Letter from Walter H. Page to John Muir, 1908 Jul 28.

Creator

Walter H. Page

Creator

Walter H. Page

Recipient

John Muir

Transcription

THE WORLD'S
WORK

FARMING

DOUBLEDAY PAGE & CO.
133-135-137 EAST 16TH STREET, NEW YORK

COUNTRY LIFE
IN AMERICA

THE GARDEN
MAGAZINE

July 28, 1908.

Dear Mr. Muir:

Since I wrote to you a day or two ago this thought has occurred to me:

I remember that you told me that there was a continual demand for some newspaper letters that were among your earliest writings. I suspect that a good deal of the matter in these newspaper letters might make a good book if you take a good part of it and get it in shape. I know very well how difficult it is to do this. In the first place, the mere physical labor of arranging old things of this sort deters a man.
Now comes my suggestion. There is a young man at Fresno. Mr. French Strother, who was for several years a member of my editorial staff. He is one of the nicest fellows I ever knew and he is a very capable literary workman. I believe he met you on a train once somewhere out in California. I recall distinctly that ha wrote some anecdotes in the magazine about you. How it might be helpful to you if you would let Strother come to see you and spend a week with yon or in your neighborhood, or a month, if need be, and let him arrange and straighten out these things in a way that would be helpful to you; and he could do any sort of physical work that you would permit him to do about getting your reminiscenes or autobiography, or whatever you are going to call that great book, into shape.
The privilege of being of some such service as this would make Strother very happy indeed. I can think of nothing in the world that would be ao inter-eating an experience for him. He left our service because his health made it necessary to move away from Hew York. He cannot safely live in a big city, and he went back to Fresno where his kinspeople live, but he is motets happy only when he is writing, and he would bring one of the finest enthusiasms you ever saw to the task of serving you. If you can find it convenient to let him have some time with you in this way I should be glad to put him at your service.04250 John Muir. Esq. -2-

I say, put him at your service; because he is, in a sense, at our service, and I should be willing, of course, to bear the expense of having him help you get started, if he might be so forunate as to help you, on this book whenever you get down from tha mountains.
I wish you would think this over; and, if there is real merit in the suggestion, drop a note to him and you would make one capable enthusiast happy for the rest of his life.

Believe me.
Most heartily yours,
[ILLEGIBLE]

John Muir, Esq.,

Martinez, California.04250