The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1886-09-17
-.uSfLH REHIs.


I was born IL tie sI.ia-e If Eafontop.
Putnam county. Ga, December 6. 1915, IL
the hHniblest sort Of circumstance. Ny
desire 70 y rits-to giee expression ~ my
thought-Erew out u hearing ny mother
read the Vicar of Wakefield. Twas TOO
yoang 70 appreciate the story. bnt there
Aas something in the style OF something IL
the huInor Of thar remarkable lssle book
That struck my fancy and ! strai4htaay
fell to composing Attle -4ie- ia which the
principal character -fhelier hero OF hero
ihe-astouished aad sileuced the other
characters by erying Fddgs. At egery pos
sIbie opportunity None IF these little
talks have hern preserved. bat I am con
WINGED that -itee tLeif keynote was Fudge,
they must have been ssTy Gloss - human
nature.
10 1862 / saw AZ advertisement il q little
weekly paper. the c-oaa1qaaa, calling FOR
an apprentice to learn ting printing bush
aess. Thu advertisement I responded 10.
and Il sas not many days before 7 was IN
stalled in the Office d tin osIy genuine
country paper ever published ia this c8un-
m. The foanfrymla was adited by ID
eph i. Turner and vas published o. his
plantation, nin or ten nilas from 4uy pot
office. IN truth. the Cs2atrymah vas pab-
llshed IN the country. 4 partridge built
h-r Dest - ithin fire PAGES ~ tie wioloa
slere / harmed - at typ and Matched her
brood undistu. bed The rat squirrels
frolieked ol lhe roof afd q 9ray fox. ahgae
range vas IN tAe neigLb5rha4d used 70
lit across the orchard IaiA in iull giew
The GDaAfrg0laa vas pnhsished On a plan.
tAtion, and il MS Oh tAis and ~aeighbofiug
plantations thzt / became familiar with the
curious myths and animal! stories that form
ihe basis of the volumes credited - Uncle
Remus. ! absorbed the stories, 7ongs and
myths that ! heard, but lad 10 idea 81
their literary value until, SONS time ia tire
seventies, Lippineon's Migaza,e printed sn
article on tie subject Of negro folklore,
containing rough outlines o. ON II The
stories. This article gave me my cue and
lie legends told by Uncle Kemus are tie
result.
While setting type for the rouatcgmaA I
Contributed surrepLitionsIy 70 the columns
II that paper, setting my articles from the
ease instead u committing them to
paper, and thus leaving no evidence OF au-
tA0rship. ! supposed that this was a huge
i3ke. but As Mr Turner read the proof Of
every line that went into his paper Il is
probable that he understood the situation
and Allotted If. At any rate. he began 70
lend me books from bis library. which com
prised a collection Of literature both large
and choice. The books forming this library
haye since been dispersed. but there we're at
least five hundred ~yolaueg IN this cOllec-
ton that modern book-loyers would pay
high prices for.
This was the accidental. beginning Of a
career that has been accidental throughout.
IL was an accident that I vent to the
Gouhtryman, an accident that ! wrote
Uncle Remus, aud an accident that the
stories pu. forth under that name struck
the popular fancy. Ia some respects these
accidents are pleasing. but ia others they
are embarrassing. For instance, people
persist in considering me a literary man,
when | am a journalist and nothing else.
| have no literary training, and know moth
ing at all of what is termed literary art. !
nave no opportunity To nonrish any serious
literary ambition, and the probability is
that If sneh an opportunity had presented
itself | would have refused To take advan-
rage Of it.-Joel Gandler Hiyris IN lip
pincof's Magazins.