The San Francisco call., 1909-09-05
Bv Peyton Steger


TOR the last six or seven years o.
Henry has been. perhaps. the most
! popular short story writer in Amer
ics He has a large audience who look
% him most Of all for satisfactory
and entertaining Interpretation of the
life Of The Four Million" title Of
his own that expresses his aloofness
from q sympathy with the -four hun
dred"
sydney Porter. which happens 10 be
fhe baptismai name Of o. Henry, is
fat dweller in Manhattan The reason
able desire Of Mr- Porter to share none
Of O. Henry's fame has brought into
existence 2 vast quantity of o. Henry
1eqe-a when a mans work deeply
interests people. and there are no facts
~ hand 10 illumine his personal big
reeses and trivialities, rumors come ia
from the world Of failing So 1t is
that a career Of O. Henry has been
pieced together out of magnifed DTS
Of gossip. told and retold by the friends
Of q friend The legend runs that he
has been tramp, tintype artist, book
agent. penny a liner. prospector in hard
luck cowboy. artist, druggist
These bits Of romantic gossip have
been misleading to the public u
Henry has wandered east and west.
over lands and across seas, but his aim
has never wandered. He has always
been 2 writer, and has toiled hard to
write well.
He has not had. however, the hard
ships often incidental TO an appren-
ticeship at his profession. He has
never written a story which he has
not eventually sold. To be sure, there
was time when he got only $50 for
1,a4f "
than the ones for which / get 90 times
as much now"
Although what the man has done is
far more important than where he has
been. Il is well worth while here, for
the general purpose Of recording a
few personal facrs that are true, to
give an outline Of his life. He was
born in 1857. in Greensboro. n. {. When
still a youth he went to Texas, and
epent nearly three years on the ranch
Of Lee Hall the ranger AT this time
he was already planning to write. To
further this plan he secured a posi-
ton with the Post. a daily newspaper
Of Houston. Tex. After a year there
he went to Austin, and for
$3.50 purchased Brann's 1conoclast
from the owner. Brann went
10 Waco. Tex and a few months
later asked o. Henry TO give him back
the title. for he wished 10 re-establish
his paper Q. Benrys spirit has never
been fconoclastic. and he blithely con-
sented. rechristening his own paper
the Rolling Stone The new Iconoclast al
Waco achieved a considera bic distinc-
ton for brilliancy. until Brann was
killed q few years ago in street duel
The Rolling Stone. written and illus
trated slmost entirely by o. Henry. had
short life. After this venture he
went to Central America with friend
who intended 10 become interested in
the fruit business, but didn't. Most
of my time there" says o. Henry, Il
knocked around among the refugees
and consuls." From Central America
he returned to Texas, where two ex-
pedient weeks OF employment in 8
drug store were enough to keep alive
for 20 years the myth of his occupa-
ton as a druggist. Thence he went tc
New Orleans, where he began not more
earnestly. but with more consistency
of effort, his work as a writer. Eight
years ago he came to New York.
when did you take UP pen nsmeT
asked him
when I was in New Orleans one
day I said TO friend. Tn going to
send out some stories. don't know