The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-03-09
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HOWARD PYLE'S BEGINNING


| Whoever knows the best magazine illus
| tratiOns knows the work of Howard Pyle.
! In his native town of Wilmington, Del.
this artist has been studying working and
I teaching for more than twenty-five years.
Julian Hawthorne, in the September Pear
sons writes the following description of
| Mr.. Pyle:
He is himself a type of the unfettered;
a stalwart tall simple American, unself-
! conscious as a boy; g-boned, big-skulled.
outstanding. wholesome; devoid of velvet
coats and poses. I felt his powerful in
| dividuality, but there was no faint of
| Myself about him; spiritual fire for
ever aflame within him has burnt all that
| out of him. He thinks not of himself.
but Of his work. whereby the work gains
and others think much of him"
When he was a boy his parents made
| futile attempts to incite in him a pur-
| suit of what was called a higher educa-
ton. Nothing would do, however, but
| that he must draw things, even though
his sketches failed to show any cleverness
or talent; so finally he was allowed to go
to an art school in Philadelphia.
few years later We find him doing
hack work in New York. His recognition
that ne must abandon the little things
and set sail for the big ones" ultimately
led up to the following episode described
by Mr., Hawthorne, an episode which was
really the turning point of his career:
He had been making little ideas for
compositions and selling them to Harper's
Weekly as suggestions to be worked UP
by other artists. One of these ideas was
| called "A Wreck in the Office" a quaint
old life-saving station, a man opening the
door and shouting out. amid a gust of
wind and snow, news of disaster to
group Of men playing cards within. This
idea so caught the editors fancy that
Pyle was embOldened to ask leave to work
it up himself. Leave was graciously
given.
For weeks and weeks" said Pyle. Il
labored on that picture-I gave up for it
oil i've fnT,-
my expenses still went on just the same
finally recognized the presence Of finan-
cial stringency. The question was whether
could starve slowly enough to finish
my picture first, or whether poverty
would win the race against art. 1t turned
out to be a pretty close contest.
AS a matter of fact. on the day when
the picture was in condition to be sub
mited to the art editor at Harpers. Pyle
had got down to his actual last nickel
and debate arose in his mind whether it
should be used for car fare or saved for
some more vital need. His studio was on
Broadway near Thirty-second street, and
the HarpeTs were downtown opposite
Brooklyn bridge-or as much of it as was
in existence at that epoch. There was
no rapid transit in those days, one took
a horse car and made the best of it. Pyle
finally decided in favor of the car-for.
even should his picture be declined. he
could at least get few dollars for the
idea" Arriving at the publishing office,
liz lliuulItu lOE Ailt dIb tulNOI anu us
told that he was not there; he had gone
home for the day.
There was nothing for it but to leave his
picture and walk back to the studio.
But what was he to do when he got there,
with the appetite he would have by that
time and nothing in his pockets? An
artist friend of his lived on Fourteenth
street near Broadway. and the needy
youth stopped there with the intention of
borrowing small sum of money to go
on with-he knew il would be readily
given. But he could not bring himself
to beg for help. He hung about the studio
for a while, but could not screw up cOur-
age to ask for loan and so went away as
empty as ne came. Two roommates shared
his own studio with him; but neither could
he bring himself to borrow of them. They
were going out to the restaurant for their
dinner and expected him to go with them
as usual; to avoid explanations Pyle pre-
tended that he was i'll and had no stOm-
ach for food After they were gone he
ransacked his pockets of his old clothes,
and felt rich when he turned out a stray
50-cent piece, which tided him over till
the next day-day big with fate.
Betimes in the morning he was at the
door of the art department, pale with
trepidation. For, said he, Il felt that
my fate was in the balance. Cold shud-
ders ran Up and down my spine. And
when, entering the art room. ! saw my
picture leaning conspicuously against the
wall. APPARENTLY ready for me to carry il
failed
The art editor regarded the youth for
few moments in silence. Then he said,
"Well, Mr. Pyle. Mr.. Harper has seen
your picture and likes il.
Oh. what a rebound of joy and thankful
ness in that detected soul But there was
more good news coming.
I'm fact" the editor continued. "he likes
it so much that he thinks of using it in
for a double page"
Now. double page In Harper's Weekly
was at that time considered about as high
an honor as an artist could aspire to
In the way of Illustration. and we may
imagine, If we can. the delight and glory
of a young cub artist who has attained
such a goal after such a night of need
and bitter anxiety.
Il was literally paid .or that picture
Pyle remarked, "and the first thing /
did was to take a friend to Delmonico's
and order the best lunch that money could
buV"
The Delmonico lunch marked the end of
the poverty period. With that single pic
ture Pyle entered art society in New York
becoming the companion of such men as
Abbey. Reinhart and Frost, who were
then the demigods of illustrations; Chase
Dielman. Duveneek and others who were
just returned from studying abroad Pyle
found himself on the same plane with
these men; but 'fortunately"-to use his
own words-the drawing which had lifted
him to this elevation was. to him, so un-
satisfactory that it stirred him up to do