The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-04-15

speaks. had to tell him that I dashed
OF one OF my books in only about
eighteen months Of grinding hard work.
without a grain Of inspiration - far AZ I
was aware no looked i~ncredulous. And
II has since occurred TO me hat I might
as well leave people with their fixed
ideas about o literary work IL done /:
after all nothing l can say will change
them. I have lately fallen in with
another class IN get mo In a corner
and after irst telling me that they have
been engaged In literature themselves
inquire solemnly II ] intend to con-
tinue in this realistic style OF writ
Ing and II ! don't think that my tendency
is to see things in detail. whereas the
great way is really to see them In large
masses and cumulative effects don't /
think that everybody begins with realism
and ends in symbolism, &c. The way to
answer these highbrows Is the way
recommended in Proverbs. twcnty-sixth
chapter. NTH verse. So on being attacked
by the fast one I squared cY and gave
an extraordinarily high browed little
lecture on the relative values of SYM
bolism and realism. l didn't understa ID
a word ! was saying, and neither did
my audience. hut they all said II was SO
true. and they were very much struck
by my views!
There IL another very large class
represented by a lady who said to me
the other day: 1t must be very delight
full to you. Mrs. Watts. when you rome
into a room Of peopre like this to have
everybody begin praising YOU and con-
graduating YOU. You must enjoy that
20 much She was very sweet and sim
cere and earnest: she hadn't any notion
OF being satirical. And after all. sup
posing nobody noticed me n. all. would
I like that? I'm afraid not. The
trouble is one run out OF agreeable
things 10 say in return. It's all very
we'll to acknowledge a complimentary
reference with oh. I'm no glad YOU
enjoyed IT, but after YOU have said
that some few scores OF times YOU realize
from the expression on YOUR hearers
faces that your conversation IL not the
series OF eptSrams they felt they had a
right TO expect. Somebody ought to
get up a manual and vocabulary OF
easily memorized phrases for authors,
And people who meet authors ought 10
bear in mind AN anecdote about the
Duke Of Wellington. which YOU may or
may not have heard. Somebody once
saw him-when he had got 10 NE an old
man past eighty-hesitatirg on the curb
in Pail Mall In plain fear of crossing
among the crowd and vehicles. So this
gentleman went up and offered the old
Duke his services as a pilot. which Well
liGtpn WAS kltu % tNfeIl, anu "i'l'
they had got across thanked him civilly.
Sir. don't MENTION says the other.
when l reach our age | shall he tell
ing my grandchildren that once ! helped
the Duke of Wellington across the
street. whereupon the Iron Duke re-
piled: oh. don't be a damn fool ="
Shortly after the appearance of The
Rudder." n new story Of the career OF a
young girl Of to-day. which is just from
the press. a literary editor wrote To Mrs,
Watts and asked her what she was
most interested in. explaining that he
would like to publish an article cN-
pressing her views. Ky return mail he
received a photograph of the reception
room in her home and also a snapshot
OF a bit of her garden. The pictures
were accompanied ny this note: 81 am
enclosing some small photographs as re-
uuested. Don't be surprised that they
are still life studies they represent sorne-
of the things that ] am most interested
in, II that Is what YOU mi | have two
of myself. but one Of them seated AT
my desk Will "a deep expression looks
like an undcrstudy for DIR. Johnson.
and the other. perched or the porch rail-
ing with q strong sunlight directly in
my eyes, gives the impression that | am
scowlingly enduring some extreme physi-
cal discomfort-just as II ] were sitting
on a tack. to be plain. ] can't bring
myself to send YOU either one of them,
especially when | remember the news