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I said, “That's your problem, but it's got to be cash.”

So that night I sailed for Europe, not knowing whether Donald was going to be my partner or not.

How could you go to Europe at that time?

I had made my mind up to go to Europe. I hadn't been in Europe for three days when Mr. Pell, the Liveright bookkeeper, went to see my father and my uncle, who had gotten me the job, to tell them that things were pretty precarious at Liveright, and if they didn't put up some of the money that I was going to pay for Modern Library right away, he couldn't promise what would happen by the time I came back from Europe. Now, my father and my uncle had thought Mr. Pell was of the famous Pell family on Long Island. But when they saw Mr. Pell, they immediately sent me a cable to come back at once. The cable said, “Pell has demanded money at once,” and they thought this was not the way I had explained it to them when I went to Europe. I cabled Liveright: “Should I come home?" telling him what Pell had done. I knew my Horace. He was outraged that Pell had done this. He cabled: “You are my friend. My word to you is like a contract. I will take care of you.” So I stayed in Europe for my three weeks.

When I came home I found that Pell, despite everything, had sold about a half of the stock for cash--the Modern Library inventory--for way below what it should have been sold at, since he knew it was going to be turned over to me. This was