The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1898-03-04
THE SIN OF ELIGIBILITY.
THE BEST WRITERS ARE THE
WORST OFFENDERS.
Napoleon's Love Letters Were Like
War Maps-Jefrey's Writing
Other Examples.

Paradoxically, the best writer's nave
been usually the worst. The preacn-
ers, following a common rule, nave peeh
the greatest sinners. Although rope
once wrote:
OF all the arts in which the wise excel
Natures true masterpiece Is "ii'iiiS
well.
he did not take the trouble to follow
his own prescription. ulegibillty, as
Nathaniel Hawthorne was wont to as
sert, was very author-like, and Ger
tainly he made a consummate prac-
titioner in the art, few being robust
enough to attempt to decipher his cal
biographical Nightmares. This learned
Indifference viii surely account for the
severe hustling the pen is now under
going The world is rushing for the
typewriter and little wonder OF
course, penmanship as one of the ac-
complshments Of a polite education,
went out long while ago. Then mere
handwriting followed, and now this is
going. Indeed, only incorrigible def
clients in photography still render any
sort of allegiance to the pen and this
from necessity, not choice; authors,
university men, doctors, and writing
men generally, not knowing how to
spell, are able with the pen to judic
iouSly slur over uncertain words, dain-
tily allocating blots, and all is we'll
except that compositors, as a body,
profane horribly, and. according 10 ira
dition, early become Bacchanalian in
their habits. Writers have a deal to
answer for. A little of the gift Of pro-
phetic vision shows US the once homely
pen, the boons and blessings of a one
time civilization, surviving simply as
a leading curio in the dime museum.
1t is mere justice to record that the
pen itself has had no contributory part
in its extinction. 1t has not been the
fault Of the pen; it has been the users,
helped by all manner oftntoward cir
cumstances. Once, it need not surprise
any one, penmanship actually had some
character in it. Was not Sir Andrew
Ague- cheek counseled by his friend Sir
Toby TO write his challenge in mar
tial' hand? And there is other proof
The philosopher Locke thought so high
" of good writing as to design a set
of writing copies for the children Of his
friend, Benjamin Furley. But the
wondrous examples of the old writing
masters most perfectly demonstrate the
power of the pen in skilled hands. And
they worked with indifferent imple-
ments, quill pens: no one could write
legibly with quill pen nowadays Be
fore the discovery of the art of print
ing, the calling of the writing master
was one OF deserved honor, and his
work, as we know, took the form of a
fine art Louis XIII. and XIV. had
writing masters in their entourag e
with the rank of a Secretaire de la
Chambre du Rio. IT is a revelation to
us. writing holding such a subordina-
ton place in our scheme Of education.
to see the charm of form and ingenuity
of design which belonged to the charac-
ters of our forefathers
The Italians, Of course, were the
stylists. being pre- eminent In this as in
the other arts. The copies of the self
satisfied Johannes Palatinus, examples
of the ordinary mercantile handw-rit-
ing Of his time, Q539).) show a mar
velous precision in form combined with
a graceful fancy. The earliest Eng
lish master. Peter Bales. evidently Dor
rowed from the Italians. and Edward
Cocker (penman as we'll as arithmeti-
cian) had dainty power in decorative
adjuncts to the ordinary writing. The
ancient penmen "flourished" considera-
bly,. drawing animals and birds and
fanciful themes with wonderful free
dom and fancy as an artistic embellish-
ment to the script Vanden Steene of
Client and Morante, a Spanish teacher.
were specially expert In this drawing
by continuous freehand lines the choic-
est of decorative work 1t must have
been pleasure to receive a letter in
the old days: but they must have had
a powerful lot of time on their hands
Still, il shows how sadly we have de-
generated in this mystic art" Of
painting speech and speaking to the
eyes" from elaborate outline to, at the
very best, bare legibility.
1t is the perversity of human nature
that people who ought TO do one thing
do another. Men who write a legible
hand (no one can accomplish more
than that now will use a typewriter.
and others, who ought never to be
trusted with pen order them by the
gross. and take the discount. Rudyard
klpilng writes a neat, delicate hand
and Conan Doyle's is as plain as the
proverbial pikestaff, but both use ma
chimes II would have saved a deal Of
misery, and helped to perpetuate a use
ful art, If other writers of em;nenca
could have been prevailed upon to
type. Unfortunately the typewriter
was too belated an invention to affect
many Of the best bad writer's. Carlyle
would not have struggled with key
board, but it would have prevented that
miserable compositor fleeing from Ed
fnburg to London out of his way If he
had. Carlyle's. however, was copper
plate to others that could be mentioned
Hugos manuscript, we are told. pre-
sented the appearance of a sort of bat
tlefield on paper. in which the killed
words were we'll stamped out. and the
new recruits pushed forward in any
thing but good order. Napoleon was
unique in everything, even in his hand
writing. His letters from Germany TO
Josephine were al first taken for maps
OF the seat of war; And his signature