Omaha daily bee., 1909-08-29

breaks to answer your question designed
to lead the talk along the more natural
hannels Of the authors work.
My new book, Rest Harrow is a story
Of modern life. 1 sometimes wonder il
1 will ever write anything but modern
stories again. l seldom take steps back
ward, but to say what you will do or
what you will not do is absolutely alb
surd, for no one knows. with my mind
fully made up to the fact that / shall
continue to write modern stories 1 may
be so very strongly impelIed to take up
the medieval romance again that 1 can
not help myself"
Plenty Of Room for All.
You state the usual banality that with
so many persons writing stories of modern
life and so few the readabl medieval
fiction it seems a great pity that Mr.. Hew-
lett should not specialize mis- talent. He
shakes his head with quick, nervous ges-
lures.
1T is true in a sense, perhaps, that the
medieval field is not so crowded. but one
Of the most salient facts in art is that
there can be no rivalry in it. Each man
makes his place, his own place, and no man
can fill it or take it away.
Others may write modern romance. but
40 one can write my particular modern
romance, for that is q part or me, a bit OF
my personality which is absolutely beyond
the power of another to parallel. Charac.
ter is the whole thing in art. 1t is what
a man makes Of himself that counts in his
work. and as no man exactly duplicates
anOtheT's experiences, so no man can dc
another mans work for him.
what a man builds he possesses. Tn,
Inne thing that he has ut HE ,hg.I,,s. a.
posal is that quality he has gained by liv
ing. You can't take it away from him
You cannot borrow II or steal it,"
Whatever Mr.. Hewlett has done or ma,
do with modern fiction, you know that tn,
characters in his medieval romances seen
to think mediaevally and act as men an
women would do who thought that way
You ask him how this psychology has bee
obtained and he thinks over it a little
shaking a long, gray ash from his c~igarett
with a elaboration which would hay
seemed impossible to you a few moment
before. The modern man has become IN
medieval thinker.
Life I'm the i'd Ages.
Il nav a friend. Henry Newboldt, VIII.
has written some charming things and w
have most animated discussions along thi
line. He honestly believes anc shows hi
creed in his work that the man and woma
Of the middle ages were no different fror
the mar and woman Of today. He claim
that they acted the same, thought the sam
and were fundamentally and essentiaII
similar.
Il do not agree with him at all, as 20
have gathered from my books. / wan
you 10 remember just one thing and tina
: alone will show how different their mod
Of thought must have been. refer TO the
: familiarity with death, which is a point
l view absolutely unknown TO us.
y They could not open a door, they coul
not walk along a street scarcely withol
< seeing a dead body. A man separated fro
o his friend and In half an hour one or N
G other dies in a tavern brawl, stabbed
y a dusky street in a brawl defending. PEI
n haps, a woman's honor. Don't you see VIII
o a difference that must have made? Ii
must have been lived quicker. the Wit
h element was nearer the surface.
d Then take the religious influence. The
had the fear OF the future before the
then. They had Christianity which v