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 THE LITERARY INTERESTS OF CHICAGO 405

editor; Miss Frances Willard was a contributor. The Little Corporal was not, however, a temperance or religious organ. Nor did it uphold any sectionalism as the only papers for children attempted in the prairie period had done. There had been two of these, one in each decade of that period. The first, a weekly attempted by Kiler K. Jones, who later founded the Gem of the Prairie, antedated all but two of the quasi-literary periodicals for adults started in Chicago's young days, being begun in May, 1843. A tattered copy of its last number, dated July 26, 1843, which is one of the Historical Society's curios, contains, besides the pioneer projector's farewell words to the effect that he had done his best at " editor, compositor, pressman, and devil's duty," the original prospectus. Its significant line is this : " The Youth's Gazette: devoted expressly to the interests of the youth of the West." The other early paper for children, begun at Chicago in 1853, and lasting only a short time, was christened the Youth's Western Banner. But in 1865 no western modifier was given to the name of the Little Corporal.. In the nationalizing which marked the social process in the United States at the time, it was even easier to find common ground for the children than for older people, especially when the ground taken was the universal inter- est in story. The paper, a monthly in journal form, was filled with secular, juvenile literature, of the best quality.

The Little Corporal became permanent by accident. It was originally published for the United States Sanitary Commission in connection with a fair. But it proved to be so popular and successful that it was continued, enduring for an entire decade. It quickly attained a national circulation, being the first periodical from Chicago to secure wide attention, and the first juvenile in the country to be read by children everywhere. It was the forerunner of St. Nicholas, which magazine was established at New York during the Little Corporal's sixth year. From it the Youth's Companion, though established long before, in Boston, made adaptations which have promoted the popularity of that paper.

The enormous circulation of the Little Corporal is historic in the records of Chicago publishing. The first American News- paper Directory, issued in 1869, by George P. Rowell & Co., New