Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1891-06-26
MY MAGAZINE FUND.
BY E. G. RICE.


Four months before I was graduated
from Wellesley College, some years ago,
was troubled with the perplexing
problem of how to get very nice gradu.
ating dress at very low cost; for my
father, village merchant in Maine,
could i'll afford to spend more money
than was absolutely necessary for my
regular expenses.
~ do wish 1 could think of some way
to earn the money for my Dress" / said
one day to my inseparable friend, NIadge
Bennett.
"Why don't you write stories for the
papers9" she asked, impulsively.
"What papers9" said with surprise.
"Why, any papers-all papers-maga-
zines, quarterlies, literary syndicates-
anything or anybody" she answered,
springing to her idea in her usual enthu-
siastic way.
"But I've no talent for writing" l
protested.
eyes, dear, you must have" she
urged, effusively. "You don't know
how often I've stood enraptured to hear
you go on telling some yarn that knew"
kissing me fervently; ''hadn't word
of truth in it. Oh, 1 know you could be
great novelist. Think of being pointed
out by strangers on the street as the cele-
brated Milhcent Warner, of Warmers
Falls! What rapture!"
"But what could l write a story
about?" said 1, ignoring her little reflec-
ton on my veracity at times.
"Write a love story. Everybody likes
them," she answered.
"But I've never had love affair, and
never can have" l added, mournfully,
"for there isn't man in my town that
I'd look at for Il lover, and you know
I've got to stay at home while the other
girls take their turn away at school. /
know it's predestinated that shall be
an old maid, but don't like the out
look" said I, telling a literal truth for
once at least.
"'Tisn't of the least consequence, -
Madge said, encouragingly. "People
never need to know about the subjects
they write about. Why, all the books
about the management of children are
written by old maids; and do you sup
pose that the people who write about
Lord This and Lady That ever saw real
lord, even with an opera -glasss"
81 don't know" said / with simplic-
ity.
"Why. of course not" she ratified on
''half the stories of travel and adventure
are made up by men who have never
been outside of Coney Island. Indeed,
the less you really know about subject
the better off you are, you see, because
you're not hampered by facts and your
imagination can have full scope"
''I'm afraid l couldn't succeed that
way" said, musingly.
'Indeed you could, she still asserted.
'Last year my cousin, Joe Schuyler,
who always has lived in New York and
was just graduated at Columbia-not
even country college, like Harvard
took charge of the agricultural depart
ment of a city paper while the regular
editor went to Europe for three months,
and he got along finely. He just hunted
over the rural exchanges and re-wrote
their articles, using little different
wording, that was ALL"
Didn't he make any blunders?"
asked.
''No, not in the paper" she said
"but he did get into bit of scrape
for farmer wrote him asking for som,
explicit directions for using new
remedy for pip in chickens, and as 10,
is full of fun, he wrote the farmer
private letter sending him prescription
about like this:
Stumpus woodus, regular size.
Hatchetus, one application.
Shake we'll before using.
This is an absolute and instantaneous cure
So the farmer drove off five miles t,
the nearest town, to the drug store
where the clerk assured him he'd beer
trified with and that it was all joke
That enraged the farmer and he took i