They liked it well
enough to take a special interest in it and to bring it out with
greater expense than it was at all customary to put upon a novel at
that time; and this in face of the fact that they had repeatedly
warned me that the nature work in it would kill fully half its
chances with the public. Mr. F. N. Doubleday, stating on a trip to
the Bahamas, remarked that he would like to take a manuscript with
him to read, and the office force decided to put `Freckles' into
his grip. The story of the plucky young chap won his way to the
heart of the publishers, under a silk cotton tree, 'neath bright
southern skies, and made such a friend of him that through the
years of its book-life it has been the object of Special attention.
Mr. George Doran gave me a photograph which Mr. horace MacFarland made
of Mr. Doubleday during this reading of the Mss. of `Freckles'
which is especially interesting."
That more than 2,000,000 readers have found pleasure and profit in
Mrs. Porter's books is a cause for particular gratification. These
stories all have, as a fundamental reason of their existence, the
author's great love of nature. To have imparted this love to
others--to have inspired many hundreds of thousands to look for the
first time with seeing eyes at the pageant of the out-of-doors--is
a satisfaction that must endure. For the part of the publishers,
they began their business by issuing "Nature Books" at a time when
the sale of such works was problematical.
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