''The Baseless Fear of War'' by Andrew Carnegie (The Independent, 1913)Andrew Carnegie (1835 - 1919) tried his hand at clairvoyance and wrote this article in response to the constant plea for money from the U.S. Department of War, which he found completely unnecessary and excessive. "Our naval and military officials must dream of wars since most of them never even see one." Willa Cather Gets a Bad Review (Vanity Fair, 1913)Writing his review of "O Pioneers", DRESS and VANITY FAIR book critic Henry Brinsley wrote:
"Miss Willa Cather in "O Pioneers!" (O title!!) is neither a skilled storyteller nor the least bit of an artist. And yet by the end of the book, something has happened in the readers mind that leaves him grateful...There isn't a vestige of 'style' as such: for page after page one is dazed at the ineptness of the medium and the triviality of the incidents...And the secret of this is the persistence throughout of a single fine quality of the author - her extraordinary sincerity." Billy Sunday Campaign Trail for Prohibition (Literary Digest, 1913)I 1913 Presbyterian preacher Billy Sunday (1862 - 1935) was, without a doubt, one of the most visible advocates for the successful implementation of any federal legislation that would outlaw liquor across America. When it became clear to many that Prohibition was causing far more problems than it solved, he continued to strongly support the legislation, and after its repeal in 1933 the Preacher called for its reinstatement.
Reviewed: The Inside of the Cup
by Winston Churchill (Literary Digest,1913)The 1913 book review of The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill (the other one) was so fraught with questions concerning the revolt of the Suffragettes and their disillusion with Christianity that the review was printed on the "Religion Page" of THE LITERARY DIGEST.
The American Civil War and the Unity it Created (The Sewanee Review, 1913)Written at the time when the United States was marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, Dudley Miles, a Professor of History at Columbia University, wrote this appreciation concerning one of the lasting virtues of the American Civil War: "The torrent of natural life has swept away the bitter memories of brother struggling with brother. In both North and South faces are turned from the past, and hearts are filled with pride and hope and aspiration for the future of the republic....The magnanimity which Grant displayed at Appomattox, the restraint which even political temper displayed during Reconstruction, stopping short of confiscation of property and the execution of prominent leaders...these things furnish a new chapter in the history of victor and vanquished." Billy Sunday in Columbus, Ohio (The Literary Digest, 1913)Presbyterian preacher Billy Sunday (William Ashley Sunday, 1862 - 1935) was, without a doubt, one of the leading figures advocating for the adoption of Prohibition in 1919. When it became clear to many that Prohibition was causing far more problems than it solved, he continued to strongly support the legislation, and after its repeal in 1933, the Preacher called for its reinstatement. The Civl War as Unifier (The Sewanee Review, 1913)"The torrent of natural life has swept away the bitter memories of brother struggling with brother. In both North and South faces are turned from the past, and hearts are filled with pride and hope and aspiration for the future of the republic....The magnanimity which Grant displayed at Appomattox, the restraint which even political temper displayed during Reconstruction, stopping short of confiscation of property and the execution of prominent leaders...these things furnish a new chapter in the history of victor and vanquished." KEY WORDS: Civil War, Civil War Reconstruction, Malace Toward - None Charity Toward All. Violent Women (The Literary Digest, 1913)With the number violent acts committed by destructive Suffragettes quickly growing, the British patriarchs considered deporting them to Australia and other dominions as a just punishment for such a class of women.
Read about an attack on President Wilson that was launched by the suffragettes in 1918...
*Watch this Film Clip About Violent Women (No Educational Value Whatever)* Converting Texas Protestants (The Literary Digest, 1913)Texas is today an American state that is almost entirely Catholic, however this was not always the case, as this short article makes clear. During the young Twentieth Century the Catholic Arch Dioces saw fit to harness the wonders of the internal combustion engine and create a "mobile chapel" in order to help bring an end to the Protestant dominance of Texas. However, in the end it was not the Churchmobile per se that raised the number of Catholics in the region so much as the rising tide of uncontrolled immigration from the bordering nation of Mexico. In it's defense, however, it should be noted that the "Churchmobile" did get remarkable mileage. Civil War Pirate Raphael Semmes (Atlantic Monthly, 1913)Attached is a "psychographic" essay from Confederate Portraits (1914) by the noted biographer, Gamaliel Bradford (1863 - 1932). It must have been written in order to expose to the reading public that softer, more sensitive Raphael Semmes (1809 - 1877) that no historian ever seems to consider. This vision of the American Civil War pirate comes off as a quiet, pious Renaissance man, with a flare for the dramatic.
