Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-06-09
BERTHA M. CLAY
STILL A MYSTERY
Not Same as Thomas w. Han
shew, Says Sister of Latter
Who Died Recently.

1
of Thomas w. Hanshew not long ag'
in London the story has been widely
circulated and generally believed tina
this Brooklyn man who spent the las
few years of his life in England was
really the author of those remarkably
popular novels signed by Bertha NJ
Clay"
The story has, during the last few
weeks, filed space in nearly all the i'm
portant newspapers of England and
the United States, and several critical
reviews have found it worthy of men.
ton. 1t is a most entertaining story;
its only fault is that it is not true.
That is, Mr.. Hanshew's sister, Mrs.
Campbell, who lives in Brooklyn, says
it is not true, and so do two of his
numerous publishers, including those
whose pride is the weekly paper which
furnished the opening paragraph of
this essay in comparative literature.
But before considering the life and
works of Mr.. Hanshew it may be well
to glance at the other version of the
Bertha NJ. Clay story.
Now, this much is certain. During
the last half of the nineteenth century
there were published in the United
States some ninety or hundred paper
bound novels announced as the work
of Bertha NJ. Clay. They were senti-
mental, sensational tales of the sort
dear to young women, and they. were
amazingly popular Many thousands
of them were sold, ana they are still
in demand. The first-and one of the
most famous these Bertha NJ. Clay
novels was Dora Thorne."
In the Catholic church at Hinckley,
Leicestershire, England, there is me-
mortal brass. On it is the inscription:
ITO the Memory of Charlotte NJ.
Brame, Author of Dora Thorne' and
Many Other Novels
Charlotte NJ. Brame-for some I'M
known reason her name is frequently,
even on the title pages of many of her
novels, spelled Braeme-was a real
human being, and she wrote not only
Dora Thorne' but nearly all of the
novels which were in the United
States credited to Bertha NJ. Clay. Be
fore her marriage to Philip Brame her
name was Charlotte Mary (some re-
ports say Charlotte MonicaD Law.
She was born in 1886, and died at
Hinckley Nov. %, 1884. She began
her literary career in 1855 by contrib
lting a story to a Catholic magazine |
called The Lamp, published in Lon
Ion. To this magazine she was for |
years a constant contributor of verse |
and short stories. Her best work is to |
De found in a volume called Tales
from the Diary of a Sister of Mercy"
which has received praise from critics
who would have little patience with
Dora Thorne"
Dora Thorne" was her first novel. It
appeared serially in the Family Her
Id. The editor obtained a contract
With Mrs. Brame, according to which
he was to write for him three serials
nd one Christmas story every year.
This was before the days of the in
copyright act So the pub
lshers of the New York Family Story
'aper-as they freely acknowledge
rinted these stories, giving the author
ull credit, if nothing else. I
Now enters Bertha NJ. Clay, Another
lmerican firm of publishers say that
hese stories, which were so popular
1 the Family Story Paper, would also
e popular in book form. Accordingly,
hey published them, and since they
lought that Charlotte NJ. Brame was
DO aristocratic a name, or because it
ad already been used in the Family
tory Paper, they reversed its initials,
,rmed on them a new name and gave
Irs. Charlotte NJ. Brame-without her
pseudonym Bertha NJ
lay.
or M NJ No al hxr lal
lthor of Dora Thorne" appeared in
he United States as the work of
ertha NJ. Clay. Apparently the late
homas w. Hanshew did not write
lese books; this belief is supported
y evidence that seems conclusive
ut in 1884, as has already been stated.
RS. Brame died.
Then, according to one well-sup-
orted theory, the American publish
s wished to continue the Bertha NJ.
lay series, and called upon Thomas
:. Hanshew to help them. He wrote,
is said, a large number of novels,
Id all these were announced as the
ork of Bertha NJ. Clay.
This seems probable. but Bertha NJ.
avs" publishers deny it. They ad-
it that the original Bertha NJ. Clay
wells were really by Charlotte NJ
anne; they admit also that after Mrs.
'ame's death they continued the SER
3, employing several authors for this
rpose. But Thomas W. Hanshew,
ey say. was not among them.
But the publishers of The New York W
mily Story Paper have a different CT
e TO tell. Mr.. Hanshew, they saw. of
IS connected with the authentic gi
arlotte NJ. Brame stories as sort Iir
editor. He rewrote the Introductory co
ragraphs.
Hanshew's sister, Mrs. Campbell. Ia
5 no knowledge of any such work wi
ne by her brother. 1t is possible, he
, thinks, that to one of his novels SIS
, name Bertha NJ. Clay" may have of
IN attached But she does not know nv
s to be true, and she is positive that ia,
had no other connection with the co