On View Now: “The Aviator: Remembering James Rogers McConnell”

When students arrive at UVA, they learn about Thomas Jefferson, the Rotunda, and the academical village through the art and architecture on grounds. In between Alderman, Clemons, and the Special Collections libraries, there is a sculpture of a winged man, leaping into the sky, called “The Aviator.”  In their rush to classes, students often pass by the statute without noticing. However, “The Aviator” is an important part of UVA’s history. It is a memorial to alumnus James Roger McConnell, who served in the American Ambulance Corps and the Lafayette Escadrille in France during the World War I. A new exhibition at Albert & Shirley Small Special Collections Library commemorates McConnell’s legacy and serves as tribute to his brief life. The exhibition tells the story of the real person behind “The Aviator”: the man who gave his life in a brutal war that left 17,000,000 dead and that radically transformed international politics.

A 1937 image of The Aviator, with the UVA Chapel in the distance on the right. The sculpture has been somewhere near its present site since it was first placed in 1919 (University of Virginia Visual History Collection).

McConnell matriculated at UVA in 1907. He spent two years in the College and one in the Law School, withdrawing at his father’s request in the spring of 1910 to enter business. While at Virginia, he led what appears to have been a dazzling social life. He was a member of Beta Theta Pi, Theta Nu Epsilon, O.W.L., T.I.L.K.A., the New York Club, and the German Club. He was King of the Hot Foot Society (precursor to the Imps); Editor-in-Chief of the yearbook, Corks and Curls; Assistant Cheer Leader; and founder of the Aero Club.

In 1915, McConnell left his position as a land and industrial agent for a small railroad in North Carolina to enlist in the French service. Through the spring and summer of that year he drove for Section “Y” of the American Ambulance, in the thick of the fighting on the Western Front around Pont-à-Mousson and the Bois-le-Prêtre. He was cited for conspicuous bravery and awarded the Croix de Guerre. He was one of many young men from UVA who served the French in the early years of the war.

McConnell was given a Croix de Guerre for his bravery while driving ambulances on the Western Front. This particular Croix de Guerre was awarded to UVA alumnus George Brasfield, who also served in the Ambulance Corps (Section 516).

In 1916, McConnell left the Ambulance Corps to join the Lafayette Escadrille, a newly formed flying corps of Americans serving under French military command. He completed his flight training in February of that year and participated in the squadron’s first patrol in May. Later, he would take part in aerial actions during the great German offensive at Verdun in June and the Allied counteroffensives in July and August, with the symbol of UVA’s Hot Foot secret society on the side of one of his planes.

McConnell used his UVA education to urge the United States government to join the war. He published articles and letters about the Ambulance Corps, the Lafayette Escadrille, and the sacrifices of allied forces in The Outlook and The World’s Work. Later, his articles and letters were gathered into Flying for France, a book that joined the stream of popular war volumes appearing in American bookstores for readers of all ages. McConnell’s articles in The Outlook and Flying for France are some of the many treasures in the exhibition.

Shown here is a copy of The Outlook containing McConnell’s articles on the Ambulance Crops and the Lafayette Escadrille.

March 19, 2017 marked the one hundredth anniversary of McConnell’s death. On that day in 1917, McConnell was shot down by German enemy planes as he flew a patrol mission high in the clouds above France. He was last seen by a fellow pilot as they split up to battle German planes they encountered on patrol. When his plane was discovered, it had crashed at full throttle. Several bullets were found in his body, and it was likely he died before the plane hit the ground. His body had been stripped of identification and valuables by the time it was discovered by the French, but a piece of his airplane’s fabric fusilage was recovered, and appears in the exhibition. McConnell was the last American of the famed Lafayette Escadrille to die in combat before the United States entered the war on April 6 of that year.He was the first of sixty-four men from the University of Virginia to give their lives in World War I.

The exhibition features artifacts from McConnell’s time in the ambulance corps and the flying corps, as well as a section on monuments and memorials to his and UVA’s service to the French cause. The exhibition will be on view from until May 30th.

One of the two galleries of materials on display.

