September 28, 956

Dr. Walter Carter

Pineapple Research Institute of Hawaii
P.O. Box 3166

Honolulu 2, H.I.

Dear Dr. Carter:

Anent our earlier correspomience, I have finally had a meeting with
Mr. Thompson Webb with regard to the feasibility of an Agerican edition
of Buchner's Endosymblosis.

The desirability of such a version requires no further discussion. It
would be an enterprise of great interest and importance, and I have not
changed my mind about that at all. However, I am becoming convinced that
a verbatim translation of the whole work would not only be prohibitively
expemaive, and therefore impractical, but might not conwy the full impact
to as harge an audience as would a less formidable work. Since the German
edition is in print, ani avadlable at least in most uniwessity libraries,
it would serve as the detailed documentation. On the other hand, we would
not want an oversimplified, unsubstamtial work, for example like Canllery's
trahslation not long ago.

I can see weighty problems in the path of this enterprise, but it/s only
chance of financial and scientific success would bs if Professor Buchner would
consent to a substantial condensation of his book for an American edition. In
the light of publ costa here, @.g., as Mr. Freeman has already inficated,
& volums of about 250 3% would be the most feasible, with a correspordding
sample of the illustrations. Por a mamisoript of these dimensions, ¥r. Webb
has already expressed his very clear interest (and I am persohally confident
that a numer of other publishers would be equally interested.)

The next step, I suggest, would be to ask Professor Buchner whether he
would endorse this plan. In view of your personal acquaintanceship with him,
16 might be more appropriate for you to persuade him; of cousse you can iniicate
how many other people would bs keen on the idea of having his work more readily
avddlable in the U.S. He should then have to face the problems of who would do
the condensatdon and then the translation, but it might be better to wait until
Buchner himself has spoken on this question. Ideally, he would pepare the
comlensat&on, and might help with the translation himself, but it would be
understandable if he were reluctant to do it. As to finamcial assistance for
clerical work, it is unlikely that any publisher will want to underwrite that
directly, though the costs might be recaptured in royalties af the book were
successful, I would be prepared to endorse applications to the National Science
Foundation, or other agencies, if there were som: possibility of their support.
For that, it would probably be necessary to orgnize the project on a definite
non-profit basis, through some university press.

Yours sincereky,