Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1921-12-01
WISCONSIN HAS
WRITER'S OF FAME
KARL MATHIE PRESENTS
PAPER ON BADGER
STATE WRITER'S

Karl Mathie, of this city, who had
been preparing a paper on "Wiscon-
sin Writers" for several months. In
addition to Mr.. Mathie's paper, Ira
Parker rendered solo and the ladies
served dainty refreshments following
their program.
The Pilot has received so many re-
quests to print Mr.. Mathies paper in
full that it is publishing part of it
this week. The next two weeks will
contain installments, so that the whole
of the paper will have been published
with the issue of December 18th.
"WISCoNSIN WRITER'S
"tBy Karl Mathie)
1.-THE topic, wisconsin Writers, is
broad enough to cover multitude of
literary aspirants, coming and arrived,
and therein lies its difficulty. / feel
like the man who, when he was asked
to write paper on George Washing
ton, replied that he feared he could
not do it, but if they would let him
write on George Washington, the
Farmer, he could write the paper and
at any length desired.
when you note that my topic COW
ers not only authors now living but
also those that have passed on. often
times buried with their literary chill
dren by an ungrateful public, you may
realize how this survey must omit
many names and do but scant justice
to those whom we shall honor with
brief appreciation.
Il confess that in some instances
il was difficult TO determine whom to
include. There was no doubt, of
course, about those writers that were
born in Wisconsin and lived here to
the end of their days; but there are
many who were born here and now
live elsewhere; etEers, who were born
elsewhere and live here now; still
others who were born here, lived out
side of Wisconsin for period and
then returned to the state of their
first love as most people do that once
get the ENHANCEMENT of Wisconsin's
witchery about their hearts.
you may rest assured that those
writer's whose effusions amount to
lmere waste of ink and paper, shall not
be claimed for Wisconsin by ME, there
by eliminating many from the roll call
even though born, bred and boosted
by others, as Wisconsin stock. AS to
those of real merit and genuine pop
ularity, | shall need to follow the
teachers in our schools and accept
as real home folks those whom they
and the general public delight to hon
or as Wisconsin writer's.
! Famous Editors
"ln the days when a newspaper was
the ringing voice of its owner and
everyone knew who wrote the editori-
al, Wisconsin had some great editors.
Among these celebrated editors were
Marcus NJ. Pomeroy, editor of the La
Crosse Democrat and known to ma
tional fame as Brick Pomeroy; John
Nagel, the gloomy philosopher of the
Manitowoc Pilot; Thurlow Weed
Brown, father of the late Neal Brown.
who exploited his abolitionist and
prohibitionist convictions uncompro-
misingly in the Wisconsin Chieftain
at Fort Atkinson; Ed Coe, of White
water, known to his readers also as
'Greenhorn'; John Hicks of the Osh-
kosh Northwestern, famous not only
for the vision of his editorials but as
author of The Man From Oshkosh;
Amos p. Wilde, and later, Richard
Lloyd Jones, Of the Wisconsin State
Journal at Madison; w. ID. Hoard, who
has lifted country paper into ma
anu ItOIBt w.
Peck, whose Bad Boy in Pecks Sun
made the whole country laugh. Then
there were brilliant editors on The
Milwaukee Sentinel, and Journal like
Horace Rublee, Rufus King, J. A. Wat
rous, Ellis B. Usher, II. G. Campbell
and others, but today we know not
who writes the editorials on the great
dailies as their policy is to hide the
% lr, yrtf ION. In. t.A
regretted. To say that The Senti-
regretted. To say that The Jour-
nal said thus and so is not so effective
as to say that Lutte Nieman said thus
and so. When Joe Medill ran The
Chicago Tribune, it was Joe Medill
who spoke in no uncertain tone, but
today we know not who speaks In its
editorials and while il is in many
ways the worlds greatest newspaper,
IL is also sometimes filled with mar
velous propaganda which would be
avoided If editorials were signed by
their writers.
Two Women Editors
"It will be Of greatest interest to
the ladies to know that Wisconsin has
produced two great editors among it's
women, one the editor OF the Define
ator and the other for thirteen years
editor of Harpers Bazaar. The for
mer is the well known short story
writer, Honore Willsie. She graduat-
ed from the University of Wisconsin
in 1902. In 1915 she became the edi-
tor Of the Delineator. Gertrude Ath-
erton in the Bookman, 1917, says.
'Honore Willsie ranks today as one Of
the Inost successful, courageous and
resourceful editors OF the woman's
magazine in the country Among her
most popular stories are Still Jim
Lydia of the Pines and The Heart of
che Desert. Her husband invented
the gas mask used by the United States
| In the last war and also a hood for
gas defense.
"The other editor is Elizabeth Gar
yer Jordan. who was born in Milwau-
kee in 1867. After being on the edi-
torial staff Of the New York World
for ten years, she became the editor