THATwinterRobertCohnwentovertoAmericawithhisnovel,anditwasacceptedbyafairlygoodpublisher.HisgoingmadeanawfulrowIheard,andIthinkthatwaswhereFranceslosthim,becauseseveralwomenwerenicetohiminNewYork,andwhenhecamebackhewasquitechanged.HewasmoreenthusiasticaboutAmericathanever,andhewasnotsosimple,andhewasnotsonice.Thepublishershadpraisedhisnovelprettyhighlyanditratherwenttohishead.Thenseveralwomenhadputthemselvesouttobenicetohim,andhishorizonshadallshifted.Forfouryearshishorizonhadbeenabsolutelylimitedtohiswife.Forthreeyears,oralmostthreeyears,hehadneverseenbeyondFrances.Iamsurehehadneverbeeninloveinhislife.
Hehadmarriedonthereboundfromtherottentimehehadincollege,andFrancestookhimonthereboundfromhisdiscoverythathehadnotbeeneverythingtohisfirstwife.Hewasnotinloveyetbutherealizedthathewasanattractivequantitytowomen,andthatthefactofawomancaringforhimandwantingtolivewithhimwasnotsimplyadivinemiracle.Thischangedhimsothathewasnotsopleasanttohavearound.Also,playingforhigherstakesthanhecouldaffordinsomerathersteepbridgegameswithhisNewYorkconnections,hehadheldcardsandwonseveralhundreddollars.Itmadehimrathervainofhisbridgegame,andhetalkedseveraltimesofhowamancouldalwaysmakealivingatbridgeifhewereeverforcedto.
Thentherewasanotherthing.HehadbeenreadingW.H.Hudson.Thatsoundslikeaninnocentoccupation,butCohnhadreadandrereadThePurpleLand.ThePurpleLandisaverysinisterbookifreadtoolateinlife.ItrecountssplendidimaginaryamorousadventuresofaperfectEnglishgentlemaninanintenselyromanticland,thesceneryofwhichisverywelldescribed.Foramantotakeitatthirty-fourasaguide-booktowhatlifeholdsisaboutassafeasitwouldbeforamanofthesameagetoenterWallStreetdirectfromaFrenchconvent,equippedwithacompletesetofthemorepracticalAlgerbooks.Cohn,Ibelieve,tookeverywordofThePurpleLandasliterallyasthoughithadbeenanR.G.Dunreport.Youunderstandme,hemadesomereservations,butonthewholethebooktohimwassound.Itwasallthatwasneededtosethimoff.Ididnotrealizetheextenttowhichithadsethimoffuntilonedayhecameintomyoffice.
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