The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-11-28

The report that James Oliver Cur
wood, the author of The Wolf Hunters
and The Courage of Captain Plum, re-
Gently published by the Bobbs Merrill
company, was killed by Indians in the
Hudson Bay country, proves, as Mark
Twain would say, greatly exaggera-
ted" The report emanated from Win
nipeg, whence Mr.. Curwood, who is
mighty hunter. had struck into the
wilds. It was sent in an Associated
Press dispatch all over the country
Obituary notices of the usual laudatory
character appeared in the literary perl
odicalS. For two weeks nothing more
was heard about the missing man. Then
all of a sudden, Mr.. Curwood himself
appeared in Winnipeg to deny the ru-
NOR, and to find himself involved in no
end of personal and business trouble
by reason of its circulation. The story
seems to have originated in trifiing
difficulty into which the author and his
two Indian guides stumbled when they
were penetrating the Lac Ia Ronge
country, north of LIE Las. They were
In camp along a river when four In
dams of a village into whose domain
they were entering, came along In a
canoe. Some alteration soon ensued,
which Mr.. Curwood did not understand.
There was nothing melOdramatic about
the incident. No knives were used, no
guns; it was Just rough-and-tumble
fight in which one of the guides was
completely knocked out by a blow on
the head with a stone. When the In
dams of the village heard of the trou-
BILE they were grieved. They felt re-
sponsible for Mr.. .Curwood's predica-
nent, with but one guide in travelling
condition, and they gave him two or
their own people in place of the disabled
man. Doubtless the story of that little
trouble spread abroad slowly and was
enlarged upon by trappers and others,
finally reaching Winnipeg in a CARRIED
state. The novelist heard nothing
about it until his return trip When
he was nearly back to civilization he
off 70 friend tTaDDer,
who produced a paper nearly week
old in which the story of the tragedy
appeared. He started out that day ana
walked 20 miles to the nearest statlon
to prove that he was far from dead!
A large increase in the sale of new
books is reported by Messrs. Thomas
Y. CroweII & Co. At least six of their
fall books have gone into new edi-
tions, the list comprising: DR.. van
Dykes "Counse1s by the Way Jeffer,
sons Character of Jesus" Bayloss
"OId Man Coyote" Griffis' 1.-The Fire
Fly's Lovers and holiday editions of
Thoreau's cape Cod" and Maeter-
linck's "Pelleas and Melisande." Jones
Life of Edison" and Travis The
Young Malefactor," published last
spring, are also again on the press.
The nineteenth edition of DR.. S.
Weir MitchelFs Hugh Wynne, IN
press, has a preface by the author In
which he makes interesting mention of
certain alleged mistakes in names,
dates, and localities. and explains why
after six years of further research one
of, these alleged mistakes has been cor
reeted, and others have been allowed to
stand DR.. NitchelPs continuation OF
Hugh Wynne,'' THE Red City" went
into a second edition before issue.
Two new editions within a month
have been needed to supply the demand
for that new rival of Barrie's Babbie,
Edward Booths THE Post-GirL"
No book of the season seems to
have made a greater impression, to
Judge from the early reviews, than
Alfred OlIivant's new novel, 1.-THE
ed Mr. Ollivant of lacking originality,
and his famous Bob. Son of Battle
is a book that stands by itself in
English literature. In "The Gentle
man. he seems to have more than
matched that famous story of a dogs
life. The reviewer in The Forum
speaks of it as the greatest story of
adventure since Stevenson's Treasure
Island" and the Boston Transcript, in
an enthusiastic appreciation, COM |
ments on the blended "virility and
poetry of the book.
The report that winston Churchill |
is to be secretary of the navy in |
President-elect Taft's cabinet indi- |
Gates that the literary man is at last |
Is probably the best known and most |
widely read of American novelists, |