Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1912-11-22
fame WITH PRIZES
Success In Competitions Has
Made Name of Many Writers.
WILLIAM T. STEAD'S START.
Late British Editor Won Some Books
For an Early Effort Which Suggested
His career-"CavalIeria Rustieana"
First Submitted In a Contest.

The late famous English journalist,
W. t. Stead, began his career as an
author by winning prize in compe-
titlon organized by boys paper. 1t
was in the sixties that boys journal
of which young Stead was regular
reader, offered q prize Of guinea, to
be spent in books approved by the edi-
tor, for the best effort in a literary
competition. The winner was an
nounced as W. I. Stead, and the
books he chose were several volumes
of the poets. 1t was this success which
made Stead resolve to be q great
writer and editor himself.
Several years back young Italian,
extremely fond of music, eked out
precarious living as the chief of the
village band. He could barely keep
himself and his wife comfortably, so
he set about writing an opera, with
the view of making money by It's sale.
| When the work was finished he
showed It to a friend, whom he took
to be a capital and impartial judge of
such things, and the Italian con-
ductor's chagrin may we'll be imagined
when this candid friend told him the
music was mo good" In deep dejec-
| ton the musician took home his work,
pushed it into a drawer and left 1t
there till one day he saw the adver-
tisement Of some music publishers In
Milan who offered prize-a handsome
sum in cash and a royalty--for the
! best opera submitted to them.
| The composer thought he might as
! well try his luck, SO he sent in his
| opera. TO his intense delight, it won
the prize, and thus was "Cavalleria
Rusticana" given to the world and
! Signor Mascagni's name and fame
were made. When one remembers
that recently Mascagni received $40
! 600 a week for some weeks for leaving
| Italy to conduct this same opera in
London one can imagine what his sue
cess in that prize competition has
meant to him, says the New York
! Times.
That prolific and most successful au-
thoress Mrs. Henry Wood, whose
novels are said to have sold to the
extent Of over 100000 copies up tn
now, began her career with winning
the prize of $500 offered by Band of
Hope organization for a temperance
tale. Mrs. Woods prize story was en-
titled "Danebury House." and at the
time the large amount given for the
prize was regarded as wonderful. De
lighted with this initial success, Mrs.
Wood immediately began second long
story, which Messrs. Bentley purchased
at once, for the authoress' name was
then known far and wide as the win
ner of that notable prize. This new
story proved to be EAST Lynne" and
thus commenced q wonderful run Of
success which lasted till the death OF
Mrs. Wood few years ago.
One day in the eighties Of the last
century a young schoolteacher in Lon.
don picked up a popular weekly
and saw that it was offering a prize
for the best snort story. Thinking how
!
imagining he had good story to tell,
that young man wrote tale and duly
dispatched it to the paper in qucs-
ton A little while afterward he bad
the satisfaction Of seeing his effort
announced as the prize winner, and
when Il bigger prize Of 500 was sini-
larIy offered for a story he again had
Il shot ut it.
Success once more crowned his effort
and henccforth Israel Xangwill made
up his mind that writing tales and not
schoolteaching was his forte. SO in
due time he earned more and more 10y
! his stories till he ut length left teach
| ing altogether for 'The Master" and
! other noted novels had brought him
worldwide fame.
! \ recent instance of Il woman beCOn-
| ing famous as Il novelist through Win
ming prize is Mrs. BaiIieSaunders.
! She won the 5000 offered by Fisher Tn
win for the best story Of certain
! length sent in to him by q new writer.
| The winning story was Saints I'm So
ciety," and this was discovered from
! the sealed envelope accompanying each
! tale entered TO be by Mrs. Marga
ret Battle Saunders. Since that time
this clever woman has rapidly made
| her way to the front rank Of present
! day novelists. and she always frankly
! acknowledges that she owes her strik-
/ ing success to the winning of that prize
competition.
/ A young girl in Scotland, with the
| idea Of writing short tales well i'm
planted within her breast, determined
| to 20 in for one or two competitions OF
! the kind she saw advertised in some Of
| the weekly papers she read To her
great delight, she won the prize for
| such stOrieS-perhaps a guinea or few
volumes Of b0oks-mOre than once, and
so she came 10 the conclusion that she
| might perhaps make sovereign or
two a wear extra by such pleasant and
delightful occupation in her leisure
! hours.
Inh,,nd with this notion the Young