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"I had a charming letter from Herr Poorten Schwartz (Maarten Maartens) in which he speaks in glowing terms of 'Ardath,' which he had just been reading. He says the description of Al-Kyris is a magnificent effort of the imagination, in which I entirely agree, and I rank the description in richness of conception with Beckford's famous 'Hall of Eblis.' So far, I think it is your greatest height of imaginative conception—just as in 'Wormwood,' much as it repels me in parts, I cannot but recognize the tremendous dramatic force of many of the scenes."

"January 3d, 1892.

"I can say truthfully that I have not known any writer bear success better than you do, and may you be put to the test for a long time to come.

"I like much to hear you say, 'As long as my brain under God's guidance will serve me.' It is an age when such an observation is by no means an ordinary one, yet I doubt whether the genius of any writer attains its full scope unless it listen to His voice."

"January 29th, 1892.

"'Good wine needs no bush,' and I am averse to associating your name or mine with a system of vulgar exploitation.

"What do Dickens, Thackeray, George Eliot, Collins, or Besant owe to exploitation, and how long do the reputations survive which are built on this mushroom bed?"

The following alludes to the publication of a new edition of the work mentioned: