Auld, Lang, And Better

One of the satisfactions of history is the pleasure of nostalgia. All of us have moments when it seems as if things were better when we were younger; and from that it’s only a step to the feeling that some earlier period in our history was somehow better in most if not all respects than the present. It was something of this feeling, we admit, that gave rise to the special issue of A MERICAN H ERITAGE on the Twenties, last August; and we have received a gratifying number of letters showing that the feeling was shared by many of our readers. Among them was one from Mr. Frederic B. Leach, of Nutley, New Jersey, who was reminded of a parody he once heard of Edward Arlington Robinson’s famous poem, “Miniver Cheevy.” The parody, called “Miniver Cheevy, Junior,” ends:

The article about Burma-Shave jingles in our December issue also stirred fond recollections, and we are beginning to get notes complaining that the author, Frank Rowsome, Jr., ignored “the best one,” or “my favorite.” The first such remonstrance came from Mr. Richard M. Ketchum, of Bronxville, New York, who regrets the omission of: THE BEARDED LADY / TRIED A JAR / SHE’S NOW / A FAMOUS / MOVIE STAR .