The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1875-11-13
Mark Twain's First Experience
ii aab& in journalism, rs y

i was a very smart child at the age
Of thirteen, an unusually smart child,
Thought at the time. It was then |
did my first newspaper scribbling,
and, most unexpectedly Ia me, | stir
red up quite q sensation in the, COM
mun,ty. It did, indeed, and l was
very proud of it too. =. y ''" -
lib was a printers "devil," and a pro.
gressive and aspiring one. NJ nncle
had me on his paper 1.-THE Weekly
Hannibal Journal, two dollars q year
in.advaoce- Ave hundred subscribers,
and that paid in cord wood, cabbages,
and unnark e,able, tumips) and On a
lucky. summers day he left town to
be gone a week, and asked me if l
thought could edit one isg9e 81 tho
paper jnilicioaslA i.Ah, didtt T. want,
to try III Hint6b, VAST tks r,iitor Of
the rival paper, He was lately Tilted,
and one night friend found an open
note on the poor fellows bed, in
Which he stated that he could no
longer endure life, and had drowned
himself in Bear Creek. Il The. friend
ran down there and discovered Hin.
ton wading back to the shore. He
had concluded he W06ldn't.' . 81
10 The village was tull Of. ik for sew.
eral days, but Hinton did not suspect
it. thought this was a fine oppor-
tnnity:o@I wrote ali alaboratory
oretel,ed account of the whole affair;
and then illustrated it with villain!
GUS wood cuts, engraved on the bot
tom OF wood type with q jack-knife,
one Of them q picture Of Hinton wad-
ing out in the creek in his shirt, with
. lautsrn, sounding the depth Of the
water with . walking stick. rs!i sn.lt
thought it was desperately fopnIa
and was densely 'uncconsciious itiIat
there Aas any morai obliquity 'HU8ut
suchIa qualifications Being isatis6ed
with the efforts, i looked. about for
other words to conquer, and il strnck,
ne that Il would make good, inter.
esting matter to charge the editor obif
hbighboriug county paper awith "a
| gratuitous piece Of gaaeauty land see
|4HiY sqaiirrpl,!!, ! d did it,; putting tle
article ii the form Of a, parody on the
bnriaf Ofss"sif john Moore ala "a
crads IIisso.iy it was tooi .'.is. s,ug'sixc
Then |, lsnppQnedl two. psomiasnt
citizens qatrageously, - = 4 not because
they Nad done anything to deserve It,
but betause Iith6ugit II was h,y duty
TO make the parsro ttsoayeoq st'i af'1,
cNeEk1 gently taacbed up the new,
est strangely g| % liop of # t4s daSsiths
Quincy. He WAS 4 sinpering COX.
conb 3sof 'the' fret owatet, ''and 1.-The
'.lapdsat .aresseAnan insstswe. sHd
s sss n 5 PeAstsFs ss ;sa i sSss
aaveyhdl about ,tiis .iitxxsst conc ,isst
His shysnesdbp N y week were lsedlta,
"Msrx,bpH rJel ,psmeaaiag, Mary I'd
Hap pNpll1a, ef course c! Bqty While, eft
ting nup the, piece ! was suddenly
rfveu fiont held tt heel ~ what /
Regarded ass perfect thundefbolS df
4 haiaNr, aud eonphassed it into 6ndt-
pE, foot note at the bottom, thps;;
I'VE viii lot this thing pass, just
| this once but we want M. Gordon
Runuels to understand distinctly that
4 We .hays a character 10. sqstaip, and
from thia time, forth when he wants
to communicate with his friends in
|h-ll, lie must select acme other me-
diam thar THE Journal" s'''st 1925
Tie paper, came cut, and ljnever
knew anythingtO AttFack 80 much ~
1 tention 10 thOse playful tri6es Of mipe,
For onc1 4thSi Hasaibel Jesrxal was was
! In demand novelty it had not w
/ periepced before. ~ No whole town
| was stitred! Hinton dropped id Wiz,
/ double-bsaseied ,sbot gsu! early ID
tho forenoon. When be foan0l that
Il ives ~ Infant, - be- called me, tia,
bad dose the damage, he pulled NY
eass and then Went AMY !; but he
lthS5M mp tfUsisthtian that highland
l4tt The. tppnfK sgaod. IA 49, f,as I,
The tailor came. with biz. gpQop, A.d
| / pair 81 sGaars but be desoised me,
\ to-, Mud departed for the Sc6t1 se6ai
aikls.. L. ssss .vsi,sssii.. 4 iia.s tyts.lsi
The lampconed etisen earn NM
4 thssats of.iieet'a MI g!srss staS
cen.sd al 15: 'ilalgt sasse. ri ri
Tho c5dntty. editor pranced 10 with
"a !at wbocp heat day, sud, ring fo'