Kenneth L. Roberts – The Unofficial Site

Did you know that Kenneth Roberts co-wrote a one-act play several years before he embarked on writing his novels? If you answered “No”, you are likely not alone. Most works about Roberts either fail to mention his one-act play, or they mention it in passing. But, alas, The Brotherhood of Man is one of Roberts’ earliest works published at the Saturday Evening Post.

Roberts co-wrote The Brotherhood of Man with Robert Garland, a friend from their time serving on the American Expeditionary Force in Siberia.

On their voyage home from Siberia, Garland told Roberts how easy it was to rent a place in Italy, where he had been able to focus on writing one-act plays (I Wanted to Write, 122). Since Roberts already knew he wanted to write, and a distraction-free location sounded appealing, he was intrigued.

He encouraged Garland to ask his contacts in Italy to keep an eye out for a house—provided Roberts could “think of anything to put on paper” (122). He wanted to write; he just didn’t yet know what.

Garland suggested Roberts write about the Romanov family: “the Tsar and his daughters and the one that escaped” (IWW, 122). To Garland, it sounded like great material for a play. Roberts disagreed. He felt there wasn’t enough to work with and admitted he “knew nothing about playwrighting” (122). Garland didn’t give up. He argued that it could still work as a one-act play. That night, aboard the USS Sherman en route to San Francisco, Roberts and Garland began drafting what would become The Brotherhood of Man.

In Roberts’ words, the one-act play:

adhered closely to the evidence gathered by American Intelligence officers concerning the fate of the Russian royal family at the hands of the Bolsheviks, and the rumored escape of the Grand Duchess Tatiana on the day the Czechs captured Ekaterinburg from the Red Army (IWW, 123).

A week after returning to the States, Roberts arrived in Philadelphia to visit George Lorimer at the Saturday Evening Post. Roberts’ article on his time in Siberia with the AEF had been accepted, and Lorimer asked Roberts if he had anything else on his mind. Roberts mentioned the play, and Lorimer wanted it.

“The Brotherhood of Man” first appeared in print in the August 30, 1919 issue of the Saturday Evening Post.

Roberts’ one-act play was not the only piece he did on Bolshevism. A number of articles in SEP addressed post-WWI problems in Eastern Europe – problems Roberts witnessed in his role as a SEP correspondent. Though primarily addressing the issue of immigration in Eastern Europe, Roberts often observes the impact of Bolshevism on refugees from Russia and its attempt to infiltrate Eastern European countries. Several of these articles made their way into two of Roberts’ earliest books: Europe’s Morning After and Why Europe Leaves Home. Prevalent throughout his work is a strong anti-Bolshevik sentiment (an attitude that ran counter to some progressives of his day).

Finding a copy of The Brotherhood of Man has, for me, felt like a search for the Holy Grail—it’s been rather difficult to track down. I’ve been looking for years. Only recently did I come across a completely intact copy of the August 30, 1919 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Considering this issue is 106 years old, finding a copy in such good condition is nothing short of remarkable. (The images above come from the copy I recently acquired.)

The Brotherhood of Man was also published in pamphlet form in 1919. I’ve only seen it in person once, through Interlibrary Loan. I’ve also spotted it once on an auction site—but that listing has long since closed (click here). Otherwise, in nearly 16 years (or more), I’ve never come across a pamphlet copy for sale.

If you’re interested in reading The Brotherhood of Man without the hassle of tracking down a physical copy, you can subscribe to The Saturday Evening Post for $17 annually. A subscription gives you full access to their digital archives. Not only can you read Roberts’ one-act play, but you’ll also be able to explore all of his other articles—as well as those by other legendary SEP writers.

Finally, Roberts published other writings on Bolshevism in Life, Puck, and Judge. You can search through the various titles using the bibliographies I recently created: