O. Henry

by O. Henry

  Note on the Texts

  This volume contains 101 sketches and short stories by O. Henry written over the course of his career and published from 1894 to 1911.

  O. Henry (born William Sidney Porter) was a prolific writer, especially given the fact that he produced all of his mature work in the thirteen-­year span from 1898 to his death in 1910, and more than half of it from 1903 through 1906. In 1958, a staff member at his publisher, Doubleday, produced an internal memorandum itemizing all of O. Henry’s published short stories. (The memo is now in the collection of the University of Virginia Library.) It listed 264 titles, including 244 published in magazines and newspapers and collected in books, and twenty stories included in Cabbages and Kings (1904) and The Gentle Grafter (1908) but never previously published. In addition, from 1894 to 1896, O. Henry published several hundred pieces, first in an Austin, Texas–based humor magazine he edited, The Rolling Stone, and then in The Houston Post, where he was a staff writer. These works—many of which were subsequently collected posthumously in Rolling Stones (1912), Postscripts (1923), and O. Henry Encore (1939)—range from comical paragraphs to satiric sketches to longer pieces that anticipate his mature short stories. Finally, there are three stories—“The Ghost That Came to Old Angles,” “Pursuing Ideals,” and “Return of the Songster”—that the writer apparently submitted to magazines in 1898 but were rejected and never published (manuscripts of these stories are in the University of Virginia library). “The Miracle of Lava Canyon,” written about the same time, was syndicated nationally by McClure’s Syndicate in 1898 under the name “W. S. Porter.” His first story to appear in a magazine was “Whistling Dick’s Christmas Stocking,” published in McClure’s in 1899 under the name “O. Henry.” Over the next few years his works appeared under a variety of bylines, including Sydney Porter (he had changed the spelling of his middle name in his Texas days), Olivier Henry, and S. H. Peters. From the fall of 1903 until his death, he exclusively used O. Henry.

  The collections of O. Henry’s stories published in his lifetime, besides those mentioned above, were The Four Million (1906), The Trimmed Lamp (1907), Heart of the West (1907), The Voice of the City (1908), Roads of Destiny (1909), Options (1909), and Strictly Business (1910). The other posthumous collections were Whirligigs (1910), Sixes and Sevens (1911), Waifs and Strays (1917), and O. Henryana (1920). Only in a handful of cases was there any duplication in these books. The author’s involvement in the development of the collections was limited; he played a part in choosing the titles for the collections and in several instances changed the title of an individual story: “Raggles” became “The Making of a New Yorker,” and, notably, “Gifts of the Magi” became “The Gift of the Magi.” Most of the first half dozen collections were thematically organized: The Four Million and The Voice of the City gathered New York stories, Heart of the West Western stories, Cabbages and Kings the Central America–set linked stories, and The Gentle Grafter the Jeff Peters stories. The contents of subsequent collections were selected by his publisher based on what uncollected material was at hand. The texts of the stories were generally not altered between their periodical and book publications. There were no British editions during the author’s lifetime. Doubleday republished O. Henry’s short story collections in several editions of uniform volumes from 1912 to 1929 and also gathered his collected writings in editions ranging from one to three volumes, the first in 1926 and the most recent in 1953. In 1945, the Modern Library published a collection of thirty-­eight stories that has continuously been in print since. (The book could not be described as representative, as only two stories are set in the West and it does not include anything from The Gentle Grafter.) In 1998, all of O. Henry’s works entered the public domain, and since then there have been numerous anthologies, recently including e-­books.

  The stories selected for this volume represent the editor’s judgment of O. Henry’s best stories, with an attempt to reflect, as well, the principal strains in his work; the geographical section headings loosely follow the course of O. Henry’s life. For those stories collected during O. Henry’s lifetime, the source of the text in this volume is the first American edition. This volume also includes texts from three collections that were published in the months following O. Henry’s death in June 1910, as work on the collections would have finished months in advance: Whirligigs, published by Doubleday, Page & Company in September 1910; The Two Women, published in Boston by Small, Maynard and Company in December 1910; and Sixes and Sevens, published by Doubleday, Page & Company in October 1911.

  O. Henry was not directly involved in the publication of The Two Women, which collects the stories “A Fog in Santone” and “A Medley of Moods” (an alternate version of the story “Blind Man’s Holiday”). However, Witter Bynner, in whose name The Two Women was copyrighted, wrote in a letter to O. Henry bibliographer Paul S. Clarkson that “in return for a few favors, [O. Henry] handed me the manuscripts of two stories which he said were not much good but might, if ever he grew famous, prove to be a recompense. Later, when I was with Small, Maynard and Company I mentioned the fact and the firm asked if they might not publish the two in a volume. I wrote Mrs. Porter [O. Henry’s widow, the former Sara Lindsay Coleman] about the case and received her assent to the project.”

  For stories not collected during O. Henry’s lifetime or immediately thereafter, the first periodical publication is the source of the text in this volume, except in the following cases, in which the original periodical publication is not known to be extant:

  “Bexar Scrip No. 2692” was originally published in Porter’s humorous weekly The Rolling Stone (March 5, 1894). It was collected posthumously in Rolling Stones (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1912), pp. 217–30. The text from Rolling Stones is the source of the text in this volume.

  “Three Paragraphs” was originally published in The Rolling Stone (September 22, 1894). It was collected posthumously in O. Henryana (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1920), pp. 8–12. The text from O. Henryana is the source of the text in this volume.

  In addition, three stories in this volume have never been previously published. The texts of these stories, “The Ghost That Came to Old Angles,” “Pursuing Ideals,” and “Return of the Songster,” are taken from O. Henry’s manuscripts, which are in the Papers of O. Henry (William Sydney Porter), Box 1, Folders 2–4, Accession #6333-­i, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Virginia.

  The following is a list of the stories included in this volume, in the order of their appearance, giving the first periodical appearance of each text as well as the source of the text in this volume. The most common sources are indicated by title alone:

  Cabbages and Kings (New York: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1904).

  The Four Million (New York: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1906).

  The Trimmed Lamp (New York: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1907).

  Heart of the West (New York: The McClure Company, 1907).

  The Voice of the City (New York: The McClure Company, 1908).

  The Gentle Grafter (New York: The McClure Company, 1908).

  Roads of Destiny (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1909).

  Options (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1909).

  Strictly Business (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1910).

  Whirligigs (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1910).

  The Two Women (Boston: Small, Maynard and Company, 1910).

  Sixes and Sevens (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1911).

  Rolling Stones (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1912).

  Waifs and Strays (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1917).

  O. Henryana (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1920).

  Postscripts (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1923).

  O. Henry Encore (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Comp
any, 1936).

  EARLY SKETCHES, STORIES, AND REPORTAGE

  “Bexar Scrip No. 2692,” The Rolling Stone (March 5, 1894); this issue appears to no longer be extant. Rolling Stones, pp. 217–30.

  “Three Paragraphs,” The Rolling Stone (September 22, 1894); this issue appears to no longer be extant. O. Henryana, pp. 8–12.

  “A Personal Insult,” The Houston Post (December 12, 1895), p. 4; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “When the Train Comes In: Outline Sketches at the Grand Central Depot,” The Houston Post (December 16, 1895), p. 4; posthumously collected in O. Henry Encore.

  “Why He Hesitated,” The Houston Post (December 18, 1895), p. 6; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “Something for Baby,” The Houston Post (December 21, 1895), p. 4; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “Too Wise,” The Houston Post (December 24, 1895), p. 6; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “The Return of the Songster,” c. 1895. Papers of O. Henry, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

  “Book Reviews,” The Houston Post (February 23, 1896), p. 6; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “Guessed Everything Else,” The Houston Post (March 21, 1896), p. 4; posthumously collected in Postscripts.

  “In Mezzotint,” The Houston Post (April 26, 1896), p. 18; posthumously collected in O. Henry Encore.

  “The Barber Talks,” The Houston Post (May 31, 1896), p. 9; posthumously collected in O. Henry Encore.

