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advance would they give me and so on. But the more he kept telling me they'd give me an advance of so many thousand dollars, the more it alarmed me, because I said, “Why, how do I know I'll be able to do it? I don't dare take the money. You mustn't say that, George, because if I take the money and don't deliver, then what happens?” I was only afraid I wouldn't deliver.

He kept sending me telegrams down in Maine, and when I came up in August about something, something about the I.L.O.--I came up to Washington from Maine and stayed several days and in New York a day or two, and saw him then--he got me to talk with the publishers. They were all keen for it. They had the papers all ready and wanted me to sign them. I wouldn't sign. I was very nervous.

Well, came the day that I was going to sail, and I still wouldn't sign. Then George said, “Well, you can sign with out agents in London. Now, you think this all over, and you do it.”

I said, “It's late now. It's now September, and I haven't got any work done it, and you want the manuscript in on the 15th of May!” They saw their chance to bring it out as a fall book, you see. “How can I do it? I can't do things like that, you know. I'll never get it done.”

“Well, you sign with our agents in London.”