Not that his success was
having any undesirable effect upon him; his Dutch common sense saved
him from any such calamity. But at thirty years of age it is not good
for any one, no matter how well balanced, to have things come his way
too fast and too consistently. And here were breaks. He could not
have everything he wanted, and it was just as well that he should find
that out.
In his next quest he found himself again opposed by his London friends.
Unable to secure a new _Alice in Wonderland_ for his child readers, he
determined to give them Kate Greenaway. But here he had selected
another recluse. Everybody discouraged him. The artist never saw
visitors, he was told, and she particularly shunned editors and
publishers. Her own publishers confessed that Miss Greenaway was
inaccessible to them. "We conduct all our business with her by
correspondence. I have never seen her personally myself," said a
member of the firm.
Bok inwardly decided that two failures in two days were sufficient, and
he made up his mind that there should not be a third.
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