1345
September 6th 1917
Dear Mr. Joyce
Many thanks for your kind message for my birthday written from the
hospital and please thank Mrs. Joyce for me for her letter received this
morning.[1] I am glad to know from
it that you are improving after the operation though only slowly. I had
imagined you were so much better that an operation would be avoided and
was very sorry to hear of this new collapse.
Mr. Pound told me you had written that your book
Ulysses was likely to be finished in January and that you
suggested its appearance as a serial in the Egoist and
Little
Review simultaneously. We should be very glad indeed to have it
and
the Egoist could pay you fifty pounds — half of it now
and
half of it in six months time if that you [sic] suit you. Mr. Pound suggested
that I should telegraph a part of the first instalment and make it payable to
Mrs Joyce in case you should still be in hospital. Two days ago therefore
I telegraphed ten pounds through Cook's agency and at the same time I
telegraphed to Mrs Joyce to call at their Zurich office. I hope both
telegrams got through. Today I am sending with this letter a draft for
fifteen pounds (328.50 francs) payable in the same way on the personal
application of Mrs Joyce. I think the publication of the book as a serial
would give the Egoist the right of publication later in book
form
but that
of course could be settled entirely as you might wish at the time. I hope
you would understand that if by any unfortunate chance the printers should
insist on making any deletions we should be powerless to do anything. I
have sufficient experience now of London printers to feel convinced it
would be useless to try a change of firm. I think I have found a country
printer[2] willing to print the second
edition of your novel — a Southport firm which printed the
Egoist till the publication was transferred to London in July
1914. I will let you know when, or if, the matter seems certain —
as
certain, that is, as it is possible to feel after the last disappointment. If they
fail and we have to apply to the Board of Trade for permission to import
sheets from America I will take your advice and ask the help of Mr.
Edward Marsh of the Colonial Office.
With kind regards and hoping to hear that the result of the operation
is quite satisfactory | Yours sincerely
