University of Virginia Library

Yrs rec'd enclosing
check for $703.35. The
old "Innocents" holds
out handsomely.

I feel confident
that House will make
a most readable blook
book. Shall write him
what you say.

I have MS. enough
on hand now, to make (al-
lowing for engravings) about
400 pages of the book —
consequently am two-thirds
done. I intended to run
up to Hartford about the
middle of the week & take

it along; [illeg.]
because it has chapters
in it that ought by all means
to be in the prospectus;
but I find myself so
thoroughly interested in
my work, now (a thing
I have not experienced for
months) that I can't bear
to lose a single moment
of the inspiration. So
I will stay here & peg
away as long as it lasts.
My present idea is to
write as much more
as I have already
written, & then cull from
the mass the very best
chapters & discard the
rest. I am not half as
well satisfied with the first
part of the book as I
am with what I am wri-
ting now. When I get it
done I want to see the
man who will begin to
read it & not finish
it. If it falls short of
the Innocents in any
respect I shall lose
my guess.

When I was writing
the Innocents my daily
"stent" was 30 pages of MS
& I hardly ever got beyond it;
but I have gone over that
nearly every day for the
last ten. That shows
that I am writing with
a red-hot interest. No-
thing grieves me now —

nothing troubles ; me, bothers
me or gets my attention
— I don't think of any-
thing but the book, & don't
have an hour's unhap-
piness about anything
& don't care two cents whe-
ther school keeps or not.
It will be a bully book.
If I keep up my present
lick three weeks more
I shall be able & willing
to scratch out half of
the chapters of the Over-
land narrative — &
shall do it.

You do not mention
having received my second
batch of MS, sent a week
or two ago — about 100 pages.

If you want to issue

a prospectus & go right to
canvassing, say the word
& I will forward some
more MS — or send it by
hand — special messenger.
Whatever chapters you think
are unquestionably good,
we will retain of course,
& so they can go into a
prospectus as well one
time as another. The
book will be done soon, now.
I have 1200 pages of MS al-
ready written, & am now wri-
ting 200 a week — more than
that, in fact; during past week
wrote 23 one day, then 30, 33, 35,
52, & 65. — [illeg.]
How's that?

It will be a starchy
book, & should be full of
snappy pictures — especially
pictures worked in with the
letter-press. The dedica
tion will be worth the price
of the volume — thus:

To the Late Cain
This Book is Dedicated:

Not on account of re-
spect for his memory, for it
merits little respect; not on ac-
count of sympathy with him,
for his bloody deed placed him
without the pale of sympathy,
strictly speaking: but out of a
mere humane commiseration for
him in that it was his misfortune
to live in a dark age that knew not
the beneficent Insanity Plea.

I think it will do.