More for the Hired Man?

A geography professor at Yale, Stephen B. Jones, spent three long evenings reviewing a manuscript for a New York publishing house. He got a check for $15. The sum, said the publishers, could only suggest their gratitude. "I had given them the best advice and comment I could . . . and for about a dollar and a half an hour," said Professor Jones. "I mailed back the check with a letter saying I. would appreciate one that equaled their gratitude instead of merely suggesting it." (The publishers eventually sent him $25.)

Robert Bierstedt, University of Illinois professor of sociology, was asked to criticize a manuscript, list possible improvements, estimate sales, suggest the effects of popularization--all for $30. "My fee," replied Bierstedt, "has gone up to $100." Sorry, said the publisher, we can't afford it: we contribute to scholarship by bringing out books that will never make money. "Such solicitude [for scholarship]," wrote Bierstedt, "is touching"--but he had seen too many lavish dinners go on publishers' expense accounts. "Professors may be stupid when it comes to dollars," he concluded, "but they know a little something about dialectic."

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