"Semmes was not only a wide reader in his profession and in lines connected with it, but he loved literature proper, read much poetry and quoted it aptly. He was a singularly sensitive to beauty in any form." The Up-and-Coming FDR (The Saturday Evening Post, 1913)Theodore Roosevelt had loomed large in Washington for a long time - so when it was learned that his nephew, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (a Democrat!), was chosen to work in Woodrow Wilson's Department of the Navy he was an instant curiosity.
Click here to read a 1913 article about another young man on the move: Winston Churchill.
Shooting Tweeds, Riding Breeches and Evening Clothes
(Dress & Vanity Fair, 1913)The attached men's fashion article concerns the a "brief autumn visit to the country"; recalled by an anonymous fashion scribe whose charming prose allowed us to envision a leisured life in the late Gilded Age. ''Cupid to Seal the Balkan Peace'' (Vanity Fair, 1913)By the time this item appeared in print, the Balkan War (1912-1913), was over however some of the swells of Europe put their crowned heads together and collectively came up with the best Medeival plan they could think of in order to insure the promise of peace. The plan was to have:
• the Czar's daughter, Grand Duchess Olga (1895 - 1918), would wed Serbia's Crown Prince Alexander
• the Czar's second daughter, Grand Duchess Tatiana (1897 - 1918), was promised to Rumania's Crown Prince Charles (1893 - 1959)
• All concerned agreed that Rumania's Pricess Elizabeth (1894 - 1956) and Crown Prince George of Greece (1890 - 1947) would make a simply splendid couple (they divorced in 1935). A Church on Wheels (Literary Digest Magazine, 1913)In our era we think nothing of bookmobiles and bloodmobiles or any number of other converted trucks and vans that are fashioned for various unique uses; this link will enable you to learn about a Catholic chapel-on-wheels (a.k.a. the Jesus-Jalopy, the Nun-Truck, the Pope Pick-Up, the Bishop-Bus) from 1913, that very well might have served as the inspiration for them all. A Summation of the Battle of Gettysburg (Famous Events Magazine, 1913)This essay clearly states why the Battle of Gettysburg is a significant event in Civil War history, what the Rebels intended and why the battle was such a decisive victory for the Federal Army: "In the first rush the Confederates were successful, the scattered Union regiments under General Hancock were pressed back. But on the second day, the main body of the Northern army under General Meade arrived, and the contest held even, with awful slaughter on both sides. The third day the Confederates made one last desperate charge..." Abraham Lincoln: Short Story Writer... Tango Fashions (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1913)The urgent word from Belle Époque Paris on the matter of proper Tango gowns was published in this 1913 article and accompanied by seven illustrations. "What shall you wear to the Tango Teas? Let me whisper to you a secret, only to be revealed when it is found out, my dear, there is no Tango in America, or, at least in New York. But it is quite different in Paris and it is for Paris and the Tango that the French dance frocks are made."
