Handwritten three-page letter with no addressee and no date, concerning the publication of Charles M. Russell's biography.

1. Copy I have been thinking about Charlies Biography ^which Dan Conway has commenced, and ^ which I’d hoped would be published before now, But from what the looks of things there is no way of knowing how much longer it may drag along, and it has just dawned on me that, if I suddenly dropped out, whoever held the manuscript could publish it in any form, and by any firm that suited them. While in New York last winter Double Day Page refused this material so I got Mr. Maule- Their editor to let me take it to Scribners and one or two other first leading publishers, and their opinion was that it could not be used in 2 its present form due to the very involved style in which some parts were ^are^ written, as well as too much discription [sic] in others. I explained the above to ^Mr.^/ Conway when the Manuscript was returned to him- in fact I enclosed copies of the publishers written opinion – I also told him that while he could and should rework the material that in justice to Chas, and his memory I expected to always with hold the right to pass on the finished work, and have the deciding vote on to any publisher, that might be chosen, In thinking these things ^points^ over I decided that should any thing 3 happen to me I should make some arrangement wherely [sic] my wishes would be carried through regardless of others. In this reason I would want you to attend to these things for me in the way I’d do them myself – both criticizing and passing upon the finished writing, the photos and other illustrations, and the final word as to publishers.

[Transcript by Lauren B. Gerfen, 2012-10-09]