into a detail of the various terms upon which arrangements were
made between authors and booksellers, that I might take my
choice; expressing the most encouraging confidence of the success
of my work, and of previous works which I had produced in
America. "I did no more," added he, "than open the trenches with
Constable; but I am sure if you will take the trouble to write to
him, you will find him disposed to treat your overtures with
every degree of attention. Or, if you think it of consequence in
the first place to see me, I shall be in London in the course of
a month, and whatever my experience can command is most heartily
at your command. But I can add little to what I have said above,
except my earnest recommendation to Constable to enter into the
negotiation."*

* I cannot avoid subjoining in a note a succeeding paragraph of
Scott's letter, which, though it does not relate to the main
subject of our correspondence, was too characteristic to be
emitted. Some time previously I had sent Miss Sophia Scott small
duodecimo American editions of her father's poems published in
Edinburgh in quarto volumes; showing the "nigromancy" of the
American press, by which a quart of wine is conjured into a pint
bottle. Scott observes: "In my hurry, I have not thanked you in
Sophia's name for the kind attention which furnished her with the
American volumes. I am not quite sure I can add my own, since you
have made her acquainted with much more of papa's folly than she
would ever otherwise have learned; for I had taken special care
they should never see any of those things during their earlier
years. I think I have told you that Walter is sweeping the
firmament with a feather like a maypole and indenting the
pavement with a sword like a scythe--in other words, he has