Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-07-01


unpopular with the people of Baltimore.
and he was finally obliged to sell out to DR..
Bailey, the proprietor of the National Era,
of this city, the paper in which first ap-
peared Uncle Toms Cabin"
The First Serial story.
This change took place after Mrs. South
worth had begun the story entitled "Retri-
BUTTON" which was the first serial ever
published in this country. AS the author
ess stated during her life, she had no in
tention of starting a serial. 1t was her
Intention to complete the sketch In one
number, but she found this to be impossi-
ble She wrote a second, then third and
a fourth. and by that time she found
that she could not finish 1t in ten numbers.
Thus was lengthy story evolved from a
small beginning. The publication occurred
in 1917, and two years later the story was
published by Harper Brothers. This story
established her reputation as a writer
No Recompense Mt First.
Strange as 1t may seem, this story was
written without any compensation for the
authoress. She did not ask for anything,
and no recompense was offered by the pub
Usher. After its appearance and for two
years longer she continued to teach school
during the day and at night would follow
her literary inclinations. Her stories We're
eagerly read, and her reputation as a writ
CT continued 10 increase. Inc continued
steady work of teaching school and writ
ing at night proved to be a hard task in
the course of a few years, and it was then
that she refused to furnish further con-
tributions unless she received pay. Her
services to the paper were too valuable to
be dispensed with
While her labors continued on the Era
she accepted an offer made by Henry Peter
sen. then publisher of the Philadelphia
Saturday Evening Post. Mr.. Petersen fore
saw that her stories would constitute
great element of popularity of the Post,
and the result showed his shrewdness. The
subscription list ran up from 1,20O sub
scribers at the time of her engagement to
over 10000 before she left, an increase
largely attributable to her pen. 1t was
about this time that she gave up her posi-
ton public school teacher and confined
her attention exclusively to writing.
Engaged by Robert Bonner.
When Robert Bonner came into possession
of the New York Ledger and turned it into
a family paper he offered Mrs. Southworth
double the pay she was receiving from
other papers, providing that her writings
should belong exclusively to the Ledger.
This represented $40 column, and as she
furnished four columns a week it made her
an income of $40 per week, quite COM
Portable sum at that time
By later arrangement Mr.. Bonner be-
came proprietor of her serials which
were not afterward issued in book form.
When he transferred the paper to his sons,
a few years ago, and retired from its man
agement and control Mrs. Southworth with
drew and was no longer connected with 1t
in any way.
How She Wrote Her Stories.
Mrs Southworth may be ranked one
of the most successful novelists this coun-
try has ever produced. Perhaps she might
be said to belong to a generation past
rather than to the present, which anects
the realistic and philosophical type Of ro-
mantle writing more than any other. Mrs
Southworths stories, sensational they
have often been called are prolific in Incl
dent dramatic in composition and vitality
alive from beginning to end, but were never
impure. Their popularity was won by these
characteristics.
All of Mrs. Southworth's stories were
either founded entirely on fact or partly
so. In life it was her delight to tell how
a novel was evolved from a small begin
ming, and the Hidden Hand one of her
books, was frequently spoken of by her
This book was written in the winter of 1857,
when the health of the authoress was very
bad, sister was dying of consumption and
all her surroundings were depressing to the
last degree With all of these circum-
stances the brightest and gayest of her
stories, she herself acknowledged, came
to her. To use her own words. the facts
of the evolution of the story are as follows
Il happened to see in a New York paper
a short paragraph in which it was stated
that a little nine-year-old girl, dressed in
boys clothing, and selling newspapers, had
friendless and was sent to some asylum in
Westchester county. That was the origin
of Capitola. The newspaper item was the
seed which dropped in my mind and ger
minated there. When the time came for
me to write of it 1 had to make origin
for Capitola. l remembered an incident
that had in the days of my childhood, oc
Cured just across the Benning bridge. An
old monthly had hepp night
by two masked men, who blindfolded her
and took her up to a house. Still blindfold-
ed, she was conducted to a room, where a
few hours later a child was born to a young
woman. The nurse refused to make away
with the child, although brides were offered
her The young mother was also obstinate
for the preservation of her infant Finally
the mother, being discarded by her family,
brought up her child who was well known
in Washington and did we'll. That was the
reality upon which the birth of Capitola
was founded.
Caught From Real Life.
Nearly every adventure of Capitola came
from real life. Her bright rejoinders to
Old Hurricane were taken from many
scenes between my sister and her old uncle
in Mississippi. Her adventure with Black
Donald was taken from a somewhat similar
adventure In which figured a woman of
Maryland and colored ruffian, who in
1912, was the terror Of the neighborhood
Her duel and its cause was also founded
upon fact young girl, brought up among
her brothers-wild and hoydenish-was Iiv-
ing in Mississippi She had been misunder-
stood and offended by British officer. Her
male relatives treated the matter lightly
and laughed at her, whereupon she chal-
lenged the officer to a duel. She met the
officer accidentally as l related in the story,
and when she was armed. A repetition of
her challenge was met with contempt, and
then she fired at the officer-not with dried
peas, as my little heroine did, but with bull
let's. He was severely wounded and she
gave herself up to the authorities. The
magistrate, however, upon hearing of all
the circumstances, discharged her. l do
not approve or defend such conduct as she
guilty of, l softened and modified
it in my little heroine. Captola's encoun-
ter in the woods and the ruse by which she
escaped was also taken from the adventures
and escape of a Maryland girl.
THE cOurt-martial, it's causes and scenes,
occurred during the Mexican war. The in
cident from which 1t taken was related
at uncles dinner by Gen. G. 2. -. All
these separate incidents, from infancy to
maturity of my heroine, We're like beads-I
strung them together. The character of
Old Hurricane might be seen in one out of
every ten of the old planters of Maryland
VIRGINIA liberal kindly heart hut