The New York herald., 1922-08-13
CHRONICLE AND
COM NJ EN- T
By ARTHUR BARTLETT MAURICE.

story OF the most amazing letters
that have been received from
strangers by prominent American
authors: When Alphonse Daudet's
immortal "Tartarin de Tarascon"
was published serially the hero was
called Barbarin. But in Tarascon
there was an old family of Bar
barins who threatened law suit in
case the name was not Immediately
changed, and Daudet hastened to
substitute Tartarin, with the result
that in the first edition of the book
there are Barbarins and Tartarins.
The prophecy may be ventured that
1t will be found that many Ameri-
can authors have unintentionally
invited trouble by using names that
happen to belong to real people.
Last week Mr.. Arthur B. Reeve told
Of such experiences, and now Mr.
Albert Payson Terhune offers as his
most unusual letter the one-to
Quote-"from man, unknown to
me, who said / had used his name
in a fiction story in the Saturday
Evening Post, thus holding him up
to intentional ridicule, and that the
illustrations are still more malici-
ously libelous.' He threatened
criminal suit"
THE letter that made the deepest
i impression on Mr.. Terhune was
q forty page letter written over a
course of months by an Illinois
woman the author had never met.
Her executor sent it to him in ac-
cordance with request in her will.
Says Mr. Terhune. why she
picked me out as it's recipient
don't know, except that its text was
built on silly phrase in story of
mine. The rest Of it was her life
story, crudely and queerly and COM
pellingly told. (No, she was not
from Illinois. put that in to make
1t harder). The letter was written
in 1908 and 1909. I received it in
1916" The same authors most
humorous letter vas not intended
for humor. 1t took two pages to
praise some of Mr.. Terhune's work
and ended. II am in the whole
sale boiler trade. But seeing how
easily you seem to make living
by writing plan to become liter
ary man too. II you can do it any
body ought to be able to-" His most
crushing letter ran: Il don't care
ut all for any of your dog stories
but one. Yet that one story proves
you are a genius and that you can
do inspired work, instead Of the rest
Of the driyel you are turning out.
The one exception'is your immortal
Bob, Son OF Battle"
MR.. ROBERT w. CHAMBERS
AvA writes: in Nicholas Nickle-
by do you remember the old gen.
tleman who made love to Mrs.
Nickleby by bombarding her with
vegetables over the garden wall?-
and who voiced his declaration of
passion in the words: Cog and Ma
cog. be mine!' Well, a nut of that
genus wrote me an incoherent letter
about ten years ago-thirty odd
pages, closely written, meaning
pothing. He has continued every
week or two ever since. He has
written, l fancy, hundreds OF thou
sands of words. Once a year |
glance through one of the letters,
1t means absolutely nothing. 1t is
Modernism to the nth. He has at
tanned the goal toward which Mod
ernism is galloping-perfect ex-
preston of the quintessence OF
nothing. To me his achievement is
tremendously impressive. In hun.
dreds of thousands of words he has
never made the mistake of convey
ing a single idea. Let Modernism
In Art honor this unknown nut.'
MR.. F. SCOTT FITZGERALr [
AsA speaks. The author of "Thi: