“He’s an incredible ass. …”
—An English Girl (1907)
Until Ford Maddox Ford discovered his true subject matter, he was in Exodus with too many prophets: Turgenev, Flaubert, Conrad—and James. It is James who played the largest role in the development of his art, not Conrad, as is so often said by those who have in mind Ford’s three collaborations with the author of “Heart of Darkness.” A measure of this can be seen in Ford’s treatment of the two men. Conrad was never a fit object of satire. Ford’s anecdotes about him are often humorous but never biting. About James he is almost maliciously cruel. Major Teddy Brent in Ring for Nancy (1912) keeps pestering the salespeople of lending libraries for novels by Henry James. They have never heard of the author. The major urges them to order copies. Finally a higher official of the library catches up with the playful major. His question: Did the major want to ruin them by having them stock unpopular books? Ford had hit James where he was most sensitive. It is no wonder that when Ford’s critical study of James was published in 1913 he was afraid to send him a copy, and if James ever read the book, he never alluded to having done so.
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