The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-02-02
ABOUT ANTHONY HOPE
TALK WITH THE AUTHOR OF "THE
PRISONER OF zENDA.-
A Commonplace Young Man Of the
Taste and Talent for Literature.

London Letter In Boston Transcript.
MY sole achievement in literature
while was at Marlborough was that I
won an English essay prize. We had ex-
cellent house libraries at the school, but
do not recollect that read very much
I remained five years at the school, and
during the last two I was a member of
the college fifteen. 1 passed from Marl-
borough to Balliol College In Oxford
with an exhibition, and the year after
won a Balliol scholarship-that was in
1851. 1 enjoyed my university life great
ly, and 1 look back on rooms in Balliol
as the place where, perhaps. my happiest
hours were spent. 1 worked for my ex-
aminations and played games. but /
did not write. I did not write even
poetry. 1t seems to me that one should
read for relaxation. and 10 read poetry
requires an effort superior to that re-
quired for reading prose; so that when,
in quest Of relaxation, I seat myself in
my chair 1 take up the book which will
exact in its perusal the lesser effort. All
this time 1 had no other ambition than
to distinguish myself liz the schools and
on the field, and eventually to gain ad
mission to the bar. 1 worked fairly
hard. but beyond the ordinary work in
essays did no writing. was honorably
mentioned as candidate in the examina-
ton for the Lothian essay prize in the
year in which George Nathaniel CurZon
won this prize"
After leaving oxford. Hope studied for
the bar, and In due time was admitted
as barrister. 81 was not very success
full at the bar" said Mr.. Hope, land
for the first two years got very little
work, so that it impressed itself on my
mind that must look to some other
source for increasing my income. 1t was
then began to write. 1 never wrote for
the papers because l had no experience
in journalism, and my ambition was a
higher one. In 1889 I wrote my first
book, novel entitled a Man OF Mark.
1 wrote it quickly, although 1 had had
no experience in writing. 1t cost me but
=, little effort. AS L did not expect TO be
a. able to find a publisher TO take the risk
OF publishing the first work of an I'M
known writer 1 produced the book at
my own expense and published 1t on
commission. 1t was a story about
swindling company transactions, and the
scene was laid in one of the South Amer
lean republics. 1t was fairly we'll re-
ceived by the reviewers. Some critics
praised IL. others attacked it bitterly. /
remember that the Saturday Review was
hand the National Observer spoke well
OF my first work. However, Ii was not a
financial success at the time. do not
think. however, that / shall lose by 1t,
as have recently brought it out again.
i cannot say that, apart from a vague
hope, had at that time much expecta-
tion from literature as a profession. and.
indeed, wrote more for amusement than
anything else 1 still looked on law as
my career in life. After writing the
L. Is IL x~rft H. rI.O ~
stories. which i sent round to the maya
zines. Nearly all of them came back.
Very few. If any, got published. Many
these efforts of those early years
subsequently destroyed, because / recog-
nized that the editors who had rejected
them were quite right-that they were
not worth much. Nobody helped me. My
fight was single-handed and alone.
was living at home, making small and
varying income at the bar. My average
earnings from-my profession during the
first two years were vely small indeed,
but then one mustn't expect to make
much as a beginner.
my next book was Father Stafford.
which wrote in 1890. / hawked it about
among the publishers for long time
but all in vain. At last Messrs. Casseil
took IL and brought it out; but it never
amounted TO anything financially or
otherwise. which went to show that the
other publishers were right in refusing it.
then returned once more TO the writing
of short stories, and contributed four
teen or fifteen to the Saturday issue of
the St. James Gazette"
1t speaks well for the discrimination of
the editor of the St. James Gazette that
IT was in the columns of his paper that
several OF the writers who are now high
in favor with the public in England first
found encoura cement and acceptance of
their work. Hope, Parker. Crockett and
Weyman. with others. acknowledge their
debt to him in this respect. 1T is true
> that the stories were published anony-
mously, but the encouragement was
there and the fact that all these writer's
have eventually come TO the front shows
that the editor of the publication re-
ferred to has keen eye and a useful
literary palate.
Several Of these Stories" said Mr.
Hope. were republished. together with
another. in my volume entitled Sport
Royal Literature has now become
subsidiary source OF income and helps
me in a pleasant way
UNEvENTFUL LIFE.
Smoothly. uneventfully the life of An.
thony Hope flowed on under circum-
stances not sustained with tedum. and.
at any rate unfruitful in experience or
suggestion or influence. He lived quiet
ly at home: he practiced quietly and
without excitement in the civil courts,
and wrote without either great dis
couragement or startling success. But
the fire was burning all the while. 1t
needed but the course Of time TO bring
it leaping forth in dazzling flame.
My next book" continued Mr. Hope.
was Mr.. Wits Widow which i wrote
in 1891 and published in 1892. 1t was
published by Innes. who had been q
school and college friend of mine. This
was certainly the best thing | had done
up TO that time, and it met with a GER
tain amount Of success. 1t was very
favorably reviewed and IL sold fairly
well. But IL did not in any degree i'm
prove my standing as a writer. for
though the St. James Gazette continued
To publish my stories, there were other
editors OF other magazines who per-
sistently declined them"
In 1892 fate finally decided that An
thony Hope was TO be man who was to
write and not talk. He made a great
bid for pre-eminence as the latter. THAT
year." said the novelist, was occupied
by my parliamentary candidature for
the southern division of South Bucks,
which i contested as a Liberal candi-
date against yiscount Curzon- had
visited the division in the summer of
1891. preparing my candidature. The
greater part OF the following year was
similarly taken UP. i remained in Lon