The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-10-05
IT HIHETEEA RUD TWENTY.
seven.
BY EMMA ". WISE.

Esther Lindsay was Hiretecn When her
first story was published. 1t WAS not the
:irss crc slH had written by any mcans.
Esv.r s;rce she had been able to form the
alphabetical characters and join them lcg-
Jly hcr fertile hr;sin had been weaving al
sorts Of possible and impossible rcmanceS.
nauy Of which sire mad Forwarded to pub
IL various parts OF the country. be-
;c;I>E>witl. al: the Fe-vor Of he. youthful
>'cj:i$,a tis&: her crude sentiments still
Nsore urt.dev wrought would inspire in
So!nc c,!Iters so;l the same faith in her
greatness whic!, she herself alrea0: pos
$esscH,
l,nt somehow her contributions always
E.,t3 s,,ctt Of the mark OF excellence ncccS-
$asv to insure them 4 favorable cons:dc::l-
. ton, and manuscript after manuscript. WIS
returned to her and WAS securely locked
away in the old drawer Of her old fashioned
bureau, which h ID been dedicated, with l
good niany tears of disappointment, as 4
repository for a! rejected offerings at the
>a-ine of literature. By the time she was
nineteen there were probably hundred
away either 10 be ignominlously forgotten
or to be rcsurrected AMI revise! When her
mind should become sufficiently matured
70 SIT out whatever mcritorious material
there might be in them and use it to good
advantage.
She worked steadily for more than three
a>months on her Story Of the Steamer
1en,!rick." One night she finished re-
riting it for the twenty-frst time, and the
s; day she sent it to Jesse Arnold, editor
Inland Weekly, with five line
king him to read it carefully, ana
;saScI L he could not use it to 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 returned
manuscript had been even more curt aad
forbiddng than those of his brother pub
fishers. Bat for all that each un!!appily
ending venture only added fresh fuel 10 her
zeal to secure I foothold among the ranks
Of the Inland Wcelly's contributors an:
compel its chief by sheer force OF l4er i'm
poviunity to acknowledge her developed or
potential ability
Her "Story Of the Steamer kendrIck"
was not work of genius, bat there were
phases of the plot that were strong and
AsADassaGes that were unusually well con
$aeived and executed, ard after reading It
1slilrcc times Jesse Arnold, who was con-
scientous editor, decided to keep it. lie
accepted It with that feeling of unccrtaint:
with which an insurance man issues L
policy on an extra hazardous risk, anil
congratulated himself Oh his sh-ewdness
with equal delight when it turned OFT to
be preferred The public liked the story.
and several critics VINO condescended to
review the Inland Weekly praised it. Per-
baps Editor Arnold himself was more fully
aware Of the glaring absurdltics IN tue
piece he had brought out than were any OF
its readers, and each favorable comment
that came 10 his notice only made them
all :hc more apparent. At last he con-
cuded to write to his unknown literary
proterc and warn her against certain errors
which might be pardoned in a young
authors first story. but which, il often re-
peated, would be serious drawback to her
advancement in her art. Before he did
so. however, she sent him another hastily
written story, and letter which was a
strange tumble Of gratitude 10 him for
bringing her before the public, thankful
ness that she had beer 50 we'll received,
and unstinted expressions of steadfast
belief that she was fairly launched on 4
sea of success, where wrecks and disasters
were an inpossibility- In conclusion she
hiuted that he ought to be eternaliy CRATE
ful 10 her for allowing him to print a story
which would, in all probability, shed luStre
round bis owu reputation Us we'll as her
own.
Tia. evening be wrote the contemplated
letter
You are in danger OF being $! Oiled"
be said in part You need advice and |
feel that have the right to address you
il the capacity Of censor. Remember
that you arc in an up-to-datc world and
The literature that will live will be the very
essence. the embodiment OF that world.
Visionary. idealiStic sketches such rs yoIr'
nav make very good reading, but they arc
uot the .r,ie stuff. You have rnqucsiloncl |
ability, but If you wish to succeed yo'i
u.rst turn it TO the portrayal of living men
and women, rot the imaginary puppets
that YOU have manipulated for the most
part in your story Of the Steamer Aen.
Jrick." Take your hero. for instance. 1t
may be quite comforting for , time TO
come in contact, through the medium OF
printers ink and paper. with an Apollo, 1
mental HerculeS, I. spiritual col and i
financial CCoeS,ls, Ill combined i'll one
American man, and New Yorker at that,
but Gr"bt if any OF us would relish c!o>c cr
acquaintance with him he would be ap;
to prove unpalatalie. Besides, lie would i"
an excreScence on the human race. and
after your second or third story the pHbi!c
sAxould have none of him. So take warn
your nero 4 rea? man-s"I! O