Fruitfulness : Fecondite

New York: Doubleday, Page & Co., 1900. A bright, clean, square, tight copy. Inner hinges are perfect. Previous owner's ink name and date (June 7, 1900) on the front endpaper. Bound in the original green cloth. Gilt titles on the spine and front cover are still bright and shiny. Top edge gilt. From the Translator's Preface: "FRUITFULNESS is the first of a series of four works in which M. Zola proposes to embody what he considered to be the four cardinal principles of human life." Respectively, Zola's Quatre Évangiles [four gospels] were to feature principal characters named Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Zola finished only 3 of them: Fécondité (1899, tr. FRUITFULNESS, 1900); Travail (1901, tr. LABOR, 1901); and Vérité (published posthumously, 1903, tr. TRUTH, 1903). The final book, JUSTICE, was not completed at the time of Zola's death in 1902 of carbon monoxide poisoning from a stopped-up chimney. Although nothing was ever proved, many people believed he had been murdered. After all, Zola had made plenty of enemies as a result of his role in France's notorious Dreyfus Affair. Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish army captain, was convicted of espionage and sent to Devil's Island. In 1898, Zola risked his life and career in defense of Dreyfus by accusing the French government of anti-Semitism and wrongful imprisonment. The catalyst was Zola's letter "J'accuse" published on the front page of a Paris newspaper, L'AURORE. Less than 6 weeks later, Zola found himself convicted of libel, sentenced, and removed from the Legion of Honor. To avoid prison, Zola had to temporarily flee to England. Dreyfus was eventually pardoned, and in 1906 exonerated by the Supreme Court.. First American Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good+ condition/No jacket. 8vo. ix, 487pp.