The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1884-01-26
AREMARKABLE A MAN.
Sketch Of Frances Greatest Story
Teller, Dumas Pera
New Anecdotes OF the Noted French
Author---H His Methods OF Work,
and Wonderful Literary
Fecundity.
rTbeodore stanton in Inter Ocean. !

three things; his literary fecundity, his dex-
terity as fencer, and his talent for cooking.
The prolifcness of his pen has probably never
been equaled. 'sFrom an anecdote be would
make tale,n says M. de Bury: s'froll tale,
he would make a novel: from Bowel he
would make a play; and would nevRx aban-
don an idea until he had drawn froa1t not
only what it could yield, but whatG could
yield to him." There were mornings when
Dumas, on opening his mail, wousl find let
tiers from half dozen of the leading newspa,
pers of Paris all asking for copy. On such
occasions he would call together his literary
creditors; would obtain from one delay of
ten days, from another three months, from
this one a week, from that one three days,
from still another twenty-four hours, and
from the last a month. He would then sit
down, go doggedly to work, as DR.. johnson
used to say, and finish each task within the
stipulated time
INDEFATIGABLE.
About in his Sundays speech told h,w,
when on one occasion he met Dumas in Mar
seilles, and they came back from the theatre
at or o'clock in the morning, the indefat-
igable novelist said to him: "You, old man,
must go to bed. /, who am only IS, have
CuIC0 lcuIIICOOIio W WHO, WAICu 1AltaSO ~ Oh
in the mornings post. II, when they are fin
ished, have any time left, 1 shall send Mon
tigny little piece which I have promised
him." With that he lighted two long candles
and began. When About woke up, he saw
Dumas hurnming to himself while he shaved,
three large well-filled envelopes addressed to
as many different Partisan journals, and
package for Montigny, which contained that
Ia @hn Tn Wit lo
Valse." M. de Girardin, the great French
idea every day. Dumas had thousand
HIS CoLLABoRAToRs.
But an author who produced hundred
volumes year had to have collaborators,
and Dumas had them by the score. His ene-
mics made capital out of this excessive col
laboration. They pretended that the cellar
of his house at ST. Germain was filed with
poor devils, hacks driving their weary quills
under the heartless literary lash of the burly
Dumas, and the work completed, only to be
turned off with mere pittance, while the
greedy master pocketed more than the lions
share. Dumas never denied that he hadkcol-
laborators, and the collaborators themselves,
many of whom are still alive and have Sc
cured high place in current literature, have
testified to the generous treatment expert
enced at his hands. If he was benefited by
their preliminary labors, they gained by his
tremendous popularity. If his talented pen
had not given life to weary story and his
magic name appeared ON the title page,
many a book would never have found a
publisher nor a reader. AS has well been
said, there were two Dumas-Dumas alone
and Dumas legion But the productions of
the latter bore the incontestable stamp of the
master mind.
MANNER OF WORKING.
Dumas manner of working was peculiar.
He could write anywhere, at any time and
under all circumstances In the midst Of his
boon companions, discussing in the loudest
tones, his pen kept steadily on. He was no
Carlyle. What would the poor wife Of the
Chelsea sage not have given for such hus-
bands Dumas would even take part In the
conversation from time to time, showing that
he followed the thread of the discussion while
he wrote To new conner he gave the left
hand, without disturbing the busy right one.
On certain occasion, after hunting from
o'clock in the morning, and having killed 80
birds, he complained of being sleepy and re-
turned to the farm house. When his COM
panions entered at S o'clock they found him
seated before the fire. He said he could not
shut his eyes on account of the noise of the
animals in the farmyard, so he had amused
himself by producing play in one act,
"Romulusp
He had a way Of writing several works at
almost the same time Thus he would pass
from novel to, his memoirs, and then on to
play. He would chase from his mind all
thoughts of the last work in order to have his
head quite clear for the next. His pen once
in hand he never stopped to study his subject,
but wrote straight on. Unless writing an
important piece, he rarely reviewed his
manuscript. II he was preparing play for
some second-rate theatre he would always
turn off an act day, SO that in five days the
whole was finished. If, however, he wished
to compose an important work he would
often disappear from the house, seek some
isolated village, and return in a few days with
his task completed. Il am like hen,n he
remarked, Il look for place to SET"
SOLVED THE DIFFICULTY
Dumas was indeed a genius. Here is one
example from thousand: In Richard Oar
lington,n it was necessary in the last act to
get rid of Richards first wife, at the end of q
very violent scene, and at the moment when
woman whom he wished to marry. Dumas
and his collaboration, Goubeaux, were in a
dilemma The latter proposed that she be
poisoned. 'But what shall we do with heI
bodya" asked Dumas. "No," he continued
sit would be better to have the house where
the scene takes place ON the edge of tor
rent, and Richard will throw his wife out Of
the window" Goubeaux objected, on the
ground that the spectators would be sure tc
laugh at the display of legs when Richard
lifted up his wife TO get her out of the win
dow. dumas took the manuscript home
and solved the problem in this way, after
these words: s.They will find woman here.
Richard runs to the door and locks it. In the
meantime his terrified wife rushes to ths
window and shouts from the balcony, Help
Helpr' Richard follows her; she falls on hel
knees before him. A noise is heard in the
stairway. Richard pulls the window shut
Husband and wife are now on the balcony
| A cry follows Richard, pale and wiping tht
perspiration from his brow, throws open the
window He Is alone His wife has disap
peared. Dumas had gotten over the diff
| Guilty while Goubeaux was still racking hi:
| brain.
FOND OF GOOD LIVING.
It has already been said that Dumas was
real Vatel, and with this popularity of th,
novelist this already too long letter mus
close, without having exhausted, however
| the long list of remarkable characteristics o
! this astonishing parsonage. He had studiet
the subject profoundly and could distinguish
the shades of difference between the Italian
and Spanish or German and Russian cooking
He was even prouder of his culinary superior
ity than Of his literary reputation. As b
| stood in front of the stove watching the pro
gress of some dish, he would be writing o.
! the kitchen table a chapter Of some after