The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-10-01

Glory Quayle," the heroine. at the
Providence Opera House.
Mr.. Caine is striking example OF a
man who has won great success I'm
chosen art comparatively early in life.
He is forty five years of age, was born
in Liverpool and is the son of a retired
shipsmith, who. belonged TO well
known family of the Isle of Man. Hall
Caine left school at the early age of
fifteen years, and began his career as
an architect. "A calling for which he
possessed no special gifts, then became
school teacher vocation which he
soon abandoned for journalism. Mr..
Gaines first literary efforts were con-
fined to contributions to trade paper
i'm Liverpool called THE Builder but
he very soon wrote for more preten-
tious journals and when twenty-one
years of age he was "A very frequent
contributor to The Athenaeum and
THE Academy"
AT this period i'm his career chance
brought his work 10 the notice of the
famous Dante, Gabriel Rosetti, who
persuaded him to throw up Office work
and go TO London To live with his new
found friend In the great English me-
tropois he plunged with great deter
mination into literary journalism.
which. unlike most novelists. he con-
siders a splendid apprenticeship for the
i'm fiction. In those early days Mr.. Cainc
spent most of his time as Critic of
the work Of other people. In addition
To reviewing books. he also became a
publishers reader the experience gain
ed i'm this field undoubtedly proving OF
great benefit 10 him, for it gave him
the opportunity Of ascertainng what
the public really likes in the shape of
popular fiction.
Not until after the death Of Rosetti
did Mr.. Caine make any special at
tempt at fiction. His first volume was
called "Recolections OF Rosetti. short
ly afterward he published "Cobwebs
Criticism" and then for three years
devoted himself solely to reading man.
uscripts for publishers and writing for
the daily journals. He finally made up
his mind that he would abandon every
thing in the way of "pot-boilers' in
letters and would earnestly devote him
self To pretentious work OF fiction
Having saved up few pounds he hir-
ed a tiny cottage near the beach at
Sandawn. Isle OF Wight. where he es-
tablshed himself and his family and
began work on THE Shadow of
Crime" which is considered Mr.. Gaines
most dramatic piece of writing with the
exception of the book which has over
shadowed all else that he has done in
public interest, THE Christian The
skeleton OF this story had long been i'm
Mr.. Gaines mind as forming excel
lent foundation for an elaborate work
Of fiction. Years before he actually sat
down to write the first chapter he had
related the old Cumberland legend of
the old horse wandering about for
months on the moors with the coffin
strapped on his back to Rosetti but the
latter had expressed himself as unable
To Ia. l,,f ,ts
be worked into a story written i'm vol
ume form. This grim. powerful picture
had seized hold of Mr.. Gaines imagin-
alton and about il most laboriously he
built up the incidents of his story. which
he wrote four timex, and when COM
pleted out of Difference TO the advice Of
"A friend and critic, ne entirely re-
wrote IL. He was rewarded for his per-
sistency. for he received for the serial
rights alone one hundred pounds which
was quite n sum for the work OF an un-
known author.
As writer. Mr.. Caine cannot be said
To- have epy special literary method His
ideas and tho structures OF his stories
mature slowly. He first maps out i'm his
mind the general nlan Of any new story
he has in hand. Then comes a period
of readirg M on AL subjects i'm con-
nection thcrowith which can i'm any
Nav have any bearing on II. While
Writing Tho Scapeeost" he visited
Morocco that he might thoroughly real
ize and rrasp tho conditions of modern
slavery. Not only did he travel all over
Morocco for material for THE Scape-
gnsi hut that he might present
vivid picture of tho continental Jews.
he visited Russin. Poland and many Of
the f~ontier towns cf pussia In writ
inc "Thc Doemstor." although exceed
ingly familiar with tho Isle OF Man.and
it's picturesque tr9ditlons. people and
customs. he Interviewed all the oldest
inha habitanta ~ the district of which he
made the locale 90 this remarkable
story. In writing The Bonfsman'' he
visited Iceland and reart- -exhEugttvpiv
of lie history 10 secure material which
would he exact in every particular.
I'm writing "The Christian'' he enter
ed an exceptionally wide Geld of re-
searches. ard one can hardly realize
the time and lebotious pains taken by
him 30 aecnre material and TO write
this boot. He spent weeks I'm the east
end of. London STUDYING 1.-The Church
settlements and every class in that no.
tahic part of the great metropolis took
elaborate notes ~ tho workings of one
OF the best known hospitals. attended
the Derby Day races, read regularly