 

 

Tales from Under Grounds II: War

This is the final of four posts, spotlighting the mini-exhibitions of students from USEM 1570: Researching History.

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Turner Labrie, First-Year Student

Turner Labrie

Photograph of Turner Labrie by Sanjay Suchak, November 18, 2014.

Virginia and The Spanish American War

In February of 1895, the Spanish-controlled island of Cuba erupted in rebellion. Over the course of their fighting with the rebels, the Spanish employed increasingly brutal repression tactics. These brutal tactics were further sensationalized by American newspapers, a method that is now better known as “yellow journalism.”  In response to the growing unrest in Cuba and domestic pressures at home, the United States government sent naval crafts to protect US citizens residing in Cuba.

The Spanish-American War began in April of 1898, prompted by the inexplicable explosion in the USS Maine, which was one of the ships based outside of Havana protecting U.S. interests. After the explosion, fighting erupted between the United States and Spain in various parts of the world, including Puerto Rico, Spain and the Philippines. Ultimately, the United States won the war, made Puerto Rico and the Philippines their territories, and freed Cuba from Spanish control.

This exhibition documents Virginia’s involvement in the Spanish American War.

Soldier's Memorial, Spanish American War of 1898: Suffolk Light Infantry. Company G. Fourth Regiment, Virginia Volunteer Infantry ... Organized at Suffolk, Va., June 22, 1892 mustered into the United States Service at Richmond, Va., May 23, 1898. Washington, D.C.: Fuller Bros., 1898. (Poster 1898 .S73) This poster portrays the Suffolk Light Infantry in combat, and in the middle, it lists members of the Company G, including officers. Virginia was expected to contribute heavily to the war, but outside of the involvement of a couple regiments, it served more in an ancillary role. Many supplies were shipped through its ports and camps were established throughout the state to train soldiers for combat. That being said, fourteen of the deceased sailors from the explosion of the Maine were originally from Virginia.

Soldier’s Memorial, Spanish American War of 1898: Suffolk Light Infantry. Company G. Fourth Regiment, Virginia Volunteer Infantry … Organized at Suffolk, Va., June 22, 1892 mustered into the United States Service at Richmond, Va., May 23, 1898. Washington, D.C.: Fuller Bros., 1898. (Poster 1898 .S73)
This poster portrays the Suffolk Light Infantry in combat, and in the middle, it lists members of the Company G, including officers. Virginia was expected to contribute heavily to the war, but outside of the involvement of a couple regiments, it served more of an ancillary role. Many supplies were shipped through Virginia’s ports, and camps were established throughout the state to train soldiers for combat. That being said, fourteen of the deceased sailors from the explosion of the USS Maine were originally from Virginia.

Capt. Edgar de Duphane. Wanted. 100 Volunteer Crack Shots, for Immediate Service. New Market, VA: Henkel & Co., Printers, 1898. (Broadside 1898 .D84) Captain Edgar de Duphane posted this message in New Market, Virginia to encourage proficient shooters to join the US Army at the outbreak of the Spanish American War. These shooters would then be shipped off to various camps throughout the country for integration into the army. From there, they would be sent to participate in the fighting against Spanish forces.

Capt. Edgar de Duphane. Wanted. 100 Volunteer Crack Shots, for Immediate Service. New Market, VA: Henkel & Co., Printers, 1898. (Broadside 1898 .D84)
Captain Edgar de Duphane posted this message in New Market, Virginia to encourage proficient shooters to join the U.S. Army at the outbreak of the Spanish American War. The shooters were then sent to various camps throughout the country for integration into the army. From there, they  fought against Spanish forces.

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Max Novick, First-Year Student

Max Novick presents a WWI era scrapbook, November 18, 2014. (Photograph by Sanjay Suchak)

Max Novick presents a WWI era scrapbook, November 18, 2014. (Photograph by Sanjay Suchak)

Propaganda and Sentiments of World War I

While World War I can be at times dwarfed by the magnitude of the Second World War, many of the same feelings of fear that the Allies expressed towards the German enemy still existed. Through this mélange of emotions, the use of propaganda became commonplace to strike fear in the heart of the enemy and to motivate the allied nations. Though propaganda can be quite coarse and grating, this mini-exhibition makes an attempt to display a few types of this curious art form.

