We are on tenterhooks of anxiety for fear of a threatened unauthorised reprint of your “Tramp Abroad” at a shilling, which we shall be powerless to oppose; but by keeping a bold front we hope to scare off intruders and so escape the danger

We have just received a letter from Mr. Bliss in which he says the electros of the cuts to the “Tramp” will cost us 450 dollars. We think it is only safe that we should have these immediately; but we wish you would use your influence to obtain them for us at a rate more in accordance with their m the cost of their manufacture, as we understood was to be the case at the commencement; the rate we paid for the electros we secured for the book from Mr. Browne was d1¼ per square inch which is the usual charge here.

As we have written to Mr Conway we shall pay you the a royalty upon all copies sold here of the “Tramp Abroad” upon the same rate as for “Tom Sawyer,” but reckoned as publishing at 10s/6d to allow for the extra allowances to the Circulating libraries. As Mr Bliss by issuing the American edition without giving us sufficient notice, has contrived very seriously to emperil your English copyright, it is only right that he should do all that lies in his power to strengthen our hands now against the risk of reprints which may destroy all value to you in the English market; and this he can best do by sending us these electros without a moments delay, and at the cost of production, without any additional profit.

Having to set up the book in various styles is a serious expense to us without any corresponding benefit as regards the sale or security of the copyright