  “The Ghost That Came to Old Angles,” c. 1897. Papers of O. Henry, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

  “Pursuing Ideals,” c. 1897. Papers of O. Henry, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

  “The Miracle of Lava Canyon,” McClure’s Syndicate (The Omaha Daily Bee) (September 17, 1898), p. 9.

  COUNTRY

  “Whistling Dick’s Christmas Stocking,” McClure’s (December 1899); Roads of Destiny, pp. 311–34.

  “A Retrieved Reformation,” Cosmopolitan (April 1903) under the title “A Retrieved Reform”; Roads of Destiny, pp. 161–72.

  “Confessions of a Humorist,” Ainslee’s, Vol. 12, No. 3 (October 1903), pp. 62–66; posthumously collected in Waifs and Strays.

  “A Ramble in Aphasia,” Metropolitan (February 1905); Strictly Business, pp. 129–46.

  “Blind Man’s Holiday,” Ainslee’s (December 1905); Whirligigs, pp. 259–87. It was also collected in The Two Women with the title “A Medley of Moods.”

  “The Ransom of Red Chief,” The Saturday Evening Post (July 6, 1907); Whirligigs, pp. 100–115.

  “A Municipal Report,” Hampton’s (November 1909); Strictly Business, pp. 147–71.

  WEST

  “A Fog in Santone: A Meteorological Sketch,” c. 1901. The Two Women, pp. 9–28; it subsequently appeared in Cosmopolitan (October 1912).

  “Friends in San Rosario,” Ainslee’s (April 1902); Roads of Destiny, pp. 186–205.

  “Round the Circle,” Everybody’s Magazine, Vol. 7, No. 4 (October 1902), pp. 388–90; posthumously collected in Waifs and Strays.

  “Hearts and Hands,” Everybody’s Magazine, Vol. 7, No. 6 (December 1902), pp. 581–82; posthumously collected in Waifs and Strays.

  “The Lonesome Road,” Ainslee’s (September 1903); Roads of Destiny, pp. 364–76.

  “The Pimienta Pancakes,” McClure’s (December 1903); Heart of the West, pp. 62–77.

  “Holding Up a Train,” McClure’s (April 1904); Sixes and Sevens, pp. 46–63.

  “The Ransom of Mack,” McClure’s (December 1904); Heart of the West, pp. 22–31.

  “Christmas by Injunction,” New York Sunday World (December 11, 1904); Heart of the West, pp. 288–305.

  “The Handbook of Hymen,” Munsey’s (July 1906); Heart of the West, pp. 44–61.

  “The Caballero’s Way,” Everybody’s Magazine (July 1907); Heart of the West, pp. 200–218.

  “The Moment of Victory,” Munsey’s (June 1908); Options, pp. 186–208.

  “Buried Treasure,” Ainsley’s (July 1908); Options, pp. 128–46.

  “The Last of the Troubadours,” Everybody’s Magazine (July 1908); Sixes and Sevens, pp. 3–20.

  “The Hiding of Black Bill,” Everybody’s Magazine (October 1908); Options, pp. 45–66.

  “A Technical Error,” Munsey’s (February 1910); Whirligigs, pp. 125–34.

  “The Friendly Call,” Associated Sunday Magazine (syndicated, The Washington Post) (July 10, 1910), pp. 7, 22–23.

  TROPICS

  “Shoes,” originally part of a longer story titled “The Lotus and the Cockleburrs,” published in Everybody’s Magazine (October 1903); Cabbages and Kings, pp. 225–41.

  “Ships,” originally part of a longer story titled “The Lotus and the Cockleburrs,” published in Everybody’s Magazine (October 1903); Cabbages and Kings, pp. 242–56.

  “A Ruler of Men,” Everybody’s Magazine, Vol. 15, No. 2 (August 1906), pp. 157–67.

  “Next to Reading Matter,” Everybody’s Magazine (December 1907); Roads of Destiny, pp. 68–87.

  THE GENTLE GRAFTER

  “The Atavism of John Tom Little Bear,” Everybody’s Magazine, Vol. 9, No. 1 (July 1903), pp. 57–64; posthumously collected in Rolling Stones.

