The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-01-23
The Bad Boy Inhabits q Region
Unexplored by q Great Many
People.
But to the Small Men Who Dwcll
Therein It Is Perfect
Elysium.
Tho Titles Of Some Of the Books Most
Sought by the voracious Ele.
vat0r BOY.

10 q WIG, uuCivlllAo0 pincO Wisu 0u NV
phere that ''poisons tho mind OF youth" IL
Ill that is known Of IL. II il heard Of as il
some unprecedented region. like darkest
Africa, says the Indianapolis News.
But to the bad boy it 10 q familiar world,
full of exciting alluremcnts. There are
among these boys connoisseurs in their
vay. They have been watching the drift
Of printed things. They are up on the
vents in bad-boy literature. They know
their authors and have their comments to
make. Some stories, they will tell you. are
.'chcstnuts'' and 'make you tired" while
Others are Irregular daisies" These are the
telling phrases in bad-boy criticism. The
most thrilling novels are appropriately
called "stunners."
One hears much of the absorption Of the
book worm, but his eagcrness cannot ex-
ceed that Of the 'sdimo novel worm," 80 to
speak. Who has not seen some Rrimy-faced
youpester, oblivious Of the world, porting
over sheets OF printed happiness? His eyes
appear to drink in the words; in fact. the
printed matter seems to break from the
pages and flow into the staring orbs in little
r~ivulets. .
The uovel-reading elevator boy, whom all
have seen-what 4 sad lot is his? His life 10
a continued privation. a constant rude in
terruption 81 bliss. How often o most i'll
tense moment, whore expectation is strained
thin, 10 ruthlessly broken into by the litter
of tho calling bsIlllike the cynical laugh of
an unsympathetlc world.
A reporter recently made a collection OF
bad boys literary gems. At one place ne
inquired what the boys seemed to Ike pest,
what sold quickest. "Oh. there's no telling
what they read most. They buy every.
thing. Some like this and some like that
vas the rather vaguo
Among the bad boys book stores are the
little newstands slowed away in odd cor
ners OF the tow and come upon In most
unexpected places. Little inches that would
have been overlooked by other persons are
spripos up like q bush on the rocky side of a
clin. II has a window display Of some
marbles and tops. . jar of candy. q box of
cigarettes, some pink police journals and
story papers with illustrations, whose chief
merit seems to be an abundance OF ink. In
nickel to the widow woman" or other
ouaint character who owns the place, and
takes his choice from = pile of phamplets
which have a strong papery and inky odor.
Il is the .'dime novel; Of which one al
ways hears. but the five cent novel is proba-
bly, the one most read. The dime novel to
the bad boy Of limited means belongs to
the aristocracy Of books, and is as the mo-
rocco bound volumes to the humole readers
Of polite literature.
What do the bad boys books tell about?
There is some system in this. The heroes
are boys. There a strong bond of fellow
ship is made between the hero and The
boys. messenger boys, newsboys and boot
blacks, which fact goes still s%traighter to
the hearts of many readers. The boys have
phenomenal luck and wonderful precocity.
They undertake all kindsof imposing work.
They become iremen, soldiers, explorers.
Indian fighting is probably considered
rather old, and boys are introduced making
wonderful gains in Wall street and doing
more modern things of that sort. SO the
genius called mo Name" conceived the
idea o! a boy inventor. With the many new
striking things discovered in the mechani-
cal world, making even matured people
credulous, this character was made capa-
BILE of great development. He WAS called
Frank Reade and made 80 many inventions
that he finally grew too far advanced in
manhood to be any longer interesting.
Here was n difficulty. Happy thought! The
author had the hero married and made him
father Of Frank Reade. Dr., a character
sufficiently youthful and possessing all the
former ones talents. who is now inventing
all kinds of remarkable things in electric
ity. and has been the hero of over twenty
tales in the ''Wide Awake Library"
This scheme of furnishing a new genera
ton Of a popular hero is a ~favorite one. A
character called "Shorty." a minstrel per-
former, whose small stature gave him
ability to cause ''roars Of LAUGHTER" made
n hit in bad-boy literature. and a son was
born to him. The author. "peter Pad"
then made a new departure. After a while
Shorty's long lost father was discovered,
- nN-r.s4-x!~ fn-rt M ~hn GSzll
man." Here were three generations.
Finally. in one story, they all married and
settled down. but that was not the end of
it. They, with their several SONS, are 10Y
appearing in combinations III bad-boy liter,
ature.
There are plays without n plot worth
mentioning, but written solely for the pur
pose Of creating laughter" There il muct
slam-bang, muscular sort of humor in these
plays, but the amoun Of it IL limited b,
stage possibilities in preventing the violen
death of the actors. There is no such har
rowing restrictions to the "conic" writer il
bad boy literature. The number of "prac
tical jokes perpetrated upon the charac
tiers especially created for being the victim
Of the Jokes would kill any able-boiie
mortal III half a dozen chapters. Such j
inc case in ''Muidoon's Trip Around t.
World" a very, very funny story, by Ioi
Teaser, author of 1.-The Travelling Dude. Q
Lfc cLllL Va cth .
Roy JONES'" 'Muldoon's Grocery Stoft
Part H." "Muldoon's Grocery Store. Pan
L." etc., etc. Muldoon. in one chaptel
would nave been killed four times were h
an ordinary mortal, owing to the concep
tons of the fertile BRAIN of his step-soi
whose entire life is spent in spelling ali hi
designs and making him ridiculous. ''ioge
wore q suit of mixed cheyiot and a blac
Derby hat. his appearance being in strikin
contrast to hat of his parent" says til
author. He is described as a bright boy,
the life of the ship"
The sensational stories are brimful of in
the end. One Of the gems collected by tn
reporter was "Bayonet Ben. or Throug
Fire to Fame" by Maj. A. L. Grant. -.
Rattling Recollection of the Red Rive
Campaign" in the war library, a 10 cent III,
ury. Another wa 'Jim's Big Bonanza, O
Jake Dodd and His Gang" by W. j. Ham
ilton. in Beadle's pocket library. Anotht
was "Old SIeuth in Harness Again, or For
Noted Detectives dwelling a Mystery" b
Old Sleuth, in the Old Sleuth library.
"OId Sleuth" has run for years as a her
He has retired many times and then bee
induced to come out again and tackle son
monotony, here and there three or four +
vorite heroes unite on one ease" Detec
i've stories have one great advantage. TIN
give full scope to continual conversatio
One pretty sure way to judge the merits
a novel in the bad boys opinion il
glance through its pages at the number
quotation marks. 1t IL interesting in pr
portion to their number and the breyity
the paragraphs.
Even in bad boy literature, a writ
known as Paul Braddon" is noted for t