Record Number: 33614

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Reading Experience:

Evidence:

'As Conrad read for an hour or to before turning in, our one lamp, of the cheap paraffin variety, was hung on a nail close to his bunk, and was generally kept alight all night in case of a sudden call.[...]. On occasions I turned in leaving him fast asleep, only to wake up an hour later to find him reading Hartley Withers "War and Lombard Street" the only book he read during the whole cruise. This particular publication was to him one of absorbing interest, and he devoted all his reading time to the study of it. We were not supplied with a library on board, but individual members of the crew had brought with them novels and magazines of the light and non-technical type. These however did not appeal to Conrad and he never read them.' [Later in the memoir the author describes Conrad discoursing on money markets and insurance, based on his reading of this book.]

Century:

1900-1945

Date:

Between 6 Nov 1916 and 16 Nov 1916

Country:

At sea (North Sea)

Time

evening
night

Place:

other location: On board the 'Ready' a decoy brigantine

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

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Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

Joseph Conrad

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

3 Dec 1857

Socio-Economic Group:

Gentry
'Szlachta', or Polish landed gentry/nobility

Occupation:

Master mariner and author

Religion:

Roman Catholic

Country of Origin:

Poland

Country of Experience:

At sea (North Sea)

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

n/a

Additional Comments:

n/a

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Text Being Read:

Author:

Hartley Withers

Title:

War and Lombard Street

Genre:

Economics and business

Form of Text:

Print: Book

Publication Details

London: Smith, Elder 1915

Provenance

owned
Possibly owned since Conrad reportedly donated his copy to Captain Sutherland at the end of the voyage (source text p. 96)

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Source Information:

Record ID:

33614

Source:

Print

Author:

J. G. Sutherland

Editor:

n/a

Title:

At Sea With Joseph Conrad

Place of Publication:

Boston and New York

Date of Publication:

1922

Vol:

n/a

Page:

58-9

Additional Comments:

n/a

Citation:

J. G. Sutherland, At Sea With Joseph Conrad, (Boston and New York, 1922), p. 58-9, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=33614, accessed: 26 April 2024

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Additional Comments:

Conrad in a letter to Richard Curle 29 June 1922 called this memoir 'preposterous bosh' and distanced himself from its contents overall, in a letter which the author used as a forward. The source overall may not be reliable, though the actual reading experience is curiously precise.