A Publisher And His Friends (Fiscle Part-4) by Samuel Smiles (essential books to read .txt) π
We Have Already Seen That Mr. Murray Had Some Correspondence With Thomas
Campbell In 1806 Respecting The Establishment Of A Monthly Magazine;
Such An Undertaking Had Long Been A Favourite Scheme Of His, And He Had
Mentioned The Subject To Many Friends At Home As Well As Abroad. When,
Therefore, Mr. Blackwood Started His Magazine, Murray Was Ready To Enter
Into His Plans, And Before Long Announced To The Public That He Had
Become Joint Proprietor And Publisher Of Blackwood's _Edinburgh
Magazine_.
Read free book Β«A Publisher And His Friends (Fiscle Part-4) by Samuel Smiles (essential books to read .txt) πΒ» - read online or download for free at americanlibrarybooks.com
- Author: Samuel Smiles
Read book online Β«A Publisher And His Friends (Fiscle Part-4) by Samuel Smiles (essential books to read .txt) πΒ». Author - Samuel Smiles
As Was Talked Of Between _Us_ Can, I Believe, At All Times, Be
Procured." He Then Proposed "A Quite New Negotiation, If You Incline To
Enter On Such"; And Requested His Decision. "If Not, Pray Have The
Goodness To Cause My Papers To Be Returned With The Least Possible
Delay." The Ms. Was At Once Returned; And Carlyle Acknowledged Its
Receipt:
_Mr. Carlyle To John Murray_.
_October_ 6, 1831.
My Dear Sir,
I Have Received The Ms., With Your Note And Your Friend's Criticism, And
I Find It All Safe And Right. In Conclusion, Allow Me To Thank You For
Your Punctuality And Courtesy In This Part Of The Business; And To Join
Cordially In The Hope You Express That, In Some Fitter Case, A Closer
Relation May Arise Between Us. I Remain, My Dear Sir, Faithfully Yours,
Chapter 28 (Benjamin Disraeli--Thomas Carlyle--And Others) Pg 165
T. Carlyle.
Mr. Carlyle Returned To Craigenputtock With His Manuscript In His
Pocket; Very Much Annoyed And Disgusted By The Treatment Of The London
Publishers. Shortly After His Arrival At Home, He Wrote To Mr. Macvey
Napier, Then Editor Of The _Edinburgh Review_:
"All Manner Of Perplexities Have Occurred In The Publishing Of My Poor
Book, Which Perplexities I Could Only Cut Asunder, Not Unloose; So The
Ms., Like An Unhappy Ghost, Still Lingers On The Wrong Side Of Styx: The
Charon Of Albemarle Street Durst Not Risk It In His _Sutilis Cymba_, So
It Leaped Ashore Again. Better Days Are Coming, And New Trials Will End
More Happily."
A Little Later (February 6, 1832) He Said:
"I Have Given Up The Notion Of Hawking My Little Manuscript Book About
Any Further. For A Long Time It Has Lain Quiet In Its Drawer, Waiting
For A Better Day. The Bookselling Trade Seems On The Edge Of
Dissolution; The Force Of Puffing Can Go No Further; Yet Bankruptcy
Clamours At Every Door: Sad Fate! To Serve The Devil, And Get No Wages
Even From Him! The Poor Bookseller Guild, I Often Predict To Myself,
Will Ere Long Be Found Unfit For The Strange Part It Now Plays In Our
European World; And Give Place To New And Higher Arrangements, Of Which
The Coming Shadows Are Already Becoming Visible."
The "Sartor Resartus" Was Not, However, Lost. Two Years After Carlyle's
Visit To London, It Came Out, Bit By Bit, In _Fraser's Magazine_.
Through The Influence Of Emerson, It Was Issued, As A Book, At Boston,
In The United States, And Carlyle Got Some Money For His Production. It
Was Eventually Published In England, And, Strange To Say, Has Had The
Largest Sale In The "People's Edition Of Carlyle's Works." Carlyle,
Himself, Created The Taste To Appreciate "Sartor Resartus."
Chapter 29 (Mr. Gladstone And Others) Pg 166
In July 1838 Mr. W.E. Gladstone, Then Tory Member Of Parliament For
Newark-Upon-Trent, Wrote To Mr. Murray From 6 Carlton Gardens, Informing
Him That He Has Written And Thinks Of Publishing Some Papers On The
Subject Of The Relationship Of The "Church And The State," Which Would
Probably Fill A Moderate Octavo Volume, And That He Would Be Glad To
Know If Mr. Murray Would Be Inclined To See Them. Mr. Murray Saw The
Papers, And On August 9 He Agreed With Mr. Gladstone To Publish 750 Or
1,000 Copies Of The Work On "Church And State," On Half Profits, The
Copyright To Remain With The Author After The First Edition Was Sold.
The Work Was Immediately Sent To Press, And Proofs Were Sent To Mr.
Gladstone, About To Embark For Holland. A Note Was Received By Mr.
Murray From The Author (August 17, 1838):
"I Write A Line From Rotterdam To Say That Sea-Sickness Prevented My
Correcting The Proofs On The Passage."
This Was Mr. Gladstone's First Appearance In The Character Of An Author,
And The Work Proved Remarkably Successful, Four Editions Being Called
For In The Course Of Three Years. It Was Reviewed By Macaulay In The
_Edinburgh_ For April 1839, And In The _Quarterly_ By The Rev. W. Sewell
In December. "Church Principles," Published In 1840, Did Not Meet With
Equal Success. Two Years Later We Find A Reference To The Same Subject.
