ODDS AND ENDS. 



ILLUSTRATION. 



What a broad, open, ever widen- 

 ing field illustrations is for the 

 artist. It reminds one of the vast 

 tracts of uncultivated land in the 

 West where only here and there 

 fields are cultivated, with the rich 

 untouched soil still to be tilled. 

 Many are the papers and maga- 

 zine illustrated, but only the mar- 

 gin of the great field of work has 

 begun. 



Many large publishing houses 

 pay especial attention to reproduc- 

 tion and lithography, and employ 

 regular artists to execute their 

 work. While if anything of es- 

 pecial merit comes to them, or they 

 are rushed with work, other out- 

 side illustratoors are engaged. 



Multitudenous are the means 

 and ways of illustrating. The gate 

 way if entered by the ambitious 

 amateur, must close it behind him, 

 buckle on the methods that will 

 best fit him for a long dusty up 

 grade road, and travel it without 

 much rest, and scant nourishment, 

 until the goal of success is reached. 

 Now and then he will be encour- 

 aged by a lift from some friend, 

 tossed to him like dry crust again 

 he will have his dry lips moistened 

 by a juicy plumb from some prom- 

 ise from a publisher (who never 

 pays him) but he must grip his 

 pen the harder, and his dusty staff 



with a firmer grasp, and climb on 

 to the top where the air is pure and 

 the landscape smiles beneath him, 

 and the pines clap their hands over 

 his successful performance. 



The avenues are so varied, a 

 young illustrator hesitates which 

 to enter. He wastes much valua- 

 ble time playing around the gate- 

 way. There is such jolly Bohemian 

 company at the beginning of his 

 journey. They all like to play 

 croquet, tennis, golf and use the 

 "lead" occasionally. He is en- 

 ticed by their winning manner to 

 join in their excursions, late sup- 

 pers, and sketching tours, while 

 more time is spent in reveling than 

 picture making. He awakens 

 from this dream with very little 

 money but keener perception 

 with determination to seek one 

 avenue in the field of illustrating,, 

 and follow that undeviatingly^ 

 Which shall it be? the charac- 

 terturist, where some enter but 

 few have the talent to carry it to a 

 successful issue. The political 

 newspaper illustrator whose field 

 is full of thorns, but lucrative. The. 

 poster maker, where the sailing is, 

 smooth, subject to squalls, sudden 

 death in a few years, but profita- 

 ble while it lasts. Tne illustrator 

 of books, which takes intelli- 

 gence, fine sense of adapt- 

 ability, keen insight for 



