The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-05
THE LITERARY OUTLOOK.
A GOOD NEWSPAPER SUBJECT THAT
WAS SPOILED by THE WAR.

LOT AEansinlOES-1O anS " NAtF'S
Who Go TO Pieces "studying Life
Various Bits of News.
New York, June 4.-From the editorial
point of view, the death of Mr.. Gladstone
could not have fallen at worse time. The
newspapers had evidently made great
preparations for it; rarely is the death of
a great man followed at onceeby the album
dance and excellence of blogra-
ply and comment that appear
ed in this instance, simultane-
ously with the announcement of the
death. And in ordinary times this would
have been intensely interesting matter, for
Mr.. Gladstone has long been popular
hero with us scarcely less chan with Eng
lishmen. Whenever an American editor
found himself particularly "graveled'' for
lack of drawing theme, he secured a
contribution from Mr. Gladstone, or an ar
ticle from some one who knew him Qittle
or well Gas the case may be-, on his per-
sonal traits or else obtained and repro
duCed a new portrait of him. And the
device never failed the interest in Mr..
Giadstone's words, in Mr.. Gladstone
habits in Mr. Gladstone's features re-
manned insatia BILE. But in these abnormal
times, when anything less biting than the
report of a battle is cast disgustedly aside
as having no TASTE who would read mere
biography and criticism, whoever the
subject of them might be? For instance,
the admirable 14-column review of Mr..
Gladstone's career by James Brice, which
the Evening Post had had the forethought
TO secure months ago, and had frugally
4 haa mas
| death should give it a special pertinence-
| how many of us, however interested in Mr.
| Gladstone, have yet been impelled to read
| that? We have filed 1t away, of course,
| to read later; and perhaps at some future
time, after the editors of the Post have
| pretty nearly forgotten that they publish
| ed it, there will even come call for some
| extra papers on account of it. That call
| would have been immediate, and might
have been large, If these had not been war
times.
In the business of novel writing there
| is quite a capital sometimes in a reputa-
ton for the prosaic virtue of reiia blity
| 1t is more so in England than with US,
| perhapsa for there the business of pub
fishing and circulating novels has crys-
| talized into clear rigid lines, a new novel
! being, as it were, guaranteed by the pub
Usher and public librarian and expected
| by the consumer at almost designated in
tervals, alike the weekly supply of butter.
Naturally. under such a condition of the
! trade ii is great convenience and al
most necessity, TO have in your novelist
a strong, conscientious faithful man, who
will come up with his copy" lat the APP
pointed time, and not keep the printers
and binders and truckmen, and, finally,
the customers of the house waiting Then
if he be sound in his moral tone, with no
| suspicion of the yellow about him, and
~ b. IL IL
| so that there need be no particular watch
/ kept on him, IL still further expedites bus
| mess, as well as keeps down expenses. A
| novelist, in other wards, who can always
be depended on to deliver his manuscript
at the time named in the contract, and
with such certainty of freedom from inn
| puriCes and deleterious authorizations that
ii can he turned into the hoppers without
| inspection the moment it arrives promotes
the Orderly and economical operation of
the mills.
The unfaling virtuous are as as rule
| humble, and the novelists most cherished
by publishers for their reliability are apt
! to be moi much known by name Bur
| yet there are those of much reputation
whose way is undoubtedly made securer
to them by the fact that they can al
ways be depended on. Ii is so with Sir
Walter Besant and Mr. William Black.
The editor of Harper's Bazaar can say
| With perfect safety, year in advance,
whether she should like Sir Walters or
| Mr.. Blacks next years product for her
| innocent columns. She knows that as
sure are life lasts Sir Walter and Mr.
Black will have a next years product
and she knows that the product will be
| fairly interesting and of such secure
| propriety of phrase, incident and tendency
that the journal containing il may be left
lying on the table in the family sitting
room Since 1869, when, at the age of 20
r. ABB .NIrrr 81 I1s E,-a
have been only three years in which he
has not brought out one; and the omis-
sions of these three years have been relg-
iously made good, for at least three times
he made his yearly output two novels, in
stead of one. CThe estimate by pages.
/ leave TO more patient investigators) Sir
Walter Besant has been no less regular.
Though three years older. he began about
the same time as Mr.. Black and if any
year he has failed to bring out his book
he has brought out two the next.
Mrs. Burton Harrison is making a col
lection of her papers on etiquette and good
social usage. most of which were publish
ed in the Ladies' Home Journal. Mrs Har-
risop is one Of the writer's who have found
a profit in having distinct speciality. Hers
was not deliberately chosen; but It has
been none the less an advantage to her
She has lived all her life more or less in
society and the people she knows best are
society people-that is, people well ac-
quainted with and constantly observant Of
social form. Naturally, when she turned
to writing stories, ii was with such people
that her stories DEALT and as the stories
of no other American writer do deal with
them so exclusively, Mrs. Harrison stands
in the general mind as the portrayer and
exponent of formal American society. And
as but few people, comparatively, are real
| ly in society, and yet so many people are
very curious about it, Mrs. Harrison al
ways has a market for her stories; and
when il comes to book from one of her
authority on social usage, / should fore
cast that her most successful story would
fall behind il in popularity. l have been
told by one who ought to know that Mrs
Harrisons usual price for magazine use of
her matter is $50 a thousand words This
is not quite as good rate as Mr. Howells
or Mr.. Stockton gets, but it is a much bet
ter one than most even of the better ap-
proved writer's are able to command. 1t is
to be said, however that American writers
efr,FT f-I,r