The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-09-20
The aaaieha Daily gae Saturday orr6 September TO- 1880
EeeLEsroN, THE STORY TELLER.
He Lays Down His Pen with JOY When
He Has Finished a Novel
SPECIAL Correspoudence

lSpcClA1 CoETeSpoDoenCei
NEW YORK, Sept. s.-Edward Eggleston
threw down his pen, gathered up bis man
uscrilt, collected his sheets together and
with an exclamation of relief said, There,
that story is finished, and now for a play
spell" He had Just written the last chap
ter Of new novel which win appear seri-
ally IN few months. He had been at
work on the story since last winter, and
the last stroke Of the pen was made one hot
evening in the middle Of August
In some respects Mr. Eggleston Is the
most fortunate Of American story tellers.
He is one Of the very few writers Of fiction
in this country who ars able to live entire
ly upon the work OF their pens. Frank
Stockton Is another, and Edgar Fawcett
has no other employment than the writing
of what he calls novels, but he possesses an
income which would make him independ-
ent of any effort. MrW. d. Howells could
barely live upon the money which he gets
for his stories. He only writes one year,
and that is published in Harper's usually.
From his late stories he has never realized
more than 5000 apiece, and were it not
for the salary he receives as one Of the as
sociate editors Of Harper's Magazine his
income would be comparatively small
Mr.. Eggleston has found that his books
will net him about 5000 each. He COM
mands a good price for them from the mag
azines, where they are published serially,
and the sale of story in book form yields
him a sum which he can count upon with
something like accuracy, and from these
two sources his profits vary but little from
5000. On this sum Mr.. Eggleston, with
the payment for some ePhemeral writing
which he does, supports himself for a
couple Of years. He lives in the NEST
quiet and inexpensive manner, and when
in the city has a modest little apartment
at the Chelsea apartment house, on TWEEN
ty-third street He usually gives about
six months to the composition OF a novel,
and that leaves eighteen months Of the
two years in which he depends upon the
returns of the novel for support for other
work.
This other work is pursued with an en-
thusiasm and joy which the composition
of his stories never gives him. IL is la
Dor of love, the work Of his life, as be es-
teens it, and he relies entirely for the re-
wards upon the repute he may gain and
upon the satisfaction the work gives him
Its as anexplorer into the secrets Of colonial
history that this accomplished man finds
his best intellectual stimulus As histo-
rian, and not as a romancer, 10 is his chief
desire to be well esteemed by men. He has
already given many years Of patient and
thorough investigation into the musty mys-
teries of colonial life, especially Of New
England, and spent several years in the
libraries and among the archives of Great
Britain and the continent in following Up
these lAbors.
So he makes his story telling, which de-
lights thousands OF readers and interests
him scarcely at all, his reliance for support,
while he depends upon his historical efforts
for his own pleasure and for his desire for
esteem. Small pecuniary return has he
ever received for the published results Of
his Investigations. This may seem 70 DC
another illustration of the peculiar but
well defined tendency Of human nature 20
desire to be something that we are not
1t has been said that Blaine has always
had a secret regret that he did not become
a tragedian, believing that he would have
excelled in mimic representations Of tho
passions of men. Gen. Garfield was once
strongly tempted TO become a humorous
writer. That was in his younger days, and
ne was dissuaded from his purpose by Tom
Corwin, the brilliant wit and impressive
stump speaker of Ohio, who told him 20
beware now he played with fun, for the re-
pute OF success in such effort stuck TO n
man as a burdock burr did TO his coat
Mr.. Eggleston made n hit as a writer Of
stories His Circuit Rider" and "HOosjer
Schoolmaster" gave him worthy claim for
recognition as romancer. His stories,
too, met the approval Of the reslists. for
they were accurate pictures OF humble
frontier life in a prairie state. They gave
him fame. so that he leaped from the oh
security of a small church pastorate TO rec
IGNITION everywhere as a novelist whose
works it was delight To read. They gave
him pecuniary Independence, so that as
long as he pens novel just so long will
there be a market for it, But they did not
give him satisfaction. The remark Of i'm
patience with which he threw down his
pen when he finished his latest novel, and
the joyful contemplation Of taking up
anew his historical studies. indicate that
curious inconsistency OF human nature to
which we above refer. +. J. EDWARDS.