Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1907-08-23

claimed, to the man who loved her'
look at David Harum' and The Hell
met of Navarre'-they never had Writ
ten anything before, and they MADE
piles of money. l don't see why you
shouldn't do exactly the same.
But I'm not a writer, Dick PLEADED
apologetically.
Then for heavens sake why did
you start writing?" she blazed out.
u didn't-that is / was going into
the business department just as soon
as had had a little experience report
ing. Then you know my uncle died
and they had to sell the paper, and
now don't seem to be able"
Olive turned up her nose In argu-
ment, and Dick sighed at the impossi-
bility Of convincing an upturned nose.
You might try to write something
while you're waiting to get into the
business department" Olive went on,
presently, when the force Of the up
turned nose seemed spent. IF you
won't make novel, then at least write
little story They say Frank r.
Stockton became quite famous with
just one story, and The Lady or the
Tiger wasn't more than two or three
pages long.
Man is made or marred, nodded or
twisted uplifte1 or dragged down by
the woman Of his choice-creature of
propinquity that he is, speaking con-
ceitedly of "choice" in this world
where the causes were laid long ago,
and man is only an effect. A few of
us a very few, move a trife this
way or that, but most of us only splash
q little in the stream of life, down
which we float, looking at the river
banks passing by, and proud of the
progress we are making, like the fly
on the wheel, in the fable.
Dicks position was a hard one. AT
ter leaving the college world, where he
had been a successful manager of
teams, and business manager of the
Monthly, he had anticipated rising In
the outside world, il not meteorically
at least, steadily, especially since an
uncle owning a newspaper had offered
him a position, with the understand
ing that if he proved his worth he was
to rise very near the top.
Dick entered the newspaper bust
ness, not, as so many college men do,
Of the English language and saw lit
erature on the other side of journal
ism, but for the business side of the
profession. However, he started
chasing murders, marriages, railroad
wrecks and suicides In order to have
experience in all branches of the bus
mess, and the sponer to be through
with this one. He had hardly more
than convinced the city editor that
he had not the making of a star re-
porter In him however, when his uncle
died, and the paper passed into other
hands, his uncle being one of those
men whose affairs after death require
considerable untangling. In the state
OF unstable equilibrium into which the
employees of the paper found them
selves when the new management
came in, Dick held his place as minor
reporter with persistency that would
have been admirable had his place
been at the top instead of at the bot
tom. He seemed to be forgotten. Men
rose and fell all around him, and he
was immune.
1t would probably have been the best
thing for him to have been fired"
but the love which he bore to Olive
and which made him long to rise.
kept him from risking the little he
had surely for the much longed for.
Her exhortations to write something
to win fame and fortune made him
very unhappy. He knew in his soul
that he was no writer, but love. which
makes towards of some men. makes
others fools to rush in, where their
betters would have feared to tread. and
Dick wrote his story. Oh! but it was
poor stuff. 1t was one of those stories
that make the magazine editors lot an
unhappy one. The style was that of
an ordinary reporter, with a ferment
of literary touches, and the plot was
so bad that it could only have happen-
ed in real life-in fiction, neverl The
governor of state, and the owner NJ
a paper were the principal characters
with the boss of city thrown in for
good measure, and to work out the
plot. The governor climbed over the
back fence of the editor in the dead !
OF night for a mysterious interview.
and they bargained and laid nefarious
plots against the boss of the city, and
SO forth KiDlinR who WROTE ga MoA
ter Of Fact" and made the world see |
sea serpents, might have made some
thing Of the ridiculous plot, but Meth |
er he nor any one else with the slight |
est artistice sense would ever have
tried to.
Dick wasted thirty-two cents send |
Ing his rubbish around to all the mag
azines, even into darkest Philadelphia.
He did not tell Olive what he was
doing. He wanted to surprise her, at
first.
AFTER each rejection the desire not
70 tell her became more and more
nAed. AT last. when both the MS. and
MS aspirations were pretty well worn
out ne took it to the Sunday editor
OF ais own paper, and sheepishly ask
ca MIN II he could use 1t. IF it's no
use 10 you, just fire it into the wasta-
basket" Dick said with a glimmerinr
sense OF the fitting place for it
IL.
some men believe that luck plavs a
large part III succeas-ra fs,,.1~ -