Through the use of five dissimilar items, this exhibit moves in a somewhat linear fashion, from crass to serious, in order to capture the very essence of the emotions that were shared in the Allies battle against the Imperial forces.  Nevertheless, Novelist James Dickey’s sentiments to a major donor to Virginia of this era caps the exhibition in its ability to look beyond the pairing of one side versus another and at the real issue of humans versus humans.

Falser, M. “Pour le suprême effort.” World War I posters 1914-1918.  (MSS 5023-b) Robertson Gift Dec. 1969 Produced in 1918, artist, M. Falser, shows a darkly colored image of a French soldier in fierce, but advantageous, combat with an eagle. This black eagle as well as the helmet known as a Pickelhaube, are signs of the German Imperial Army. The violent force with which the French soldier maims this Imperial enemy seeks to inspire hope and courage within the nation of interest, like many propaganda posters of the time, and to deflate the image of the enemy.

Falser, M. “Pour le suprême effort.” World War I posters 1914-1918. (MSS 5023-b) Robertson Gift Dec. 1969
Produced in 1918, artist M. Falser shows a darkly colored image of a French soldier in fierce combat with an eagle. This black eagle as well as the helmet known as a Pickelhaube are signs of the German Imperial Army. The violent force with which the French soldier maims this Imperial enemy seeks to inspire hope and courage within the nation of interest and to deflate the image of the enemy.

 

Dickey, James. “For Matt Bruccoli’s Father.” Letter. World War I Memorabilia. (MSS 10875-s) Bruccoli Great War Collection. Gift of Matthew J. Bruccoli, July, 1997  Famous American novelist, James Dickey, through this extremely personal letter, offers a writer’s input on the war. This letter looks beyond the simplicities of propaganda and talk about war’s more virulent nature. This note does not degrade the enemy in any way, but rather looks at the matter from the perspective of a human being to express the atrocities and horrors that war imposes on mankind.

By arrangement with the Heirs of James Dickey and their agents Raines & Raines. James Dickey. Letter for Matt Broccoli’s Father, July 1997. (MSS 10875-s) Bruccoli Great War Collection. Gift of Matthew J. Bruccoli.
Famous American novelist, James Dickey, through this extremely personal letter, offers a writer’s input on the war. This letter looks beyond the simplicities of propaganda and talks about war’s more virulent nature. This note does not degrade the enemy in any way, but rather looks at the matter from the perspective of a human being to express the atrocities and horrors that war imposes on mankind.

 

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Emily Templin, First-Year Student

Emily Templin

Photograph of Emily Templin by Sanjay Suchak, November 18, 2014.

World War II Propaganda in America

America officially entered World War II after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. While American soldiers were off fighting for the Allied cause, other forces worked to keep the home front involved and in support of the war. The Office of War Information (OWI), created by Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1942, was designed to help mobilize domestic support and keep citizens informed. The OWI produced propaganda, such as radio broadcasts, newspaper articles, posters, and photographs that served as a direct appeal to citizens at home to support the war.

Much of the propaganda tended to focus on how everyone could “play their part” in the war effort, including buying war bonds, rationing, and conserving scrap metal and rubber. Ultimately, propaganda helped to shape the culture of the American home front, sparking a unified effort to help fight the war by any means possible.

1942 War Bonds Poster. "We Shall Win Or We Shall Die": Double Your Shares In the U.S.A. ... Buy War Bonds and Stamps Today!. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1942.  (Poster 1942 .W4) This 1942 propaganda poster advertises the sale of war bonds as a way for people at home to contribute to the war effort. Since World War II was a “total war,” patriotic propaganda was used to garner support for the war on the American home front. The poster’s language serves to unite soldiers with civilians back home in a combined revenue-raising effort that both financially and morally supports the war

1942 War Bonds Poster. “We Shall Win Or We Shall Die”: Double Your Shares In the U.S.A. … Buy War Bonds and Stamps Today!. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1942. (Poster 1942 .W4)
This 1942 propaganda poster advertises the sale of war bonds as a way for people at home to contribute to the war effort. Since World War II was a “total war,” patriotic propaganda was used to garner support for the war on the American home front. The poster’s language serves to unite soldiers with civilians back home in a combined revenue-raising effort that both financially and morally supports the war.

