The Players
16 Gramercy Park

Dear Darrow:

I read your gloomy and very powerful story with great interest and a sort of pleasure. You have a difficult problem here - which is to use the man's own words - or to seem to do so and not permit the slang to become sordid in tone. You have achieved this - and it is a triumph of sympathy - perhaps it would be well to go over the M.S. again before offering it.- The short stories lose in force by being so nearly in one key and so nearly in the same tone. I feel that fewer of them and as varied in subject as may be would answer to better purpose. In this I may be mistaken. I would suggest your putting them all in a kind of order so that as one turned the leaves they would insure a cumulative affect [sic]on the mind. I am more than ever convinced that you have a larger message - a very austere message - but it must be carefully managed in order to secure the wide effort we both hope for. I will gladly put these matters before my publishers or any others when we decide that the proper time has come. I will express the M.S. back to you in a day or two.

With greeting to Mrs. Darrow

I am very sincerely yours

Hamlin Garland