The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-11-26
A NOVELIST As REPORTER
ROBERT LOUIS sTEvEEsoNs
EARLY WORK.
lie Wrote Good Stories, But Was In
clined to Be Deficient In Facts
Wrote Many of His Books There
lChicago ,JournaI.N

Early in the winter OF iS19-S0 Robert
Louis Stevenson got q job-the trans
action didn't even rise TO the dignity
OF obtaining a pOsitiOn"-in the city
department Of the San Francisco
Chronicle. Forthwith he inaugurated a
brief but hardly dashing reportoriai
career, which was numbered by days.
His first assignment-or detail, as they
call II in San Francisco-was to cover
some holiday Geings arranged by the
Salvation Army for the entertainment
of the very poor and their children
Stevenson wrote a gorgeous story, in
which all the information bearing on
the local aspect of the festival was
carefully ignored. a man who saw the
copy and told me OF the incident said
it was a piece of work such as only
Robert Louis Stevenson could turn off.
though nobody in that Office then knew
or cared who the long. gangling. i'll
dressed. starved-looking Scotchman
might be.
The story, however, was hopeless so
far as the requirements of the city
editor were concerned, and Hudson,
who was then acting in that capacity
on the Chronicle. acrimoniously asked
hia new man il he knew where the fes-
tival had been held. who the commit
teemen in charge were, and il he had
not got list of the merchants who had
to all of which Stevenson replied that
he had not thought those details at all
worth while. A brisk young police re-
l'porter was hurriedly sent out for few
facts concerning the matter, and Stew
enson was told that his copy would
probably prove available for a Sunday
special. The story was mislaid, how
ever, and never saw print at ALL
His next detail proved even less for
tunate He was told one evening that
he should go out 10 the Preside next
morning and get the facts relative to
the inst allation of a new and extensive
system of waterworks. whereupon he
raised each particular hair on the fret
full Hudson's head by replying. with
much ease of manner. that he had an
engagement for the next day and re-
GREETED he would be unable to go to the
Preside. after which he was inconti-
nently and picturesquely fired by Hud-
son. and there is no record that he ever
again tackled reportorial work He
did some special articles for the Sun
day edition of the Chronicle, but there
is no indication that he thought highly
of them. for he never rescued them
from the files.
Stevenson's life in San Francisco COW
cred a period of nine months and in
Guided the most miserable days of his
life. Physically he was in a fearful
condition. the consumption heavy upon
him and he splitting blood and raclsed
with fever. Financially he was on the
ragged edge OF despair. He went from
doctor TO doctor. seeking treatment on
credit and was turned away by them
all until the Illness which overlook him
in the spring of 1880 nearly killed him.
Then Mrs. Fannie Osborne, who after
ward became his wife, secured the
services of DR. Bamford. who gave
Stevenson generous and skilled treat
ment.
Meanwhile. during the winter, being
unable to obtain credit from the doe
tors. he was reduced TO the humiliation
of asking medicine and advice at the
municipal free disperSary. The grim
horror and irony of the business is ac-
cented when you recall that at this very
time the man was toiling like a worker
in metals over the finest piece of mar
rative prose which has been given to
our language by this generation CT