_Mr. W.E. Gladstone To John Murray_.
13 Carlton House Terrace, _April_ 6, 1842.
My Dear Sir,
I Thank You Very Much For Your Kindness In Sending Me The New Number Of
The _Quarterly_. As Yet I Have Only Read A Part Of The Article On The
Church Of England, Which Seems To Be By A Known Hand, And To Be Full Of
Very Valuable Research: I Hope Next To Turn To Lord Mahon's "Joan Of
Arc."
Chapter 29 (Mr. Gladstone And Others) Pg 167
Amidst The Pressure Of More Urgent Affairs, I Have Held No Consultation
With You Regarding My Books And The Sale Or No Sale Of Them. As To The
Third Edition Of The "State In Its Relations," I Should Think The
Remaining Copies Had Better Be Got Rid Of In Whatever Summary Or
Ignominious Mode You May Deem Best. They Must Be Dead Beyond Recall. As
To The Others, I Do Not Know Whether The Season Of The Year Has At All
Revived The Demand; And Would Suggest To You Whether It Would Be Well To
Advertise Them A Little. I Do Not Think They Find Their Way Much Into
The Second-Hand Shops.
With Regard To The Fourth Edition, I Do Not Know Whether It Would Be
Well To Procure Any Review Or Notice Of It, And I Am Not A Fair Judge Of
Its Merits Even In Comparison With The Original Form Of The Work; But My
Idea Is, That It Is Less Defective Both In The Theoretical And In The
Historical Development, And Ought To Be Worth The Notice Of Those Who
Deemed The Earlier Editions Worth Their Notice And Purchase: That It
Would Really Put A Reader In Possession Of The View It Was Intended To
Convey, Which I Fear Is More Than Can With Any Truth Be Said Of Its
Predecessors.
I Am Not, However, In Any State Of Anxiety Or Impatience: And I Am
Chiefly Moved To Refer These Suggestions To Your Judgment From
Perceiving That The Fourth Edition Is As Yet Far From Having Cleared
Itself.
I Remain Always,
Very Faithfully Yours,
W.E. Gladstone.
In The Same Year Another Author Of Different Politics And Strong
Anti-Slavery Views Appeared To Claim Mr. Murray's Assistance As A
Publisher. It Was Mr. Thomas Fowell Buxton, M.P., Who Desired Him To
Publish His Work Upon The "Slave Trade And Its Remedy."
_Mr. Buxton To John Murray_.
Chapter 29 (Mr. Gladstone And Others) Pg 168
_December_ 31, 1837.
"The Basis Of My Proposed Book Has Already Been Brought Before The
Cabinet Ministers In A Confidential Letter Addressed To Lord
Melbourne.... It Is Now My Purpose To Publish A Portion Of The Work, On
The Nature, Extent, And Horrors Of The Slave Trade, And The Failure Of
The Efforts Hitherto Made To Suppress It, [Footnote: See "Life Of W.E.
Forster," Ch. Iv.] Reserving The Remainder For Another Volume To Be
Published At A Future Day. I Should Like To Have 1,500 Copies Of The
First Volume Thrown Off Without Delay."
The Book Was Published, And Was Followed By A Cheaper Volume In The
Following Year, Of Which A Large Number Was Sold And Distributed.
The Following Letter Illustrates The Dangerous Results Of Reading Sleepy
Books By Candle-Light In Bed:
_Mr. Longman To John Murray_.
2 Hanover Terrace, 1838.
My Dear Murray,
Can You Oblige Me By Letting Me Have A Third Volume Of "Wilberforce"?
The Fact Is, That In Reading That Work, My Neighbour, Mr. Alexander,
Fell Fast Asleep From Exhaustion, And, Setting Himself On Fire, Burnt
The Volume And His Bed, To The Narrow Escape Of The Whole Terrace. Since
That Book Has Been Published, Premiums Of Fire Assurance Are Up, And Not
Having Already Insured My No. 2, Now That The Fire Has Broken Out Near
My Own Door, No Office Will Touch My House Nor Any Others In The Terrace
Until It Is Ascertained That Mr. Alexander Has Finished With The Book.
So Pray Consider Our Position, And Let Me Have A Third Volume To Make Up
The Set As Soon As Possible.
Mr. Murray Had Agreed With The Bishop Of Llandaff To Publish Lord
Dudley's Posthumous Works, But The Bishop Made Certain Complaints Which
Chapter 29 (Mr. Gladstone And Others) Pg 169Led To The Following Letter From Mr. Murray:
_John Murray To The Bishop Of Llandaff_.
_December_ 31, 1839.
My Lord,
I Am Told That Your Lordship Continues To Make Heavy Complaints Of The
Inconvenience You Incur By Making Me The Publisher Of "Lord Dudley's
Letters," In Consequence Of The Great Distance Between St. Paul's
Churchyard And Albemarle Street, And That You Have Discovered Another
Cause For Dissatisfaction In What You Consider The Inordinate Profits Of
A Publisher.
My Lord, When I Had The Honour To Publish For Sir Walter Scott And Lord
Byron, The One Resided In Edinburgh, The Other In Venice; And, With
Regard To The Supposed Advantages
Comments (0)