 

United States of America. Four Freedoms Booklet. Louis G. Cowan World War II Propaganda Collection, 1941-1946  (MSS 11569) Based on Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, this booklet elaborates how the freedoms of speech and worship and the freedoms from want and fear operated in America. The booklet contrasts pictures of America’s happy children, education systems, and plentiful harvests with pictures of the violence, government restrictions, and food lines in Axis countries in order to promote the Allied war efforts.

United States of America. Four Freedoms Booklet. Louis G. Cowan World War II Propaganda Collection, 1941-1946. (MSS 11569)
Based on Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, this booklet elaborates how the freedoms of speech and worship and the freedoms from want and fear operated in America. The booklet contrasts pictures of America’s happy children, education systems, and plentiful harvests with pictures of the violence, government restrictions, and food lines in Axis countries in order to promote the Allied war efforts.

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Timothy Rodriguez, First-Year Student

Timothy Rodriguez

Timothy Rodriguez talks to a attendee about his exhibition, November 18, 2014. (Photograph by Sanjay Suchak)

Cold War Propaganda in the United States and the Soviet Union

The Cold War, which started in 1946 after the end of the Second World War, produced a significant amount of propaganda on both sides. In the United States, this propaganda was focused against the nature of the communist regimes in Soviet Bloc countries and on the ideals of communism. For the Soviets, the propaganda was more focused on convincing citizens that their system of governance and economic structuring was superior to capitalist countries like the United States.

This exhibition contains propagandist pictures, literature and broadsides that represent some of the most subtle and blatant propaganda of the Cold War. Sources include both the Soviet and American governments as well as special interest groups with Anti-communist agendas.

Siebel, Fred O. "Eyes on Formosa." Richmond Times Dispatch. 1 Jan. 1950. Original drawing by Fred Seibel. Published in the Richmond Times Dispatch, this cartoon, drawn by Fred Siebel, is a piece of American anti-communist propaganda and political commentary. The depiction of communism as a gigantic octopus, embossed the Soviet Union’s hammer and sickle, is a clear statement of the American perspective of communism as an expansionary threat to the world. The cartoon is intending to convey the intent of the communists specifically in China of taking over the island of Formosa, now known as Taiwan.    (still need permission)

Siebel, Fred O. “Eyes on Formosa.” Richmond Times Dispatch. 1 Jan. 1950. Original drawing by Fred Seibel. (MSS 2531)
Published in the Richmond Times Dispatch, this Fred Siebel cartoon is a piece of American anti-communist propaganda and political commentary. The depiction of communism as a gigantic octopus, embossed with the Soviet Union’s hammer and sickle, is a clear statement of the American perspective of communism as an expansionary threat to the world. The cartoon conveys the intent of the communists, specifically in China, to take over the island of Formosa, now known as Taiwan.

Pedigo, Jess L. Yes, Ginger. Communism Is Your Enemy. Tulsa: Christian Crusade Publications, 1970.  This booklet was published by the Christian Crusade publication company in 1970. During the Cold War many organizations in the United States, including Christian Crusades, published Anti-Communist literature. This specific booklet is a story directed at children informing them of the supposed evils of communism and as per the title explains why communism is their enemy. This artifact is a prime example of religious, anti-communist propaganda which was prevalent during the cold war era.

Pedigo, Jess L. Yes, Ginger. Communism Is Your Enemy. Tulsa: Christian Crusade Publications, 1970. (HX44 .P42 1972)
During the Cold War, many organizations in the United States, including Christian Crusades, published anti-communist literature. This specific booklet, directed at children, informs them of the supposed evils of communism and as per the title explains why communism is their enemy. This artifact is a prime example of religious, anti-communist propaganda which was prevalent during the cold war era.

