The evening times., 1898-10-24
A LITERARY JOKE.

Time-honored tradition. that all things
come to him who waits. has just been
strikingiy exemplified by one OF the best
literary jokes that has been perpetrated
in years, says the Chicago Post. Grand
Army men who are members of the vari-
GUS veteran organizations. and clubmen
with far-reaching memories. are laughing
as they recount the history of an Illus
trated article that appears In the current
number of the Century. The article is
by Horatlo l.. Wait, late paymaster in
the army, who for many years has been
a leading spirit in many of Chicago's
military and literary societies, and as
master in chancery has a wide aequain-
| tance among men of his profession. The
article is entitled 1.-The Blockade of the
| Gonfederacy'' and is illustrated with a
number of drawings of ships of the op-
posing navies. which are not credited TO
| the authors pencil. although they are in
| the style of his admirable sketches and
| water colors of the ships of the old navy.
When the magazine came into the
| hands OF some of Mr.. Waits associates
| in the Chicago commandery of the Loyal
Legion they put their heads together. got
| out their old records and found that the
I
! cation nearly fourteen years before and
! had been printed in the second volume of
! their military essays and recollections
| four years before the eastern magazine
brought it out. When asked about the
report that he had written the article
/ fourteen years before it appeared, the au-
thor confessed and spoke of the matter
as one of the jokes of his life.
This certainly is a memorable literary
iN1ya fn i- trffe. nlf
wrote that article over fourteen years
| ago. and read it before the local COM
Tnandery OF the Loyal Legion. At that
| time | was asked by Gen. Arthur G. Du-
! cat. who was in some way interested in
| the Century company, II / would not sub
! nit it to the publishers as magazine
| article. | did not care to do so and told
| him so, but he insisted and finally asked
/ if he might not send il to them for me.
told him l was willing that he should
| do so, If he wished, and he did so. He
| sent copy of the address with some Of
! my sketches to the publishers, and in due
| time came the answer as / had eX-
| pected, that the publishers had arranged
! for all of their issues for many months
| ahead, and could not therefore, use the
article just then.
~ thought nothing more of the occur
renee and had forgotten it. when / was
/ tStDiIiSutu ~ nave tic pOSlHIdil manu- illG
| not long ago a roll OF proofs from the
| Century Company, with the request that
I correct and return them without delay.
! 1t was my lOng-forgotten Blockade of
! the Confederacy.'
| What makes the incident more humor-
! Gus is the fact that the article has been
/ published twice since I wrote it, and
! since l first read 1t 10 the Loyal Legion
! have acceded to requests TO read it over
twenty times in Chicago"
! The illustra tiOns adorning the article
| are not credited to Mr.. Wait, though they
! bear striking similarity 10 the ones sent
/ by him with the article He was a pay
| master in the navy during the blockade
! and had rare opportunities for observing
/ the events which marked the struggle
! Among his war relics are many sketches
| and water-colors made during the block
| ade. and he has many photographs of
J rare interest Among these is one of the
! Sea King OF the Sovereign West" that
! brave old sea dog. David Glasgow Farra-
| gut. who appears in the Old photograph
| leaning easily upon the great double
wheels of his flagship the Hartford This
! picture was taken at the opening Of the
| blockade. and soon after Mr. Wait Joined
| the fleet. The sturdy old admiral had at
that time worn the uniform of the navy
half century, and was just entering up
| on long and trying war. which was Ia
give him the first rank among sea can
| tains.