  “Conscience in Art,” McClure’s Syndicate (Summer 1908); The Gentle Grafter, pp. 126–36.

  “The Man Higher Up,” McClure’s Syndicate (Summer 1908); The Gentle Grafter, pp. 137–59.

  NEW YORK

  “The Social Triangle,” New York Sunday World (December 13, 1903); The Trimmed Lamp, pp. 121–29.

  “A Little Local Colour,” New York Sunday World (January 10, 1904); Whirligigs, pp. 231–39.

  “A Newspaper Story,” New York Sunday World (January 17, 1904); Whirligigs, pp. 209–14.

  “After Twenty Years,” New York Sunday World (February 14, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 214–20.

  “Lost on Dress Parade,” New York Sunday World (February 28, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 221–31.

  “The Complete Life of John Hopkins,” New York Sunday World (April 17, 1904); The Voice of the City, pp. 11–20.

  “The Rubber Plant’s Story,” New York Sunday World (May 15, 1904), p. 8; posthumously collected in Waifs and Strays.

  “A Dinner at ——— *: The Adventures of an Author with His Own Hero,” The Critic, Vol. 44, No. 6 (June 1904), pp. 530–34; posthumously collected in Rolling Stones.

  “A Comedy in Rubber,” New York Sunday World (June 19, 1904); The Voice of the City, pp. 67–74.

  “The Pride of the Cities,” New York Sunday World (July 3, 1904); Sixes and Sevens, pp. 38–45.

  “The Foreign Policy of Company 99,” New York Sunday World (July 31, 1904); The Trimmed Lamp, pp. 139–49.

  “The Furnished Room,” New York Sunday World (August 14, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 239–50.

  “The Love-­Philtre of Ikey Schoenstein,” New York Sunday World (October 2, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 118–26.

  “The Rathskeller and the Rose,” New York Sunday World (October 9, 1904); The Voice of the City, pp. 178–86.

  “A Sacrifice Hit,” New York Sunday World (October 16, 1904); Whirligigs, pp. 152–58.

  “The Coming-­Out of Maggie,” New York Sunday World (November 20, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 68–80.

  “The Cop and the Anthem,” New York Sunday World (December 4, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 89–99.

  “The Green Door,” New York Sunday World (December 18, 1904); The Four Million, pp. 150–63.

  “The Badge of Policeman O’Roon,” New York Sunday World (December 25, 1904); The Trimmed Lamp, pp. 81–88.

  “The Making of a New Yorker,” New York Sunday World (January 1, 1905), under the title “Raggles; or the Making of a New Yorker”; The
Trimmed Lamp, pp. 102–10.

  “Psyche and the Pskyscraper,” New York Sunday World (January 15, 1905); Strictly Business, pp. 172–81.

  “Man About Town,” New York Sunday World (March 5, 1905); The Four Million, pp. 81–88.

  “Springtime à la Carte,” New York Sunday World (April 2, 1905); The Four Million, pp. 139–49.

  “Extradited from Bohemia,” New York Sunday World (April 23, 1905); The Voice of the City, pp. 199–208.

  “Tommy’s Burglar,” New York Sunday World (May 14, 1905); Whirligigs, pp. 215–22.

  “The Girl and the Graft,” New. York Sunday World (May 28, 1905); Strictly Business, pp. 89–98.

  “Sisters of the Golden Circle,” New York Sunday World (July 2, 1905); The Four Million, pp. 196–206.

  “An Adjustment of Nature,” New York Sunday World (July 16, 1905); The Four Million, pp. 100–108.

  “A Midsummer Knight’s Dream,” New York Sunday World (July 23, 1905); The Trimmed Lamp, pp. 189–97.

  “An Unfinished Story,” McClure’s (August 1905); The Four Million, pp. 173–84.

  “The City of Dreadful Night,” New York Sunday World (August 13, 1905); The Voice of the City, pp. 141–48.

  “The Skylight Room,” New York Sunday World (August 20, 1905); The Four Million, pp. 47–57.

  “The Poet and the Peasant,” New York Sunday World (September 10, 1905); Strictly Business, pp. 72–81.