The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1903-02-15
A. E. W. Mason's Successful Ca


not over-strongly built, with alert very TAX
| ing" manner, clever and thinnish face, clean
shaver, and tanned fine rich brown by recent
! holiday making, blue gray eyes and plentiful
! dark hair-that is Mr. Alfred Edward Woodley
| Mason, B. A., ex-politica agent Gin the eonserVa-
| tive INTEREST,", exsecretary TO the archbishop OF
| Canterhury's special committee for matchmaking
the Central church committee and the Church
| Defense institution, and risen novelist
An Englishman by birth, and within few
years of forty, he educated at Dulwch col
! ege and Trinity, Oxford, where he took double
honors AS already indicated, he became en-
gagged in church and political work after leaving
the 'varsity--though he does not aspire to write
NJ P. after his name--but in his leisure he wooed
! literature and rather timorously. Indeed so lit
| tie confident of ultimate success was he that
when writing The Courtship of Morrice Buck
ler'--his first book, "a Romance of Westdale,"
having met with but moderate recepuon--he
was glad to be living above the emigration Of
| hce, for in Respondent moments he used to find
| some comfort in saying to himsel: Well If this
fails I can always step into the office downstairs
and clear out" But fail, it did not and so for
tunately, England and not of the colonies,
is his home today.
He is an open air man, deghtng especially in
mountaineering and boat sailing Once he went
| on a cruise on a Yarmouth fish carrier, and he
has some amusing tales OF his experiences. The
| skipper was a bluff old salt, quite ignorant OF
Mr. Masons growing fame and one day asked
him what he did for living. oh, write
answered Mr. Mason. "Humph~ said the skip
per, how many letters a day do you write 2
Il don't know" Mr.. Mason replied, rather puz-
zled. mot very many. Two or three, perhaps"
Hal gruned the skipper triumphantly, you
young men nowadays don't know what work IS
know a man what writes thirty or forty letters
every day Of his life" Mr.. Mason bowed his
diminished head before such manifestation OF
the cacoethes scribendi, and meeky explained
that he wrote books.
AS they were nearing the Dogger bank the
skipper took his guest aside and said Look
ere, when you get back to London 1 want you tc
send me a good, nice boolS-something different
from your novels and police gazettes" Mr.. Ma
son sent him Miranda of the Balcony but
never heard what the sailor thought of It.
Although his tale OF novels amounts TO ter
in about seven years, he writes very slowly and
only begins after he has his story clear in his
head from the first chapter to the last. Nor
| rice Buckler' took year in the actual writing
and THE Four Feathers fifteen months, tC
, mention two of his greatest successes, He keeps
no regular working hours nor has he any
idiosynerssies, unless desire for quiet be ont
in literary man, though he wrote shor
story, which had to be dispatched by particular
mail amid the chatter and din Of steamer eoalini
at Port Said. which recalls the fact that he ha
travelled much in Egypt.
Mr.. Andrew Lang, great personal friend
coaborated with him in "Parson Kelly" and 81
Mr.. Mason will tell you, the collaboration wen
very smoothly. Mr.. Mason would write hi
and send it to Mr.. Lang, who would ammo at
and return it with some of his own which
, the younger author would make his remarks, anC
so on they went until one day they discovcre,
that the book was finished Naturally they hat
fully discussed the story and each other al
most daily during the writing of it, but even thei
: their unison remarkable.
Mr.. Mason's latest book has been received 81
enthusiastically that probably the reader is aniilia
with its story-still some unfortunates may hav
missed it. Harry Feversham, the descendant o
a long line of famous soldiers, is a coward, an,
peculiar kind Of one He is afraid of ben
> afraid and, learning unofhciaily that his regi
ment is about to be ordered active service
he resigns his commission. Three of his brothe
officers discover the truth and send him tire
= given him by the girl he is engaged to, who b.
y chance, has opened the box containing the plume
g of dishonor in his presence, and learnt their ter
: rible import from his lips. A magnificent scene
e magnihcently handled. How the coward redeem
, his honor the reader must find out for himself
: and assuredly be will not lay down the boo
: until he has done so. Indeed, when It was ap
pearing in The Cornhill" as a serial, Sir Thoma
, Martin, after the third instament, wrote 10 tn
> editor asking him. for heavens sake TO tell hir
y the end Space permits Of bat the bare mentio
a of the very interesting fact that Mr.. Mason ha
u already dramatized it under the title Of 9TH
C Haf-Pay List" Colonel Durrance becomes tn
r principal character.-Ne1p York Tribune