Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-09-04

The form exactly illustrated the editors
popularity. He appeared TO be incapable
of arriving at any decision and unwilling to
assume any responsibility. The author was
not told that his paper was accepted or
rejected. The editor hoped to use 1t
"some time inspiring assurance), but if
time" he could get it, which was SUI
premely kind. i have heard of persons
waiting year after year, anxiously expect
ing, meanwhile, their poem, essay or story
to appear, and then abandoning expectation
altogether. Authors have actually been
lost sight of by death, change Of residence
and condition, while tarrying for the
tardy GALAXY 1t used to be cur
rent joke here that man who wrote
for it must be independent in circumstances
and certain of longevity. Otherwise, he
would not be qualified. a young Gttera-
teur sent, few months after the first issue
of the monthly, contribution of less than
two pages. 1t was not published for nearly
three years. He saw the editor week or
two later, and asked, g Is the Gzia1y usu-
ally so slow in publishing contributed mat
ter as it has been with my little article
should be glad to know for have thought
OF sending you an article that Will make
ten or more printed pages, and though l
come of long-lived family, have doubts
if | should last to so venerable an age as
might be required. However, Eli try it,
and mark it posthumous.
Surely no American monthly was ever
so original as the GALAXY in its editorial
mismanagement The number and intens-
ity of curses that have been cast upon its
head would have equipped superabundantly
the proverbial army in Flanders. Readers
of the magazine 1t was who regretted Its
death, not its outside contributors, who
must have reioiced that it had lost its
power to annoy and wrong them further.
When the GALAXY was discontinued the
MSS on hand were transferred to the
atlantic. Most of them had, l under
stand, been accepted by the Churches two
or three years before; but the transfer
rendered them subject, it is claimed, to
the decision of the editor of the Boston
monthly, SO that they are liable to be re-
turned to their authors, who have already
waited years for their money. Hardly any
of the articles have been or viii be likely
to be used by the atlantic. as it has arti-
Giles enough, and to spare, of its own. A
number Of them have been sent back, and
many more will be; and this gross
| injustice will have to be borne by
writers, as numberless injustices are
constantly borne by them. have heard
that two or three authors have
determined to test the matter in the
Courts and | sincerely hope they WILL
merely to show whether authors have any
rights that publishers are bound to respect.
These authors have applied to the Shell
dons, still in business and financially re-
sponsible, for payment of articles accepted
by the GALAXY and declined by the atlantic.
The Sheldons say they sold out to the
Churches, who say in turn that they sold
out to the atlantic. Thus the response
bility is evaded, and the poor devil Of
scribbler is left to whistle for the money
which he has laboriously and justly earned
The AtlGntic, of course, denies that it
agreed to accept any MSS. which its editor
had net seen and passed upon and thus
former contributor to the Gdt0ry may
spend the remainder Of his days going
from the Sheldons to the Churches, from
the Churches TO Houghton, Miffiin & Co.,
from Houghton, Mifiiln & Co. to the Shell
dons again, and so on interminably. Ii
writers and publishers are not natural enc
mics. they ought to be. The former, as a
rule, hate the latter bitterly, and with
plenty of cause. The sole reason they do
not make war on them is because they feel
that they can't afford to; publishers hav-
ing every natural and acquired advantage.
The tricks and positive swindles practiced
by publishers on authors are innumerable
Authors have grown so accustomed to
them that they are amazed when they are
fairly treated. Publishers are not always
unjust. There are many exceptions, and
honorable exceptions but it is still true
that the average publisher rarely imagnes
the author to have any ground for CON-
plant, however i'll he may be treated.
The publisher is perfectly aware that the
author quarrels with his own bread and
butter, as the phrase is, by quarreling
with him and it must be conceded thai
he profits by his clear understanding of
the situation. a few suits in which
writers were plaintiffs would establish
presidents that would be beneficial to
them and [ wish most heartily for the
sake of the guild that such presidents will
be established. The Galaxy cases will be
capital ones to begin with.
THE OLDEST EXTANT MAGAZINE
In this city or in the country is Harper's,
which may be the reason why it is called
Harpers New Monthly. 1t is, too, almost
the only one that has proved handsomely
profitable, having made money, it is said.
from the initial number. 1t is well nigh
thirty -one years old, having been founded,
if / remember, in December, lS49. One
can trace the progress OF periodical litera-
ture here by examining the different vol
umes of this monthly. The early num-
bers are almost entirely made up of repub-
locations from British periodicals, and the
illustrations are very poor, compared with
those it has now. Gradually the engrav
ings improved, and original matter began
to appear, until Harper's has been COM
pletely transformed. To-day its contents
are either original or are taken from ad-
vance sheets, and as a popular magazine it
has not probably its equal on either side of
the sea. Its circulation is set down at
5000, nearly twice that of any
other monthly; and yet it is not so
large, | am told, as it was before the
war. You may remember that Harper &
Bros. were quite friendly to the South
anterior W LHe DTedhlnS Oub VI tHe reDell-
ion, and that, subsequent to the firing on
Sumter, they were ardently Northern.
very natural change. The magazine had
big circulation in the slave States, which
was eventually cut off by the civil strife
and when the strife ended, the Southerners
had much of the feeling toward the firm
that usually exists toward persons whom
we have regarded as friends, and who have
become our enemies. The feeling has worn
away good deal now; but the South has
not the money it once had to spend for Pc
riodicals, and the magazine has been obliged
to seek its main field in the North. For
merly it had among its contributors many
writers in the slave States, professors of
colleges, clergymen and professionals who
had no general reputation, but who were
locally regarded as fine minds and rare
scholars.
Not few of the contributors to Har-
per's, especially to the earlier numbers, are
names that seem to belong to a past genera
ton. These are ]. 7. Headley, Benson J.
Losing, Andrew A. Lipscomb, ]. Ross
D. ID