The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-06-30

wrote a letter a few months ago which
requested the editor to "go 10 the devil"
whe-eat all literary London held up its
hands and exclaimed. How unlike Mrs.
Humphrey Ward"
Mrs. Atherton does most Of her writ
ing at Dresden and Munich, both Of which
German cities suit her better than any
city IN this country She likes Euro
pean women better than her own country
women. but proclaims herself 81 good
American for all that
Thomas Nelson Page, Novelist.
Thomas Nelson Page. Of Virginia. sue
cessfuI novelist like Mrs. Athertou. and
lawyer Ike Commodore Gerry. but whose
writings differ as much from the lady's
as his law work from the commodore's s..
stands high on the list OF interesting
signers' descendants
Mrs Atherton's novels are an near the
edge" Pages are the work Of a man
who is writing on behalf of his own sec
ton OF the country, defeated but not cast
down. which was almost v0icsless in the
national Literature twenty years ago,
when he began 10 write
He is descended both through his IA
Their and his mother from Gen. Thomas
Nelson. lie is hfty-f0ur. and spent his
boyhuod at Oakland, on the high roads be-
tween Washington and Richmond, and AS
q lad saw much of the civil war His
family lost its all in that struggle. and
when Il boy he had to milk the cows and
do other farm work; to study by the light
n nina frnFa q n r-l1 .FrFT
to school. lie was educated at WASH
ington and Lee ard the University Of
Virginia, getting his law course at the
latter, where, with a chum, he trained
himself as a speaker. The two would
lock themselves into their room, and,
standing with a table between them.
argue some question fifteen minutes at
a time i'm turn. Both were bashful. both
Of hating tongue when they began. but
both became unusually good speakers.
Practiced Law I'm Virginia.
Page practiced in Virginia from 1910
to 1898. He wanted to write from the
first, but nothing of his worth mention
ing was published in the big Northern
magazines until the middle SOS. It
has been said that "NIarse Chan" his
first story. published in Scribner's Month
ly, now the Century, was twelve years
unpaid for. but he says 1t was accepted
and paid for promptly and published in
three or four years. being held solely be
cause the editors thought the Northern
reading public was not yet ready for
Southern stories.
Soon after it's publication he began TO
write more stories, and fourteen years
ago was ready to leave off practicing law
and devote himself to literature exclusive
ly. He then removed TO Washington.
where he built a remarkably comfortable
house Of the old colonial style, and
where he now dwells in conteutment and
happiness.
Undoubtedly his stories have been Of
great value in making the North under
stand the South, and besides. they are
literature, which is more than can be
said Of some best sellers" Only once
has he been surprisingly sensa ti0nal;
then, in 1860. he said things about New
port that stirred society up nightly. but
the incident seems now TO have been for
gotten
Some Facts About the Family.
His father was a major in the Confed-
eracy; his first wife was Miss Seldom
Bruce, related TO the Confederate seere-
tary of war; James Alexander Seldom; his
second wife, born Barbour and now liv-
ing, was the widow Of Henry Field. of
Chicago, when Page married her. He is
related to half the old Virginia families.
the Confederate Gen. Pendleton being his
uncle and the Princess TrOubetsky, for |
merly Amelie Rives, author Of "The
Quick or the Dead?" his cousin.
When lad he organized a company
Of little negroes aad drilled them with