The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-06-21

be assigned TO duty upon the plains, hav-
ing some original notions rs TO the man
ner in which the army should deal with
the Indians.
Today these four men are friends, hav-
ing kept up the acquaintance since they
left West Point, and, strangely enough,
they are all distinguished for successful
work not rs army officers, but rs writers
or men having to do with the publication
OF writing. They are not In the army, hut
they are earning more money than they
could hope to do as army officers, some of
them rrccivinga yearly income larger than
the senior major general Of the United
States army does in salary. These
four West Pointers. who are not now of
the army, are John Brisbcn Walker, Al
phcls :. Hardy, Colonel Richard Savage
and Captain Charles King, or Charley
King as he is known to his friends.
Nr Walker IS perhaps better known as
the oditor and publisher Of one of the lead
ing magazines than As a writer, although
aftCr he left the army he was for some
Yeas newspaper writer and managing
editor at one time of the now traditional
Washington Chronicle He took hold of n
magazine that was almost mOrihund and
after an expenditure of some $500, 600 Sc
cured for it a circulation of over 200, 900
copies and a rcmuncrative income. Mr..
Walter is now erecting, almost within Il
stores throw Of Wooifcrt's Roost, the
hone of Washington Irving, a great build
ing fashioned in imitation Of the senate
wing of the capitol in Washington. Here
his magazine will be made. Even the cdito-
rial offices are to be removed from New
YORK city to it.
Mr. Walkers associate editor is his old
West Point chum and lifelong friend, Pro
fessur Hardy. After Hardy was graduated
from West Point it was thought by his in
structors and his associates that he might
become conspicuous as an engineer, or, II
he chose teaching, as an instructor and per
haps writer upon mathematics He did
write one work upon one Of the most diff
cult branches Of mathematics which
brought him great rcpute among mathe-
mat clans. He became professor of math-
ema, les in Dartmouth college, and while
holding that post he surprised his friends
and delighted cultured public by an un-
expected novel, "But Yet u Woman. "
Tho surprise to his friends was caused by
the revelation that this mathematician had
also remarkable powers as a romancer and
telio9 Of delightful tales. The public, not
knowing of his mathematical powers, sim
ply recognized in this book the advent of q
new writer from whom almost anything
in romantic literature might reasonably
be expected Mr.. Hardy followed this frs
move a year or two later with another
and he has written some charming poetry
CCptain King saw much service upoI
the Plains, as he hoped when a student t,
do, hut in consequence of i'll health he wa
compelled to give up active life in tht
army, and at first, perhaps more to occup!
his time than to crafty a literary ambi
tion, he wrote stories of army life. The!
were instantly popular, and of late he ha
received the highest praise from one of tn
most famous and successful of living gen
erals, himself "A successful writer, Lor'
Wolssley, who has said that Captain King
description of a charge at the battle O
Gettysburg is one of the most graphic ant
perfect Of battle pen pictures. Captain
King earnings from his stories are large
and military men who have read his writ
ings believe that it may be his lot to writ
the really great story of the civil war
The fourth of this group, Colonel Rich
ard Savage, has not long laid aside tn
sword to take up the pen. His first story
MY Official Wife" while 1t lacked per
haps literary grace, was thrilling tale o
adventure and intrigue and had an enor
nous sale. 1t brought his name TO tn,
front of the writers of that sort of litera
ture, He has since produced with rapidity
almost equal to Dumas novels of adven
ture, which find ready sale.
These four men are the most distin
guished group of litterateurs who have eve
come from West Point. Fenimore Coope
as all officer in the American navy oh
tained many of the incidents afterwarC
work d into his famous sea tales, and Cap
tain Nahan, a graduate of the Naval acad
envy, has written two very profound work
upon the sea power in the making of his
tory, which have caused the ablest men o
Europe to give him rank among the mos
brilliant writers of philosophical history.
+. j. EDWARDS.