ote to me that they had already sold 5000 copies more or less； a large sale for a boys’ book by a practically unknown man。 I wonder how many copies they have sold up to Christmas 1911！ In one form and another the total must run to hundreds of thousands。
Before the book appeared we had gone down to Norfolk for part of the long vacation； not to Ditchingham； which was let； but to a farmhouse at Denton adjoining a farm of our own； where I employed my holiday in ain；” the continuation of “King Solomon’s Mines。” One day I chanced to visit the little town of Bungay and there to see a copy of the Saturday Review which contained a two…column notice of the latter work。 It was written by Lang； although this I did not know at the time。 With delight my eye fell upon such sentences as “All through the battle piece； ‘The Last Stand of the Greys；’ Mr。 Haggard； like Scott at Flodden； ‘never stoops his wing’”； and “to tell the truth we would give many novels； say eight hundred （that is about the yearly harvest）； for such a book as ‘King Solomon’s Mines。’”
By the way； things in this respect have changed since 1885。 I believe that the “yearly harvest” of British novels now numbers nearly three thousand。
I went back to the farm that night feeling sure that my book was going to succeed。 A week or so later I received a note from Lang in which he says： “The Spectator in a ‘middle’ gives you more praise than I did； and is neither known personally to you； I fancy； nor an amateur of savages； like me。 I hope they will give a review also。 。 。 。 I never read anything in the Spectator before with such pleasure。”
One day I took the manuscript of “King Solomon’s Mines” to be bound by Mr。 H。 Glaisher the bookseller。 In the carriage of the Underground Railway I perceived an ol