1832.
My Dear Mr Schlegel
Your Mss followed the Announcement very slowly. As soon as I received it I made a Proposal through Mr Lockhart to Murray who in spite of more one A than one Application was very long before He answered me.
When the Answer came it required that a Sight of Your Mss xxx should be given for a short time to a Man of Letters chosen by Mr Murray To this I could not assert without obtaining your Approbation
In determining what You ought to do I request you to consider that this literary Counsellor of Mr Murray is not to sit in [2] Judgement on your Genius & Learning but to perform the mere gross Task of endeavouring to estimate how far the Sale of the Work would in the present State of the Taste & Temper of London on commercial Principles warrant a vile trader in Books to agree to your Terms in themselves certainly very moderate
Though I am regardful & even jealous of your Dignity I own that in this View of the Subject I should strongly incline to agree with Murrays Request. The Indian Question will not come on in Parliament till next Year –
I beg an earlier Answer than Murrays Delays allowed me to make to you
I am My Dear Mr S.
Yours very faithfully
Mackintosh
[3] [leer]
[4] M. W. A. Schelegel