fter his
arrival, of his having worked as type-setter and proof-reader for the
Robert Clarke Co., before seeking employment at Mr. Watkin's office.

It was while he was sleeping on the bed of paper shavings behind Mr.
Watkin's shop that he acted as private secretary to Thomas Vickers,
librarian in the public library at Cincinnati. He mentions Thomas
Vickers at various times in his letters to Krehbiel, and refers to rare
books on music and copies of classical works to be found at the library.

During all this period, wandering from place to place, endeavouring to
find employment of any kind, the boy's underlying ambition was to obtain
a position on the staff of one of the large daily newspapers, and thus
work his way to a competency that would enable him to devote himself to
literary work of his own.

"I believe he would have signed his soul away to the devil," one of his
colleagues says, "to get on terms of recognition with either Colonel
John Cockerill, then managing editor of the _Cincinnati Enquirer_, or
Mr. Henderson, the city editor of the _Commercial_." Though Hearn may
not have signed his soul to the devil, he certainly sold his genius to
ignoble uses when he wrote his well-known description of the tan-yard
murder. His ambition however was gratified. A reporter who could thus
cater to the public greed for horrors was an asset to the Cincinnati
press.

We have an account, given by John Cockerill, twenty years later, of
Hearn's first visit to the _Enquirer_:--

"One day there came to the office a quaint, dark-skinned little fellow,
strangely diffident, wearing glasses of great magnifying power and
bearing with him evidence that Fortune and he were scarce on nodding
terms.

"When admitted, in a soft, shrinking voice he asked if I ever paid for
outside contributions. I informed him that I was somewhat restricted in
the matter of expenditures, but that I would give consideration to what
he had to offer. He drew from under his coat a manuscript, and
tremblingly laid it upon my table. Then he stole away like a distorted
brownie, leaving behind him an impression that was uncanny and
indescribable.

"Later in the day I looked over the contribution which he had left. I
was astonished to find it charmingly written....

"From that time forward he sat in the corner of my room and wrote
special articles for the Sunday Edition as thoroughly excellent as
anything that appeared in the magazines of those days. I have kno