The San Francisco call., 1905-04-01
AUTHOR MEETS
HIS ADMIRERS
Il. Rider Haggard Spends a
Pleasant Afternoon With
Readers of His Stories
RECEPTION AT PALACE
Will Address the Students
of Berkeley This Morning,
Then Leave for Denver
RECEPTION AT PALACE

H. Rider Haggard, usually slow and
celebrating, had taste of strenuosity
yesterday that kvill probably last him
for at least week. AT noon the dis
tinguished English writer was the
guest of a number of prominent Cali
fornians at luncheon at the Bohemian
Club, among his entertainers being
James d. Phelan, Benjamin lde
wheeler, "A. Sbarboro, Rufus jennings
and Joaquin Miller. After an hour at
the club he was escorted to the Palace
Rctel, where he held public reception
III the main parlors on the first floor.
The occasion afforded many who
have enjoyed Haggard's interesting
stones an opportunity to greet ana
converse with him, and seemingly he
was as we'll pleased with the affair as
We're his callers. Certainly there were
a number of visitors who deeply in
terested him, for he plainly demon
strated the fact by his manner of hold
ing them in conversation despite the
EFFORTS of others to get within his hear
ing and grasp his hand. There was d
young lady who had not only read his
novels but had enjoyed the distinction
of having been in the cast OF She
in San Francisco.
y
woman was a man of marked literary
tastes. who related to Haggard the
pleasures he had given to band of
rugged. .woodchoppers in Northern Gal
ifornia some years ago, while isolated
with them in the snow-bound forest.
by reading at night under the Kicker
Ing light of camp Iire chapters or
King Solomon's Mine" Another in
teresting caller was a man from South
Africa, who joined with the author in
reviving the incidents of early life in
the far-off British possessions, and an
other saluted I1aggard with the re-
mark that he had known Captain Hag-
gard, brother of the author, who, toos
has attached his signature to many
popular writings.
Of all the afternoon s visitors none
probably drew closer to them the Eng
lish author than the man who recall
ed to Haggard the little church in
Norwood, where, as Haggard has told
in ono of his stories, he once saw a
beautiful face-of one whom he never
knew, but of one that had been an in
spiration to him in later years. The
man explained that he, too, attended
the Norwood chapel when Haggard
was wont to gaze upon that handsome
face, and years later, when he had pc
rused the lines written by Haggard, he
had racked his mind to recall the iden-
tity of the same sweet face.
1t was in this pleasant manner that
San Francisco admirers of Haggard
entertained him. Surrounding him
were many of the city's most prom
inent citizens, who enjoyed the remin
iscences of the writer's past life.
Among them we're the city's Mayor,
members of the bench and bar. repre-
sentatives of various commercial bod
les, fair maids and matrons, and, scat
tered here and there, youths who gazed
in wondcrment upon the tall figure and
kind features of the author of many
of the weird tales they had read.
This morning Haggard will be the
guest of President Benjamin Ide
Wheeler at the State University, and
viii address the student body of that
institution for half an hour. In the
evening he leaves for Colorado as the
guest of John Hays Hammond in the
latter's private car.