, 1886-05-04
yogL eE.NpLER aAaRlg, oAngga



/ was born In the village Of Eatontou,
Putnam county, Ga, Dec. o, 1873, In the
humblest sort OF circumstance. sly de-
sire TO write-to give expression to my
thoughts-grew out Of hearing my mother
read -The Vicar Of Wakefield l was TOO
young to appreciate the story, but there
was something in the style or something
in the humor ui that remarkable little
book that struck my fancy, and straight
way fell to composing little tales in which
the principal character-whether hero or
MISUNDERSTANDING and silenced the other
characters by crying Fudgei NJ every pos
sible opportunity. None OF these little
tales have been preserved, but l am con
WINGED that, since their keynote was
Fudgel they must have been very close 20
human nature.
In 1862 1 saw an advertisement in a
little weekly paper, The Countryman,
calling for an apprentice 70 learn the
printing business. This advertisement /
responded to, aud it was not many days
before | was installed in the Office Of the
only genuine country newspaper ever
printed in this country. Tho Count-yman
was edited by Joseph A. Turner, and was
published on his plantation, nine or ten
miles from any postonice. In truth, The
Countryman was published in the u
Ky n puiiillbt hNAN Iel ut7A NlAulAl
five PAGES of the window where l learned
TO set type, aid hatcned her brood undis-
turbed. The cat squirrels frolicked on the
roof, and n gray fox, whose range VA in
the neighborhood, used to fit across the
orchard path in full view. The Country
man was published on n plantation and
it was on this and ~ncighboring plantations
that | became familiar with the curious
myths and animal stories that form the
basis Of the volumes credited TO Uncle
Remus. l absorbed the stories, songs,
and myths that | heard, but had no idea
of their literary value until, some time in
the seventies, Linpincott's Maeazine
printed an article ON the subject ol negro
folklore, containing rough outlines OF
some of the stories. This article gave me
my cue, and the legends told By Uncle
Remus are the result.
While setting type for The Countryman
/ contributed surreptitiously 10 the coll
umns of that paper, setting my articles
from the "cNsen instead of committing
them to paper, and thus leaving no evil
dence of authorship. supposed that this
was n huge joke; but, rs Mr.. Turner rend
the proof OF every line that Went into his
paper, it is qraAable tint Understood
ne situation and abetted it. Atany rate, he
began to lend me books from his library,
which comprised a collection OF literature
both large and choice. The books forming
this library have since been dispersed, but
there were ut least 800 volumes ln the col
lection that modern book-lovers would pay
high prices for.
This was the accidental beginning of a
career that has been accidental through
out 1t was an accident that / went TO
The Countryman, an accident h wrote
Uncle Remus,n and an accident that the
J stories put forth under that name struck
the popular fancy. In some respects these
accidents are pleasing, but in Others they
are embarrassing. For instance, people
persist in considering me a literary man,
when | am a journalist and nothing else.
l have no literary training, and know
nothing at all of what is termed literary
art. have no opportunity TO nourish any
serious literary ambition, and the proba-
bility is that if such m opportunity had
presented itself l would have refused to
take advantage of it.-Joel Chandler Har-
ris in Lippincott's Magazine.