Conrad to a Friend 150 Selected letters to Richard Curie
(Sampson Low, 10s. 6d.) are a good accompaniment to Mr. Curie's Last Twelve Years of Joseph Conrad, which was recently reviewed in these columns at some length. The devout disciple may now pick up the more minute of the crumbs fallen from the richly spread table of Conrad's genius. Many of the letters reprinted are mere arrangements about the catching of trains, and domestic details which throw no light on the character of the writer. Others, however, feed our curiosity as to his attitude to 'his own work, and tell us about his royalties and income tax squabbles, a subject which interests everyone who is human. It is, perhaps, amusing to note that Conrad possessed the mortal weakness.of believing himself to be other _than the being who was unconsciously portrayed in his work.. He took great pains. to. point out that fundamentally he was not a tragic writer.; and that he was not preoccupied with the sea. It requires a great deal of special pleading for us to be able to agree with him.
* * * *
Previous page
