T
 

Stephen Crane's
Last Novel: The O'Ruddy

LILLIAN GILKES and JOAN H. BAUM

■^HE CATALOGUE of the recent Stephen Crane exhi¬
bition at Columbia University," in dealing with The
O'Ruddy (Crane's last novel, left unfinished at his death),
suggests that this book was probably not completed by Robert
Barr, whose name appears on the title-page as joint author, but by
another writer. However, further evidence has been brought forth
which makes it clear that Barr, after having given up the project
some years before, eventually reconsidered and did after all finish
the story. We hope hereby to correct the false impression given
by the catalogue, and to present, in greater detail than was possible
for the scope of the exhibition, the entire sequence of events lead¬
ing to the completion of the novel.

The history of the adventures of The O'Ruddy after Crane's
death is a long and complicated one, involving many of his literary
friends, several of whom at one time or another tried a hand at
the final chapters. But most closely it concerns Cora Crane, who
hoped for rescue from her ever-increasing financial worries by
the publication and sale of the book.

When Stephen Ctane died in June, 1900, he left some rwenty-
four chapters of The O'Ruddy, plus a few sketchy notes (dictated
to Cora) of further ideas for the novel. Robert Barr visited Crane
as he lay dying at Dover, before the agonizing last journey to
Badenweiler in the Black Forest. Stephen begged Barr to finish
the tale, and so Barr promised. But he was not happy about it. On
Aiay 17, he «'rote to Cora:" "It would be absurd of me to attempt

^Stephen Crane <iS-ji-i^oo). An exhibition of his uritings . . . New York,
1956.

" All excerpts are quoted from letters in the Coluniljia Crane Collection unless
otherwise noted.

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