The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-08-29
PROFESSIONAL READERS FUN.
How They Get some Diversion
while Going over Nanuscripts.

Few people who have not had praC-
teal experience even remotely suspect
how much the irhsome drudgery OF
manuscript reading is relieved by the
unconscious humor, the blundcrs, the
i~nept.tudcs OF a certain inevitable per-
centage Of the specimens received In
every magazine office" says a writer in
the BookmGi, T the uuinitiated the
task OF searching day after day for
the rare gem, the browning masterpiece
is supposed To be a sort OF stimulating
game. fraught with delightful and
scintillating possibilities. As a matter of
fact. n more especially in the case
of the short story, that sort of eX-
pectanCy sen gives place 10 a cynical
hope for an occasional manuscript sum
GENTLY absurd to he diverting.
Some concrete instances were
brought to our notice the other day by
a reader OF some experience. who in the
course of an exchange OF condolences
drew uron n rich fund Of memoranda
gathered In the course of n recent short
story contest. Many of his choicest
specimens IL would be, for obvious rea-
sons, unfair to reproduce, since their
ahsurdity hinges upon an impossible
plot that nevertheless is still the au-
thor's private property. Many of the
authors themselves, however, had been
less scrupulous, and the number of pur-
Joined situations arose in ono single
batch OF 300 stories to something over
10 per cent.
The reader found himself making n
sort Of game of the thing. betting wit a
himself whether a given plot would re-
cur moro Than a certain specified NUM-
her of times, forccasting what the par
ticular variant would he. To take a
,DnRTpf, inst a noe. O. "A. l.. ..
just when or whore II first appearcd.
hut every one knows the story of the
married woman whose lover has given
her a valuable jewel aud who faces
the dilemma of explaining 10 her hus-
hand how it has ZONE into her possess
SION, SO she pawus the jewel. prctouds
10 nave found the tickle in the street
and begs her husband To redeem tho
ticket and satisfy her curiosity. Next
day husband returns with a chcap imi-
tation ring, and witc's hcwildrrmcnt
continues until she subsequently, socs
tie ORIGINAL jewel worn 10y husbands
stenographer Well, among the stories
submitted IN the contest i'm question
this plot occurred four times, with close
verbal parallels, the only important diff
ference being that the lovers present
was respectively a sapphire bracelet, a
diamond solitaire, n pearl necklace and
n sealskin coat.
Then there is the equally familiar
and much moro haual type that may
he briefly cpitomizcd after this fashion
Ethel, engaged To Tom. is ) own To ms
unhlushingly lavishiug caresses upon
Jack, and pouring into his ear cndclr-
mcnts calculated to kindle "A mad
jealousy. And in tho end the cxplann-
tior Is quite simple-Jack is only a
dog, II would seem as though it's own
fu'ility should have protected this Mot
from the plaginrist yet II required
seven times by actual count, Jack
~ang Prot"uslike from IA Scotch
collie To "A Pekingese, n st, Bernard. a
Kentucky thoroughbred, a Shetland
pony, q parrot and a cat.
Then tHere is the story OF the al.
ventures who plans &c ruin a certain