Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-30
Yankee Authors Find the Atmos-
phere of England Congenial.
THEY SELL THEIR WORK AT HOME.
Talks With and About Eugene Field, Bret
Harte and Others.
LIFE EASY AND REMUNERATION GOOD

sponsor OF all tnat is GOOD ana the careful
critic of all that is offered in theatrical life.
The personality of this actor reaches far be-
yond his theater and its audiences, and
touches a great deal that is worthy of
thought. Only the other day the Queen of
Roumania came all the way to London to
read him a play. She was the guest of
Victoria at Balmoral, and came direct from
the royal household to sit in Judgment be-
fore an actor and few friends. This was
a privilege accorded to but few sovereigns,
for the play was a long one, and to listen to
the reading of the best of dramas is task.
Carmen Sylvia from the Queens pen.was
| applauded for its literary merit and
dramatic strength; but it will probably
never be produced even though it comes
from royal hands, because it lacks that es-
| sential element which pleases the actor and
the actress and gives them chance for q
display of their powers.
LONDON AD A LITERARY CENTER.
A photograph of the scene while the
Queen was reading her manuscript to Mr..
Irving, Miss Terry and a number of others
would be an interesting souvenir OF that new
condition of the drama which has taken it
away from the realm of vagabondism and
made it one of the high professions of the
day. It illustrates how wide range lit
| erary ambition is now taking in the Old
World. No place that have ever visited
shows such resifuI conditions for literary
effort as London and its vicinity, and 1
| doubt if there il any place where there is
| better market for what is accomplished with
the pen, and certainly there is none where
the compensatioas of association are greater
| or more delightful.
These thoughts are suggested by finding
! so many American writers in and about the
British capital. There are a number of
them OF greater or less note, who are work.
| ing away here and accomplishing consider
able. They find so much to write about,
and life runs along on such an even keel,
that 1t is easy to do three times the work
here as in the New World, where everybody
| is on the hustle and everyone anxious to be-
| come millionaire in day. But unless
| you strike some occasion of great moment,
! it Is very difficult to find any number of the
| American colony of writer's together. Each
one hides himself or herself away in some
quiet locality an secluded as the woods, and
only reaches the great centers of action now
and then.
A TYPICAL AMERICAN WRITER.
The typical American writer now here is
Isaac Henderson, whose Agatha Page"
and 1.-THE Prelate" are so we'll remembered,
l believe he comes from down in New Eng
land somewhere, but has spent a great deal
of time in New York. His father was once
the publisher of the EUening Post, but Mr.
Henderson has always devoted himself to
literary labor and has travelled abroad a
great deal. He is rich, able to entertain
handsomely, and his doors are open to
every reputable American who knows any,
thing or does anything in the realms of let
ters. He is very popular with his country
men who come here, and Eugene Field
voiced to me the general sentiment when he
said: "Don't fail to see Isaac Henderson.
He knows everybody and great many
things"
Mr.. Henderson is just in the prime of
life, being less than 40, and works Just
enough on his new books to keep him close to
his profession. Henry James is the oldest
in actual commission of any of the Amer
lean writers now in this metropolis of the
world. But he has been so many years or
this side of the water and mingled so little
with Americans that he has almost lost his
identity among them.
TWO MUTUAL ADMIRERS.
Mr.. Howells and himself are very fond
of each other, and every now and then keep
the communion alive by each declaring the
other to be the greatest of American novel.
lists. Mr.. James is the son of ciergymaH
and came from up about Albany. n. Y.
He leads an exceedingly quiet lie and is
rarely seen in the haunts of men. His
income is ample to permit him to do a4 he
pleases and his position so well fixed As
high literary character that he need care
very little about what his countrymen hnay
or may not think OF him. In fact, that is
exactly the position most American Writers
obtain before they have been here{ yery
long.
Eugene Field, that wonderfully bright
poet, story teller, philosopher, wit a nd Jour
nalist of the breezy West, has been here for
more than q year, and expects to STAY some
time longer. The conditions of this lite
seem to fit him quite as we'll as they do the
more aesthetic of our tribe, who paddle over
here. Meeting him the other day, 1 asked
him what he was doing. His reply was
characteristic:
EUGENE FIELDS LATE WORK.
'I came to Europe to get rid of malig-
nant attack of nervous Dyspepsia. 1 have
been here year and am practically we'll.
think shall be here about six months
longer. Since coming 1 Have written ST
letters to my paper, and have written 70
pieces of verse. 1 have also published two
short tales, about 5000 words each. 1 am
now writing a short story of mountain life,
and shall write one Chi tistmas story. /
have three more pretentDous tales on the
docks.
Il have collected aboht $50 subjects for
lyrics, and shall treat them as l ieel like
doing so. for l write verE Ee only when in the
mood for it. Meanwhile, L intend to send
my paper at least two letters a week. AsI
do not particularly like letter writing, 1
have been surprised ito see my letters SO
generally quoted at home. have rather a
good knowledge of London, and have done
Germany and Holla hid pretty thoroughly.
1 have become inter ested in German poetry
somewhat, and haTe made a number of
versifed translatio hs. Before returning
home 1 shall visit Paris and Ireland.
Scribner's Sons have just published two
books for me, one e Untitled 4 Little Book of
Western Verse; $nd the other "A Little
Book of Profitable Tales 1 have material
for three other vol pmes of average size.
coLLABoRA11oN WITH BARRETT.
"Wilson BarYett is urging me to collabo-
rate with him in the production of two
American plays, and he guarantees me a
considerable s1 IN of money. But have
little ambition Ieither for money or for dra-
matte success"
Contented with this exhibition of a wears
labor, Mr.. FIELD sits himself quietly down
out in South Rensington and is doing some
of the best work. of his life In fact, of all
the men doing business from here with
newspapers IN the United States, Mr.. Field
is by far the mo Unsuccessful, and vet he is the
same singular character in thought and ac-
tion as he was before he rubbed up against
the lions of foreign life. He lives yery
quietly and mlngles very little with the
In