The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-01-23
WHO WROTE DAVID HARuM"q

Several days ago William Allen
White, the Kansas literateur and au-
thor Of Boyville" sketches, asserted in
chicago that David Harum' was the
WORK of Rudyard Kipling. At first it
as thought that Mr. White was "jol-
lying the public. When he showed
how serious he was the newspapers all
began to jolly him. Then the creator
Of Piggy Pennington, - bud Perkins
and other pugnaeious rulers in the
realms Of fiction. got his back up and
appealed to eminent gentlemen who
are said to be familiar with the cir
cumstances to substantiate his decIara-
ton.
Some of them refused to do this
claiming, as does Julian Hawthorne,
that the best interests of ali concerned
and the reputation Of current author
ship demands that the popular be-
lief IN reference to this popular book
rest undisturbed.
Hawthorne, however, finally submit
ted to the Philadelphia North Ameri-
can his version of the matter, which is
as follows:
You ask whether I can Substantive
Mr.. Whites statement that Rudyard Kip
ing wrote David Harum." I am glad that
Mt White has at last relieved Mr.. West
colt from the grOundleSs asDereiOn which
mas mas 50 long lain upon his amiable name.
f1au Mr.. WeStcOtt cared to produce a
mover. 1 Teel sure thar il would have been
what the Authors club terms "A book
proper TO Literature" instead Of so trifiing
and EDneEleT4I nlltliraffnr ax-fC
Harum, composed with no serious or
worthy purpose. but simply with the view
OF winning a bet
We'll recOllect the occasion to which
Mr. White refers. Mr.. Kipling was in
evening dress, but his artistic tempera-
ment had led him to put on a blue satin
WaIstcoat embroidered by hand with pink
ana Wnlte IoWerS-sa pretty thing in it.
SELF but sufficiently out of the ordinary
10 attract the WOuid-be humorous COM
meHt OF some Of the more light-minded
among U.S. Mf. Doubleday finally said
that it reminded him of the embroidered
! cover worked by Elaine for the shield
OF LauncelOt Conversation turned ON
Iennyson's well known poem and upon
the incident Of LauncelOt entering the
HSts under a disguise, simulated by
GuiBevers's hint Your great name
TINS conquers.' A discussion of discusses
and aliases followed and the Bacon
Shakespeare controversy was touched on
az length Il forget at whose inStancel
Inc question was raised as to whether
MI. klpungs genius, unaided By the
good viii $50 to say Of his name. could
produce novel which would sell. He ae-
cepted the challenge and was elected as
stakeholder. the bet being at evens for
the sum Of $4,000 a side, this particular
sum having been fixed upon / believe
/ because $1,000 and some small change was
ali that Mr. kipling happened to be carry
ing at the moment in the pocket Of his
/ WalstcOat. The name of Edward NOyes
I W eStcOTt as the supposed author of the
Z n00k C77uUoG4 ed nE Mr. Non blnrlqrr
who is great wit. he at first proposed
NOyeS =. WeStCOtt. but we decided that
/ the play upon words would be toe
/ transparent, and the present form was
[ adopted. / should add that the fact thai
/ a genuine Edward Moves Westcott ex-
I listed was a pure coincidence; it only Oc-
/ CURED to Us later.
/ Although l was in a sense a party tc
. this transaction. I must say that ii never
/ mad my approval. ] think such trifline
| lends to abate the dignity of literature
/ We authors do not take ourselves serious.
/ y enough. and should not. therefore CON-
plain if publishers and the public fail Il
/ esteem US at our true value.
/ It is. however. in my opinion. greatly Il
] the credit of Mr.. kipling that when the
! existence Of a real r. \. Westcott was
made known to him. he caused ali royal
ties received from the sales Of the book
/ 90 be paid to him. his heirs or assigns
4 He did this. I believe, not simply with a
view to maintaining the deceptiCa before
! the public but out of real goodness OF
! heart and also, perhaps. as a self-impOseS
/ penalty for having taken liberties with
/ the literary discrimination of a public t.
I which he owes so much.
! Trusting that the moral of this episode
/ viii not be lost upon our younger writer's
JULIAN HAWTHORNE.
I Philadelphia. Jan IS.
This reminds one of the Bacon
/ Shakespeare controversy or that other
which was begun a few years ago fol
the dubious purpose of proving that
Herbert Spencer had written Dickens
novels, except that it treads upon the
heels of David Harum' so closely thai
nothing but rank presumption or ar
idiotic desire to play a joke on the
public would spring a falsehOod con.
corning the authorship of this literary
favorite Of the people.
Julian Hawthorne has the reputation
Of being an honest man and serious il
his treatment of the public His state
ment, corroborating that of William
Allen White. and corroborated in turr
by Roswell NJ Field. a brother of tn,
/ lamented poet, is entitled to some con
sideration.
The mystery Of the authorship o
David Harum" promises to become a.
interesting as the story itself.
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