The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-02-08
THE MINNEAPOLIS JOURNAL.

San, Francisco, poor and sick He did
some piece work for the Bulletin, took his
meals at cheap restaurants and wroteN THE
Amateur Emigrant'' and other matter. For
tunately his father notified him that he could
have an annual allowance of f25O and he
braced up and married Fanny van de Grift
divorcee The marriage proved very
happy one and Stevenson frequently extols
her priceless love. The lady was intellec-
tually in perfect sympathy with Stevenson
She had much nursing to do, for Stevenson's
health was Undermined by consumption and
his we'll periods were intermittent. His wife
was the literary critic to whom he always
deferred. Her influence was SO strong that
he burned up the first manuscript of "Jekyll
and Hyde" upon her adverse criticism and
rewrote 1t. Stevenson said, two years before
his death. that his marriage was 1.-THE best
move ever made in my life" Stevenson's
own Scotland had too severe a climate for his
frail constitution and he went to the CONT
nent in 1SS2-S4 He had finished Treasure
Island" then and a London Arm offered to
publish 1t, making an advance payment o.
$500. The book has since produced s10.0 600
FOR Stevenson and his heirs. It's fascina-
ton held such readers as Gladstone and Nor
ley and Andrew Lang and 1t gave Stevenson
his first popular success Stevenson said of
1t: This gives one strange thoughts of.
ho,' very bad the common run OF books
must be; and generally all the books that
the wseacres think too bad to print are the
very ones that bring me praise and pud-
ding"
Stevenson spent 1ss4-s7 in England He
wrote among other things The Strange Case
of DR.. Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde" The most
striking scenes in this tale were dreamed
by Stevenson. who awakening wrote down
the visions. His literary income then did
not exceed $1,000 a year, but 1T was ma
terially increased after his visit to the United
yah t. 90 20.
health. He was cordially received at New
York and immediately had offers from lead
ing publishers like the Scribners, which he
accepted He refused an offer from the New
York World Of $4,000 year for a weekly
article. He spent the winter in the Adiron-
dacks and wrote stories in collaboration with
Lloyd Osbourne. It was at Saranac that
the first yacht cruise in the South Pacific
was planned and in the spring the Casco
was chartered and for about three years
Stevenson visited most Of the islands of the
South Pacific. a very interesting account is
given of their wanderings, chiefly from Ste
venson's own diary and letters. He deter
mined to settle in Samoa and selected his
home in Upolu, where he spent the last
three and half years of his life in his
own large house and estate, called Vailima,
which In Samoan means Five Waters" be-
cause five streams ran through his property.
The house In great forest was SO near the
sea that the thunder Of the surf was
audible Here the family lived in great
comfort, with trained Samoan native servants
and Stevenson turned out largo amount of
work. Mr.. Ralfour was a member of the
family during the last two years Of Steven
sons life and his description of the daily
doings and the last days OF Stevenson is ad-
mrably done. The list of Steyensons writ
ings shows more than 200 pieces-books,
poems. sketches. short stories, exclusive of
articles in Scribner's, The Century and other
periodicals. The career Of Stevenson Is won
derful as a display Of restless energy The
year before he died he wrote to George