The DeLamar nugget. [volume] (DeLamar, Idaho) 1891-1900, 1895-10-26
is saving a good deal. +"

MY dear sir, he said, you are la
! boring under some strange mistake.
never in my life saw a INNS Of yours.
II am sorry to contradict you" re
piled Trigg, "but have too many let.
tiers in my possession which tend to
prove the contrary. I have, believe
some in your own handwriting, not in
tended for my eyes, of course, in which
you speak with great frankness, of
what you were pleased tc term the
utter driv1l l have written"
81 would like very much, i" said the
surprised editor, ito see one of those
letters. To tell the truth am getting
or in years, and my position on the
magazine is largely nominal l occa-
sionally contribute something, but the
MSS. sent in are entirely dealt with
by our reader and finally by Mr.. Dem
ton. He is the real editor Of the maya
zine, as l thought everybody knew, and
has been for the past ten years.
'sYou surprise me, said Trigg. ''Of
course until quite recently ] have known
nothing OF the inner life Of literary
London, and since joining the staff of
the Acadaneum / have been too busy
to pay attention to it. Have you, then,
no power on the magazine with which
your name is connected?"
''Oh, / have the power if choose to
exercise it; but have very little taste
for the drudgery of editing, and l leave
it entirely in the hands of my subor-
dinates."
.'What you say" said Trigg, in
terests me more than you can be aware
Of / would like, if you do not mind,
to show you some daya number of let
tiers 1 have had from the Office Of your
magazine"
Il should be pleased to see them"
answered the other, and they made an
appointment to meet at the club of the
editor.
The old man was very much aston
ished when he saw the letters.
These alleged extracts from notes
of mine are not in my writing. They
were never written by me. ii Denton
wished to reject your MSS. he should at
least have had the honesty to take the
responsibility upon himself"
The next week Trigg received note
from the editor of the magazine in
question. 1t was to the following eff
feet:
IF you think it worth an item in
your usual column of literary notes
you have my authority for making the
announcement that Alfred Denton, fore
many years subeditor Of the - maya
zine, is no longer connected with that
periodical"
Trigg chuclled as he read this let
ter.
Denton" he said to himself, 'the
treacherous scoundrel, will find out
now that it is easier to lose q situation
like that than to get another" And he
added cutting line to the item he
wrote about mis- former friend, which,
without being hbelous. indicated that
Denton's leaving Of the magazine was
practically dismissal in disgrace.
Denton soon realized that rumors
were abroad about him, ana his
endeavors to get q fresh footing
in the line that led to ultimate edit
orship were discouraging failures. 1t
was under these circumstances that he
wrote his first book and had it pub
lished under nom de plume
1t CALLED Trigg for many day after
to know that what he wrote about this
book was upon the whole favorable,
indeed exceedingly favorable for Trigg,
who at once recognized the merit of
the work without in the least guessing
who its author was.
BY this time Trigg had reached a
commanding position upon his paper, |
and what he wrote for its columns was
printed as he wrote it. with no blue
pencil supervision.
Denton, pleased with the success of
his first book, allowed it to be an
that he was the anonymous
author.
Trigg CRASHED his teeth when he
realized that be had helped his enemy,
but ne held his peace and waited
A three-volume novel was announced.
When those three volumes came to the
Acadaneum office, Trigg felt that his
time for vengeance had come. He de-
voted a page to it. Nothing so bitter
and so crushing even before or since
in the cynical columns of
that paper. 1t was merciless, and
everyone recognized lnat Denton nad
his death-blow as a novelist.
None realized this more than Denton
himself, who was driven to the verge
Of dispair, His publisher was appalled,,
and he and the author had a consulta-
bion, but both admitted that nothing
could be done.
BY all laws of logic the sale of the
book should have stopped at that
but the very contrary was the
case. The ferceuess and the magni-
Jude Of the attack at once gave Denton
l place in the world Of literature that
t might in the ordinary course of
vents have taken years to attain.
There instantly arose q discussion
.bout the book in various papers
throughout the country. The demand
or it increased. People wanted to