New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-01-24
NOVELS LIKED
Writer Of BEST Sellers" Is One
Of the Hoosiers.
FIRST A REPORTER HERE
Hard Work Is His Doctrine and
Practice-So. Called "Ge-
MUS He Derides.

mus he Derldes.
David Graham Phillips writer OF pest
sellers" and magazine etories, is only
forty-three years old, a member OF the
younger set Of American writer's 10 which
belong George AIDE. Robert w. Chambers
and Booth Harrington. and OF which the
late o. Henry was a leading light.
1t Is only a few years ago that he was
writing news and editorials for the New
York papers. About eight years ago pub
fishers began to like his novels. and since
then he has devoted practically his whole
time to that form of literature.
He is one OF tho Hoosiers, a native or
Madison. Ind. Beginning at De PAW Uni
versity, he finished his education at Prince
ton In the class OF 1887. He has no very
fiattering opinion OF colleges and college
life, however. Commenting on the subject
a little while ago, he saidi
''The trouble all comes from England
where oxford and Cambridge turn out men
all of one cut. ono brain. one frilled ana
starched mental vision. The college man
is dangerous dummy, stuffed wit hthe
principle that II IS better TO be precleuse'
a mechanical figure with fixed wires to
pull fixed literary principles than to live
shoude rto shoulder with each other in the
simplicit yof mutual human weakness.
The American colleges, particularly those
I'm the East. are turning out row upon row
of men all cut in tn esame way, all drilled
TO believe themselves superior in intellect
ual knowledge, all encouraging that most
un-American thing called class and cul-
ture."
Mr. Phillips emerged from newspaper
cubdom I'm Cincinnati. whence he drifted TO
New York and at different times was a
members OF the stats Of Tho Sun" and
Of THE World"
But fiction was his bent from the start
His first book was called The Great God
Success"
Il worked on the manuscript while I was
writing editorials for a New York daily"
he said one day while discussing his as
pirations and his early efforts. Political
editorials, and ] had a chance 10 see the
truth, even if the editorials didn't permit
me to tell it. / was impressed with the
awful failures among men who were
avowed great worldly successes. How un-
happy they were. how puerile In their mo-
tives, how unattainable happiness or con-
tentment was to them, and then how small
"A percentage Of brains had brought all this
about. Could the brain OF multi-million-
aire be compared In quality and literal SUI
periorty 10 the brain of professional man.
for instance. who lived in the calm. sure
light OF intellectual exercise. while the
other grew sickly and pale in the yellow
glitter of his gold? Did his success give
him any reward that was commensurate
with his efforts?
why shouldn't the triumph Of man
who thinks steadily industrously, clearly
about the more unselfsh problems Of life
be as great as the triumph OF money that
another man has selhshly accumulated
and establish for him q supremacy OF sue
cess? That few men should hold In their
power eighty millions of people Is not Sue
cess, nor is It possible that their brains
are I'm a mathematical ratio Of equation so
much mghter than those eighty millions
of people they control. No. they are mere
~ victims Of circumstances. the figureheads
Of conditions over which they had no con-
troll. Things were lying around loose; II
is a vast country: there were not so many
people as there are now. end they just
grabbed as much as they could hold at an
opportune time
But he was hard at II for some time te-
fore anything made an impression. The
first novel 10 see the light was chopped 10
pieces by the publishers and Issued In
fragments Finally. when a shorter man.
uscript met with favor and he won the
much desired honor of being sent for by a
publisher, tho first thing he did was 10
have this siced-up story put together and
printed in book form.
Among his best known books are THE
Social Secretary" The Plum Tree The
Fortune Hunter" "Old Wives for New
and THE Worth of Woman" His last
published work. appearing within a year
is The Fashionable Adventures OF Joshua
Craig" He also contributed many eco
nomic articles to the magazines. appearing
prominently in THE Saturday Evening
Post" and "Scrbner's." Much Of his mos
popular fiction is of the realistic sort.
In "Old Wives for New" appearing in
1908, he tackles the problem OF the relation
OF hygiene TO happiness.
Mr.. Phillips Is fend for hard work
He has considerable contempt for so-called
genius" ard artistic temperament
Hard work, he declares. is the biggest part
of the secret. And he did it rising at
in the morning and keeping at it till noon
every day. His favorite attitude at work
is standing at high desk.
But, despite his hard working propensi-
ties, he is known as "a mighty good fell
low" lie is man of fine physique and
has a fad for the last word IN correct
dress.
Mr.. Phillips has lived for some years at
M f1o East 18th street. He belongs to the
princeton. Manhattan and National Arts
clubs.