Click here to read about feminine conversations overheard in the best New York nightclubs of 1937. Bertram G. Goodhue on Church Architecture (Literary Digest, 1913)Bertram Goodhue (1869 - 1924) was a popular American architect who was highly praised for his mastery of the Gothic Revival style of architecture, which won him many of the finest commissions that society had to offer any architect during the high-water mark of the WASP ascendancy. This article appeared in The Literary Digest just as his design for St. Thomas Church on New York's Fifth Avenue was nearing completion and he shared with the journalist his insights as to how he designs churches: "Sometimes, of course, the cloistral effect is needed, in a monastery, for instance. And the church must always have solemnity, but not coldness. I have tried in my work to express this quality of invitation, together with sanctity and a degree of magnificence quite undreamed of in my craftsman days." The Lynching Records: 1885 - 1912 (NY Times, 1913)A report from The New York Times stated that, relative to the population, 1912 saw a drop in the number of lynchings. Included in this brief is a record of lynchings that occurred between the years 1885 - 1912.-from Amazon:
An Early Tennis Shoe (Magazine Ad, 1913)The above link will display a very different sort of tennis shoe than the sort that we see today; it was not made by Chinese prison labor nor could it be fastened with Velcro... Paris Fashion, 1913 (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1913)The unknown author of this article believed deeply that the Paris fashions of 1913 were very much in keeping with the grand traditions established and maintained by that city since the eighteenth century. This critic was very impressed with the recent work of Paul Poiret and Doeuillet and presented a number fashion illustrations to prove the point. Oddly, the article is credited simply to " Worth " which leaves one wondering whether the writer was one of the sons of Charles Frederick Worth (1825-1895); Jean Philippe Worth or Gaston Worth, both of whom had inherited their father's great house of fashion. The Lampooning of Picasso (Literary Digest, 1913)"A child could do that" has been one of the most common utterances in response to the avant-garde movements of modern art. This short article reflects that view and was written in response to the New York Armory Show, which at that time, was attracting a good deal of attention in the press. The Armory Show is well-remembered today as the first art exhibition to introduce European-style modernism to the people (and artists) of that city. Pablo Picasso (1881 - 1973), as the co-creator of Cubism, is among those lampooned, as is Marcel Duchamp (1887 - 1968) for his painting, A Nude Descending the Staircase.
Another Picasso article can be read here... Dr. Anna Howard Shaw (Literary Digest, 1913)A 1913 profile of Dr. Anna Howard Shaw (1847 – 1919), president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association and leader in their struggle to secure American women their right to vote. This article primarily deals with her meeting with President Woodrow Wilson and his inability to commit to the question of women's suffrage.
Having helped to fight the good fight, Dr. Shaw died in 1919, weeks after the U.S. Congress voted to ratify the 19th Amendment. The Influence of the Natives on Rag Time Music (The Literary Digest, 1913)A foremost scholar in the field of Native American Music insisted that the American Indian had a guiding roll in the development of Rag Time: "Most people instinctively assign it to the Negro; but the Indian also, according to Natalie Curtis Burlin (1875-1921), is to be credited with a hand in it. The syncopation, which is a predominant feature of all Rag Time,as she observes in 'The Craftsman', is an absolutely essential element in the songs of our North American Indians of many tribes." Also discussed are the efforts of Geoffrey O'Hara to make the earliest recordings of Native American Music on behalf of the U.S. Library of Congress. French Insecurity in the Face of German Might (Literary Digest, 1913)Attached is a 1913 article from an American magazine in which the journalist reported on a strong sense of insecurity experienced by France as a result of Imperial German military hubris. The reporter illustrated the point with various quotes from French papers of the day and in a similar vein, sites a number of German papers that express an arrogant contempt for France. The Religious Opinions of Thomas Jefferson (Sewanee Review, 1913)The author argues that Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826) was neither an atheist or an Episcopalian or a Unitarian, as many have claimed. However, his fertile mind was not entirely devoid of any religious conviction but rather his views on theology were totally undigested and lacking in order and consistency. It is an interesting piece about one of America's most fascinating Presidents concerning a topic that keeps coming up again and again.
"Jefferson's Bible is one of the 'curiosities of literature'. This book, called by him, The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth was published by congress in 1904."
(The article can be printed: which is good because the pages are out of order; sorry for the inconvenience.)
The historian Henry Steele Commager ranked Thomas Jefferson at number 14 insofar as his impact on the American mind was concerned - click here to understand his reasoning...
Academy of Misapplied Art Assailed Cubism (NY Times, 1913)Once upon a time there was a short-lived organization in New York City created to lampoon works of art hailed by the critics as worthy creations. They called themselves The Academy of Misapplied Art and they held their exhibits in the lobby of the Light House for the Blind. Attached herein is the N.Y. Times review of their 1913 exhibit intended to make light of the European Cubists. Germany Defends It's Military Build Up (Literary Digest, 1913)A defense was offered for the growth of German military expenditures based on the spread of "Slavik pride" and the rise of a "great Pan-Slavonic movement" due to "victory of their kinsmen in the Balkans". German leaders, furthermore, felt a deep uneasiness about the fact that about one-third of the population of the Hapsburg Monarchy consisted of Slavs and therefore felt that military aid from the Austro-Hungarian Empire was not guaranteed in the event of a war with Russia and France.
