Conrad, Joseph | "I regard The Planter of Malata as a nearly successful attempt at doing a very difficult thing" — Joseph Conrad

Conrad, Joseph

Autograph manuscript of the final two chapters, XI and XII, of "The Planter of Malata"

12 leaves, the first 10 entirely in Conrad's autograph on blue-ruled tablet paper (327 x 202 mm), lettered a–j, with extensive deletions, emendations, and revisions, the final 2 leaves typewritten on fine typing paper (260 x 202), unnumbered and again with extensive deletions, emendations, and revisions, dated at the end by Conrad "20 December 1913," all sheets tipped at left margin uniform larger sheets (365 x 245) and bound in crushed blue morocco.

"The Planter of Malata" is an intriguing romance-mystery by Conrad and the lead story of a quartet of tales published as Within the Tides. The other stories are "The Partner," "The Inn of the Two Witches," and "Because of the Dollars." In his "Author's Note" to the collection, first published in the Uniform Edition of his work, Conrad defended "The Planter of Malata" against a critical charge of "false realism." "Such criticism," Conrad responded, "seems to miss the whole purpose and significance of a piece of writing the primary intention of which was mainly aesthetic; an essay in description and narrative around a given psychological situation. … I regard The Planter of Malata as a nearly successful attempt at doing a very difficult thing which I would have liked to have made as perfect as it lay in my power."

"The Planter of Malata" tells of Jeffrey Renouard, who has settled in isolation on Malata attended only by his assistant. He subsequently meets and becomes infatuated with Felicia Moorsom, who is searching for her missing fiancé, "Master Arthur." Renouard's romance, of course, is ill-fated and the story ends with his disappearance; his clothing is found on the beach, but his body is not.

The manuscript demonstrates Conrad's complete control of the narrative. While the manuscript and typescript are both reworked by him, the story as published follows almost identically his final revisions. Most differences between the published text and the present manuscript are matters of punctuation and other incidentals. But there are a few instances of more substantive difference. In Chapter XI, the manuscript includes the sentence, "Luiz dumbfounded retreated into the darkness from which he had come," while the printed text deletes the second phrase; the manuscript word "pacing" appears as "tramping" in the book; the manuscript phrase "looking into her eyes fearlessly" becomes in the published story "looking into her eyes with fearless despair"; in Chapter XII, the term "Literary Editor" in the manuscript becomes "all-knowing Editor" in the publication.

Conrad's beautifully legible manuscripts are increasingly uncommon on the market.