IN MEMORY OF CONRAD

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 January 1930, Page 9

IN MEMORY OF CONRAD

MASSIVE AMERICAN COLLECTION

Conrad regarded the collectors of his manuscripts and first editions w a kiild of bewildered amusement and he would have been astonished indeed at the handsome new quarto volume of nearly 500 pages devoted to the Conrad library of one enthusiast, Mr. George T. Keating, of New York, writes Richard Curie, Conrads literary executor. , There are other remarkable Conrad collections, both in England and America, but none so intimate, so universal, so full of out-of-the-way documents as this. Here are the outstanding rarities, such as the 1897 “Nigger of the Narcissus,” of which only seven copies were produced; “The Inheritors,” with the mis-spelt dedication page; the first issue of “Nostremo,” which ends on page 478 instead of 480; and the 1913 “Chance.” But here also are a dozen of his seaman’s discharges, nine charts used by him as a sailor, six recommendations given to him by the owners or captains of various ships in which he sailed, many of his unpublished letters, and a collection of photographs that must be unrivalled. And all this is only the beginning. With unwearied diligence Mr.\ Keating has delved and collected, gone into every detail, taken endless pains. To achieve perfect accuracy and to acquire all he could would seem to have been his motto, and, though other col-, lections of Conrad surpass his in certain aspects, none equal it in finality. Everything to do with Conrad has evidently been his concern, and his library has grown- into the proportions of a museum. It is very strange and impressive. An endless array of material, docketed and displayed with lavishness, must surely make this the most sumptuous monograph ever devoted to an author. For this is no mere catalogue of bibliography. It is.a history of Conrad's career in the light of his works, and it will be as valuable to the student as to the collector. High as is the cost of the book, it seems probable that the 501 copies printed will soon be absorbed. It is worth the twenty-five dollars. One of its most attractive features are the introductions to the book, written by well-known literary men and friends of Conrad. The magic of Conrad’s appeal reverberates again and again in these little and who but he among our conterhporaries would have received the praise of Mr. Galsworthy and Mr. Walpole, of Mr. Garnett and Mr. Ford, of Mr. Tomlinson and Mr. Symons? There are twenty-four of these introductions, and it iw- certainly illuminating to study Conrad from so many angles, which, while different, are alike in the acknowledgment of his greatness.

Towards the end of his life Conrad became more or less inured to collectors though he never ceased to regard collecting itself as a form of incomprehensible, if harmless, mania, and in his good nature he was always signing and annotating copies of his books. Mr Keating s library overflows with such volumes, and the familiar hand is reproduced in many an illustration Conrad lives once more in these pages and it is to be hoped that so ample a record will never be scattered A col lection such as this ought to be preserved intact for future generations Mr Keating has ransacked the world for material, has drawn into his net much that is rare and revealing from already dispersed libraries, and in the result the eloquence of that ful career stands out with startline ef feet. His collection is a vast mine of information about its subject, and could never bo replaced. j t i s unique Conrad was -great as a writer, g/eat as a personality, and this volume within its necessary limits is indeed n Wondld tribute to the author a „T the