Friday, July 12, 2019

A synthetic Westener

"Sigsbee H. Waddington is a synthetic Westerner. His whole life, with the exception of one summer vacation when he went to Maine, has been spent in New York State; and yet, to listen to him, you would think he was an exiled cowboy. I fancy it must be the effect  of seeing too many Westerns in the movies. Sigsbee Waddington has been a keen supporter of the motion pictures from their inception: and was, I believe, one of the first men in this city to hiss the villain. Whether it was Tom Mix who caused the trouble, or whether his weak intellect was gradually sapped by seeing William S. Hart kiss his horse, I cannot say: but the fact remains that he now yearns for the great open spaces and if you want to ingratiate yourself with him, all you have to do is to mention that you were born in Idaho - a fact which I hope that, as a rule, you carefully conceal."

(from The Small Bachelor, by Sir Pelham Wodehouse)

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