The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-09-20

stuuent OF tue -nQlan problem. Inc
doctor was trained as an Indian for
nearly sixteen years. and as white
man for almost exactly the same time
Beginning without word of the Eng
lish language or a civilized conception.
he prepared for college in nine years-
The average white boy. with all his ad :.
vantages, takes twelve. DIR. Eastman
never attended q government school.
his school and college life We're spent in
leading institutions for the higher edu-
cation. Neither he nor any of his for
bears were .agency" Indians, nor has
except a small money payment for
lands coded in 1889. although he is en-
titled to all the rights of full member
ship in the Sioux nation. He has been
for many years a citizen and voter.
DR.. Eastman lectures great deal about
the country. in addition to his labors.
and for many years he has been en-
gagged in original research in Indian
history and folk lore. His Indian
Boyhood" will be worth reading.
DIR. Woodrow Wilson, recently elected
president of Princeton university. has
completed his History of the American
People," upon which he spent several
years of writing, and the work will be
published within few days in a five
volume edition. Prof. Wilson has spared
no labor in collecting from the original
sources all the material necessary for
his work. and the publishers have sup
plemented his efforts by obtaining from
many difficult sources copies of old
prints, paintings and sketches. One OF
these is a portrait of Columbus dated
1885, the original of which is in the
Spanish government collection at Sc
vile.
Not long ago a curious resemblance
was noted in three short stories by
three different authors, Frank Norris,
Jack London and c. F. Mclean. which
were published about the same time in
three different magazines. In each story
the plot hung on an incident in which
man. wishing to be rid of an old dog,
ties a stick of dynamite to his tail.
lights the fuse and rushes for cover.
The old dog. obediently follows mis-
master, scratches at the door and, being
unable to get in. crawls under the house
just as the dynamite explOdes. Now the
most curious thing about this COinci-
dence of plots is a recent newspaper
story from Pennsylvania mining town
to the effect that one George Mechou
tried to get rid of his NANCY dog in
this manner with a much similar re-
suit. Either the three authors who Sc
parately invented the plot have DOW
ers of divinatiOn or else the practice of
killing dogs by tying sticks of dynamite
to their tails is more common than 1t
should be. Perhaps George Mechou was
not the first man to try the method in
fact. In that case, the writer's may
it was good for fiction story. There
are a great many authors nowadays
who confess to getting much of their
inspiration from newspaper accounts or
currenres. 1t is only another proof that
truth is stranger than fiction.
Someone has discovered an unpub-
lished manuscript of Robert Southey's
and, of course, publisher has secured
the relic and will bring it out shortly.
According to the account, Mr.. Howard
Pease found the manuscript in the
Pease archives and was not aware OF
its value for some time The manu-
collection of letters. However it is said
to be an admirable example of South
ey's style. 1t describes the poets visit
to Belgium and Waterloo. in particular,
two or three months after the great
battle.
The initial volume of a first-novel ser
les to be brought out by a New York
publisher this fall is entitled 'The Rag
ged Edge" and Is written by John T.
Mcintyre, a Philadelphia newspaper
man who gives the following biographi-
cal matter about himself. Born in No
vember, 1871: was sent to school at q:
stopped going at IL: began to write for
publication when 20 and now has
package of return slips from publishers
which is about a foot thick. First
thought of writing Ragged Edge in
"a; began it in '98. blu, gave it up after
few months. On the advice of TalcOtt
Williams, took story up again. and
when it was finished I sent it to a
New York publisher. The train on which
it was carried was robbed and the
manuscript was lost rewrote the
story and when this work was finished
the original turned up. This is about all
there is to 1t.
that Henry Seton Merriman has yet
written was brought out last week
1.-THE Vultures," as the story is named,
are various diplomats, who as represen-
tatives of European and American gov
ernments, engage themselves in watch
ing a conspiracy for the re-establiSh-
ment of Poland as kingdom. The ac-
ton takes place shortly after that I'M
happy country has been divided up
among Russia, Austria and Prussia.
and, in the regular course of the story,
much information is given about the
diplomatic matters connected with
these countries. 1t is said that when
the, story appeared serially in a London
newspaper, the Russian government
Office Is went to the trouble to censor
severely the copies containing any parts
of the tale in which Russia figured.
The English people are prouder of
their countryman who wins the English
Derby than of their prime minister, no
matter Row popular that gentleman
may be. It is not a little due to his
successful horses while Prince of Wales
that Edward VII is so highly held by
his subjects at the present time. This
fact doubtless prompted Mr.. Edward
Spencer to write a history of his males
tvs connection with the turf. under the
title THE Kings Race Horses. Nat
ura1ly the larger share of the demand
for such a book will be in England, for
Americans do not yet regard racing as
a national snort hut two limited edi-
tions will be brought here one of 900
copies. the other of so printed on vellum
and sold for one hundred dollars each:
HERBERT BREWSTER.
BOOK NOTES.