The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-02-11
Thinks Unknown Writers Do
Have a Chance
LABORS FOR DEVELOPMENT
Sent Some Books to a Woman Poet
and Put Her in Training-Tele-
graph Operator Got $50 for
An Idea.

Edward w. Box who has been editor
of the Ladies' Home Journal since 1855,
does not in the least agree with the many
correspondents who have been writing
to the New York Sun to say that the
magazine editors give too little attention
to manuscripts sent them by writer's per-
sonally unknown to them.
Mr.. Box told New York Sun reporter
recently that in his belief magazine edi-
tors, as a rule, examined manuscripts
sent to them with mental microscope
and their only regret was that micro
scopes of a higher power were not OBJ
tainable
May [ give you few concrete ex-
amples from my own experience of the
diligence with which this search for the
new writer is prosecuted? Some time ago
l noticed in an Indianapolis newspaper
signed column of comment of a varied
sort. 1t struck me as well done. I
watched it for some time. Then I took
pains to find out who wrote it. 1t ap-
peared that the writer was a woman in
tiny out-of-the-way town in Indiana. She
called herself The Country Contributor
l sent man to see her and find out
what she was like. He was so well i'm
pressed that | made her an offer to do
some work for us. 1t was so good that 1
engaged her regularly, and she is now
member of the staff of the magazine.
Value of Condensation.
"A man once sent to us a 10000 word
story about a toy bear. II was done In a
charmingly graceful and facile style. !
saw a 5000 word article in it and | wrote
him so. He couldn't see it that way, but
finally he came around and rewrote it as
| suggested. and he is now engaged on a
series of articles on the same line. The
4 Ia linz l.
so far as we were concerned but little
patience and trouble has, we feel, re-
paid us.
Il had a similar experience with a Chi
cago woman who sent us a 10000 word
novel, 1t would have been easy to re-
turn it with a note saying that 1t was
too diffuse and thin for our use, as in
still to send it back with the usual The
editor regrets etc. But ! saw a 10000
word novelette, in 1t, to be published In
two parts of the magazine, and was final
ly able TO persuade the author that was
right about it.
Here is a more extreme case. A wom-
an from a faraway little place, a place so
small as hardly to be on the map at all,
sent me poem. AS a poem it was not
much, but something about it impressed
me that its author was worth while 1
made inquiries l found that the woman
llNeu lne most secluded sort or lie, She
was poor. She was lonely. About all she
had was imagination and literary long
ngs. She had just two books I'm her
house, the family Bible and geography.
Sent Her Books.
II subscribed for four or five maya
zines and sent her a box of books that /
thought suited to her needs. That was
four years ago. am still keeping up
the treatment. I told her not to write a
thing. Occasionally she sends me a man
uscript and / send it back with the same
advice. She is now 26 years old. When
she is 30 [ shall advise her to write and
| shall have hopes of her.
"A telegraph operator in Norfolk Va,
once sent me a manuscript. / wrote to
him, saying that his manuscript was
hopeless, as 1t was. but adding that it
contained an idea for which I would pay
him $50 if he would allow me to use It.
He wrote back telling me to take it by
all means, and adding that he hadn't ex-
pected to get more than so for his article
in case it was accepted. That idea was
the suggestion for the series of articles
called How We Saved for Our Home 1t
proved one of the most popular series of
articles We ever published. Four out of
every five letters we received renewing
subscriptions since its publication men