The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-01-24
GROWTH OF JOKE
Blunder and Wit Of Kansas
Editors Responsible.
Eastern People Took Will
Whites HumOr Seriously.
NEW KIPLING STORY.
Report That Brilliant English
man Wrote David Harum.
Rumor Set the Whole Literary
World by Its Ears.
NEW KIPLING STORY.

The principle underlying the old say
ing, Large oaks from little acorns
grow" has once more been exemplified
in very amusing manner in the liter
airy world, and two Kansas men are re-
sponsible for it. A Kansas country pa
per made the mistake of crediting
David Harum" to Rudyard Kipling;
Win White wrote a little piece of humor
celebrating on the mistake without
labelling his piece a joke: and now the
literary world has stopped debating the
end f-the-century question and it is
all torn up over the question as to
whether Mr.. Kipling did or did not
write the story about the immortal
David"
The original mistake is laid at the
door of Jim MOrDhy, who edits the
Smith County Journal. The item in
which the mistake occurred was con-
corning the Smith Center public library
and was probably contributed to the
paper and passed Mr.. MOrphy's editorial
eye without his detecting the error.
This could very easily have happened,
as the item stated that a number of
new books had been added to the Ii
brary, among them David Harum, by
that noted author r. Kipling.'
VIII White saw the mistake and he
could not resist the temptation to COM
ment on it little. and he published a
little item in the EmpOria Gazette about
the discovery of the Kansas editor
which had escaped the literary critics
Of the east. The item was intended to
be humorous, but some eastern neWspa-
pers took it up in a serious vein, and
commented on it at length.
Some practical joker, supposed to have
been Roswell Field, brother of Eugene
Field, the poet, saw an opportunity for
some fun, and he made the most of it.
In the Sunday papers of the east on
January II there appeared a dispatch
from tth1R2 K Mi a 9
really the author of David Harum,"
and Mr.. White was quoted as authority
to substantiate the statement.
The story that the dispatch told was
that Mr.. Doubleday, of the firm of Dou-
bleday & Mcclure, the New York pub
fishers who publish Mr.. Whites books,
had made a bet of $1,000 with Edward
Box, editor of the Ladies' Home Jour-
would sell as we'll over any other sig
nature than Kipling's as it. would over
the noted Englishman's real name. In
other words the bet was that Kipling's
works sold on their merits and not on
the fame that Kipling's name attached
to them.
In order to demonstrate the truth of
his assertion the dispatch stated that
Mr.. Doubleday bought the story David
Harum," from Mr.. Kipling outright
and published it over the assumed name,
Edward Noyes Wescott." Roswell
Field was named as the referee to de-
eide the bet, and the book was pub
Ished.
AS soon as the dispatch appeared all
the parties named began to receive in
quiries from all sources for additional
Information concerning it. All last week
such inquiries rolled in on Mr.. White
down at Emporia, one New York pa
per wiring him for an immediate cor
roboratiOn of the story. Mr. White re-
piled by referring the editor to Lydia
Pinl1ham or H. H. Warner, the Safe
Compound" man.
Mr.. Box, of the Ladies' Home Journal
has also been flooded with inquiries con
corning the alleged wager, and Mr..
Alexander, Mr.. Bok's private secretary,
a few days ago gave the Philadelphia
Times an interview on the subject in
which he said:
'Of course. there is no truth in the
story The only thing about it that in
terests me is, who wrote it? It is sup
posed to have emanated from Chicago,
but it is a significant fact that it was
first published in the New York paper
upon which Mr.. Field is employed. 1t
goes on to tell how William Allen White,
publisher of a newspaper in Emporia,
Kan, and author of numerous short
stories, first made the announcement
of the startling fact that Mr.. Kipling
was the author of the famous novel. 1t
was only short paragraph, in very