Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-12-16
A FASHION WRITER.
The Story Told By A Sue
cessful Woman.
A RIGID DISCIPLINARIAN.
The Command Of Her Own Forces
of Mind-The Beginning of
A Business Career.

all piesseu Win Inc acquaintance OF
woman who makes better income
than hundreds of lawyers, doctors or
business men. and simply by scratching
her clever pen. She Is pre-. eminently a
successful woman. Young, interesting,
bright as a gold coin fresh from the die,
with face no man will ever forget if he
talks to her ten minutes, and with all
her triumphs still preserving that in.
tangible touch of feminity without
which womanhood has no charm. Men
whose names are familiar as writers
speak of her as one of themselves. She
is bonne camarade without the taint
of bohemianism. She neither cuts her
brown hair short nor her gowns scant.
She is woman of society, whose &C.
quaintance is favor to the man upon
whom she bestows it. There is not the
faintest suggestion of the blue stocking
either in her manner, dress or converse.
ton. Purely, sweesly, completely, she
is woman, with all the tenderness, the
helplessness, the willfulness of woman.
hood. Yet when business claims her at.
tention there is no more rigid dis.
ciplinarian than this woman in the com.
mand of her own forces of mind, and
brain, and character. She is a woman
who writes, whom everybody reads, and
who does her work we'll and conscienti.
ously.
EARNING A LIVING.
She received her visitor in an apart.
ment which appeared to hesitate in de.
Gliding whether to become boudoir or
reception room. A slender, graceful,
girlish figure, great eyes that fasten you
with their intensity, pure complexion,
white with students pallor, and the
smallest of kid boots peeping from un.
der the hem of tailor made gown. The
charm was in listening to her, for there
was music in the cadences of her voice.
"Will tell how l began to write?
With pleasure.
"When?"
"Just six years ago, without any
previous training or experience, l sud.
denly found that would have to earn
my living, and l determined to make
every effort to succeed. had no rec
concentrations or introductions, but
went to the head of large PUBLISH Z
establishment, and applied for some.
thing to do. l was asked all sorts of
questions. Could l write anything?
And as it was the only specimen of my
composition available, produced aletter
I had written. 1t was decided to give
me an opportunity, and then the ques.
ton of salary was discussed. 1t was
settled that was to get $40 week.
My hours were to be from s A. M. to 5
P. M, and 1 had one hour for luncheon.
'The first few days l spent looking
around, observing the other people at
work and reading back numbers of the
magazine published by the concern. AT
the end of that time wrote an article
on the very womanly subject of Fans
Other work came into my hands, and al.
though when l began l scarcely knew
cashmere from camel's hair, deter
mined to learn the trade thoroughly,
and to-day know from the most prac-
tical proofs that am rated as one of the
best fashion writer's in New York. Be-
fore my first year was up was earning
500 a week, and l had been shown, by
their thoughtfulness for my comfort,
that the firm for whom l worked fully
appreciated my endeavors.
KEEPING BUSINESS HOURS.
"Until change was made in my
hours, so that l might do great deal of
my work at home, never failed to be
at my desk at s A. NJ, and to this posi-
tive adherence to work, rule against
which may women complain, and to
the fact that never broke an appoint.
ment credit my reputation as good
business woman. Then, too. l never
forgot was woman, and for that rea.
son men were always courteous to me.
simple did my work in the best way
possible, spoke in the frankest way, and
made it an absolute rule not to let
social and business affairs intermingle.
/ have no home, but the impersonality
of my pen to-day pays me regularly 900
a week, which sum, by couple of
poems, has often reached 500. l gave
no wares away; if they are not worth
buying they had best be destroyed
Where giving is concerned, l prefer
giving my money to giving my wors ;
"Is the social standing of women af
fected by her being in business?'
positively no, if their friends are
among a good class of people and the
offensive talk of shop is dropped after
business hours. A man does not enter.
tain the woman he takes into dinner or
with whom he dances the cotilion with
history of bis working hours or the rise
in the price of leather. and there is no
reason why woman should not copy
her superiors in this respect. What are
the best lines for a woman entering
literary life to pursue?"
"Among the omen who write those
who are making the most money, which
is, after all, the basis of success in the
business world, are the women who
write upon fashion, household matters
or stories for children, all subjects en-
inently adapted for the female brain,
which, while it may be quicker, GER
tainly does not possess the reas oning
faculty of man. know two women
who write who get $40 week, another
who gets SIS week, and their work is
not hard. Cor. New York Star.