The Portland daily press., 1900-09-15
UNCLE REMUS AT LARGE.
Joel Chandler Harris Quits His
Editorial Sanctum.
Now Free to Devote Himself Purely to
Literature.
Correspondents Of Boston .Transoript.)

Correspondence of Boston Transcript.)
Atlanta, Ca, Sept. 1O.-On September
the 9th, last, Mr.. Joel Chandler Harris,
famous throughout the English speaking
world as "Uncle Remus," formally
severed his connection with the Consti-
tuition after having been its leading edi-
toriaI writer for nearly twenty. five years.
In withdrawing himself from active edi
tOriaI work on Georgia's great newspa-
per, Mr.. Harris also retires from Journal
ism; and he Will now devote himself ex-
clusively to independent literary work,
Mr. Harris has had this step in con-
temptation for several years past and ibis
retirement from, the paper is due to no
rupture In the pleasant relations which
have always existed between him and the
proprietors of the Constitution. Though
he has never owned one dollar worth of
the stock in the paper it has always
been understood that his position was
permanent and that no matter what
might be the fate of other members ofathe
staff Uncle Remus was too important to
be dispensed with. In leaving the paper,
Mr.. Harris has been influenced by two
considerations; first, he has never really
enjoyed editorial writing, although it has
constituted the bulk of his life's work,
and second, he had undertaken within
the past few months so many contracts
for magazine articles and other kinds
of literary work that in order to meet
them he has found 1t absolutely necessary
to give up writing editorials. Besides
finding literary work more congenial he
has also found it more remunerative, and
except for the fact that he felt in some
measure indebted to the Constitution for
the part 1t took in building up his repu-
tation, he might have resigned his posi-
ton several years ago. Then again he
was largely influenced by habit. Editori-
al writing had become his steady Occupa-
ton and he was accustomed to the task
of furnishing the paper so much editorial
copy each day that he found it well-nigh
impossible to abandon his daily grind of
routine work until confronted with the
necessity of making good his contracts
with other parties.
Mr.. Harris sent in his resignation dur
ing the early part of the summer, but
Editor Clark Howell, who was then on
the eve of taking an extended European
trip, prevailed upon him to withhold his
resignation until his return home. This
Mr.. Harris readily agreed to do under the
circumstances, but when Mr.. Howell re-
turned home last week he again sent In
his resignation. Though grieved to see
him quit the paper after having been
identified with its fortunes so long, Mr..
Howell could do no more than give his
reluctant consent and accordingly on
Sept. 9th last, Mr.. Harris, babe an afIec-
tionate farewell to his old associates on
the paper. To say that many eyes were
moistened with tears is to state the truth
in mild terms. Every one on the papsr
loved him from the editor down to the
Office boy, and they hated to see him go.
Stu in the prime of his physical and
intellectual maturity, Mr.. Harris has be-
fore him the prospect Of many vigorous
and fruitful years and being no longer
hampered by the exactiOns OF newspaper
work it is more than likely that his fu-
ture literary productions will surpass
anything that has yet come from his pen.
Until connecting himself with the Con-
stitution in 1876 Mr.. Harris had never
attempted anything in the way of dia-
Isct writing and he expected to devote
himself to editorial work exclusively;
but his immediate predecessor on the pa
per had been very successful with certain
Negro dialect stories which he put into
the month of an old imaginary character
whom he called "Dncle ST." and Can
tain Evan =. Howell, who war then the
editor, being impressed with the idea OF
keeping up the stories, asked Mr.. Harris
10 III w4.>NA rrw~
thing OF the kind. Being naturally diff /
dent and somewhat distrustful of his
abilities, Mr.. Harris hesitated at first /
but on being repeatedly importuned, he /
finally decided to make an attempt. He /
decided to publish his dialect stories over
the name of "Uncle Remus." Turning
back to his own boyhood days spent on
the plantation in Putnam County, Ga.
he found an abundance of material from
which to draw his supply OF stories
without drawing upon his Imagination.
He decided to tell the stories just as he /
had heard them in his youth from the
liDs OF the negro himself, being careful I
to reproduce his exact mannerisms and /
pecuIiarities. From the start thu stories /
OF Uncle Remus were Immensely SUCCESS /
ful. They far surpassed in richness of /
humor and fidelity of character portrayal /
those of Uncle 81, and soon they began to
be copied into every important news
paper in the United States. Uncle ST was
only an imitation, while Uncle Remus
was genuine. He was full Of the super
stition, the lore and the humor Of the ne
gro, and his stories were mirrors in
which the negro saw himself reflected |
and recognized the resemblance. Besides
making use of the material which his
own recOllections furnished him, Mr.
Harris also made use of the material
which others brought him and thus he
was enabled to string out his dialect
stories over an almost indefinite period.
Such was the manner in which s'Br'er
Rabbit" and "Br er Fox were first in
troduced into southern literature. Since
then they have become classic, and few
are the American girls or boys in either
section who have not alternately went
and smiled over the stories which Uncle
Remus has told. Beyond the art of put
ting them into permanent literary form.