The San Francisco call., 1909-01-17

wSk1 lst N b sknA. EnsznApBA khm4
he happens 60 know how % wmaem
~ O CwTmslteA howuvm, hs Wns
munA more communicative. HI t0wo8
the place ~ q Bodoufn loves his 6oDort,
and he knows ie as well I thank that
this place II ideally nttsd 20 ba ths
habftzkfon Of . poet also think that
I went DOWN 20 the beach from 4Btsr-
lings bungalow and found Nike VIII
Hanns In . shanty, doing things with a
typewrfter-not being q poet. but de-
serter from the newspaper shop. He
had gossip and to spare (rm glad TO
self) He doomed Alice MacGowan's
Judith OF the Cumberlands." for In
stance. almost as hard as he did the
book which he and Upton Sinclair are
bringing out together. He, like Hop
per and many, many others, had been
one Of those who lost their manuscripts
In the big fire after the earthquake OF
exciting memory. being at that time
city editor Of the Examiner. Shortly
after that event he went east again to
engage in freelancing and wrote
novel dealing largely with the earth
quake times. which was accepted. and
on which he was putting some finish
ing licks while residing at Helicon hall.
Upton Sinclair's i'll fated experiment in
cooperative house keeping. This new
book he lost. together with all the rest
OF his manuscripts in the fire which
swept the hall away. After that he
went wandering around, TO Cuba and
Bermuda and elsewhere. until Jimmy
Hopper infected him with a strong case
of Carmelitis. He is now finishing the
last pages OF an autobiographical book.
which, he tells me. is at once a conres-
sion OF many sins, record or many
startling adventures, declaration or
artistic beliefs and a proclamation or
religious feelings. and heaven only
knows what not besides In a month or
so he ts to leave Carmel temporarily for
a six months horseback journey
through the deserts OF the southwest.
with Kenneth MacNichol for partner.
MacNichol. williams tells me, knows
that country as perhaps no other VIII
ing man knows II. being trtbesman or
the Navajo nation. and wanderer and
advenurer for many years. Tney plan
10 be back in Carmel IN the fall with
all kinds OF unique material for nction
and articles. including one big wnaek-
ing novel OF mystery, gold. danger TO
nance and prfmeva1 mysticism
Grace MacGowan Cooke ana Ance
MacGowan cnughk their CarmenuA it
appears. from Williams. and had II
rnhhea into them, SO to speak. by Hop
per. ana are now planning TO stay nere
for a long time to finish lot OF I'm
nortant new work, including novel
for the Reader. successor to "Jndtn "
the Cumberlands," which ran through
that periodical in serial form
They. toe, Ike Williams and slnc,a1r'
were literary losers by the HenoDn hall
nre, as they were residents % that
unfortunate utopian attempt They
were by far the heavier losers, many
novels and short stories being de-
stroyed- They also were very seriously
hurt physically In jumping from the
windows OF their rooms. their escape
by the staircase being cut or by the
flames. But both these writers are. 50
I was told. intelligent and unfanatical
davotees OF the New Thought cult.
Thew applied their beliefs In the sup
porting and recreating power OF az
farrnative thought. They simply refused
to think or say or have anybody else
say that they had suffered seriously.
either IN person or purse, by the dis
aster. They bent all their thoughts
upon the present and the future, and
turned their backs on the past. Al
though their spines had been injured.
and for weeks they were invalids for
whose recovery little hopes were en-
tertained save by themselves, they re-
covered health and strength almost
completely in an incredibly short space
OF time. and In the year and a half
since the fire have turned out an amaz-
ing quantity OF very successful work
several novels and heaps OF short
stories.
And so. with Sterling. and Mary
Austin. and James Hopper. and Grant
Wallace, and Michael Williams, and
Heron. and MacNichol. they are max
ing Carmel what really seems to be
a very vital little center for heap OF
things worth whi1es and
But I viii hnd myself writing
hook. after all; and the Jovian edi-
tors big blue pencil will catch me II
/ don't watch out; and I. myself, viii
be catching Carmelitis II don't watch
out; a fate that would be all right II
1 were novelist. poet. essayist or ere
ative artist IN any form, but which
would not be very healthful happening
for one who Is merely
THE LITERARY PILGRIM