THE STORY: Lancelot Oke has met Polly out West, and has returned East to take on all the Womblys at one dinner party. Lancelot is an extremely shy person, who abhors meeting people and is invariable tongue tied with strangers. Imagine his feelings as he enters the Wombly parlor for the fatal interview. Here Polly steps in with a stratagem which serves to set Lancelot at ease and make a good impression. All Lancelot has to do is memorize the pet hobby of each member, and talk about it. There’s Mr. Wombly, Sr., for instance is a Republican who always welcomes a joke on the Democrats. So Lancelot, though a Democrat at heart, has learned three. Mrs. Wombly’s chief interest is poetry, and he has mastered a poem in tribute to her. He has even worked up a belated enthusiasm for baseball and the movies, the respective hobbies of Polly’s brother, Ned, and sister, Vera. Simple, yes? But Lancelot proceeds to get his rehearsed speeches mixed up and then…