One of the First Reviews of 'Sons and Lovers' (Vanity Fair, 1913)Later in the century there would be many ink-slingers to gush over the talents of D.H. Lawrence (1885 - 1930); but in 1913, the writer would simply have to bide his time and suffer the reviews that were printed in the society pages. "It emphatically is not a book for the 'young person', and it is certainly a book that will make the older conservative wince a bit...nevertheless it is a study that was worth doing, and D.H. Lawrence has done it well. He has dealt with very real things in a way that leaves a distinctness of impression unequaled by nine books out of ten one picks up nowadays."
Grant at Shiloh (Famous Events Magazine, 1913)A summation of the 1862 Battle of Shiloh: "Bull Run, the first Southern victory of the war, was followed by others. Nor did the tide of battle turn in favor of the North until General Ulysses S. Grant won in Tennessee the hard fought struggle of Shiloh. This was in April of 1862. Grant first besieged and captured Fort Donelson, then advanced until he was suddenly assailed at Shiloh by the entire army which the Confederates had gathered in the West..." Reunion at Gettysburg (The Outlook, 1913)Johnny Reb and Billy Yank encountered each other once again - fifty years after the Union victory at Gettysburg:
"The conductor raised his baton and the strains of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' floated out upon the air. All of those gathered upon the dusky lawn - the Picketts, the Longstreets, the daughter of General A.P. Hill, the Meades, the long row of men in gray and gold - became silent, rose to their feet, and uncovered. That was Gettysburg fifty years afterward."
Click here to see the Confederate Uniform worn at the Reunions. *Watch a Film Clip of the 75th Anniversary of the Gettysburg Battle* Sensible Rules for Men's Evening Clothes (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1913)This is a well-illustrated article in which the fashion journalist recalled a dinner party where the men in attendance were knowledgeable on which forks to use but cared little about the proper etiquette  tailoring, shoes and jewelry required as dinner guests The British View of Religious America (Literary Digest, 1913)"...Christianity in America is divided into two camps. The one is orthodox. It's orthodoxy is apt to degenerate into the senile attachment to the letter of Scripture...There is a lack of mental breadth, of intellectual enlightenment, about the members of this school which is a little disheartening to one who is in agreement with them on the central matters...The other school seems to have sacrificed almost everything which makes Christianity distinct from a temporary philosophy. It's members have the bad habit of preaching eugenics or sociology in place of the Gospel. They appear to be afraid of the great epistles and the nobler passages of the Gospels, and are apt to speak in terms which would suggest that there was nothing distinctive in Christianity which can make it an absolute and universal faith."
A Humane Act at Gettysburg's Bloody Angle
(Literary Digest, 1913)During the 1913 Battle of Gettysburg's fiftieth anniversary commemoration, a surviving member of Picket's Charge encountered the Federal soldier who had saved his life at the Bloody Angle; this is the moving story of their encounter.
(Due to the broken title link above, you must Click here to read the article) A New Colony Club (Vanity Fair, 1913)This is small notice celebrated the efforts of the New York architectural firm of Delano and Aldrich for their design of a Park Avenue building intended as the new address of the Colony Club.
Click here to read about the 1913 Armory Show. How Did the Men in First Class Dress for Dinner? (Vanity Fair, 1913)There were several clothing options available for the well-heeled men "fortunate enough" to (briefly) enjoy Titanic's First Class comforts. Dinner suits were not strictly confined to black and there were a number of shirting and accessory choices; this article covers all of them quite thoroughly.
More on men's fashions can be read here. Reunion at Gettysburg's Bloody Angle (Literary Digest, 1913)During the Battle of Gettysburg's fiftieth anniversary celebration that took place during the summer 1913, a surviving member of Virginia's Fifty-Sixth Regiment of Infantry encountered the Federal soldier who had saved his life at the Bloody Angle; this is the moving story of their encounter. *Watch Johnny Reb Shake the Hand of Billy Yank in this 1938 Reunion Footage* Antietam (Famous Events, 1913)A thumbnail description of Lee's gamble in the North: the Battle of Antietam: "Lee repeatedly broke and drove back the advancing Union armies. Then in the summer of 1862, he took the aggressive and invaded the North. His eager and victorious soldiers hoped to sweep successfully over the entire country. But they were met in Maryland at Antietam Creek by the Union army commanded by General George McClellan. The battle that ensued was the bloodiest and the most costly single day of strife in all this awful war." John Sloan Ridiculed Cubism (The Masses, 1913)Although realist painter John Sloan (1871 – 1951) was one of the fortunate American painters to also be included in the 1913 Armory Show (he was also on the organizing committee), it did not mean that he was above ridiculing the European modernists who were enjoying the same prestige that he was.
