Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-09-22
DOING OTHER PEOPLES WoRk.
Tie Difficulty Ono Writer Found in Try
ing to Secure a Substitute.

Tho Difficulty Ono Writer Found in Try
ing to Secure a Substitute.
A newspaper woman told a story the
other day illustrating the difficulty of do
ing other peoples work. Il had the grip
along with the rest of the world" she said,
land was obliged to give up work for few
days. Nothing really pressed except a de-
partment do for one of the weeklies, and
how to supply this copy did not see. 1t
Is of miscellaneous character, aiming in
general way to be Of interest to women,
and its production that week seemed i'm
possible.
1.-Two days before the copy should reach
the publication Office a friend came to see
me. She is writer of wide reputation in
the story and essay field, and when she
proffered her services l eagerly and CRATE
fully accepted the help for my department
work. She went off promising some manu-
script the next day, and felt a great bur
den lifted. BY noon she appeared. Why
she said, I can't do line. | shut myself
up in my room yesterday afternoon and
spent all the daylight hours trying to
evolve something, but l couldn't catch the
vein OF the work at all. l am not going TO
be able to help you particle She was
genuinely sorry and so was l.
Later in the same day was sitting up
trying to write a little, when my broth
er came in. He scolded that / should
make any effort in my weak condition, and
when explained the serious need delight
ed my heart by saying, I'll help you out
with that. You lie down and Pll so off
myself for an hour or two and rattle you
off half column or more ! did lie down
and he went off. When he came back it
was to confess that the rafting process
had not been successful. 'Confoupd it ALL
he said, 4 can't think of thing; can't
grind out a single paragraph
"Yet he was formerly u newspaper man,
and as lawyer does more or less writing.
But he couldn't help me, and the situation
was becoming critical, when that evening
u third friend called to inquire after my
welfare. When his name was brought to
me felt at once that my deliverer had
come He is a magazine writer and fire.
euent contributor to newspapers, and |
was already indebted to him for many
items which l had used in this very depart
ment, so lost no time in begging his aid.
HE was most acquiescent, would be.
pleased, he said, to do me good batch of
copy and would hurry home to accomplish
some woman's ideas and between them |
should be served. And | slept, exhausted
but confident that with what l had been
able TO prepare the requisite amount was
secured.
Almost before the household was awake
the next morning messenger arrived from
this last tower of strength. Alas! like the
others, it was only broken reed. He had
no idea that special work needed practice
he wrote. He was terribly chagrlned to
have nothing to offer me but the inclosed
single paragraph which he almost feared
was unusable. He had worked till nearly
midnight, etc.
1.-The paragraph was unusabe, but des-
peration now gave me strength. l drank
some strong coffee, bound up my head in a
wet cloth and sat down at my desk. At
the end of three hours the work WAS doue
and dispatched. And the funny part of it
is that each of the three willing but power
less friends severally and calmly asked me-
afterward: Who finally helped you out?
The work was specially goodn Her
Point of View in New York Times.