THE OPEN LETTER

Let me tell you about our daily mail. We get letters of appreciation and letters of suggestion—hundreds of both kinds. Many of them are addressed to the “Editor of The Mentor,” others to “Dear Mr. Editor”—and some to “Mr. Moffat.” I like the last form best, for I know that when a member of The Mentor Association writes in a personal way, with a message of encouragement or a valuable suggestion, The Mentor has found a real friend. I like to see the spirit of personal interest growing in our daily mail. It is the best assurance of the vitality of The Mentor Idea that we could have. Fellowship spirit is the soul of all mutual endeavor.

It is pleasing to see how close an interest some of our members take in the details of The Mentor work. The following letter came to me a day or so ago—and it is too good to keep to myself.

“My dear Mr. Moffat: When I opened the Hawaiian number of The Mentor, I was delighted to find a greeting from you on the inside of the front cover page. Now that you have moved over there, why don’t you stay? Of course, I don’t know anything about the workings of an editorial office, and it may mean a furious amount of trouble. You might have to move your desk and your whole staff, and even have to get out a new copyright, but from an outsider’s point of view the move looks easy. And to my way of thinking the front of the magazine is the place for you anyway—if you will permit me to say so. There you seem to stand as a host at the threshold, offering a welcome to guests before they enter.”

SYLVIA.

“Who is Sylvia? What is she?”—so Shakespeare and Schubert sang. And if they couldn’t tell who Sylvia was, how can I? Of one thing I feel sure: she is a faithful reader of The Mentor, for she has taken note of our goings and comings, and our varied forms of editorial expression. The notion of my being the “host” is an inviting one. It is a role that one should be proud to fill, especially when the feast to which he invites his guests is the wealth of the world’s knowledge. The thought of assuming that role, however, is a bit staggering. Thanks, Miss Sylvia, but perhaps I had better play the more generally useful part of planning, preparing and making up The Mentor feast. Your welcome to the second cover page is appreciated. I have been there many times before, however, when the page has borne no signature. No number of The Mentor appears, Miss Sylvia, without my being around somewhere. I have no preference for one particular page. I find occupation and joy on every page of The Mentor from cover to cover.

Here are some of the things that we do in reply to letters.

We answer questions in the various fields of knowledge. We look up sources of information for our readers and give them full replies. We have just mailed a letter in which answers were made to historical questions that called for a morning’s research by one of our staff.

We supply programs for reading clubs and lay out schedules for a whole season of meetings.

We supply material extracted from reference works for the benefit of members who are pursuing courses of reading.

We occasionally read essays or papers that have been prepared by members, and offer helpful editorial suggestions. Aside from club work, we lay out reading courses for private individuals who are pursuing special studies.

In some cases, where a member lives in a remote spot and cannot conveniently obtain books, we get them for the member at publisher’s prices. Occasionally, where books could not be had in the market, we have lent copies from our library.

We give full information and service in art, telling our readers where and how to get good pictures—we also give travel information.

These are but a few of the things that we do. We have a booklet in which we describe The Mentor Service. Send for it. If you have not had the benefit of our service, you will be surprised to see how wide and varied it is.

The Prize Contest Letters have been coming in fast. There are so many good ones that it will be difficult to make a choice. I am going to print extracts from some of them. A part of the first letter appears on the opposite page. It tells of The Mentor as a friend. Could there be any happier note to begin with than that? Other letters will tell of the many ways in which The Mentor is or can be made valuable in home, school and social life. The story of one reader will help another, and the sum total of the information will be of benefit to all.

W. D. Moffat Editor