To read an anti-Picasso review from that same period, click here.
The German Threat to Russia (Literary Digest, 1913)"The German military maneuvers have aroused the attention of Europe to the splendid equipment and administration of the Army, not only in the fighting spirit, but in the commissariat and its medical service."
-so begins the attached article which referenced the overall sense of intimidation and uneasiness that was triggered by the display of bristling military might that was recently witnessed. The journalist mused about just what the Franco-Russian Alliance would mean in the face of such an advanced military force, touching upon the size of the German Army compared with other forces in Europe -openly stating that France could never stand up to an attack. The British Government's Conclusion (The Annual Register, 1913)Here is a digest of the conclusion reached by the British government's "Special Commission on the Loss of the Titanic". The Sinking of the C.S.S. Alabama (Famous Events Magazine, 1913)This short article from The Famous Events of the World was written at a time when the Civil War was still fresh in the American memory; and although their lines were thinning, the veterans of that war were still walking the streets. One of the important events of the American Civil War during the year 1864 was the sinking of the Confederate pirate ship, C.S.S. Alabama , commanded by Raphael Semmes (1809-1877): "After a long course of capturing and destroying Northern merchant ships, the Aabama was caught in a French harbor by the United States frigate Kearsarge. The Kearsarge defied the ALABAMA to battle; and the Confederate ship, accepting the challenge, steamed confidently forth amid salvos of applause from the French and English spectators. The Kearsarge completely outfought her, and sank her." Click here to read an article about the captain of the ALABAMA, Raphael Semmes. Anticipating Trans-Atlantic Flights (Dress and Vanity Fair, 1913)A 1913 article that examined the nascent world of hydroplanes. Arranged Marriages to Seal the Peace in the Balkans (Dress and Vanity Fair Magazine, 1913)When the attached article first appeared in print the Balkan War (1912 - 1913) was over, however some of the swells of Europe put their crowned heads together and collectively came up with the best Medieval plan they could think of in order to insure the promise of peace in the region.
It was agreed that the Czar's daughter, Grand Duchess Olga (1895 - 1918), would wed Serbia's Crown Prince Alexander (1888 - 1934); while the Czar's second daughter, Grand Duchess Tatiana (1897 - 1918) was promised to Romania's Crown Prince Charles (1893 - 1959). All concerned felt that Romania's Princess Elizabeth (1894-1956) and Crown Prince George of Greece (1890 - 1947) would make a simply splendid couple (they divorced in 1935). A Study of the Gettysburg Address (The Outlook, 1913)Jesse W. Weik (1857 - 1930) was one of the earliest Lincoln scholars, and in the attached three page article he delved deeply into Lincoln's life in order to understand Lincoln and the thoughts behind his famous speech at Gettysburg:
"In preparation for Herndon and Weik's Life of Lincoln (1889), he visited every place in Illinois, Indianan and Kentucky where Abraham Lincoln lived; examined the records of all the lawsuits in which Lincoln was engaged, and talked to everyone he could find who knew Lincoln. For thirty years and more he has made a special study of the sources, written and unwritten, of the personal history of President Lincoln". Click here to print American Civil War chronologies. The Armory Show of 1913 (Literary Digest, 1913)In this article, "The Mob as Art Critic", an anonymous reviewer gathered excerpts from assorted negative reviews concerning the New York Armory Show of 1913 in an attempt to show the often violent reaction the exhibit inspired. A Study of the Gettysburg Address (The Outlook, 1913)Jesse W. Weik (1857 - 1930) was one of the earliest of Lincoln scholars. "In preparation for "Herndon and Weik's Life of Lincoln " (1889), he visited every place in Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky where Abraham Lincoln lived; examined the records of all the lawsuits in which Lincoln was engaged, and talked to everyone he could find who knew Lincoln. For thirty years and more he has made a special study of the sources, written and unwritten, of the personal history of President Lincoln".
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