The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-11-03
REQUIRED FIVE YEARS STUDY.

bOAOo dHu tHo etdSe VI L NJ - a. Inn
were packed with men and women eager
TO hear General Wallace. and barely n
thin path was reserved for him by which
to reach his desk. He was not sermoniz-
ing for he had already indicated deep
dislike to that lie was talking with the
tense thrill and enthusiasm of the author
about the children of his brain. The
audience. which came down to within
touch of him, was rapt intent and very
still.
Il have seen the Nazarene. l saw him
perform works which no mere man could
perform. have heard him speak. l was
at the crucifXiOn. With Ben Hur [
watched and studied him for years, and at
last l. too took the word that Balthasar
gave hm-'God.
Il had been careiess-had given no
thought to the tomorrow tn at death ush-
ers in. Indiffe rent is the word. Preach
ers had made no impression upon me
whatever at the time l began to write.
had felt the picturesqueness of the birth
Of Christ, and gr owing somewhat ont Of
the restessness that followed the expert
ence Of the war, l wrote my impressions
Of that incident with the idea that it
might be accept able to some magazine
Having finish ed it laid it in my desk IN
I'll l might, some time. gather courage to
oUen correspon dence with the HarpeT's.
1t law there a long time.
lone night W as going home from some
place where there had been adiscussion Of
the question of the problem of life. l be-
gan to feel ashamed that had no belief.
] determined to form one. Sermons were
not to my liking. Theology was too deep
and dry to begin with. l would read the
Bible and base an oDinion upon it.
suddenly like a fash came this thought
of my magazine serial Why not extend
1t through the period OF the lille OF Christ
make it a novel? | had the beginning :;
that incident that interests more people
than any other incident in the history of
the world, replete with mystery and
charm. | had the fnish-what cOusl be
more sublime, stupendous, than the
crucifxiou? 1t cost ME years to fill in the
interval 10 my liking. The difficulties
were very great l knew that Christian
people would not tolerate book which
presented Christ its hero.
''There was period Of thirty-seyen years
to be covered. | determined 10 use the H.
teryal to illustrate the habits of thought
end the social and political life Of the time.
Perhaps [ could show the need OF Christ.
! determined as a means of overcoming my
first difficulty to keep him out Of the story
until the very last lie should be always
Again l determined that he should figure
in no act or in cident of my own invention.
He should speak no words but those his
authorized oiOgra pliers have repeated a
his own. The only place in the narrative
that | departed from that resolve was
where be gives the cup Of water to Ben
Hur at the roadside
Then | began to write. Five years
were consumed before the story was fin
ished-not in writing, of course. That
took the least part of it. l was to deal
with scenes with which the whole world
is more familiar than any others in his
torv | knew that critics would not for
give any slip in dates, or political associa-
ton, or geography, or local dress or Gus
TOM | sent for books and maps anu ran
sacked libraries. | made trip TO Wash
ington and another to Boston before |
could be decided as 10 the formation and
Arrangement Of the oars in the old Roman
trireme. I had careful and elaborate
charts of the country always before me
while writing.
II had never been to the country l was
about to describe. ! have been there since
however and travelled over the roads and
visited the places where my characters
lived and walked. l went there chiefly 10
note how nearly had pictured the truth.
and the impression it made upon me as /
walked over the identical path Christ had
trOddeD on that Palm Sunday, found the
great white rock where the mother and
sister had waited, saw the cave where the
lepers had taken refuge, sat upon the
stone on the mount where Ben Hur had
rested upon his return from R0me-all,
indeed. as | had described il. Shortly
after the book was sent out | received
newspaper clipping stating that at the
time Of which | wrote Mount Vesuyius
was not in eruption. l had missed il by
lust four years-it began to smoke four
wears after. That was the only criticism
. m ho n fcfO
the book,
Having no religious feeling. neither be-
lieving nor disbeieving, | found myself
writing revereDtally and with awe. Rome
made the politics OF the time, and the
chariot race ana the galley race were in
cident to 1t. Needing a miracle, l plagued
the mother and sister of the hero with
leurosy-cruel but necessary. l was a
bread winner those FIVE years; but nv
people. some of whom loved and others |
detested. were with ME always. Some
times they had things TO say to me that
were imperative and called me away from
court and locked me up with them for
days.
Il could not tell you how many times |
have been asked what part of the book |
think the best The scene that gives me
the greatest satisfaction" said the author,
sis not the chariot race, nor the struggle
in the palace, nor the discovery OF the
wise men, nor even the crucifixtou."
The author read the scene from the Sec
ond. chapter of the eighth book, where
Ben Hur. after his long folio wing of Christ
with the expectation of a political fulfill
ment of the dreams Of the Jews, tell 10
Baithasar and Simonide the story OF the
Nazarene, how he (Ben Hun had witnessed
all the miracles from the turning of water
into wine to the calling from the grave of
Lazarus. Ben Hur asks them what they
think Of it, and Balthasar replies. "God
only Is so great"
Speaking of this, General Wallace said
it reviewed in few words the whole line
OF the miracles Of Christ. There was no
sermoniZing. but it told It's story. The art
of II, he thought, satisfied him better than
anything IN the book.
When L had finished that" he said. 81
said to myself with Balthasar. sGnd onlv
is so great l had become a beIieyer
There was only the one question, the
authenticity of the Scripture, and have
no doubt of it,"
On the crowded stage. just back of the
speaker, sat Rabbi Levy ana his thres
daughters. Immediately upon the close
of the lecture the rabbi followed General
Wallace into the anteroom, 10 which he
retired. and expressed the pleasure that
hearing il had given him.
General Wallace, replying, said that il
had dealt with one great among his
people. of whOm-all of whom-he was
great admirer.
Rabbi Levy acknowledged the compli-