O. Henry: An Appreciation

Like William Sydney Porter I was born in Greensboro, North Carolina. You know Porter better as the early 20th century short story writer, O Henry; you probably know him best as the author of the popular and eternally touching, The Gift of the Magi.

Porter and I both were raised around that piedmont city in central North Carolina, but separated by many decades and my upbringing took place on a farm while Porter lived in the city, the son of a medical doctor. We do not share that much background, but I find it interesting that we were born in the same city.

His stories are especially noted for their unexpected or "surprise" endings, but what I admire most about O. Henry, and the reason that I am writing about him in Caring for the Soul, is his sympathetic and caring portrayal of human nature. His stories are full of colorful characters many of whom were derived from his inclination to wander streets and parks, talking to people of every kind and condition.

His stories are about salesmen and janitors, millionaires and paupers-all of whom he saw in a kind of inner shining light that along with his gift of expression was so much a part of his genius.

Porter developed an interest in books while still very young, but his only formal education was received at the school of an aunt. His uncle owned a pharmacy, and he eventually became a licensed pharmacist. Early on, Porter gained some modest local fame for his sketches and cartoons of the people of Greensboro.

At the age of twenty, Porter moved to Texas primarily for health reasons, and worked on a sheep ranch and lived with some close friends of his family. To make a long story short, he wound up working as a bank teller and was accused of embezzling. He fled the country, but eventually came back, was convicted and served around three years in prison. There is some dispute as to whether he was actually guilty of the crime, as the bank was itself poorly managed.

He emerged from prison having written several short stories and now going by the pen name, O. Henry (probably derived from the name of a prison guard, Orris Henry), and moved to New York City where he began writing seriously. In only ten years he produced over 600 short stories that were published in several periodicals and bound up into many collections

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