The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-02-10
CULTURE IN THE WEST
DR.. Edward EgglestOn Finds Many
Changes in HOOsierdOm.
Illiteracy Is Disappearing and the Gull
tured Glass Enlarging-AnnOyances
of Authors i'll New York.
New York Commercial Advertiser.

NN SS NASs Aoo 49,
from a visit to his old home in Indiana, and
discoursed pleasantly to the writer a few
days ago on the result of his observations
as to the changes he found in his native
State.
THE early illiteracy of the country" he
said, "has largely disappeared, and with ii
the rude pioneer banners that 1 described
as existing there in the forties. Teachers
institutes are held in the very schoolhouse
from which many of the scenes in The
Hoosier Schoolmaster' were derived; and,
generally, Indiana to-day ranks with the
New England States in the matter OF lit
eracy, having made the most rapid progress,
perhaps, Of any State in the Union in that
regard. This progress was largely made
between 1850 and 1870"
What has been the principal cause OF this
progress%'
"A large part of the decrease in illiteracy
in southern Indiana came from the rapid
migration further West of the poor whites
Then, instead of these people being edu-
Gated up to a certain standard other peo-
Both processes went on, Education and
emigration have raised the standard in
southern Indiana To illustrate the pres
ent interest in such matters. 1 will say
that in the village where l was born there
10y my own name. / was at first very un-
popular i'm the village for having satirized
the life there. but they have outgrown this.
while in Indiana, and they gave me q re-
ception which was attended by about two
hundred of the most cultivated people from
both sides of the Ohio river.
COMPLIMENT FOR MADISON.
Madison, Ind, was always a place of
culture. In my boyhood they had a Ii
brary association; the library is now free,
and is used by the people generally-a
prosperous free library association in a
town of nine thousand people. L gave
them a lecture, selected books and also
provided money as an encouragement.
"It is true that the Town people-the ur-
ban people along the Oh.o-have al Ways
been a cultivated class. 1t was not my
purpose TO describe that class in my early
rustic books, but such a class has always
existed; they came from Virginia, Ihila-
delphia and other cities. l have been &C
cused of having given a false impression
of the country by describing only one
class, but it suited my literary purposes
This cultured class you speak of only ex-
listed In the larger towns"
IN the larger towns, aud to a small de-
gree in the smaller towns, but it has greatly
increased: The first and earliest ladies' lit
erary club In the United States was organ
lied in Madison, Ind. The ladies' clubs in
Indianapolis have a separate building Of
their own, called the Propylaeum.'"
rs the West still a popular field for lee
turing?"
Almost all the lyceum lecturing at the
present time, Major Pond tells me, is in the
that when 1 lecture in New England there
are four concerts to three lectures, while
in the Mississippi valley it is quite the other
way. 1 think some of the towns in the Mis-
sissippi valley are to-day in a greater in
teiiectual activity. than any town east of
the AlleghenieS. L shall name three-cerS
tainly indianapolis, Ind, Madison. Wis, and
Grand Rapids, Mich, will equal or surpass
any town in the Union for culture and ac-
tivity. Probably there are others which
ought to be counted with them. / have no
doubt Of it.
"The rapidity of the movement is now so
cannot dehne It. The. Cheaper lecturers are
local celebrities, professors, ministers and
the like-but all our leading lecturers are
principally employed in the Mississippi val
ley how.
Il found nearly twenty years ago in In
railroad where a frst-class lecture course
was maintained among the Quakers and a
high grade school. l found that the leading
lecturers of the country had been there.
THE town l was born in has perhaps
Zoo people, G16;ah opposite o it is : n q town Tba IN foI Zen 7
was born in has two clubs; the town oppo-
site has one prosperous club. There is hard
ly a town on the Ohio which hasn't a liter
airy club Of some kind"
LITERATURE AS A PROFESSION.
I'm the light of your experience of liter
airy life, Doctor, do you consider 1t a de-
sirable life for a man?'
I'm reply to that question i would say
that it depends upon the tastes and apti-
tudes. From a money point of view there
are few literary men who could not do bet
ter in some other calling. but if one likes
an intellectual life there is a reward to the
Literary man aside from all matter of profit.
The public have a very false idea of the
profits of literature. The higher sort of
literature is not at all remunerative, as
compared with the pursuits or other pro-
f~essiOnal men" .
What do you think of the influences of
the maya zines on literatureT'
Il should say that the magazine is pc
tabliShed reputation. as things are at pres
ent. | am not sure, however. that If the
magazine were out of the way. or less
lished reputation might not be better OFF,
and as 70 the rising author, the magazine
is decidedly a Disadvantage. The present
facilities for distribution concentrate the
dissemination of literature in the hands of
a few magazines. Young authors are,
lack OF room. The magazine exercises a
discOuraging effect on the originality Of
literature from the fact that the author
editor or publisher of the magazine. SO
that there is intruded another personality
between him and the public. The editor is
not even free, but must consider the wei
fare of his magazine. So there are two
modifying forces, the editors own prefer
ences and the exigencies of the business
interests of a magazine. Now it is to the
interest of literature TO get as nearly as
possible the natural 'and spontaneous pro-
AAAaG AAA1 Oily
value in literature. This is in some meas
ure defeated by the dominance of the
monthly magazine"
You spoke of Interruptions in your liter
airy work. Are you much troubled by
them%'
Whenever an author can be INTERRUPTED
he is sure To be interrupted. In New York
especially every kind of demand is made on
his time, both for social and philanthropic
purposes, but he cannot escape interr7lp-
ton wherever he may go. The greatest
evil TO a man following q literary life is
free postage. If the postage on a letter
were p cents (aS ii was sixty years ago)
there would be some hope that an author
might produce something. 1t is not fair.
however, for an author TO complain. HA
spends his life in seeking reputation. and
these interruptions are inseparable from
reputation, so nothing is becoming to him
but good nature-if ne is able to muster in
1T is not the autograph hunter pure and
simple the literary mar has to complain of
the boy, or girl, or childish adult who
sends a stamped envelope, addressed. con-
tanning a blank card for autograph. is US
ually welcome TO what he gets. But there
has lately arisen a school OF 'bunco' auto
graph hunters-no epithets are quite bad
enough TO characterize these frauds-who
write letters pretending to wish informa-
ton, while they are only seeking to secure
an autograph letter without paying the
dollar, perhaps, that a dealer would charge
them for such a document. They might