 

 

 

On View Now: “At the Front: World War I Series Books for Girls”

We are so pleased to announce our newest mini-exhibition, curated by Susan Swicegood, Wolfe Docent in the Harrison Institute. Susan is a fourth year student in the Master of Teaching program at the Curry School of Education. Her joint undergraduate major is in English. So, it was no surprise when, upon beginning to learn about the collections here with curator and supervisor Molly Schwartzburg, she gravitated towards a project involving the marvelous Arthur P. and Christopher P. Young Collection of World War I Juvenile Series Books. We’ll give you a sneak peek at the show below, with selections from the exhibition’s text.

“At the Front: World War I Series Books for Girls”

Detail of cover art from Martha Trent, “Alice Blythe Somewhere in England: A War Time Story,” illustrated by Charles L. Wrenn (New York: Barse & Hopkins Publishers, 1918)(PZ9 .Y67 no. 474)

After the Great War began in 1914, and even more so after the United States became involved in 1917, many children experienced the war through characters in series books. While some girl protagonists “do their bit” on the home front through food drives and benefit concerts, many leave for the front themselves.

From ***

Detail of cover art from Aline Harvard, “Captain Lucy in France” (Philadelphia: The Penn Publishing Company, 1919). (PZ9 .Y67 no. 246)

These teenage characters—ranging in age from twelve to seventeen—dutifully serve as nurses in the Red Cross, drive ambulances, rescue lost soldiers, and uncover German spies.

Detail of frontispiece from Martha Trent, “Alice Blythe Somewhere in England: A War Time Story,” illustrated by Charles L. Wrenn (New York: Barse & Hopkins Publishers, 1918)(PZ9 .Y67 no 474)

The popularity of these books with American youth is undeniable, and with such far-fetched and fantastical adventures, girls could imagine the part they could play in gaining victory. In an almost propagandistic way, these books sold the war to young women as a chance to leave their homes and fight alongside the boys. Yet though the characters show an amazing degree of agency at the front, they return after the war’s end to the docile, domestic spaces they had left behind. Invariably, the heroine manages to find—or rescue—a fiancé along the way.

This exhibition will remain on view until the end of February, 2015.

A sneak preview of some of the items on display.

A sneak preview of some of the items on display.

Editorial Antics: A peek into the newly acquired manuscript magazine, The Gleaner

This week, we are pleased to feature a guest post by graduate curatorial assistant Elizabeth Ott, who has just finished preparing a small exhibition on a recently acquired magazine. The exhibition, The Gleaner: Documenting the Great War, opens Friday, August 8 and will remain on view through October.

While working on this serious exhibition,  Elizabeth became increasingly distracted by the hilarious antics of the editorial team leading the magazine. In this blog post, she provides an overview of the magazine’s unusual editorial structure before sharing with you some of the tastiest tidbits.

In my work at Special Collections, I often come across items that are very easy to interpret when you hold them in your hands but become rather more complicated to describe to another person. Such an item is the recently acquired sixteen-issue run of The Gleaner (1910-1918). On its title page it declares itself an “amateur manuscript magazine,” an accurate yet vague description of an object that combines the methodology of a commonplace book or a picture album with the reflective qualities of a diary, the exchange of an epistolary correspondence, and the aspirations of literary quarterly. Its pages–a mix of handwritten and typed contributions alongside original works of art in pen, watercolor, charcoal, and pastels–tell the story of a fascinating community of men and women from across the United Kingdom in the years leading up to and during the Great War.

The title page for this issue from May/June 1918 features colorful calligraphy, contributed in lieu of an artistic submission. Members who failed to contribute at all to an issue were fined. (Not yet cataloged. Library Associates Endowment Fund.)

The title page for this issue from May/June 1918 features colorful calligraphy, contributed in lieu of an artistic submission. Members who failed to contribute at all to an issue were fined. (Not yet cataloged. Library Associates Endowment Fund.)

