The Arkansaw traveler., 1886-02-27
LenGanSett.
BY OPIE P. READ.
CHAPTER XII

WAyp Ay NCot OOyi oHh 6A0N " SSS you," said Colonel Bently as he opened the gate for Len. "Walk in aud at once proceed to make yourself at home. All well" he added as he and Len shook hands
 .s we'll as usual," Len replied.
 "Good. The thaw makes the roads pretty heavy, see. Come this way"
 They went into the litrary. room in. viting to any one who regarded books as congenial companions,
 "You have been at work, 1 see," said Len as he glanced at several sheets ot manuscript which were lying on a table.
 "Yes," the colonel replied, "I have been trying to grind out something for a paper printed in town where used to live. To me my pen is amusing but not remunerative. At one time had hopes of becoming an author, but after receiv- ing many slaps at the hands of publishers, wisely decided that was not intended to be a writer"
 "Do you not suppose that you would have succeeded had you persistedp" Len asked.
 "I think not" the colonel replied. "I had double charge of ambition but somehow had not that deft touch which cultivation often fails to impart and with out which no man can be a successful writer. had not the mack of moving characters. l could picture them we'll enough but when they spoke they lost what little naturalness l had been able to give them. Have you ever, written any, Gansett ?"
 "Oh, yes," Lea replied, {" once wrote a story for Scyi6ner's."
 "You don't tell me-"
 "Yes, but it was not printed in that magazine"
 "Oh, l see" said the colonel, laughing. "You doubtless had the forethought to enclose stamps for the return of the man. uscript"
 "Yes, thought that the editor might want to open up correspondence with me. The correspondence, however, was very brief. It was of a general nature, so general, in fact, that it was printed on slip of paper. was sorry for the editor for felt that he did not know what he was losing. sent the story to Harbey's. It came back. Magazine editors I said to myself, are peculiarly stupid this year. sent it to several newspapers and at last took it to an editor who published country paper, sheet something like the Picket. The editor said that he was rushed but that if l would pay tramp rrinter-who happened to be on hand 1t should appear, as Dickens would ex- press it, in all the glory of print. had only seventy-6ve cents. The printer agreed, for that sum, to undertake the enterprise. stood near him, expecting to hear complimentary ejaculation. When stepped back to get a drink of water, the editor, who had scarcely looked at the story, asked the printer what he thought oft. The ungrateful type setter replied that it was an average quality of hog-wash, presume that somebody must have read the story, but no one ever spoke to me with regard to 1t. l was certain that 1t would increase the circula. ton of the paper but several weeks after. ward, when the sheet suspended, 1 de. cided that 1t had not. Since then l have done but little writing for publication"
 "You should not stop," said the colo mel. "I believe that if you would talk, the characters which VIC see every day II this neighborhood-draw them just a they are-and weave them into . stofy that 1t would be success. Come in. Some one had rapped on the door. MI Honeycutt entered. "How are you ? said the colonel. "You know Ganset Sit down."
 Mir. Honeycutt seated himself squirte a stream of tobacco juice into the frs stretched out his legs, struck his heels to gether, scattered mud on the hearth an said:
 "Sorter saft outside"