Crittenden press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1879-1907, 1895-10-31
AT 10 AND 81.

Esther Lindsay was 10 when her
first story was published. 1t was
not the first one she had written by
any means Ever since she had been
able 10 form the alphabetical char
actors and join them lcgibly her fer
tile brain had been weaving all sorts
Of possible and impossible romances,
many of which she had forwarded
to publishers in various parts of the
country, believing with all the fer
vor of her youthful egotism that her
crudo sentiments, still more crudely
wrought, would inspire in some ed
itor's soul the same faith in her
greatness which she herself already
possessed.
But somehow her contributions
always fell short of the mark of ex
cellence necessary TO insure them n
favorable consideration, and manu-
script after manuscript was return
ed to her and was securely locked
away in the lower drawer of her old
fashioned bureau. which had been
dedicated, with a good many tears
Of disappointment, as n repository
for all rejected offerings at the shrine
of literature By the time she was
10 there were probably 100 or more
of those hapless productions laid
away either to be ANONYMOUSLY for
gotten or resurrected and revised
when her mind should become sufs
GENTLY matured TO sift out whatever
mcritorious material there might be
in them and use it TO good advsn-
tage.
She worked steadily for more than
three months on her STORY of the
steamer Kondrick " One night she
lnished rewriting it for the twenty
irst time, and the next day she sent
t to Jesse Arnold. editor of the
Ironton Inland Weekly, with five
line note asking him TO read it care
fully, and even if he could not use
1t 10 let her know what he thought
Of it,
OF all the editors in the land she
seemed to have chosen him as her
most favored target. Why she
could not have told, for she had no
personal acquaintance with him,
and his letters accompanying return
ed manuscript had been even moro
curt and forbidding than those of
his brother publishers. But for all
that cach unhappily ending venture
only added fresh fuel to her zeal 10
secure foothold among the ranks
of The Inland Weekly's contributors
and compel its chief by sheer force
of her importantly to acknowledge
her developed or potential ability.
Her STORY of the Steamer Ken
drick" was not "A work of genius, but
there were phases of the plot that
were strong and passages that were
unusually we'll conceived and exc
cuted, and after reading il three
times Jesse Arnold, who was a con-
scientious editor, decided to keep it,
10 accepted it with that feeling Of
uncertainty with which an insur-
ance man issues n policy on an extra
hazardous risk and congratulated
himself on his shrowdness With
equal delight when it turned out 20
be preferred. Tho public liked the
story, and several critics who con.
descended to roview The Inland
Weekly praised it. Perhaps Editor
Arnold himself was more fully
aware of the glazing absurdities in
the piec3 no had brought olt than
were any Of it's readers, and each fl.
vorable comment that came 20 his
notice only made them all tho moro
apparent. At last he concluded TO
write TO his unknown literary pro
tcgee and warn her against certain
errors which might be pardoned in
a young authors first story, but
which, if often repeated, would be a
serious drawback TO her advance
ment in her art.
Before he did so, however, she
sent him another hastily written
story and letter which was
strange jumbo of gratitude TO him
for bringing her before the public,
thankfulness that she had been so
well received and unstinted expires.
sions of "a steadfast belief that she
was fairly launched on sea of sue.
cess where wrecks and disasters
were an impossibility. In conclusion
she limited that he ought to be oter.
nally grateful to her for allowing
him TO print story which would in
..o.h,y.lty S,Ici iustcr rouuG -
Jwl reputation a well rs her own.
That evening h9 wrote the con.
templatsd letter.
lyon are in danger of being spoil.
ed, " he said il part. You need adj
vice, and ! feel that have the right
to address you in the capacity of
censor. Remember you arc in an
up to date world, and the literature
that will live will be tho very es.
Eoncc. tho embodiment Of that world
Visionary, idealistic sketches, such
as yours, may mako very good read
ing, but they arc not the true stuff.
You have unqucstioned ability, but
IL you wish to succeed you must
turn it TO the portrayal of living
men and women, not tho imaginary
puppets that you have manipulated
Tor the most part in your Story Of
the Steamer kendrick Take your
hero, for instance. IL may DO quite |
comforting for time TO come in |
contact through tho medium of
printers ink and paper with an
Apollo. n mental Hercules, "a spirit. |
ual god and a financial Crnsus all |
in one American man,
and New Yorker at that, but ] |
doubt if any of us would relish n
closer acquaintance with him. He
would be ant 10 proVc uunllatablo |