The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1913-07-22
THOMAS NELSON PAGE

The truth is thai his literary product
during the tel years preceding. HIS
wife is a woman Of broad culture and
fine literary taste. and n has Oeen
an aid rather than a hindrAnce to his
work, Since his marriage he ma
written fifteen different books and
some Of his best work has been the
product OF that period.
Thomas Nelson Page began his Hfe
as a worker. He comes OF one of the
oldes families Of Virginia. His boy
hood home. Oakland in
county, was granted to one II his
ancestors. the olonial magn1te,
Thomas Nelson: and his father. Maj.
Page. owned a plantation and slaves,
and was w~ell-to-do. The wal came,
however, and when Thomas Nelson
Page was a boy Of eight. and at its
end came poverty. with which the boy
had to make a h~and-to-hand Light,
working in the fields, milking the
COWS and tending the cattle. The at
mosphere in which he worked, how
ever. was that Of books. He was sal
rounded by the old Nelson and Page
~lhasries, and some OF the reading was
dones by the light OF pine hn.,ts.
Among the first Of his book loves was
Walter Scott. whom he e Jnd re-
read in that way. and the same is true
# Dicken and ~Thackeray. even as a
boy he liked to imagine stories, and
his little head was filled with battles
and sieges, and with plumed knights,
and tournaments in which love anu
fair ladies played their parts.
Es the times 3FeW better h boy
Was prepared for college and at six
.een n. entered the Washington and
Lee u ersity, Whe'e he stool lign
in the literary sIcint es and was the
~ A@,
leaving school, le became the tuicr
70 a private schoo- IN Kentucky and
18th lie money he lnsde there st 3rt
cd 10 study law at TIE University of
Virginia. He began the practices CT
his t. Richmond WheH he was TWEEN
tv-tWC end kept at il for years, writ
ing some Of his best stories in the
rlids. II the PREPARATION of dry legal
~G.runents. He Wis made a dlrtci
OF laws by Yale College in 1891, and
Re has received several degrees as
Coctor CT literature
] have known Mr.. Page for years,
and have had many chats with him
about his literary methods and liter
airy work. He does not like to discuss
such things for publication and it has
been only by asking many questions
that | am able to give you the infor-
nation contained in this letter. There
is nothing of the literary egotist abou,
him. and as to his own writings, he
is as backward and bashful as any
girl in his stories.
My last call upOn him was just aft
: er he had been chosen as our ambas-
, sador to Rome. He lives, you know
here at the capital. His home is 9
reproduction of the Old-time pianta.
ton. 1t IS built of the same rough
brick as was imported for the Vir.
! ginia homes in the days of the cava.
liers. 1T has the roof balustrade an6
quaint dormer of colcnia
/, days and its broad entrance porch ant
. old-fashioned doorway are among tn,
+ artistic features OF the capital city.
4 Entering the house, YOU come int
: a wide hall hung with paintings. etch
ings and engravings, each OF which
il has its story. An easy fight OF stair,
leads to the second floor, where i
8 the library. a room as big as tn
: hall of a %olonial church. This i
walled with rare editions of the elias
= sizes and of history and fiction il
. beautiful bindings. The cases are Q
cedar. and they extend from the foo
almost to the ceiling. The furnitur
is old mahogany, beautifully inlaid
There are soft divans and easy chairs
a and all the surroundings Of the dilet
tante book lover n cultured, cas-
going soul AS you ooh about yol
you see no signs OF work. and h av
/" erage caller or visitor leaves Withou
d imagining that such a thing as Wor
. is connected with Mr.. Pages life.
1t is different in the real workshop
This is two stories higher, a littl
is room which is almost under the roo
Here the books are of many kinds an
10 most of them are in ordinary bind
ings. There are scores OF old bic
,e graphies. d volumes Of history an
historical collections. shelves file
m with Americana and volume afte
volume of biographies and stories re
"a lating to the old South. There al
ct reference books. religious works.
we'll thumbed Bible or so and a flu
40 equipment for literary labor.
The cas- chairs and luxurious ful
"a niture Of the library below are absen
At one side is 4 typewriter. at whiC
&c Mr.. Pages secretary sits. and in tt
Is center of the room is a flat-tOppe
ry desk. such as YOU can buy anyWhel
On for thirty or forty dollars, and a plai
90 office chair.
The l>~E &c nax-oroG x-.,h --o-<