selecting numerous women who had proved their mettle in the fiery furnace of 1920s Democratic party politics.

1924 was a very important year for American women in politics…

Japan Sinks an American Warship
(Literary Digest, 1937)

Bombs rained like hailstones and churned the waters all around the ship like geysers.’ said Earl Leaf, United Press correspondent in China and eyewitness of the sinking of the United States gunbpat PANAY, by Japanese aviators, in the Yangtze River about 26 miles above Nanking; ….The British gunboat LADYBIRD and BEE also were fired on, and soon Foreign Minister Anthony Eden was telling an angry House of Commons that:

His Majesty’s Ambassador to Tokyo has made the strongest protest to the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs.’

Click here if you would like to read more about the sinking of the U.S.S. Panay.

Bertrand Russell on American Intervention
(Literary Digest, 1922)

The British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872 – 1970; Nobel Prize for Literature, 1950) used to get mighty hot under the collar when the topic of American society came up and this column is just one example. During his 1922 American speaking tour Russell rambled-on about how prone Americans were to confuse the truth with commercial messages; believing that altruism was seldom a motivating factor behind a single American undertaking. He will have none of the thinking that America’s main concern for jumping into the meat grinder of 1914-1918 was entirely inspired by wounded France and poor little Belgium but was rather an exercise in American self-interest.

Read the thoughts of one W.W. I veteran who regrets having gone to war…

The Old Hollywood Way to Physical Perfection
(Literary Digest, 1937)

The old flesh sculptor himself, Donald Loomis, late Physical Director for MGM Studios, let loose with some 1930s tips as to how he was able to make all those movie stars look so utterly fabulous – some are quite useful (some are pathetic).

Symmetry is the objective of Hollywood body sculptors. For bust-reduction, Loomis has a simple formula: Jump up and down with no support. Exercise in which the arms are forced backward and forward horizontally are used to develop the upper chest…

Click here to read an article about the demise of a popular 1940s hairstyle.

Why Englishmen Resist Socialism
(Literary Digest, 1897)

Attached are the thoughts of German socialist Karl Liebknecht (1871 – 1919) concerning the matter as to why he believed the British working classes seemed so thoroughly unenthusiastic about launching a socialist rebellion in their country.

Woodrow Wilson and the Repeal of Prohibition
(Literary Digest, 1919)

For some in the U.S. Congress and for President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) in particular, the prohibition of alcohol in the United States (passed by Congress on November 1, 1918) was simply viewed as an appropriate war-time measure guaranteed to maintain the productivity of an efficient working class. However, with the First World War coming to a close, President Wilson saw little need in keeping the entire law as it was written, and he suggested allowing the sale and distribution of beer and wine. This article will inform you of the political will of the dry members of congress as well as the strength of the American clergy in 1919

The Franco-Russian Alliance
(Literary Digest, 1897)

The Franco-Russian Alliance (1892 – 1917) was a military partnership uniting the Russian empire of Alexander III Alexandrovich and the French Third Republic under President Marie François Sadi Carnot. It was a key element that contributed to the deep sense of insecurity experienced by Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany. When one reads the attached article from 1897, with it’s strong anti-German language, you will come away wondering why the First World War didn’t begin sooner:

France may now hope to regain her lost provinces with the help of Russia. The hour of revenge has come. Alsace Lorraine will once more be French…

A New Propaganda Delivery Sysytem
(Literary Digest, 1917)

Photographs of a small, hand-held helium balloon being loaded with German translations of President Wilson’s April (1917) war address in order that they might be released over the German trenches. This small notice makes clear that this particular method of persuasion resulted in fifty Germans surrendering.

The British Rage Against Pacifism
(The Literary Digest, 1915)

While Western Europe was all ablaze during the Spring of 1915, many Americans were tapping their toes to a catchy tune titled, I Didn’t Raise my Boy to be a Soldier (by Alfred Bryan and Al Piantadosi). This really irked the editors at THE SPECTATOR who let their fingers trip across the typewriter keyboard at a tremendous speed spewing-out all sorts of unflattering adjectives; they even went so far as to rewrite a few verses.

NBC and CBS Open Shop on the West Coast
(Literary Digest, 1936)

In order to take advantage of the local talent abiding in the sleepy film colony of Hollywood, the far-seeing executives at NBC and CBS saw fit to open radio and television broadcasting facilities in that far, distant burg.

The trek to Hollywood of the Broadcasting companies began in earnest last winter when the National Broadcasting Company opened a large building – fire-proof, earthquake-proof, sound-proof and air-conditioned.

For the Promotion of Good Manners
(Literary Digest, 1900)

Americans of the mid-Nineteenth Century who entertained any social ambitions at all were totally at a loss as to how they might find their place in the business world, much less the swank and pomp of polite society, if they were without any understanding as to the manners required to open these doors. Unable to benefit from such T.V. shows as Dallas or Dynasty and finding that Emily Post was no where in view, they found a reliable ally in a collection of pamphlets briefly published by the firm of Beadle & Adams.

The 1908 New York – Paris Race: Bumpy Ride
(Literary Digest, 1908)

With the centennial re-running of the New York to Paris race beginning this May (2008), it is interesting to read about the authentic 1908 contest and the difficulties they faced in a world without proper roads.

Interest in the New York – to – Paris race, temporarily suspended by the failure to find a passable road in Alaska…