The Wichita daily eagle., 1891-10-07
THE BEEcHER FAMILY.
Gossip About LsabeIla Beeeher hooker
and Harriet Beecher stowe.
Especial CorrespOndence.1

/
Especial OerrespOndence.l
NEW YORK, Sept THE recent golden
wedding celebration of the marriage Of
John Hooker and Isabella Beecher Hooker
has attracted attention to one of the
! Beecher sisters. who, in her childhood, was
regarded as perhaps the most promising of
| the female members of this family. Mira
| Hooker Is a younger sister of Harriet
! Beecher Stowe, who in her early days was
not so well known as the oldest member of
| the family. Miss Catherine Beecher. The
| literary instinct which was SO strongly de-
veloped by all of this wonderful family Of
children and which has made important
two members of it, was first indicated by
Miss Catherine Beecher.
As the oldest sister, with a number of
half sisters and brothers to look after, she
developed the stern and practical sense Of
the father, DR.. Lyman Beecher. Naturally,
her literary endeavors were practical, and
being like all the Beechers, decidedly orig
inal, she wrote and published book which
was very charming, though not very ex-
citing, reading to thousands of house
wives all over the country, while in New
England her book was kitchen gospel. IL
was called Catherine Beecher's cook book,
great as the novel of her younger sister,
and, what is more, those who possessed it
believed it, as many of the readers Of
"Uncle Toms Cabin" did not
The three sisters, although separated in
early life. were at last brought by eircum-
stances into neighborly relations in the
city Of Hartford. Isabella, the youngest,
who in her girlhood days had been regard
ed not only as the prettiest and most
vivacious of the Beecher girls, but also pre-
eminent in these respects among her mates,
married while still in her teens the young
lawyer, John Hooker, and noble man
she found in her husband. For many
years Mrs. Hooker was absorbed in her
family cares, but as her children grew old
er the disposition which runs through the
Beecher family impelled her to take up
her pen. She wrote great deal, confin-
ing herself almost entirely to social,
moral and religious questions. She did
also what her sisters never cared to do, for
she appeared upon the public platform,
and in her maturity she was a most bril-
liant platform speaker as well as most
attractive woman to look upon.
Mrs. Stowe is passing her old age very
much as her father did. He lived for sew.
for when he had become advanced in age
and his bodily faculties, though feeble,
still enabled him to appear among men,
his mind was seriously impaired so that he
became childish and almost unconscious Of
any other desire than that which goes with
mere living, such as eating and sleeping
That is really the condition of Mrs. Stowe
But in this misfortune her mental impair
&c iefr
and at times she reveals the gentle sim.
plicity and innocence of childhood without
the shrewdness or imagination which
sometimes accompany these childish traits.
Although Mrs. Stowe recognized long
before she was obliged to lay aside her pen
that her fame would rest entirely upon
''Uncle Toms Cabin" yet she did not re-
gard this as her best novel, nor was it the
one which, either in the writing or subse-
quent reading, gave her 5he most pleasure.
She was never fond of talking of the story,
excepting perhaps to her intimates, and
they know that the writing of "Uncle
Toms Cabin" was such narrowing work
that she suffered quite as much as any of
the readers whose. feelings were wrought
up by that story.
1t is thought by Mrs. Stoves friends that
the book which gave her the greatest en-
joyment in writing, as it was certainly
the book which pleased her most to read
and to talk about, was "Old Towns Folks"
The best critics, such men as e. P. Whip
pie and George William Curtis, have al
ways asserted that "Old Towns Folks" is
not only far better work, when measured
by the highest test of art than "Uncle |
Toms Cabin, but is also the best that Mrs |
Stowe has given US, and if she had written |
no other, would entitle her name to a place
among the very best writers of American
fiction. Mrs. Stowe was also at her best |
when she wrote YThe Pearl of Orr's Is
land, although that book did not meet
with the popular favor which was bestowed |
upon "Old Towns Folks"
DR.. Holmes used to say that "The Pearl /
of Orr's Island" just missed the mark. AS /
a work of art it was an imperfect pearl, |
and Mrs. Stowe was disappointed that this |
seemed to be the opinion of the public. |
Into her later books she put much of the |
experience which had come under her eye,
and, as was the case with Miss Alcott, al |
most all the characters she drew from life.
most of which came under her personal |
experience. Publishers say that there is
steady demand for Mrs. Stoves works. |
and while the sale of "Uncle Toms
Cabin" leads all the others, still the yearly
demand for all her novels is greater than
that which is shown for the stories of any
other American writer, with two or three
exceptions.
Had Mrs. Stowe gained all the pecuniary
advantage which should have been hers
her wealth would have been something
enormous. "Unce Toms Cabin" drama
tized has made fortunes for a number of
managers and actors, but for many years
she did not receive a cent for her dramatic
rights It has been estimated that If she
had received such royalties are usually
paid TO dramatic authors her receipts would
have amounted to more than one million
and half of dollars. She has, however, a
very comfortable fortune, the earnings Of
her pen, and is gliding the downward path
of age gently, peacefully, and, so far as she
is concerned. with happiness. for she does
not know that her fine intellect is now
clouded. E. j. EDWARDS.
Points About q Sculptor.
NJ. Antonin Mercie, one of the greatest