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Correspondence from Aleister Crowley to P.R. Stephensen
[On Aquila Press Ltd., London letterhead]
16 May 1930.
Dear Stephensen,
In continuation and confirmation of our conversation last night, I want to explain to you in writing . . . my position.
The old Mandrake [Mandrake Press] was sued as a firm on purely technical reasons, and you will (I am sure) understand that I never for a moment had any intention of taking any hostile action against you.
I expected you to disassociate yourself immediately from Goldston [Edward Goldston] . . .
Your conduct in the matter was from the first entirely Straightforward. Let me put to you the following points to make sure that our memories coincide.
At the time when the old Mandrake was trying to induce me to sign a general contract there was an abundance of "promesses arrosees". It was unlimited, the amount the Mandrake was going to spend on putting me over, and this was very natural, as the Mandrake had just made several thousands of pounds in a few weeks on the Lawrence proposition.
When samples of the paintings were shown you, you were delighted. Goldston of course did not understand anything about them, and was rather hostile, but he was overruled by the opinions of experts. . . .
In the prospectus of the Confessions [The Confessions of Aleister Crowley] you expressed a hope that I might be induced to show the pictures; in the original draft contract the pictures were included.
I thought it would be better to deal with them separately under another contract. . . . Goldston said that it was not necessary to draw up a contract formally. . . .
I . . . drafted one and sent it to him, but by this time he had already got scared by the crossed-finger experts and was trying to . . .
Your principal object in holding the exhibition was not that I might make money. . . . but because you considered that it would be a highly sensational advertisement, and result in the sale of large numbers of sets of the Confessions and other books of mine.
You will, I am sure, remember the very strenuous efforts which you personally made to get the exhibition held simultaneously with the publication of the Confessions; first with volume one and second with volume two.
This statement is of course ridiculous. The pictures (under the spur of a desperate impulse, which I can well understand, seeing how you were situated with Goldston) were hung up anyhow in that bleak office, without being cleaned, framed or selected. In other words the so-called exhibition might have been in a junk shop. . . . I am sure that if you will look well into your memory you will find that you agree with me on every point.
Yours sincerely
Aleister Crowley
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