The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-08-31
A LITERARY EXPERIMENT.
Two MaSasine Stories That Are Being
Sent Dat AaOnyaeusay.
Especial Corrosp0n0snoe

Two MaSastne Stories That Are Being
Sent out AaOnymeusay.
Especial CorrespoHdenoe.l
NEW YoHE, Aug. 1S-The experiment
Of Anonymous publication Is having a
trial In two Of tbs nouthly magazines
The results perhaps cannot yet be deter
mined with entire satisfaction. yet ID is
safe TO say that SO far the purpose of the
publishers has not been eutizely realized.
One Of these STORIES 70 eAilod '~The Anglo
maniacs-" It Is OF the sohool s< realistic
analysis, but II does aot slight q good
story as sonae Of che prophsss of this school
believe should be done. In other words, q
pretty fair tale h told By the suthor of
'The Angiomaniacs," and the characters
are quite vividly painted, and their CONVEX
sstion appears to have the quality of fdel-
ity to life
The story is talked Of good deal in
some literary circles, bat it seems not to
have made any such impression with the
general public as the Saxe-Holme stories
did some years ago. An Atmosphere of
smertness and artifciAlisy clouds the lit
erary merits Of the book for the average
reader. The writer is evidently woman,
who seems to have adopted Charles Reade's
plan of making available romantic Incl
dents and curious anecdotes of real life
which have appeared in the newspapers.
One of the sceI..s this writer makes use OF
is taken almost verbally from a sketch
which appeared in one OF tee New York
newspaper, and which described the nat
urrliz&tion of An ignorant foreigner. The
editor of the magazine is understood to
have been greatly impressed with this story
n manuscript and to have advised its pub
location anonymously, so that the curiosity
of the public might be stimulated and
probably hoping that such excitement
might serve for a good advertisement.
Some have ascribed this story to the writer
of the novel called Democracy" which
appeared some years ago. If the same au-
thor wrote both stories he or she has not
only been able to change completely the
literary style, but in writing The Anglo
maniacs' has been careful to make no
blunders of fact or to set forth absurd sole
cisms for facts, as the writer OF ''Democ-
racy' did Some Of the biunders in Ode
mocracy" were so ridiculous as to impair
the value of the book as any picture of pO-
litical society under the American democ-
racy The writer was apparently not IA
miliar with the subject excepting as he
had seen some superficial manifestations
of it.
The other anonymous story now running
in one of the magazines is called Jerry"
and it has failed to excite general interest
Some of the critics nave said tAat MfsA
Murfree wrote it, but ohis Il semi-of6eiaily
denied, although the deniai was scarcely
necessary.
We have had published ID Gae magazines
in the last twenty years only one tale or
series of tales which has stimulated gen
eral curiosity az to the authorship. These
were the Saxe-Holmes stories. Each one
of them delighted readers whether of the
cultivated class or not. No straining for
effect was visible. No effort constantly to
suggest the personality of the writer was
manifest. They were simple little stories
of almost commonplace life, which ap-
pealed to the experience of every person
who read them. They touched the chord
of human nature. Their pathos was ex-
quisite, and their humor delightful.
Moreover, each story was a tale, and
not an analysis or dissection of char
acter The author h&d Analysed the
characters in the privacy of the library
and had given to the reading public crea-
lions which had been constructed upCc
these analyses. The operation was nor
visible, but the result was, as>ts although
it is many years since these stories were
published in the magazine they are still
sought in the libraries and are steadily
sold in book form, having been collected
and published in two volumes. Every
body was interested in knowing who the
author was. They were sstcEod with a
nom de plume, Saxe-Holme, and were be-
lieved to have been a work of oNllabora
ton, but the secret has been faithfully
kept.
To inspire interest respecting che author
OF story it seems necessary that the
story shall appeal to the great public
rather than TO the persons who make liter
allure profession. When tia tale comes
about which everybody is taking theb
there will arise q universal demand TO
know who the author is Curiosity re
specting authorship cannot be arti1cisliy
T. J. EDWARDS.