Of this latter-mentioned article--I can’t say I have had much recently. Of all the abominable snakes I ever heard of -- -- -- -- is the worst. I got a letter on Wednesday from -- -- -- --. He had evidently feared my exposure of him to them--and to ward it off he took the pains to tell her that I was a venomous person, upset by the heat of the City, and trying to torture him for mere pleasure. She recommended a dose of pills, a swim, etc., as a means of clearing up my head--and otherwise insulted me. The next morn--comes a letter from -- -- -- -- himself--in which he denies that his letter constituted a confession at all, said that the money was sent merely out of consideration for my loss, etc., and other kinds of weak trashy statements. I shall not reply to him, but I wrote -- -- -- -- that if she had any interest in the truth or cared to alleviate her own responsibilities in imposing such opinions on me--she might come into town someday next week and take lunch with me. I mentioned that I hadn’t the time to write out the extensive evidence that I had, but that I should be glad to discuss them with her viva voce. The whole matter made me ill the next day--but the worst now is over, whether I ever get anything out of -- -- -- -- or not. I shall not press the claim further than the telling of the story to -- -- -- --; it isn’t worth it. There is absolutely no doubt about the confession in the letter, however, and I am keeping it well out of reach in my trunk. --/--/ By the end of a summer in New York everybody is at the limit of endurance; there is no place to rest, get away from the constant noise and vibrations of trucks, etc., and there’s a kind of insidious impurity in the air that seems to seep from sweaty walls and subways. Next year I shall have at least a month in the open country or by the sea--I haven’t had a real vacation now for several years, you know. The time spent in idleness when out of a job was always a worse strain than the hardest kind of labor, so that hasn’t counted for much with me. --/--/ I see much of Gorham and Liza--they are restful to me and always kind. I don’t think I should care to stay in New York long if they weren’t here. --/--/ 156: TO CHARLOTTE RYCHTARIK _New York City_ _Sept. 23rd, ’23_