Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-07-25
WORKING HABITS.
REGULAR OR IRREGULAR HABITS
NECESSARY 10 INSPIRATION.
Bfooklm Ea2lel

Christine Nilsson, In an interview with .
Pail Nall Gazette reporter, describes conf
aentially the methods she finds it necessary
to adopt to keep her voice in ths best sing.
ing condition. Il am obliged to 60 to bed"
she says, -as early as possible after singing,
and even on of nights am ordered to retire
Is early as convenient after dinner. You
zee, the voice and the spirit must be fresh
In the early morning for practice, SO a. to
give space for rest and drive in the open
air before singing in the afternoon or even
ing" Such extreme care, she added, is nee
sssary even to the strongest woman who
wishes to preserve her voice for any space
Of time.
No doubt this Is true, for tho throat and
lungs are delicate organs, and the slightest
arrangement in them might be fa.al to su-
premacy as public singer, even il the Per.
sonal health were not seriously affected.
Other artists beside singers haze regular or
irregular habits which they find necessary
tn their individual inspiration and work.
Some find they work better in the morning,
others in the evening or at night. Some do
best with a little stimulant, others let slim
ulants and narcotics severely alone when
they put their brain earnestly o work.
Dickens wrote early in the morning, and
never allowed himself to smoke a cigar
during the hours Of composition Other
literary men, like Carlyle, have found
tobacco a great aid to prolonged literary ex.
ertion. Pitt and Fox before making their
great speeches used to put two bottles Of
old port under their waistcoats. Mr.. Glad
stone takes an egg beaten up in sherry and
his club luncheon is generally little fish,
some bread and cheese and half pint Of
pale ale
TIE unfortunate Emperor Macmillan, Of
Mexico, who was something Of literary
man, used to take small glasses Of Rhine
wine constantly during the day, and the
habit produced chronic state Of nervous
irritability. "Those who drink beer think
beer" said d. johnson, and yet Lord Ten
nyson, the poet laureate of England, will
empty . fiagon Of Bass or Allsopp in the
midst Of his finest conceptions. DR..
johnson, as We know, when he
gave his frieni Goldsmith a guinea
while he took the "Vicar Of Wake
field" manuscript to a bookseller that he
might save him from his landlady, found
the mercurial "Noll' enjoying a bottle Of
choice Madeira, for which he had changed
the guinea. on his return. The habits of
Sheridan are well known, and so is Lord
Byron's affinity for gin and soda water.
Poor Theodore Hook, long after his di-
gestive organs had retired from service,
used to work with brain and pen for living
assisted by the frequent application
lope was conspicuous instance Of
the power of regular instesi OF irregu-
lar habits When his daily routine work at
L.
with the novel writing, in which his mental
resources were inexhaustible. and which
gave him fame and fortune. Ot course. be
had to work far into the night Many
others who have been famous as writer's OF
scholars have got up with the sun and done
a full days work by noon Such men have
brooked no interruption during these morn
ing hours Il doubt" said the learned
Bishop Andrewes, of the Elizabethan time,
@that they be no true scholars who call upon
. man before MONDAY"
Sir Walter Scott was great example Of
immense literary work done with machine
like regularity and without artificial assist
ance The amber colored fluid which looked
like sherry in the decanter beside him was
only toast water. Thomson, the author Of
the Seasons" was very lazy and loved his
pillow letter than the ethereal mildness' Of
the gentle spring" Tom Campbell. author
of the pleasures Of Hope could compose
best at midnight. and the Rev. Richard H
Barham, the witty author of the "Inyo!dsby
Legends" confesses that he had no intel
lectual vivacity till the stars came out and
the lamps were lighted. Some authors have
written best in bed and others would not GO
to bed while they had an idea left in their
brains DIR. johnson declared that the
chief benefit his pension conferred upon
him was enabling him to lie abed Of morn
ing.
Tho idiosyncrasies OF authors have In
cluded the most minute AMI trivial require
ments Some of them have been like the
great French cook, who was unable to pre-
pare q dinner to his satisfaction until he had
arranged en- long row of pegs white
paper cap for each dish. He put them on,
one by one, a. he prepared the artistic dish
which each represented and as soon as 1t
was done threw the cap on the floor and put
the next one On his head The dinner was
complete when the last cap was flung away
and he stood uncovered before the long ar
ray Of covers Rousseau would only write
upon odd scraps which it cost the compost
tors and printers, as we'll as the author,
much pains to put together. Some writer's
work best when their minds are free from
pecuniary anxiety; other, like Savage,
were only impelled to work when the wolf
of penury was at the door.