The New York herald., 1921-04-17
BY WILLIS STEEL.

BY WILLIS STEEL.
reads an American book?" has been
= revived Justify by Sinclair Lewis,
author of Main Street" one of the Ameri-
can best sellers of the year, in his lecture
quoted above In addition to his broad a.
sertion that America could match England
author for author, Mr.. Lewis added that
American authors should gain more suppor
from the American reading public. In es-
sence, he paraphrased widely known slogan
to run: Read American books first
The comparison Mr. Lewis urges was
sought in the New York publishing houses
hut it was not easy to obtain. There are
some straightout publishers here who do
not send representative to London every
spring to look over the British literary out
put and these purveyors of the written word
have scant respect for the writer's overseas.
They made some strong statements about
the question which might be epitomized as
fellows:
"Arnold Bennett is so uneven that he is
apt to hand you a lemon any time his agent
offers a new manuscript
Locke has written more than a dozen
books since The Morals of Marcus Or
deyne' They are all versions of that book.
wells goes off at half cock. He makes
publisher distrusts him"
And so on, through a long list of British
authors more or less famous. There is
writing to-day, according to those simon
pure American bookmen, not a single Eng
lishman with an audience so vast and loyal
that he is sure fire."
An effort was made about the close of
the war to push the claims Of American
writer's on the attention of their country
men and put some obstacles in the way of
foreign authors. The war on the Britishers
and other foreign writers started in Chicago.
Part of the forces carried on their banners
the name of Sherwood Anderson, Said
publisher concerning this battle of the
books:
More might have been accomplished il
the chiefs had a better quality of aborig-
nal' author to push. The men they pinned
their hopes to weren't novelists. except of
the breed that has an idea 70 start with an
idea that invariably breaks down in the
middle OF the book Their authors we're
really short story writers"
Says First Success SpoiIs
Many American Writers
1T is fact" said another publisher. that
book publishers in this country would have
TO 20 out of business If they had only Amer
ican works TO bring out The backbone Of
our output is the British author
Then he cited the names of a long list of
American writer's and followed each name
with remarks which these writer's would
not like TO read, they We're uncompli-
mentary. adding: The trouble With OUR
writer's Is that they won't take the trouble
to learn their trade. They make hit with
a first book. perhaps for q reason that is
merely accessory. a public is AT once estab-
lished for them and they spend the rest of
their working lives disappointing H."
"A new English novelist has very hard
time over here" said y. jefferson Jones
manager OF the John Lane Company Lon
don publishing house, the New York. branch
Of which is partly independent. adding
Ills chances OF a hearing are very much
less than an American authors, he has To
earn his favor. A good many writers who
have enjoyed popularity for a number OF
years In England arc still without due recog-
milton here. Among such writer's It i fair
TO number w. Petit Ridge, who is perhaps
too Cockney for our taste. Miss G.. " Mac
Fadden. whose 'Trusty Servant and Honest
Lawyer are widely read over there and
scarcely at all here Maud Diver late book
BY her. The Strong Hours bidding fair,
however. to take her out of the list, and
Murel Himc ana Ida A. IL. Wylic. Two
books by the last named. Towards Morn
ing and Children Of storm, have won real
popularity abroad.
II could add fifty names OF contemporary
writer's in England whose success there
would warrant a publisher In thinking II
would be duplicated here. but the point
an trying to make Is this: The mere fact
that hc Is All Englshman, writing il Eng