Each issue of The Gleaner is physically unique: only one copy was produced. Members  submitted essays, stories, poems, drawings, etc. to editor Winifred T. Godfrey of Kew Gardens, Surrey. Godfrey collected and bound the entries inside an original cover (usually artwork submitted by a member), and added a table of contents, editorial preface, postal list, and section of criticism. Other features included a section where members voted for favorite submissions or left suggestions for future issues. Godfrey then mailed the completed magazine to the first member on the postal list. Each member was to keep the magazine for up to two days, then send it on to the next person on the list. When it had made its rounds, it was returned to Godfrey, with the critical remarks of each member to be added to the next issue.

Caption 1: Cover designs for The Gleaner were contributed by members. These four early issues date from 1910-13. (Not yet cataloged, Library Associates Endowment Fund.)

Cover designs for The Gleaner  were contributed by members. These four early issues date from 1910-13.

It is not entirely clear how the magazine began, or how its members came together. They lived and worked in disparate parts of the country and came from a variety of political and social backgrounds: some were old and some young, some women and some men, married and unmarried alike. Some members appear to have known each other outside its pages, while others were clearly strangers—one member, Maisie Swift, notes her shock upon learning that long-time member Mr. Morrison was quite young. “Please don’t take offense,” she writes, before admitting that in her head she calls him “Old Sam.” In early issues members rarely used their first names, but in later issues frequently did, and sometimes submitted pictures of themselves to be included in the magazine’s pages.

“I sketch for that” by J.M. Minty. Art contributions to The Gleaner are enclosed as originals, as in this ink and watercolor cartoon.

“I sketch for that” by J.M. Minty. Art contributions to The Gleaner are enclosed as originals, as in this ink and watercolor cartoon.

This humorous illustrated essay, poking fun at advertising rhetoric, is from the September/October 1918 issue, but unfortunately lacks an author attribution. The essay combines hand-written commentary, watercolor sketches, and clippings from newspapers.

This humorous illustrated essay, poking fun at advertising rhetoric, is from the September/October 1918 issue, but unfortunately lacks an author attribution. The essay combines hand-written commentary, watercolor sketches, and clippings from newspapers.

Contributors paid a nominal fee for membership (the price of postage) and could be fined for failing to submit contributions on time. But the most onerous tasks involved in producing this a labor-intensive product (at times, issues of The Gleaner appear to have been produced once every two months) fell largely on the shoulders of editor Winifred Godfrey. In her editorial prefaces, she frequently chides members for late submissions, poor-quality artwork, or unintentional postal mishaps. They, in turn, fill the suggestions page with complaints about tardy receipts of the magazine or not having enough time to read it each month.

The editor here critiques the magazine's submissions, stating,

The editor here critiques the magazine’s submissions, stating, “I am afraid this number is not particularly good, in either the literary or the artistic portion, but if you will not contribute properly you cannot expect the mag. to be very good.” (Not yet cataloged, Library Associates Endowment Fund).

Photograph of Winifred T. Godfrey with a short essay describing her experiences having her picture taken. Godfrey’s essay is at once vain and deprecating: “When I first saw the photograph I was quite pleased with it, but when you look into it, it isn’t quite as good as you expect.”

Photograph of Winifred T. Godfrey with a short essay describing her experiences having her picture taken. Godfrey’s essay is at once vain and deprecating: “When I first saw the photograph I was quite pleased with it, but when you look into it, it isn’t quite as good as you expect.”

It may have been for this reason that Godfrey invited one of the members, Leander Demetrius Potous, to join her as Sub-Editor. Potous’s original task seems to have been typing up the criticism and prefatory material. Potous, who styled himself a “Humoresque,” took things a step farther, using his new-found position as typist to insert sarcastic and caustic commentary into the magazine, particularly in the criticism section. Potous’s commentary was often scathing. He contradicted positive reviews by cheerful members and mocked those with literary aspirations. He inserted articles with titles like “How to Write a Poem for The Gleaner” that excoriated members–by name–for derivative entries.

