Psmith, JournalistWodehouse, P. G. (Pelham Grenville)
General
Psmith, Journalist
Wodehouse, P. G. (Pelham Grenville)
Humorous stories
"You may leave it to me, Comrade Windsor. I am no hardened old
journalist, I fear, but I have certain qualifications for the post.
A young man once called at the office of a certain newspaper, and
asked for a job. 'Have you any special line?' asked the editor.
'Yes,' said the bright lad, 'I am rather good at invective.' 'Any
special kind of invective?' queried the man up top. 'No,' replied
our hero, 'just general invective.' Such is my own case, Comrade
Windsor. I am a very fair purveyor of good, general invective. And
as my visit to Pleasant Street is of such recent date, I am
tolerably full of my subject. Taking full advantage of the
benevolent laws of this country governing libel, I fancy I will
produce a screed which will make this anonymous lessee feel as if
he had inadvertently seated himself upon a tin-tack. Give me pen
and paper, Comrade Windsor, instruct Comrade Maloney to suspend his
whistling till such time as I am better able to listen to it; and I
think we have got a success."
CHAPTER X
GOING SOME
There was once an editor of a paper in the Far West who was sitting
at his desk, musing pleasantly of life, when a bullet crashed
through the window and embedded itself in the wall at the back of
his head. A happy smile lit up the editor's face. "Ah," he said
complacently, "I knew that Personal column of ours was going to be
a success!"
What the bullet was to the Far West editor, the visit of Mr.
Francis Parker to the offices of _Cosy Moments_ was to Billy Windsor.
It occurred in the third week of the new _régime_ of the paper.
_Cosy Moments_, under its new management, had bounded ahead like a
motor-car when the throttle is opened. Incessant work had been the
order of the day. Billy Windsor's hair had become more dishevelled
than ever, and even Psmith had at moments lost a certain amount of
his dignified calm. Sandwiched in between the painful case of Kid
Brady and the matter of the tenements, which formed the star items
of the paper's contents, was a mass of bright reading dealing with
the events of the day. Billy Windsor's newspaper friends had turned
in some fine, snappy stuff in their best Yellow Journal manner,
relating to the more stirring happenings in the city. Psmith, who
had constituted himself guardian of the literary and dramatic
interests of the paper, had employed his gift of general invective
to considerable effect, as was shown by a conversation between
Master Maloney and a visitor one morning, heard through the open
door.
"I wish to see the editor of this paper," said the visitor.
"Editor not in," said Master Maloney, untruthfully.
"Ha! Then when he returns I wish you to give him a message."
"Sure."
"I am Aubrey Bodkin, of the National Theatre. Give him my
compliments, and tell him that Mr. Bodkin does not lightly forget."
An unsolicited testimonial which caused Psmith the keenest
satisfaction.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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