The death of Stevenson's father in May 1887, severed the strongest tie which bound him to the old country; and weary of battling for health in an unpropitious climate, he accepted the advice of his physicians to try a complete change of surroundings. Accordingly, with his wife and mother, he sailed to America in August 1887. He spent the next winter at Saranac Lake, in the Adirondack Mountains. His main work that season was the prepara tion of 12 articles for Scribner's Magacine, which appeared one a month through 1888, and the composition of a large part of 'The Master of Ballantrae,' perhaps his most at tractive romance. Among the Scribner papers were several of his greatest essays on litera ture and life,— for example, The Lantern Bearers,' et Umbra' and 'A Christmas Sermon.' In June 1888, he crossed the con tinent to San Francisco; and being subsidised by large advance orders for travel letters and other literary work, sailed forth with his entire family on the schooner yacht Casco for a long voyage to the South Sea Islands. His first extensive stay was at Honolulu, 1889, where he completed 'The Master of Ballantrae' and also 'The Wrong Box,'— the latter in collabo ration with his step-son, Mr. Lloyd Osbourne. Thence, in the schooner Equator, he proceeded to Samoa and Sydney. From Sydney, after voyaging to many islands on the steamer Janet Nicoll, he returned to Samoa, bought an estate named Vailima on a mountain slope above Apia in the island of Upolu, and de termined to settle there for good. From 1891 to his death he lived at Vailima, building a great house and dwelling with a feudal dig nity emulous of Scott's at Abbotsford. He was beloved by all the natives,— who called him uTusitala,* teller of tales,— took an active interest in Samoan affairs, and became, by the force of his engaging personality, a real power in the land. At Vailima he produced 'The
Wrecker' and 'The Ebb Tide,' both in col laboration with Mr. Osbourne; a sequel to 'Kidnapped,' called 'Catriona, or David Bal four); a collection of 'Island Nights Enter tainments' ; sundry writings about Samoan affairs; and three-quarters of a romance called Ives,' completed after his death by Mr. A. T. Quiller-Couch. In all of this work he was aided by his step-daughter, Mrs. Isobel Strong, who proved to be a devoted amanuensis. He also commenced 'Weir of Hermiston,' which gave promise of being by far the greatest of his novels. He labored on this book with feverish intensity until the very day of his death. The end came suddenly. With char acteristic gaiety of spirit, he was making a salad on the veranda, when .a blood-vessel burst in his brain. He lost consciousness im mediately, and died within two hours. The Samoans bore his body to the summit of Vats Mountain, where he lies buried. See TREASURE ISLAND; KIDNAPPED; DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE.
Bibliography.—All the material really nec essary for a study of Stevenson is comprised in the Edinburgh and Thistle Editions, includ ing the 'Life,' by Graham Balfour, and the