New-York tribune., 1875-10-13
POE, CRiTIC, And HOBBY.

CERTAIN HARD FACTS WHICH HAVE BELN OVER
LOOKED IN TIE SEARCH FOR AN LpiLEPIIC
SUBJECT.
To the Edftor Or The Trtbrn:.
SIR: Mr. +. G. Fairfield n gentleman who has
had the temeriy to pass ten years among sprituai
mediums in the cause of science. having demon
strated that they are all less afflicted with
epilcptic mania has recently turned his attention to
poets and men of inspiIatonal genius and finds that
they too from Ezekiel TO Eschylus, from A.schylus
to Colcrdre are all mad rs March hares IL there
Is method in their madness there is also madness IN
their method. He frankly confesses in his book Of
mediums that he has himself had personal expert
eDce of the malady. He has studied it in all its
phases He ntimatcs that "habitual lying" is one
of its most Trustworthy oxponcnts / by no means
wish 20 undervalue Mr.. Fairfeds researches in the
nebulous atmosphere of peripheral ncryc-auras.
They are valuable ana interesting but does not his
theory threaten to cover too much ground
In the October number of Seri6Rers this gentleman
has an article entitled "A Mad Man of Letters" in
which he selects the author of "The Raven" as
favorable specimen OF the cpileptic type. Assuming
chronic lying as symptomatic of the disease, he
pravely quotes the following story in evidence of
POe's habtual mendaClty. a single instance, he
SAYS may suffice TO prove the many Here Is the M
stance: gentleman who pIoiessod to have re-
Poe. once on a time after walking all the way from
New-York 10 Fordham, swallowed cup of tea, eat
down TO his writing desk, and dashed OFF The
PayenD substantially Us it is now printed, and sub
uutted il to Mrs. Clcnn the result Of his even
ipc's incubation! Uumindful OF the fact that
Foe did not reside in Fordham until long
afte? "The Raven" was printed and published,
Mr.. Fairfield naiyely accepts this story as choice
bit of yerabie history, illustrative OF Poe sopileptic
ndency TO habitual lying. For how could The
haven" have been composed at single sitting.
when Mr. Fairfield assures MS that he has the evil
dcncc of Poes literary cOemporanes on this matter
gentlemen who were in the habit Of meeting him
al midday for coy chat in Sandy Welchs cellar.
And did not these gentlemen assure him tfat the
poem was produced line by line, stauza by stanza,
and submitted by Poe piccclneal, to the criticism
aud cInendaton of tho Anu-.t. CLIQUE G-gentlemen
who doubtless "knew hawk from a hand-saw
when the wind was southerly," and who
suggested many valuable alterations and sub
stitutopS One of these gentlemen, says
NJ Fairfield, has oven pointed out to me
particular instances Ofphrse5 that were incoTpo-
rated at lis own suggestion, as showing that The
Raven was a kind Of jont-Stock operation in which
many minds hclI small shares OF intellectual prop
erty" After this may not hope that the gentle
men who assisted AT the incubation of this remark
able fowl in Sandy Wclchs cellar viii come forward
in a body to claim their respective shares in this
piece of ointstock property thus setting at rest for
ever all questions rs 10 "Who wrote The Ravens 2"
"Was The Raven n Persian fowl " whence came
thc manuscript found in Mr.. Shayer's barn p and
other intcrrogations Of like import which have from
time to time aeitatcd the pUriieus of Painassiis.
Having disposed of "Thc Raven" Mr. Fairfield
applies his scalpel TO Poe's wonderful poem of
..IIoI,,,o oaIl;,o in his ard lyny. his
last poem-a mere rigmarole in rhyme, exhibiting in
its elaborate emptiness the last stages of mental de-
crcntude and decay" "Thus sang he, then died"
evclaims this careful and conscientious commenta-
tor On the contrary, thus sang he" then wrote
"Euteka" " "Thc Bells Annabel Lee" and other
OF his most memorable poems. But when IN alien
iSt II believe iat is the correct wOrd-Iounts his
hobby and rides rougl-shod in pursuit of oplep-
tie subject to illustrate o fayOrie theory, he cannot
be expected 10 pay much attention to such hard facts
a. happen TO lie in his way. The critic does
not, in this instance, accuse the unhappy
author of plagiarism; Goes not even re-
slickcd up in Sandy Wolcfs cellar. II was alto
ecther too rough speclmen oT the cotesporaiies to
have taken stock in. II Mr.. Fairfield, vino IS not
without poetic insight, had thongh less Of his theory
and more of his subject, he might have better ap-
pretended what he is pleased to call the Gcst OF the
poem; might have seen that ii was not the low
hanging moonr but Venus "AstaItcn-the crescent
star of hope and love- that after 4 nght of horror,
" as seen III the teilSltildtlNH i-'os
Coming up through the lair of the Lion
A. tAe star-li4s limited or morn"
He might have seen the forlorn heart hailiug it
as haIbinger of happineSs yet to be, hoping against
hope, until, when the planet was seen 10 be- rising
over he tomb OF lost love- hope itself was rejected
a. a cruel mockery, and the dark angel conquered.
lie mi ght also have discerncd in this empty T@ma
role OF rhyme something OF that ethical quality
which cOquoD; ntcTprgtor OF foos genius, IN the
July number of The British CHGrcrig inds IN this
strange and splendid ph.4tasy. Like the Episychi-
ali at hell 4 Il "a L
readily give mp the heart Of It's mystery 70 aliens
and allcns.s.'
When compare the disparasng tone Of this ar
ticle with paragraph fr1m the same writer which
appeared in The Boston RGd~al for April. 1871, am
perplexed 10 account for the discrepancy. - The
Raven, The Ancient Mariner and Quoen Nab IN
their ghOsy energy and inagic enoc OF bcauty, ~!
their subtle ethcTlality Of Imagery, III the weird
burst of moaning minor II thoir cad iccs, drc among
the most powerful creations Of the imaeination, ana
are in ratio to their power remarkable for certain
subiimaton OF the subjective, ana dopandent upon
il for their edect.p And again: - In the fiction OF
Bronte Hugo, Poe Hawthorne, Dickens, and other
masters of the century we hud an intense sub