The San Francisco call., 1903-01-18
CONDUCTED By
B. G. LATHR0P

IL is to be feared quite truthfully,
that one cannot help feeling that
the rush Of such a life as that OF
the late Frank Norris had some
thing 20 90 with his early death. Frank
Norris -crtainly lived the strenuous life
TO the full; he Travelled much,
he saw much, and he remember
ed all that he saw TO eventual
ly weave into fiction the realities Of
iffe. Mr Norris had so many warm per-
sonal friends in California. made during
the carly nineties when he was a stu
dert in the University Of California and
a mouse member Of the Phi Gamma Delta
Fraternity. ard later when he became
one Of the EDITORS of "The Wave" that
We Of the Far West cannot fail to feel a
certain proprietary interest in his writ
iugs.
Norris was z man deeply interested in
ali problems Of humanity; close student
and a deep thinker. the desire TO broaden
and educate himself and to see the world
and it, people early asserted itself. He
left san Francisco TO finish a course at
Harvard and from there went 10 Paris,
where he studied art. lie represented a
san Francisco paper in South Africa at
the time of the jameson raid, and he was
IN Cuba in 1885 for a Kew York maga-
I-llN IL Aio-c BNGA oAdANA AAidN AAN NAONC
'-AcTeague.' a ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
lKe-thoDsand-word novel. in eighty nine
days This may be an exaggeration, but
the fact remains meVertleIess that Norris
was in himself a perfect type Of the
american Of the strenuous life; he not
only attempted great things, but he car
ried them out in the quickest possible
time-and successfully. TOO.
While a reader for the Doubleday-Page
Company he conceived the idea Of
writing a Trilogy Of the Epic of the
ANheat-three novels whose stories should
be i'm no way connected with each other
in the detail Of plot or characters, but
should be related in the broader sense of
purpose The first should deal with the
production Of the wheat; the second, the
distribution; and the third, the consump-
tion. The first two We have. but the last
most unfortunately, has died with the
author.
The Octopus" was the first Of this Sc
ries and its appearance created a pro-
found sensation in the literary world.
This is the story OF the sowing and gath
ering Of the wheat, the war between the
wheat grower and the railroad trust Mr.
Norris laid the scene for his first book
here IN California on the great plains OF
the San Joaquin, and as a book Of this
phase Of Californian life il is a work that
stands pre-eminent. Aside from its local
interest il is q marvellous study Of human
ity as IL struggles giant-like 10 conquer
and control one Of the worlds greatest
forces. The Octopus" even alone. stands
as the closest approximation TO the great
American novel both in the broad
scope Of its handling and in its thorough
ly American significance. that has as yet
been written. And il was only rea soma BILE
10 expect that the three books, taken to-
ecther and completing the trilogy would
occupy a permanent place in the litera-
tire Of the world.
The Pit" the second book in the triI-
oeE. has just been published by Double-
day. Page 6, Co, New York, and certainly
lives up TO the promise offered in "The
Octopus" It possesses that same broad
sweep 50 characteristic Of Norris in deal
ing with the vital principles of life. Now
the scene has shifted from the trials Of
the farmers, the sowing and raising Of
Tho wheat. the great fertile plains of the
West. TO the scene OF its distribution in
fhc Chicago wheat pit.
Here We find the same Norris writing
with the old fearless sincerity. truth, force
fulness and sympathy. but with the more
perfect realism and Vividness that come
with years and with the surer knowledge
O. past successes. Those familiar with
Norris essays may remember a para
graDh he wrote some months before his
DEATH which was plainly his own creed :
TO make money is not the province Of
P novelist. II he be the right sort he
has other responsibilities, heavy ones.
He, OF all men. cannot think only Of him
self and for himself. And when the last
page is written and the ink crusts Jon
the pen point and the hungry presses
80 clashing after another writer, the new
man and the new fashions OF the hour,
he will think OF the grim long grind, OF
the years Of his life that he has put be-
hind him and OF his work that he built
mp, volume by volUme-sincere work, tell
ing the truth as he saw II, independent
Of fashion and the gallery gods, holding
to these with gripped hands and shut
teeth-he Will think OF all this then and
he viii be able to say. I never truckled,
] never took of the hat 10 Fashion and
held IL out for pennies. BY God, 1 told
them the truth They liked IT or they
Os-s41sssssissss;ssssssss : + !. : :.