The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-01-27

 er on several notable books, among paper game, so far as I know it, and that is: If I can make good at it. any one canl CThis is not said with a silly view to being contradicted). For I am not one of those who have always writ ten since babyhood.' And had felt had the career of letters before me (not that a newspaper hack is considered a person of letters exactly). As you know, I was business woman, plain and sim ple without hope or intention of ever being anything else. An everyday 'stenog and none too good a one at that, except that I could spell and dared take liberties occasionally with the boss's bad English.
 Then along came Helen Rowland (of the Evening World) and commanded me to write Write" I yowled. Why l can't even typewrite right sometimes. Bu. she insisted. And I wrote off four or five little paragraphs-real things that had happened, and that seemed humanly funny to me. They were bought by the tkem Sunday Press. Total in my pay envelope, $2.65. But it was earned by writing. And I never went back to typewriting again except as means not an end!"
 | l slightly more ambitious things, at space tes S5 coltinn for the Press about seven months. Then, purely by accident, got my job on the Mail six years ago, and like the fairybool1 lady, lived happy ever after They started me at $30 a week, and I get more than that now, but not as much as you probably think. l never know whether I am well paid or badly paid, having no other newspaper position to compare it with.
 "But the pay is good in newspaper work-for women. That is one of the reasons I consider feature writing the most attractive means of earning living that Q woman has ready access to. Men reporters are not highly paid. Women special writers are-in contrast to their earnings in other caAlings, the stage ex- ccpted.
 "I believe anyone can write success fully who is willing to write exactly as he feels. Write the truth. And write simply. There are no rules any more. Te is a catch h-as-catch-can game The ideas the thing; never mind how you express it, so long as it gets over. (See Kathleen Norris's novels, and Rupert Hughes'.) Informality in writing is the modern keynote.
 done were stories I never really got. I simply wrote what happened. Perhaps the man refused to be interviewed. All right-I said so. and described my ques' tions and his refusals I remember cer- tain struggle I had with Cipriano Cas- tro, the famous fire eating despot and dictator of Venezuela. He didn't want to talk He declined to be human ' Then into the midst of our interview came General Castors tailor, to take his measurements and display samples of cloth for an overcoat! The great little man could not decide. I stood by. grim ming. Suddenly he appealed to me to choose the material for him and select which of the fashion plates seemed best as a model Presto! There was my ''hu- man interest" story! It was commented upon editorially in one or two other newspapers.
 Another good story got last spring in Philadelphia from a famous lawyer never would be- He read from a book never would be- He read fro ma book all the time I was in his room, grunting a. intervals, but never answering sin gle question I put to him except to snap out some grouchy comment as to the uselessness of my efforts. l wrote the thing exactly as it happened. It was the only story that ever proved fatal, and it has been on my conscience ever since. The famous lawyer dropped dead the day after it was, printed.
 Perhaps the best story ever did from a news point of view was an inter- view with John D. Rockefeller, Jr., some thing over a year ago. I am not, II happens, very sympathetic with MT Rcckefeller's ideals (and deals) and did not know how to begin asking him : things As I was leaving my office, one , of the reporters called out II say-asR ! John Dee what right he has to live anyway? And, say, ask him, too, if he doesn't think man ought to pay loO pei cent inheritance tax over and above Sio,' O00'
 And I asked him.
 "He was very nice about it, and an. sw cred all my questions quite seriously no matter how absurd they were. But MT. rockefeller is very serious by na- ture. do not think he knows when books are baited for him.
 The easiest person to interview are of course, stage folk. The hardest, SO ciety women. The worst rebuke 1 evei received was from Ann Morgan. daugh- ter of J. P The keenest appreciation ever rendered me was from pugilisl who offered to kill anyone for me that might desire. The most interesting stories from my point of view are trave stories-the trip I made last spring iron ocean to ocean being one continuous joy write The stupidest are. regret to say "uplift' stories. The most satisfactory are the ones something good come out oi getting a person a job or finding a home for a baby or saving someone from prison or worse. The most amusing turn down ever got was from Charlie Mur- phy, Tammapy boss of New York. The Il editor had told me to try and get an in- terview from Murphy. I wrote. asking an appointment A note came back, set ting ? o'clock on certain day at Tam many Hall I was elated When reached there everybody looked non- plussed. But I have an appointment, said I, confidently to the gentleman in the brown derby. "Wots yer name?" he asked I told him. He looked on the memorandum pad on Murphy's desk. Wy" he finally answered, taking out his cigar and removing his hat. wv that's funny. that is. They've got you wrote down here. Joe Beckley. I guess | Mike didn't know how to make ''Z." thought you was man. MT. Murphy don't never see ladies. Good afternoon Mss
 The most tiring work feature writer