Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-01-27

He Made His First APP
No. nearance as Lecturer.
,-....,.iDg "reminiscences Of One Of
Americas Humorists-

80 friends. but there has been so
nocb invention ard nonsense written
-,o,, the latter that ! almost tremble
! say word lest may be put down
.mono the fabulists Especially an
r,olishman by the name of Kingston,
,,nstinQ to his Imagination for the
tacts and having been the travelling
.gput of Artemus for while, got out
hook. in which the main parts of the
Great humorist's life were omitted.
while other parts we're purely imagin-
ary to fiji in. The real story of Arte-
mus debut into prominence 10 this:
There was in 1860 comic paper print
ed in this city by two brothers, Steph-
eng called Vanity Fair, which blazed
ND brilliantly for while under literary
and artistic genius, but finally fiickered
and was likely to expire. The editor
shin was offered to me but saw plain
" could do nothing with it. ! said:
There are only two men in this
country that can do you any good.
One is John G. SAKE. and the other Ar
temus Ward" Atthat time believed
this to be his real nams. "Saxe you
can't have. for he Is about TO run for
governor Of Vermont. so you'd better
get hold Of Mr.. Ward as quickly as you
can"
My advice was needed, and was
asked il would write to Artemus and
learn his views. i did so TO Cleveland,
O., and made him the distinct offer of
coming to New York on a salary of $50
per week, and an increase on the sue
cess of the paper. He WAS prompt,
arriving in New York almost as soon
as his letter of acceptance He after
ward told me that he was getting but
$40 per week on The Plain Dealer, and
assumed the editorial chair of Vanity
Fair; but salt could not save the
paper. Notwithstanding its genuine
merit. The American public does not
want refined wit. though since that
time they have been partially educated
up to it; they want broad humor and
personal allusion, Punch never did
sell in this country, and if we want
anything outside of a daily paper it
must be cheap and a great deal of it.
Witness our so celIed literary papers,
eight large pages running six contin-
utd stories, for cents.
When Vanity Fair was sure TO go
down Artemus was very respondent.
What should he dop One day walking
up Broadway said to him, Charley
why don't you lecturer Why the idea
was absurd. He could write. but he
could not talk; he was not able to say
ten lines on an emergency. 1 soon
talked him out of that by telling him
that he could read his lecture or COM
NIT it to memory. That point settled,
now what should be his subject? At
the time the canard of the Twenty
seventh street ghost was in fun blast,
and | suggested ghosts as subject,
knowing that whatever he wrote he
would make it funny. and before we
parted 1t was agreed that he should
write what he could on this subject,
and on the next evening come down to
Ptaff's, the noted Bohemian resort on
Broadway above Bleecker street, and
read it to the PARTY that assembled
there every night
This programme was carried out,
and ArtemGs duly appeared with what
DC called "A Lecture About Ghosts"
and read it amid uproarious approval,
the main fun of which was that there
was not word in it about ghosts, and
y was settled on all sides that il must
oe brought before the public. But
aowg There was an actor and occa-
SOnal manager ut that time playing
general utility It Wallack's theater,
sne elder Of tho name. on Broadway,
near Broome street. whose name was
ne Walden. l went to De Walden
wnom knew. and talked Artemus
0hlm. Hesaw it and an introduction
followed. De Walden worked aasisan-