Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-01-22
EDITORS
And Authors and What Some
Of Them Have Done.
MONEY SUNK IN ONE PAPER
That Was Finally Put on rs Feet Earlon
Crawford and Ills Publishers A Boston
P0oless-- Harding Davis and His
New Play.


- Interesting because ii marks the be-
cunning OF distinct era In the success.
OF this publication. When. about tive
years ago, john Rrishcn Walker pur
chased IL, the prediction was general tina,
nc had made a mistake and would only
aud to the already large sum Of money
that had been sunk ia the effort TO csiah.
lifh t. But Mr. Walker succeeded where
hls predecessors had failed. After Ions
effort aud the expenditure Of more thau
S-VOuOO he has nc last succeeded "a pnt.
Jug the magazine upon paying basis.
The career ol man who can uccotu.
piish this feat Is worth noting and Mr..
walkers history ~ quite as romantic az
might be expected. About 10 years ago
no was an editor la Washington with au
assured eompetence, most OF which had
| come 10 bin by Inheritance BY a
stroke OF ill-luck, however, his whole
/ fortune was swept away and he fOund
himself poor man. He borrow cl
| SiVOO, left Washington with his
M Si, and bus large iatnily of small
| children, Went 10 the west Engaged In
land speculation aud In 10 years berame u
millionaire lie II said I'd the present
time 90 be worth about S2,OOOOOO. No
sooner was his fortune accumulated thnn
his restless disposition made him deter
mined to come 10 the East lie wished
| TO hgure in the literary life of either the
|
| was essentially n business man, lac deter
mined 20 transform himself into an editor.
| After coming 90 New York aud looking
over the Held he went TO the Scrhnprs
| and offered TO buy their magazine, lint
they respectfully declined his proposi-
ton. lie put his hands IN his pockets
and said oh. I've got money enough.
Ihey still refused. Then he turned his
attention to the Atlantic Monthly.
MessrE; Houghton 4 Mihlin. however.
demanded for their historic magazine
a larger price than Mr.. Walker coisd.
cred u was worth. 80 he turned his fncc
away from Boston.
For several years the Cosmopolitan
had been leading a prccurious pNlstanuc
Inc various capitalists with am ambition
20 hhlne ns patrons of literature, who
had contributed freely 60 hs support
wearicd OF this nnstimc after while as
the returns were quite out vi PROPORTION
20 their investment The LOSSES which
they sustained would, II calculated un-
uoubtedly amount 10 several hundred
thousand dollars. Mr. Walker saw In
tue ll-iated periodical the opportunity
mat lac desired lie succeeded Ina nm.
chasing Il for q very small sum. and 10
determined 10y advertising IL layishlv and
appealing solely 10 the middle clnss of
readers Cthe largest class. by the wayl.
10 force Il into popularity Ills ndvertis.
my nus been bold, skillful and eminently
successful His methods may hest be
Illustrated by The well known trip under.
taken by Miss Elizabeth Bislnnd of tho
Cosmopolitan stan ia competition with
Miss Nellie bly, OF the New York World
Though Miss Bsland failed Ia nuttnn her
fiynl IN the race around the globe the "a.
tenslve advertising which her undertake
ing gave the magazine did much TO nt-
Tract To the attention of the public.
st.Iaa a.. La. d
undertaken 10y Mr.. Walker nerhaps Tho
boldest ever undertaken by the editor OF
a maRlzlnc-Whs his engaging at the he
ginning Of last year Willnm Dem
LloWolls Ms hiS associate IN the editorial
management. That this was u distinct
advertising scheme no ono familiar with |
the inner workings of tho Cnsmnpolitan |
doubts. II was carefully planned ana |
Kept from the public until Tie time was |
ripe Tor Us announcement, aud then Inc /
announcement WAS made iu such "A drn. |
matte fashion hat IL attracted tho |
attention Of the whole country. Tho faW |
that Mr. llowells should hccoue connect |
90 with such popular publication after |
ms association with such magazines ~ the
Atlantic ard llnrperH surprised evory |
one, especially those literary men IN New
York who were familiar with Mr. Walker
aud his methods, AZ the time nn author
OF New York predicted that the connec-
lion between The two men would not msl
more tlan three months; cnriously enough
u lasted just three months. Mr.. Walker
has taken pains To announce in the press
that hiH severance OF his relations with
Mr. l10wells was due simply 10 the fnct
That Mr.. Howells' literary work absorbed
him ~ completely that lac wnH unable To
perform editorial duties, but Il Is now
known ON good authority that Mr.. How
clls was 30 hamprred in his pditntiul
goH, hy Mr. Walker that he fell Obliged
70 withdraw from H. IL ~ said Tint be-
fore Mr.. HOwclls had been connected
with the magazine one month Mr.. WnlEpr
politely informed him HAT he lacked the
editorial faculty
However the Cosmopolitan has mn.
donbiedly ,proliied by Mr. Ilowclls con
nection with ID and H. circulation nm
reached 10000 copies. Nc Walker cole.
lrotci this event 10y constructing nm na.
where his mnrnzluo A.
printed bound and delivered 10 The pub
"" under nis own supervision Both ho
ana his periodical are interesting oynm-
pes " what may be accomplished IN
sew lorh Guy through money nnd
shfewd advertising Mr.. Walker has con.
dncted ms editorial department on N
most economical basis for thOuph no
i known 10 have paid M Uowolla M
me rate OF $4,000 Il year ths salafV,
zap for only three months and thn
alhllrA OF ms hubomluatl8 are hy no
means ln proportion 90 H.
IN ibis connection u u interesting 10
ioie HAT Miss Elizabeth Bi.land. no
whom ~ dne in large measure ne sue
"ss OF ih'R magazine, has retired from
lctye editorial wOrl, and h now thr wifi
j IFedrlrs Nesimore. a HucccyHful New
0rll lawyer Miss BHlnud. however, has
iOt abandoned oil literary work. aud her
Yen is sin busy with articles and stOiies.
TWO " her younger sisters, by HE way.
AYE, since she won sucress IN literature,
DlloWrd her example. come 10 New
York mud are now actively enEagcd ln {
lucrative literary work. The younger sis- 9
er however. sin liyes with her mother y
u the family homestead Ia New Or .
T. Marion Crawford. though no OK. y
eeled % DO comparatively little worl, D
uripg his rist ia this country ibis Win. o
er. has boon 50 besieged with generous q
Hers Tor contributions from his ppn bv
diiors and publishers tltt ho n Epnt G
90 work. Like the late AM g
lOny I'r0liOpo, be has the faculty III J.
Tiiing at an times and under an con. "
ilong. he thinks nothing Of rising ~
rom his bed M . o'clock in the nofnfug .
lid turning ont several hundred words ~
l0ffibly whole chapter-of n na,v 5
orol. he Is altogether the most bro o.
~ NJ modern FtOg-reilers AZ iresnuf h
g has two novels IN manuscript 10th al hi
lirl win sOOu appear lie n nlgo barl h
work on the second Of two c4stys or NJ
ie ART Of noyci.wriiing. one al which a
lg already appeared Va an American N
magazine, aud che other h s0ou 10 b. 81
lhisae1 10 ne same Periodical 'rheaa e,