Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1922-11-02

|
company of tha little negroes about
TN" place put themselves in COM
| iiitnd OF tt and drilled aSSiduouSly
| 'dklanu was situated between two
OF 'he main roads leading 70 Rich
/ mond. and for two winters the Army
/ OF Northern Virginia was rncnmpcd
near It, The future author. therefore
| 'h"ush only years old. when IL be-
! gan. saw and heard much OF the war
/ ~ WIS rather as Vivid panorama.
however. that 1t impressed his youth
/ ;ml mind, the reflex OF its deeper sig
: ni!icance and auteccdcnt conditions
8cing caught from the conversation
oi MS elders after peace had beon
restored. IL was the custom of la
dies at that time to bring their wurit.
and spend long days with each other
aud az his mother aud her friends
talked, hc listened and absorbed AZ
| Ter IN" war came, hand-to- hand
nSht with poverty and young Page
worked IN III" fields. milkcd the cows.
and tended the cattle. Thcn I'm tho
evening. crouchcd upon the hearth
rug. with his head buried I'm his
hands. h" d"vourcd tho books which
ZANE into his way ~ TIA" light of
pine Knots" .
|, was his fathers CHIEF drsirc that
his ho%s should be cdcuat.d ana Tor
u time Thomas Nelson attended a
school at "EdEcwood." the OLD B"r-
""l"H homestead walking Il distance
OF nv" miles each way. where he
atud!cG under the direction Of his
kinsinan, Professor Charles l., g.
Minor. In 1865, n" went 20 Washing
ton College 'now WASHINGTON and
Lee University. living ia the family
o' MS uncle, Ii.v. " y rcndleton.
VINO served during tho war as Lees
'hlei OF artillery. There he conceived
'hc ambition 10 h" q great speaker
~ mrs, lao had difficulty ia stcadyinu
his voice and his hUecs. but hv re.
p"a,cd cnoris h" ovcrcamlc ihis ncr-
v"ns reputation. and. at tn. close
"i the Scholast.c year, carried on the
orators medal
Ills nrst attempt at autMorship was
an acT0stic. written when he was a
"h'id, aud published In tho Sou,bcrr
on"F'hMan. the appearance OF which.
III us printed form. was a, one. "a
source OF bride and disappointment, Ia
him W
/ Will" at COLLEGE he again .xsayod
/ to write. contributing 10 the collie
Eian. paper gotten out by IN. SIN
dents. OF which II" finally became tho
"H''or' years experience as i
''",h"r In Jefferson County, Ky..suc-
course. ana during this time MIR
Page wr"t. u story which n. sen,
I" the Courier journal 4, wa. ma,
accepted, however. and in after ycnrs
"h"h he !augh!ngly r-,n!ni.d tn.
MANAGER editor ~ its rejection u.
VAS told that i mad never come Ia
ms notice. In 1873 he took tho lnyy
e"GrS" At III" Cniv.rsity o! Nirr!u!a.
H'"ut"t'hg IN ono year with the do
roc .HH Hl..
mate. Afmis;cad Gordon, uuw T.. prom
iment lawyer OF stanton. Va ana
"a" ocraslpnai contributor to IN.
reading periodicals OF the couut-.
"f"t" "A dialect story. which WAS
pnbi.Sh"! IN II Baltimore intluzlae
"AnE Rage Mas master or th. nrg.,
dialect. lie had heard II al! his he
IRON IA" negroes. who wcr. his at
tcnd"nts and p!aymatcS Why m!ght
not h" succeed ia a similar attempt
rms led to the writing q: ING
Gales White l'o!kS." "A poem, which
appeared in 1877 In the "iirIc-a-H rnu'
d"nartment OF Scribncrs Monthly.
ana received Immediate recognition,
on account Of its perfect dclincHtlon
of the negro character and speech.
Mars chan which was his next pro-
duCt!on, came to his knowledge three
year" later. \ friend showed him "A
letter. taken from the pocket al a
Georgia private. who had been Killed
IN battle II was from his sweet
heart. anu was badly written and
spelled. The girl, 1t seemed. had
tr.i.cd Win him. bu, her affection
nnaliS conqucriuG her coQuctry, she
wrote TO express her sorrow Tor hay
ing treated him so badly. She de-
csarcd that she had loved him ever
since they werc at school together,
when he was SO good to her. and SAID
{ she would become his wife If h-
would re; a turIough and come home.
/ but she added. Don't come without
a iur!ough. for. unlcss, you come hon
orahle. wont marry YOU" The poor
FELLOW got his Through short time
afterwards at Malvern Hin, and got
| II honorable" aud the incident so
/ touched Mr. Page that hc at once
began the writing OF Mars Chan" In
I Offering the story 10 the editor OF
! Scrihnrr's Monthly. he asked TO be
allowed 10 prepare an account OF the
/ approaching centennial at Yorktown.
which was being discussed by the
/ papers. The offer was accepted. and
( the account came out in the October
number Of the magazine of 1881
| Mars Chan" however. did not appear
until three years afterwards. when
the periodical had changed It's name
I to that OF the Century. In referring
| TO this delay the editor said that
! he was aware from the first Of its
| merit. but that the war was still too
| recent TO admit OF its publication. Mr..
Page received $50 for this story. As
| a magazine serial. IL created com
| parativcly little sensation. When,
| however. il came out in book form,
/ il thoroughly established its authors
| reputation. and letters poured in
| upon him from all parts OF America.
and even from Europe. 1t was fol-
! lowed by Inc Ednburs's Drown
! din" which he considers the best pic
turc OF life in old Virginia which he
has ever drawn. Meanwhile the au-
thor had established himself as IL
lawyer in Richmond. and being ad-
mon!shed by his friends that the pur-
suit Of literature would interfere with
his success at the bar and. too. being
somewhat discouraged by the detcu-
ton OF Mars Chan in the publishers
hands. his contributions to the press
were for Il time discontinued. With
his marriage, in 1885, to Miss Anne
! Seldom Bruce, the beautiful young
daughter Of Charles Bruce. OF Char
louc County, Va, came Il renewal of
the literary impulse. She cared for