The National tribune., 1896-05-14
EDITORS CHAT.
The Very Unpopular Nom De Plume
Thing of the Past.

Thing of the Past.
s;ooD. BYE NOM DE PLUME.
For the second time in the history OF the
&C and Loyal Home Workers the Editor ieeis
called uron to withdraw the privilege extended
TO contributors of appearing under the unpopu-
lar nom de plume, and for the same reasons as
before.
First, the nom de plume which disguises the
writer takes away that feeling of fraternity
which has been so pleasant feature OF the
LOYAL Home Workers Department
Second the nom de plume leads to careless
expression and rambling style oil Writing.
The writer who appears IL disguise often gives
EXPRESSION TO thoughts be would lot wish set
down 10 his account lid he slip the mask aud
stand face 10 face with bis compatrlots.
Third. tho multiplicity of complaints be-
eause Of the nom de plume has grown TO be
Eerious prohlen 10 the Editor, whose sole ana
earnest desire is that every one OF the more
than Is 600 members OF the &C. on the rOil-cail'
very many of whom are in the Loyal home
Workers for life shall receive whatever is con-
6ncivc 10 their healthy, wholesome, natural
DEVELOPMENT and their upward climb to
higher and better plane of thought and llie
And these complaints, experimenting her own
convictions. has led to the conclusion that the
nom de plume must for the present, at least, pe
denied tO contributors
Let Tic writer NnO las hofH bDC h'fa9fN - -
snred that his or her secret has been well kept,
and will be. So far as tie Editor is concerned
So let the conversation 70 on; helpful, hopeful
witty mirthful full Of sentiment aud 1eehng,
Of Loyalty and !raternal love.
And. now, lust few comments from those
who have written upon this subject
A MISSISSIPPI GIRLS VIEWS.
In The world of letters, since reading has be-
come SO universal and writing an hoBored pro-
fession the fitness and adyisabillty o! attaching
ones true nane to all manuscript is growing
more obvious
There is not another profession or occupation,
excent that of the stage, that the law would
tolerate a man or woman following his or her
; vocation under assumed name. Literature
is not stage for thought: the characters IN
writing may not be from life; the writer has
purpose or a thought 10 advance.
Macaulay saws: During hundred and sixty
years the liberty OF cur press has been con-
stantly becoming more and more entire and
during those lG0 years the restraint imposed on
writers bv the general feeling of readers has
been constantly becoming more strict"
The standard for literature is moving up
ward The writer mnst be better nian or
woman, with purer and nobler Thoughts ana
wider ideas for we have discovered that the
soul shines through aud gives itself, no matter
hew brilliant the screen Of words.
You would rot place in o with highly
cultivated rose one TO which no care had been
giyen-not that you would be afraid il would
detract from the rare ones beauty, but that
people would laugh ct your poor taste. Then,
why should you thrust in contact with your
expression OF culture and knowledge, gained by
wears Of experience and study, mere snatched-
mp name?
II is true that merit and suitability to that
certain publication is all that is considered by
an editor in examining manuscript. and that
the name being real assumed makes no dill
ference; hat with Mrs. Lucy A. Lecgett we
must cay that There is a sort of moral cow
ardice in the timidity which shirks tho rcspon-
sibility Of stand ng bravely by its best thought
with name aud pen"
Lucy NJ Baker, Tupelo Miss.
AN OLD FRIEND SPEAKS.
For several years ] had been subscriber of
THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE, hut q few months
ago through negligence Of mine. my paper
ceased coming. and ] missed il very much;
especially the C. department, for j was Gear
lover Of this page, and remember with pleasure
the names Of the contributors that adorned it
then, such as Amos L. Seaman, Julius w. Co
garn. Rae q. Hays. Emmett Searcy, Georgia A.
Martin, Lizzie Maud Hewlett, Kate Workman,
Annie l.. Williams Clarence b. Cone. John
Bfunny Mary l. Best, aud many more worthy
and loyal Cos.
We'll, | seemed lost without this page. so a
lev weeks ago aEAih tGbbcfiDeG lOE j HE y A.
TIoSAL TRIBUNE, and now i am almost lost
with it, IEstead Of those old, familiar names
40 greet me, found lot of contributors all
writing shove assumed names
Probably If the masks were torn away ]
would know some Of ibem az / did in other
days before their identity hidden. Why
not tear the mask away, that VIC may see and
know thcfa az they are? ii they write good
article they should lie COMP menteG; if ii is
not good it should End it's way to the waste
basket, as il will. As it is, the maskers will
live and write and pass away from memory
unknown and pnbonored and the tbfoBg Of
loyal G. C's. will never know whence they CINE
or whittier they went
DR. Jalmage expresses what we want when,
In sermon on newspaper impcrsoualty, lie
said "Mhy not al least put your proper initials
90 your Griicies?"
Homer C. Miller, Cowan, Tenn.
CONyERsATION CLUB.