He found himself in
debt before he had finished his fourth year in Concord. Moncure D. Conway,
writing Hawthorne's _Life_ in 1890, the year before American authors were
protected by international copyright, says, "In no case has literature,
pure and simple, ever supported an American author, unless, possibly, if he
were a bachelor." Hawthorne's college friends, Bridge and Pierce, came to
his assistance, and used their influence with President Polk to secure for
Hawthorne the position of surveyor of customs at Salem, with a yearly
salary of twelve hundred dollars.
HIS PRIME AND LATER YEARS.--He kept his position as head customs officer at
Salem for three years. Soon after President Taylor was inaugurated in 1849,
the spoils system again secured Hawthorne's removal. When he came home
dejected with this news, his wife smiled and said, "Oh, then you can write
your book!" _The Scarlet Letter_, published in 1850, was the result. The
publisher printed five thousand copies, all that he had ever expected to
sell, and then ordered the type to be distributed at once. Finding in ten
days, however, that every copy had been sold, he gave the order to have the
type reset and permanent plates made.
Pages:
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269