Gleaner_subeditor2

This pen sketch, decorating a photograph of the infamous Sub-Editor, is signed Selwyn B. Potous—perhaps a relative of Leander.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Potous’s editorial influence was not well-appreciated, and members began to resign at an alarming rate, citing the toxic tone in the criticism section, spurred on by Potous, as their primary reason for departure. In the Nov/Dec 1917 issue, early in Potous’s tenure as Sub-Editor, Godfrey writes in her preface:

Yet another resignation: F.A. Griffin no longer finds the ‘Gleaner’ as interesting as it used to be. She thinks the influence of the Sub-Ed. completely spoils it, and that he stirs up strife among the members, and causes continual arguing and unpleasantness in the criticism. Poor S.E.! He seems to be blamed for a lot!

Godfrey’s sympathy for Potous waned, however, when his antics interfered with her editorial duties. In the Jan/Feb 1918 issue, Godfrey inserted a long note near the back of the book, noting with alarm that:

I don’t know what is the matter with you all this time! I have just returned today from spending a holiday at Eastbourne, and find this magazine awaiting me, while I see that six members have not had it at all yet. Why Mr. Johnston, after apparently keeping it five or six days instead of two, returned it to me instead of sending it on to Mr. Holt, I do not know. It has already had one lost journey by being sent on by Mr. Greenhorn to Mr. Potous instead of to Mr. Lewin, but this was really Mr. Phillips’ fault for putting Mr. Potous address on back when sending on.

The blame, she insists, lies with Mr. Potous:

I believe a lot of this trouble, however, may be caused by the Sub Editor’s having tampered with the Postal List, and sending it to one of the members out of her turn. And he has even had the audacity to cross my name off the end of the list, and put his own I notice! Please, no more altering or tampering with my Postal List, Mr. Sub Editor! It only makes the magazine look untidy, and is apt to muddle members who have not enough time to study things carefully or to read your detailed remarks.

Potous’s crime in altering her postal list is further compounded by the rather incendiary departure of another longtime member. Godfrey writes:

The following is an exact copy of a postcard I have just received from D.T. Wilcock—it will be remembered that the Sub Editor called him a “lunatic” in his last criticisms; I don’t know if he thought I was guilty of this and wished to be revenged, but here it is:–

 

‘Book sent away to Mr. Morrison from Wilcock Heptonstall today Sunday Sept 23rd 1917. To be fair with you it requires a lunatic to deal with you at present I saw that from your photo. You may be dealt with less mercifully some day. If the magazine was a thing that mattered much you would have known about it from your magazine. No wonder you are on the shelf. I am excused from responsibility of law court actions from the Gleaner in future.’

 

I have no idea what this all means—I am really rather inclined to think the Sub Ed. may be right for once, in his estimation of Mr. Wilcock. Anyway, I think you will all agree that I am justified in dismissing Wilcock from our midst henceforth; I cannot have postcards of this description being sent to our house; my father was very annoyed about it.”

Potous, for his part, appended his own defense, totalling four pages of type densely packed, biting back with characteristic zeal:

I do not remember calling our late member a ‘lunatic’ I am certain I did nothing of the sort. I may have asked him at what lunatic asylum he was residing, but this is quite another thing—he might have been there as a doctor or keeper or something of that sort. On the other hand, he might have been there as an inmate—one never knows.

Godfrey inserts another sheet, handwritten, at the close of this issue with a distressed call for members to send her a confidential postcard voting on whether or not Potous should be removed from his office, and, indeed, by the next issue Potous is conspicuously absent. Some departed members did return, but the criticism section remained contentious. One member groused that “in spite of our late Sub-editor’s retirement, scathing, unnecessary critiques still appear rife among the members.”

A detail from the page featuring a portrait of the Sub-Editor.

A detail from the page featuring a portrait of the Sub-Editor.

Though in-fighting often centered around the perceived literary or artistic merits of contributions, just as often members expressed divergent opinions about politics and current events, including the events of World War I, which was contemporary with the later years of the magazine’s run. Editorial antics aside, The Gleaner represents an important archive of a pivotal moment in Western history. Those interested in exploring this record of World War 1 are invited to view the exhibition The Gleaner: Documenting the Great War,  in the First Floor Gallery at the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library.