San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-09-24

literary ability your chances for success viii
be greatly increased If you care only for
the money handed you by the cashier for
your work and never care to know or inter
est yourself in the vast work and intricate
machinery which makes the paper and pushes
it and brings in the money to keep it going,
you will stay on the cold side of the best
chances.
There are poets and story writers, and
good ones, too, who come to New York or
other cities and apply for a place" on a
newspaper. Now the ability to write poem
or a story by no means implies the ability to
fill place on a newspaper. There is an in
side to journalism which is a sort of trade by
itself. 1t is something akin to the position
Of an liable seaman" on shipboard. The
sable seaman" is not by profession a rigger
or a calker, painter or carpenter, but he can
and must ION a pinch" be able to turn his
hand and skill in any of these directions.
So, if on a paper, a writer will be very much
benefited by knowing as much as possible of
the mechanical part of the business. You
need to be bit of a printer. You need to
know how to put head" or sundry heads
on an article, to make up" your page or
typical jargon with the printers
There are today more opportunities than
ever for special literary work. There are
more papers and periodicals than ever de-
voted to special trades, occupations, arts and
pursuits The store, the farm, the garden,
the mine, the worker in wood or metal OF
cloth, the electrician, the sailor, the railroad
and hundred other interests are now repre-
sented by publications. All of these make
places for editors.
KNOWLEDGE ON PAPER.
There are people who have great talent for
stringing words and sentences together, yet
who know relatively little. There are others
who know great deal, but can neither put
their knowledge on paper nor talk it out to
Others. Can there not be an exchange of tai
ent managed somehow between these two
classes9 If any man or woman has really
anything to tell they can learn to tell it prop
erly on paper. If they keep on learning as
they become fuller and fuller of knowledge
they must tell it. There is a great deal of
nonsense lying around loose to the effect that
the writing talent is an especial gift OF the
few" and that it is impossible for those who
cannot write with ease ever to do so. don't
power is latent in them until they set to
work to dig it out
"A blacksmith or any other worker in iron
OF other metal, who loves his calling, will
always be finding something new in it. Now,
that man can make cast or wrought iron
literary reputation if he will set himself to
work and acquire facility of expression with
the pen. He can do this if he tries and per
sists in trying, for there is nothing but what
mind can overcome if it sets itself to the
task of overcoming. He never VII accom-
plish such results, however, if he says be
can't and that it's mo use for him to try" at
the start
l knew a whaling captain, afterwards in
the revenue service, who made study of
whales, and wrote, and illustrated as well,
book on whales which is probably the most
valuable work of the kind extant. Looking
over his manuscript one day in his cabin,
was surprised at the ability he displayed in
his drawings, not only of the whales, but ap-
propriate marine views accompanying them.
asked him where he learned drawing. II
learned myself" said be. ~ put my mind
on it, and what wanted of the art came by
degrees. Prentice Mulford in New York
Star