COOPER
COOPER
of adopting literary work at this time. His first at-
tempt at writing was made in his thirtieth year,
and was due wliolly to chance. One evening when
following his custom of reading aloud to his wife
he suddenly stopped, exjjressed his dissatisfaction
with the book and added, " I believe I could write
a better story myself." Mrs. Cooper laughingly
advised him to do so, and he began his task. On
Nov. 10, 1820, a two volume novel on English
high life was published under the title " Precau-
tion." The book, full of crudities and written
about people of whose life he knew little or noth-
ing, was a failure, but his friends encouraged
him to try again, and advised him to depict the
people and scenes with which he was familiar.
Accordingly "The Spy," a novel founded on
fact, was published on Dec. 23, 1821, and in a few-
weeks had met with the largest sale of any
American book up to that time. A third edition
was published in March, 1822, and in the same
month the story was dramatized and played to
crowded houses. It achieved an equal success on
its publication in England and the young Avriter
was referred to by eminent English critics as " a
distinguished American novelist." In the sum-
mer of 1822 " The Spy " was translated into
French, and later into all the modern European
languages. In 1822 he removed to New York city
where in August, 1823, his youngest child, Feni-
more, died, and the affliction completely pros-
trated Mr. Cooper. In 1824 his son Paul was
born in New York city, and Mr. Cooper resumed
his writing, producing thereafter at least one
book a year. The sale of his works was phenom-
enal and public interest increased with each new
volume. The first of the five " Leather -Stocking
Tales " appeared in 1823, under the title "The
Pioneers." Despite their great popularity his
books did not escape adverse comment, and, says
a biographer, "the extent to which Cooper was
affected by hostile criticism is something re-
markable. He manifested under it the irasci-
bility of a man not simply thin-skinned, but of
one whose skin was raw. " He persisted not only
in reading but in replying to the charges made
against his books, using the preface of one to
abuse the reviewers of its predecessors. Of the
ten books published by him between the years
1820 and 1830 but one, " Lionel Lincoln," proved
a failure, and " The Last of the Mohicans " which
followed close upon it so far surpassed all that
had gone before that " Lionel Lincoln " was
allowed to sink into oblivion. While in New
York he founded the " Bread and Cheese Lunch, "
.or, as it was sometimes called, the ' ' Cooper Clvib, ' '
enrolling among its members Chancellor Kent,
the jurist; Verplanck, the editor of Shakespeare;
Jarvis, the artist; Durand, the engraver; Delvay,
the naturalist ; Wiley, the publisher ; Morse, the
inventor; and Halleck and Bryant, the poets.
This club met weekly and flourished until the
death of its founder. On June 1, 1826, he sailed
with his family for Europe and remained there,
principally in France, until 1833. He was ap-
pointed by Henry Clay, then secretary of state,
consul at Lyons, his commission dating from
May 10, 1826, but he gave up the position in less
than three years. He travelled throughout Great
Britain and continental Europe, meeting the dis-
tinguished men of all countries and receiving
warm welcome as the chief of American novel-
ists. In 1831-32 he was forced by circumstances
to take part in a dispute which marked the de-
cline of his popularity in his own country. He
was residing in France at the time of Louis
Philippe's attemjited separation from the liberal
party represented by Lafayette. In a discussion
in the chamber of deputies as to a means of re-
ducing government expenses, Lafayette cited the
system adopted by the United States as a model
of cheap and satisfactorj' government. M. Saul-
nier, editor of the Beviie Britannique, at once pub-
lished an article in direct denial of Lafayette's
assertion to which Cooper was asked to reply.
He at first declined, but finding that the article
had been written for the express purpose of in-
juring Lafayette, his loyalty to the friend of his
country induced him to publish a pamphlet in
which he gave a detailed account of government
expenses in the United States. This gave rise to
contradictions from M. Saulnier and replies by
Mr. Cooper. Then the matter was taken up by
Mr. Leavitt Harris who had once been left as
charge d'affaires at St. Petersburg during the
absence of John Adams at the peace negotiations
at Ghent. Mr. Harris took exceptions to Mr.
Cooper's statements, and the fact that he had
been an official gave his communication added
weight. To this Cooper replied and closed his
part of the discussion, French liberals claiming
that he had utterlj- demolished his antagonists.
This would have ended peaceabl}' had not Amer-
ican newspapers seen fit to accuse Cooper of
" overstepping the reserve imposed upon foreign-
ers, attacking the administration of a friendly
country, and flouting his Americanism through-
out Europe,"' accusations so manifestly unjust
that to those understanding the matter it is not
surprising that Cooper became embittered toward
his country. He decided to return to the United
States but to abandon literary work. In Novem-
ber, 1833, he reached New York and in 1834 he
renovated his old home at Cooperstown, where for
a few years he spent his summers, and later re-
mained there throughout the year. He decided
to resume his writing, and his resentment of
America's injustice to him led him to criticise
rather harshly the changes which had taken place
