Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1927-12-23

F., more Carroll. Both could do tricks with
words in lyrical cadence, for in addition
to a + u poetic divine afflatus, Al Crow
ell was a rhymster par excellence. ]
cannot predict the fate of the book. The
publishers may or may not be impressed
His is one of many book manuscripts ]
have reviewed, in the ink, including Mary
McLane's first and most successful book,
which was actually written in ink in q
high school composition book. / might
add irrelevantly that Mary did not adopt
one of a list of suggestions I made and
changes l advocated in her book, which
Melted her about $4,000.
Stage Drivers Life
This leads me to another book manu-
script looking for a publisher. BY coin
cidence the writer also died and lived in
Dillon. Charlie Higginbottom came in
the early sixties and drove stage for sc
or go years, in fact as long as there were
any stages to drive and his work is the
complete story of a stage drivers life.
With the present fair for western stories
and a score of magazines dealing In
them exclusively. the Higgenbottom book
should secure utterance now or never.
Higgenbottom having a limited edu-
cation, Crowell helped the old man write
the book. The manuscript was then sent
TO me n l took a crack at it.. When II
was whipped into shape Thomas Fox
clerk of the district court at Butte, typed
it u in excellent shape. incidentally
Mr.. Fox himself has had q few things
published in Life and other current mag
azines. / understand he has possession
of this book manuscript at the present
time.
The probable trouble with both books
is that they are both true which, In
spite OF what all moralists say, is not
always an asset, especially in the world
Of creative literature. But l can truth
fully say this of Fifty Years q Stage
Driver" 1t is history and good history
Of Montana and 1t furnishes a chapter
nowhere covered in the annals of Mon
tana. If you like holdups, gunplays and
bar-room scraps, and sagebrush romance
you can get the real article If Higgen-
bottoms book ever finds q publisher
There are hundreds Of Montanans who
can verify much Of Charles story, foi
he has his dates and persons in applepie
order and prided himself on his anthem
ITCHY. His is the real article stacked UP
beside the creations of college students
and the drug store cowboys who are
writing-some quite cleverly at that-fol
the gunplay magazines of New York
| do not wish to discredit the penny
dreadful fiction or the two-bit dreadful
movie, both of which seem to have Sc
cured q firm place with the American
public but the Hig%genbottom book has
the merit OF being real n it was not
necessary for the Did man to "gild re-
fined gold nor paint the lily" His book
has more action than car be conven-
iently handled in 100000 words.
Let me say in conclusion that / n JUS
tice to these two men who now sleep
removed from all worldly cares in the
bounteous valley OF the B~eaverhead with
dreams unrealized, neither book can of
TEND the most sensitive or refined read
er. Crowell saw to that, for in the emo
ana to the end he was a gentleman, In
rags 1T is true, but a fine, cultured, schol-
arly, brilliant gentleman. His weakness
his faults, his since reacted only on him
self. He often referred to himself as q
'self-made pariah," IN declared that
genius n personality should be con-
sidered separately.
/ have uns~ubstantiated hopes that both
these books will some day find a pub
Usher not only for their entertaining
qualities but because they also have rich
local historic values.