[Advertisement letter for complete O. Henry collection] Page: 2 of 2

                                
"THE Y read him because he has the flavor of lie
as we know it; the tang, the zest, the    New York,
breathless, careless haste, the ironic,
hapo'y, tragic irresponsibi!ities,           October,
which go to make up life as we know it."     1926
Dear Friend:
Never before in your life nor in ours has this remarkable
opportunity come to you. Only a rare combination of circumstances
makes it possible now -- and it can only last for a short time.
In this letter you are not asked to send even a dollar. In
fact, your only expenditure will be a two-cent stamp.
BUT -- if you approve our plan -- you are to have, at our
expense and  iith our compliments the complete work -- 274 stories
-- of the most fascinating writer of the short-story the world
has ever known -- 0. HENRY! Not in twelve bulky volumes, nor in
eight, nor in six -- but every one of his 274 complete stories,
printed on opaque Bible paper, bound into one handsome cloth-
bound book, only l  inches thick, yet containing fourteen hundred
pages !
The Bible paper eliminates bulk, cuts down overweight,
and in fact is the ideal form in which to read 0. Henry.
Never before has 0. Henry -- complete -- been obtainable
in one volume.
Each and every story in the book is new and different --
each with a new beginning -- a new plot -- a new ending -- and so
human -- so full of fun -- of pathos -- of laughter --of tears!
He found romance everywhere -- around the corner -- in the
department store -- in the shop -- in the gutter -- in the street-
car. He laughs when he preaches, and preaches when he laughs.
He sees what no one else sees -- but he sees what we have all
subconsciously seen and makes us wonder why we never thought of it
before.
Like Ulysses, "He knew cities and the hearts of men,"
and knowing men he loved them well enough to feel a broad tolerance
for their shortcomings, believing that many an ill deed is atoned
for by an occasional act divine.
He picked out with deft yet gentle hand the little hidden
things we all strive to conceal, held them up to the light of day,
let the sun shine on them and then tucked them back again -- warmed
and heartened, or cleansed and sterilized.
0. Henry has given us more kinds of different stories than
any one who ever lived. No talent could be more original or