Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1880-07-29
ArtenluS Ward.
HIS APPEARANCE AND MANNERS TWENTY-FIVE
YEARS AGO.

HIS APPEARANCE AND MANNERS TWENTY-FIVE
YEARS AGO.
a. Minor Griswold. better known rs .sThp
Fat Contributor" gives this recollection OF
Artemus Ward: In the spring OF lS5S. before
Ar.emus Ward was ever heaTdof being thrown
out OF newspaper work on account of the sus-
pension OF a Buffalo daily on which had bapn
employed, the editor said 10 me- ''Why not 90
SO up TO Cleveland and try the Pam Dldl,y.2 4
green Young man by the name OF Brown is local
there but he isn't Of any account. and Mir.
Gray would readily exchange him for a Gamble
person ike yourself. viii give You a letter %
Mr.. Gray" | didn't quite like the idea OF
croNdlng man out. but as / was informed
that the incompetent Brown would b. com
pence 10 ltaSe soon anywhere. concluded that
Night as well apply Tor the inevitable vacancy
as any one else.
So took the letter and started. | remember
feeling sorry for Brown as 1 neared the pam
Dtdtef Office, and was half disposed 10 turn
pack when reached the door. but walked In
and inquired for the proprietor A tail slim
young man stepped forward whose prominent
feature was an intensely aqutline nose. and IN
formed me In a low and platntiye voice that Mr.
Gray was confined to his house on account or
an accident, but that he was prepared TO act In
MS absence: my name, he remarked simply,
sis Brown"
The letter was never presented. tore it I'D
tbe 1lrst opportunity. and neither AIR. Gray nor
the man by the name OF Brown ever knew that
II had an existence. was much pleased with
my new acquaintance. He was simply Charley
!. Brown. without sc" attached to his surname.
II he had ever written over the nom de plume
or Artemus Ward before that period was not
aware OF ii. He was not known by that amelia
uon at any rate. He was mild -maunered.
funny-tempered young fellow OF ~ or %, who
delighted In Witty anecdotes, and told irOli
stories himself In an inimitable way His work
Oh The ram DtdteT consisted in getting up
column or Two or local items each day and II
was only occasionally that the fun there was
In him cropped out In a paragraph
The UNAFFECTED cordially with which Mr..
Brown received me, when he learned was a
" me ln fret
acquaintance be took me TO a school exhibition
ON Cleveland Heights-Humistons it was called
-and bis whispered comments upon the per-
Torrance amused me greatlyt they gave a
portion OF the play of .'Rolla" .sHow now,
Gomez, what brlngeSt thou:" GoneZ-"On
yohoer mountain We surprised an old Peru
WAN Brown, In whsper-"They knew him
by bis bark, a small bundle of which YOU per.
ceive be carries on his shoulder" There have
been many Peruvian bark jokes since, but that
was then fresh TO me-too fresh, perhaps.
= IL did not occur to me. as we drove back In
the buggy, that my new friend was the least
DIT eccentric After riding along In silence for
tlme he suddenly declared he liked me- and
asked me II had any objections TO one en-
trace. Then he attempted to throw his arms
tround me, but owing TO the darkness, | sup
pose he embraced new plug hat that | wore
and when he let go 1t was crushed into a shape
less mass He apologiZed profusely when he
discovered what he had done. appeared to give
way to momentary burst Of tears. and ther
SAID that Shakespeare wouldn't have succeeded
as local editor, because he hadn't the neces
Sary fancy and Imagination.
His humorous account OF the school exhlbi
ton In the next days paper confirmed me IN
the impression that the young man by ths
name or Brown possessed rare streak OF orr
ginal humor. The following autumn he pub
nshed the first ArtemuS Ward letter that was
extensively copied, an account OF the Atlantic
cable celebration In BaldwinSvlle followed
soon after by the Free Lovers OF Berlin Heights
and from that time his progress was rapid anC
brilliant, and within less than two years b,
took his place at the head of American hu
mOliStS.