Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-05-22
SPLINTER'S NOVEL.


not the remotest thing to DO with his sud
den leap into fame.
He had left the London suburb in whicI
he resided early in June, a very ordinar,
little doctor intent on building up a prac
tice and ever since, except for two short
and too short-weeks at Brighton, he had
been buried in little fishing village away
down on the coast Of Dorsetshire.
lie had gone there to study, and there.
lore he left newspapers, story books and
CORRESPONDENCE behind.
30 far as story books went il cost him no
sell denial to forego them. Splinter didn't
believe in them; he considered them very
useless IL not absolutely pernicious.
mover had lately dawned upon the liter
airy horizon with the somewhat singular
title Of THE Girl with the Psyche Knot -
IL was an effusion in paper cover, and
IL had picture OF the heroine with her
halr screwed up into psyche knot adorn-
ing the front page.
Just below it large red letters announced
that its author was j. Haverstraw SPLINTER
Now, in the train the previous night
Splinter had read n criticism of this novel
In one Of the evening papers. This paper
spoke in the highest terms Of its ppde-
niable cleverness and brought its article
to close with the following little eulogv.
10 readers jaded with the recent Rlut of
enemlnate illusions The Girl with the
Psyche Knot will come like Whit of sea-
breeze. There is an anmistakable smack
OF masculinity about this little book, which
unconsciously proclaims its author TO be n
thorough man of the world. Mr.. J. Haver-
Of nv NH int,
IN our day, of writing of what he knows.n
Now, when Splinter saw his name so nm
expectedly in print ii gave him quite a
little start, but never for one instant did
he realize that it was to his identical self
that the article referred.
IL was not till he had reached his Lode
lngs and had perused few of the scores of
letters which be found awaiting him, that
the full Significance Of thesituation dawned
upon his bewildered mind.
Two or three Of them were from nuhlisb
ers, Offering liberal terms for his next /
novel
AT last he found letter, the handwrit. /
ing of which was familiar Continuins, 1
his search until the bottom of the pile was I
reached, he found, in all. four letters which
he laid aside.
One was from Miss Fry, a wealthy m.
trent OF his; another was from Frank Dey-
Ter his greatest chum, and the other tvyo
were from Aunt Samantha and his pretty
little cousin Rosie. He opened Miss Fryis
letter first
sIR-My sisters and myself would be .,reatlv
Obliged If you would favor us with your ar.
count at your earliest convenience we Ara !
ourselves the victims Of a confidence ,Sboiiv
misplaced We had no idea that you eombined
with your medical practice a capacity for
writing novels. My sisters aud | have con-
sidered you far above the nippancy and world
" tendencies of the average medical student.
IL Is with deep modification that we nov dig
cover mat the man whom we trusted is guilty
OF writing most obnoxious novel, which is m
sale at all the booksials
Then came the signature, Catherine
Fry" and Splinter could see the iciclas
upon IT,.
splinter gave vent to a long, low whistle
and then tore open the letter from Frank |
it was a long letter. covering many pages
but when he bad finished il Splinter's face
was a sight to behold There was n time
wrote Dexter when he really flattered him
self that he enjoyed Splinter's full conf.
dence He had lived TO see his mistake.
When, however, for lack of an original
idea he had taken the incidents of an AT.
FAIR from real lifc which had been confided
TO him under conditions of the strictest
secrecy, aud had used them in the most
bare faced manner for the plot Of his novel. (
u was about time Tor somebody TO char
acterize him as an unmitigated cad.
Aunt Samantha : missive was short but
to the point:
JoHN-I didn't believe you had oro,,,.,. 4. q
you 10 write a book Of any sort. lei alone c
novel. | read the book aud laughed over n I
md thought that old trump, Lady ThermonY. i
a, perfect idiot. And now all my friends {
lere tell me it's capital portrait Of me. d
that's what cannot forgive YOU making fun a
u your poor old aunt! Henceforth Won are no !.
2nger my nephew; / wash my hands Of Won :
ntirely, and dear little Rosie is now 10 be my =
ieir. Your amt tina yls. but is . i9rrer. q
! tNTHA lLui XIII.
Splinter lay back in his chair and fairly o
'asped. If it hadn't been for his misun- g
Outstanding w. Do. ter. Splinter ,prld ;
ave felt, con p w.. lively sJtting, lighs s
Ia
Hecould exist without the patronage of {
he Misses Fry and he knew quite well Il
hat some of tlese Gays Rosie would be 81
hitting her hair up or wearing manly J,
Iaistcoat or incurrirg Aunt Samantha's 81
niger in some other peculiar way. and n
ben ~ would be his turn to be in favor D.
gain. Ia
What on earth does he mean about my in
ettaying Is con1denccf" groaned Splin.
n to himself j never breathed that af
lir of hi to a living soul"
"And yet-wait bit, now-I did too a
tier a fashion. T. was list summer mn 70
Aunt Samantha's Rosie was in he ST
tmmOck half asleep, and she asked me IN oh
II her story to 'iiven her up bit And so
} | began, Once upon n time knew a
How and, then, half unconsciouslv. az
ranks story slipped out bit 10y bit. /
hanged the surroundings and did not m
ention any names whatever.
TITS Rosie-thats who is at the bottom Nv
the whole afIurw
Presently, when he grew calmer, he
lcned Rosie'se.ter:
NY DEAR OLD JouN-Well. old fellow. and ar
W do you take Jour new hoBors? Think of on
u as a novelist And you have brought Il ali ~,