Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1862-04-10
M0rtegter 4alLp Sun.
why Irving was Never Married

Why irving was Never Married
The New York correspondent OF the Boston
Post writes as follows:
"Much mystery has attached to the ceiba.
cy of Washington Irving. While upon every
other point of popularity of the great writer's
character and career his familiar friends have
taken pains to inform the wide circle of his
admirers, an aggravating reticence has always
met the questionings Of those who were curl
Gus as to why matrimOny made no part Of his
experience. There were occasional and very
vague references made to a lang syne' love
so dimy distant in the past as to have the air
of traditon-and the manner of mentioning
which made Irving appear the model OF con-
stancy, if not the hero of a romance. But the
circumstance of his bachelOrhOud remained a
simple, unexplained fact; the theme of many
wonderings, the WARP and wool OF much imag.
ination-nay more the obstruction of Il thou.
sand sweet sympathies outgushing from other
hearts whose loves had not been lost but gone
forever. 1t is doubtful if a secret of the sort
all things cOnsidercd-was ever before so
carefully and completely kept. For once The
impertinent were held at bay, the prying ere
banked, and the sympathetic, even, dscour.
aged. The set time for lis disclosure has not
come, and, surely, when his intmales and rel.
ence to the subject in the hallowed home cir
Gle Of the literary bachelor, it was but proper
that the truth should burst forth upon the
world, if at all, in Irvings own selected time
and IN his own pathetic language.
1t was while engaged in writing his 'HstO
ry of New York, that Irving, then a young
man Of twenty-siX, was called to mourn the
somewhat sudden death of Matilda Hoffman
whom he had hoped to call his wife. This
young lady was the second daughter of Josiah
Ogden Hoffman, and the sister of those two
talented men, Charles Fenno Hoffman, the
poet, and Ogden Hoffman, the eloquent jurist
In her fathers office Washington Irving had
essayed to study law, and with every pros
pect, if industrious and studous, OF a partner
ship with Mr.. Hoffman as well as matrimo
Mai alliance with Matilda. These high hopes
were disappointed by the decease of the young
lady on the 26th Of April, 1909, in the eight
zenith year oil her age.
There is pathos about Irving's recital of
the circumstances of her death, and of his own
feelings, that is truly painful and tear-impell
ing. He says; She was taken ill with
cold. Nothing was thought of it at first but
she grew rapidly worse and fell into con-
sumption. | cannot tell you what suffered
y l saw her fade rapidly away
beautiful, and more beautiful and more angel.
ical to the very last. | was often by her bed.
side, and i'll her wandering state OF mind
she would talk to me with a sweet elo
quence that was overpowering. | saw more
of the beauty of her mind in that deirious
state than l had ever known before. Her ma.
lady was rapid in its career, and hurried her
oil in two months. Her dying struggles were
painful and protracted. For three days and
nights did not leave the house, and scarcely
slept. | was by her when she died all the
family were assembled around her, some pray
ing, others weeping, for she was adored by
them all. was the last one'she looked upon.
y | cannot tell you what a horrid
state of mind | was in for long time. |
seemed to care for nothing; the world was Il
blank to me. | abandoned all thoughts Of the
law. l went into the country but could not
bear solitude, yet could not enjoy society.
There was dismal horror continually in my
mind, that made me fear to be alone. | had
often to get up in the night and seek the bed
room OF my brother, as ii the having a human
being by me would relieve me from the fright
full gloom OF my own thoughts. Months pass
ed before my mind would resume any tone
but the dependency l had suffered for a Ion e
time in the course OF this attachment, and the
anguish that attended its catastrophe, seemed
to give turn to my whole character, and
throw some. clouds into my disposition, which
have ever since hung about it. y 4 II X
seemed to drift about without aim or object
at the mercy OF every breeze my heart wan
ted anchorage. l was naturally susceptible,
and tried to form other attachments, but my
heart would not hold en-; it would Continually
reeur to what it had lost and whenever
there was pause in the hurry of novelty and
excitement, would sink into dismal deiec-
ton. For Yeas l could not talk on the sub
ject of This hopeless regret; could not even
mention her name; but her image was c1ntn.
ualy before me, and dreamt Of her incessant.
w.
"Such was the language in which Irving
poured forth his sorrows aud sad memories, in
letter written many years ago to lady who
wondered at his celibacy, and expressed the
wish to know why he had never married
Can words more graphically describe the ship.
wreck OF hope, or more teuderly depict the
chivalrlc devotion OF faithful lover? How
sweetly, too, does Irving portray with his art
lstpen the ineaments OF his loved one. He
says, in the same etter,-'Ihe more | saw of
her the more had eason to admire her Her
mind seemed to unfold itself leaf by leaf, and
every time to discover new sweetness. No.
body knew her SO well as |, for she was gener
ally timld and silent; but in manner stud
led her excellence. Never did meet with
more intulive reclitude of mind more native
delicacy, more exquisite propriety in word,
thought, and action, than this young creature
am not eXaggerating; what l say was ac
knowledged by all who knew her. Her bril-
liant little sister used to say that people began
by admirng her, but ended by loving Mat.
da. For my part | idolized her. | felt at times
rebuked by her superior delicacy and purity,
and as if was coarse, unworthy being in
comparison
"Irving seldom or never alluded to this sad
event, nor was the name of Matilda ever spok-
en- in his presence. Thirty years after her
death Irving was visiting Mr. Hoffman, and