Count No 'Count

Coming home to Oxford, Mississippi, in 1918 after a stint in the Royal Flying Corps, young William Faulkner was arty and dandified. He sometimes was seen in his airman''s uniform, and he affected English manners. His pose amused some of his townsmen, and joking behind his back, they called him “The Count” and “Count No ''Count.”

During this period Ben Wasson met Faulkner at the University of Missi...