“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Ruburt felt that you did not trust his relationship with Tam as far as the spontaneous handling of business was concerned, and that perhaps the dissatisfaction you expressed about Prentice had to do with a certain emotional sloppiness, where both he and Tam did not have the proper regard for detail, and lacked a kind of integrity that you valued.

The Seagull, while free, was not all that free. It is no coincidence that Tam is younger than Ruburt, for this to some extent helped water down the idea of Prentice as an authority figure. Eleanor, older and a woman, giving definite instructions, did represent an authority figure, both in literary terms and business-wise.

Now: This is not as rambling as it may seem. I take it for granted that you understand the jumps in time. This was merely to remind you of certain continuities without going over events already mentioned—so going back to the point in time mentioned earlier in tonight’s session: when Dialogues was finished Ruburt tried it out on Prentice, and felt briefly that Tam might take it. Even then there was talk from a time earlier about a paperback deal. This had excited Ruburt, as had the Dialogues possibility. Both fell through.

Eleanor, who professed such greater literary understanding and appreciation for Dialogues, in her turn refused it as well, and also Rich Bed. Ruburt never thought Tam had any great understanding of poetry; but what good did Eleanor’s “superior” appreciation do if the book was refused after such compliments?

Later now, in the last period of time, when Eleanor heard that Ruburt had sent the outline of a new book, Aspects, to Tam, she astounded Ruburt by remarks of great regret, and implications that Ruburt had made an error. Ruburt was quite surprised, since Eleanor had not suggested before that a manuscript not be sent to Prentice.

Immediately the plans for the last trip here were made. In the meantime Ruburt heard of the Bantam deal, and Eleanor was saying “Hold off,” without giving the reasons. Ruburt was frightened. Supposing he got Prentice to hold off and Eleanor’s deal fell through? Physically he had never really forced a body image through athletics, for example. Feelings of any powerlessness, then, found easiest expression physically. He had felt relatively in control, business-wise, used to dealing directly, and this is one of the reason why he and Tam work together intuitively and business-wise so well.