The San Francisco call., 1897-11-14

Certain events of the few weeks past.
though melancholy in themselves. bring
30 mind the skill and sang froid OF Eugene
- cid as practical joker. Charles A.
Dana, between whom and the master poet
OF childhood $ world he has Joined on the
other shore existed bond formed OF
mutual respect and admiration. aided
Field in perpetrating on the critics OF
Chicago eleven years ago humorous
fraud the victims will never forget or
forgive.
Odd moments for weeks and weeks were
spent in preparing the in 'siuon' Whlch
consisted of a number q perfect lmlta-
tions Of The soothing verses OF Dr. watts.
Fields ability in the art OF paraphrase
was never excelled, and in this instance
as an intellectual guffaw rather than me
decimals Of weeks salary were at stake,
he fairly surpassed himself
After the final polish had been admin
is cred the invented posthumou5 work
was mailed TO Dana. The following sun
dav il appeared in the New York Sun,
credited as an extract from the London
Standard. In the prose introduction plaus-
ible proof was given as to the genuine
ness of the prosody, which was alleged to
have been exhumed from the correspond
ence of a sentimental friend OF Watts.
When the publication reached Chicago
a mum Der OF the c!everest interviewers on
the News staff, TO whom were contided
the details of the plot, we're turned loose
on the local literau with corkscreW ques-
tlons.
Next morning page full OF quotations,
Ats-larded with the most convincing
CON parsons of style and sentime Mt,
demonstrated that the poems must have
come from the pen OF Watts. Only one
iimidly doubtful analyst held aloof from
the multiple ass
What a laugh on the one hand, and
what a howl on the other, when the
exposure came!
1t was many day before DR.. Watts was
mentioned above whisper in the presence
OF those Chicago literary sharpers who
were supposed to be on familiar and con-
hdential terms with the astral body OF
every great poet from Spencer down to
the author of Beautiful Snow"
Pullman's death has again brought into
prominence, this time as the possible sue
cessor 20 the presidency of the company,
The second vice-president and general
manager of the great sleeping car
monopoly. While Tom Wickes was super
intendent OF the Southwest division of the
Pullman system, with headquarters at
ST. Louis, he was intrusted with the legis-
latiVs Doodle sack. In those days every
session of the Legislature in every
Western State had its anti-Pullman
rate reduction bill, the myster Gus disap-
rearauce of which in cCm miltee Wickes
was commissioned to bring about. with
the aid OF annuals, champagne and ma
tional bank note. He never failed in
generals ip, principally for the reason
that ne was picturesqueIy lavish with his
ammuuitions of war.
In that period of the career of the pres
ent general manager the Pullman COM
pany did not enjoy a royalty and defen-
sive alliance with the railroad companies
such as now protects it against rate legis-
lation every where, and Wickes was kept
almost continuously on the go, making
forecasts and friendships. Periodically
Ia his rounds be used to appear at Den
- in his special car. accom- panied,
! s .ly, by Jewett the superintendent OF
Ne Chicago division.
Eugene Field, then managing editor OF
the Tribune, was an especial favorite OF
Wickes. as he was of every professional
and commercial visitor having an ak to
grind a The ca pital city of the State. Pull
mans Southwest superintendent en-
joyed the distinction, from Fields stereo-
typed introduction, of being the sort of a
chap the practical politician never tires of
knowing and doing a good turn fora
- good fellow and a thorough bred. p"
His coming was invariably cele by
a general roundup of all the good fellows,
and then decentralization from which he
surreptitiously fed in the direction of
Texas, leaving many aching heads and
parched recoIlections to regret that he
lived.
The sanity, the manifest m olive, OF these
vistations, Field was quick to perceive,
and from that moment his decision, al
tirmed as law in the Tribune office, was
that Tom Wickes would have to play
lone hand IN his next thorough bred game.
Consequently when he reappeared on
the circuit no one in the Tribune editorial
rooms would 90 out with him, not even to
take cigar, much less to listen to the pop
Of cork. Wickes brooded over the chill
rece ption. and got up as much steam as
posi- bic to show that he could do very
we'll single-handed, with the result that
while the desks were vacated at the even
ing dinner hour he returned in an extra