The Orangeburg news. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1867-1875, 1874-08-22


Dumas was getting we'll into years be
fore be discovered that he had higher
talents than were requisite for making
plays for Partisan audiences. In 1914,
his "Three Mousquctaires" literally
created equal delight and surprise
They appeard in, short portions, lay
after day, in what is known in France
as the .f"'Ucto" Of u newspaper
The public demanded more and IN,
OF this story and the author, happy to
oblige such . band Of paying readers,
produced at least half dozen continua
tions and sequeis.
Finding that he had sunk shaft into
y vcritablc gold mine, Dumas was not
the man to leave the virgin orc uncol
lcctcd. While his "Mousquetaircs"
were dclightiug Paris iu one daily
paper, he was publishing "Thc Count dc
Monte Cristo" in another, aud the pay
mcnts to him for both were almost in
incredibly large.
Rival publishers bcsieged him with
ilat'cry and gold, and he grac;ous!y ac
cepted both. lie wrote, on an average,
thirty-two octave pages every day, some
times running as many as four different
romanccs in as many paper at the same
time.
In 1916, when ''Moute Cristo" was in
course Of publication, Dumas contracted
with two newspaper proprietors to furn
ish them with as much copy" or manu-
script, as would have made sixty volumes
in the year !! At the same time he was
writing for the stage.
lis rapidity was wonderful. He com
p.scd plays as fast as he could put pen
to paper. lie drew, but not very large
ly, upon his imagination He plunder
ed extensively, laying under contribu
ton, not unknown or obscure authors,
but such wclLknown md popul.,r.writers
as Walter Scott, Schiller, Chateau
BRAND, Ausustin Thicrry (thc histor
ian), and Victor Hugo.
lie used to boast that, while he lived
at Marty Ga suburb of Paris, on the
Scine), within sight of Maisons, the
country seat of fair and frail Madame
DuLarry, il took man, two horses and
locomotive to convey his manuscript
daily to his publishers
Two Of them, representing The Pressc
and The Constitutional, got to logger
heads and law about Dumas, who had to
prove that he was author Of the works
that horc his name. He proved this to
some extent that IS, he showed that
the plots were his own, though he en-
ploycd little army Of assistants to work
them out and make the dilluguc. Paris
was as much amused as it wa. cnlightcn
ed By this exposure.
y little before this lawsuit clever
fellow, editor OF series Of sharp biogra
phics, entitled lies Contemporaries, ;"
had first shown how largely Dumas was
aided by other and scarcely known wri
tcrs. This gentleman, whose real name
is Jac1uot, called himself Eugene dc
Mirccourt, AMI published little book
hanryily entitled "Manufactory of Ro
manccs-lIousc of \. Dumas Il Conn
amy. lie showed that the author Of
F." Monte Crsto" had seventy four assis
tants, who did most Of the writing which
passed as his.
There were several answers, assailing
Dc Nirccourt, which failed to exculpatc
Dumas. Notwithstanding the exposure.
Dumas popularity remained undated
1t is said that DUN composed five
hundred romanccs and as many plays .
W hat become of the proceeds He lost
one fortune in Il theatre which he cstab
lishcd; he lost second in the Chateau
dc Monte Cristo, Which he built near
st. Gearmains, outside of Paris, at a
cost of 800 900, but was sold for S6l0U
in 1851 His extravaganza was Il sort
of disease -Saiu414y NiyM
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WoRE MURDER-W Walter p. Billings,