The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-02-18

cohHecteu with the publishing business,
VISITED ner in Boston and secured engage
ments for her on New York papers at rates
twenty times as great as she received in
Boston. Derby and Miller who were
young publishers in one of the inland
/ cities, offered TO publish a volume of her
sketches, paying her 5000 for the copy
| right or the usual royalty on. the sale of
the book. The cash offer was a very large
| sum 10 her IN those days, and she needed
the money badly. She was not good
business woman, but had enough conf
oenee IN her popularity t0 believe that she
would make more by accepting the copy
right proposition, which she did. The re-
suit was her book-'Fern Leaves'-sold
TO the extent of $4,000 copies. and she re-
ceived more than $4,000 for copyright.
AT that time James Parton was as
Slstant editor of the Home Journal, New
YORK: He frequently published Fanny
terD's articles. Once long poem ad-
dressed to Fanny Fern was sent to the
editor for publication. 1t did not have
ing lt 10 the waste-basket. Mr.. Parton sent
he manuscript to Fanny Fern, and. ac-
cordlDg TO his own story, wrote these lines
on the outside leaf:
Dear Unknown: New York is the
place Tor you. You will find subjects
mere starting up in your path wherever
you go. Come! ComeI Come!
Fanny Fern finally came to New York,
became acquainted with Parton, and event
| ualiy became his wife in January, 1865
She was very ignorant of the world, and.
| according to her husbands statement, th IS
! accounted for certain freedom of eX-
preston in her earlier writings, which Of
| tended some of her critics.
Fanny Fern wrote very rapidly, getting
her ideas in shape while she was arrang-
Ing her hair, and never writing the article
until the day it was to be sent TO the Office.
All of her short sketches were founded on
some real experience, or supported by
something she had seen.
"BaIou of 'BaIlOu's Pictorial having
trea ed me unfairly in business trans
action. resolved to be revenged upon him
IN my own way. In looking over his
paper found that the most popular con-
tributor to that periodical was Sylvanus
Cobb Jr. L sat down and wrote note to
Mr.. Cobb. asking him if he had an excu-
sive engagement TO write for any paper.
Ii he had l told him had nothing fur her
10 say: If he bad not any such engage
ment | thought [ could make a proposition
TO him which would be mutually advan-
tage0us. He wrote to me that he was not
exclusively engaged on any one paper aud
would be pleased to receive any PROPOSE
ton from me. AT this time the Ledger
was attracting considerable attention on
account of the 500 column story
"Ball0N was paying Cobb 500 each for
his novelties, each running through six
numbers. | sat down and wrote to Cobb.
ordering novelette,. offering him for it Just
double the price he was then receiving.
Soon afterward Cobb sent me the Gun
maker of Moscow which, as its success
proved, would have been cheap at $4,000
| made presents To Cobb afterward, at
different times, blu. that was the contract
price OF the story, cach inStallmeht of
which would make between 1000 or 5000
words.
after l received this story paid for it
and locked it up in my safe. ] then wrote
to Cobb asking him If be would make an
engagement to write exclusively for the
Ledger. This he declined to do at that
time. Then l gave hsm an order for three
more stories 10 be of the same length and
at the same price, and he wrote them for
me. After L had the manuscript in hand
and had paid for them | announced the
'Gunmaker of Moscow Ballou at once
telegra pied to COBB. who at that time
lived in Norway, Maine: Don't send any
manuscript to any publisher until You hear
from me by mail Cobb wrote back that
already, some weeks before, he had fur
nished to me the manuscript of the an
nounced story. OF course BallOu was very
much surprised and very angry when he
discovered had secured story from his
best contributor.
1.-The Gunmaker of Moscow was an
exceptionally good story, but it attracted
universal attention because | spent be-
tween $4,000 ana $4,000 in advertising IL
In the leading daily papers Of the country.
| printed the first instalIment as an aGyer-
tisement, saying 81 the end for continu-
alton of this story see the New York
Ledger This was an entirely new and
novel method of advertising and made
a great hit at the time. The circulation of
the paper went right up at single bound.
After Cobb wrote to Balou that he had
Al a. ln nj 81 el,o
to the Ledger, BallOu promptly wrote back
10 him: DO not send any more manus-
scripts Cobb replied that he had already
agreed to send three more stories. Ballou
urged him not to furnish them, but he
could no; induce Cobb to break his agree
ment with me. / then wrote TO Cobb ask
ing him to come on to New York and have
a conference with me, stating that / would
paw his expenses.
when | met him / was very much
pleased with bis appearance. He was
tine-ooking man and very intelligent. He
was one OF the most fertile-minded men |
have ever met. When he called at nv
Office l told him / was very busy at the
moment. but l wonld go out to lunch and
chat with him in about two hours. / gave
him, however, the plot of a short story and
said to him, In the meanwhile, suppose
you see il you can make a story out of
this He sat down in one corner of the
quarter, his pen moving across the paper
as fast as it could fly. 1t was an excellent
story. knew it was not rehash Of other
stories, because bad given bin the ideas
to work out. | then made proposition to
him, Offering him so much year to write
exclusively Tor the Ledger for five years.
That contract was renewed every five
years up to the time of mis- death.
'SylvaDus Cobb Jr., was an unusually
intelligent man, the most popular story
writer we have ever had and had an inter-
esting history. He was born in Water
vile, Maine, in 1923. When about seven
teen years of age he ran away from home
and enlisted in the navy. Like most boys
who take this course he soon repented of
the act and sent for his father, who. after
consulting with the officers of the ship,
took their advice and allowed his son to
make the trip to the Mediterranean. Cobb,
who was then a bright young fellow, was
made private secretary to the captain OF
the vessel. This captain was affected with
the scribbling disease and believed that he
could become an author of repute. It
was while copying ana correcting the cap
taln's manuscripts that Cobb learned the
first principles of story writing. On his
release from the navy he worked for a
time as proofreader; then he began writing