The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1877-01-30
'cial Correspondence Of the Troy Daily
Times
THE HERMIT's LETTER.

Especial Correspondence Of the Troy Daily
Times
THE HERMIT's LETTER.
Club Elections Who was Goethe His
Works and His Love Affairs-Willie's
Grandchild-The End Of Prodi gies -Crudi-
tics Of Our Preachers Books and Book Col
leotors.
New YoRK. Jan. 25.
The annual elections of the clubs lave
generally been announced. The Century
has re- lected Bryant, who, a. SO. ia the
olde't presiding I'll 'er in existence. The
Union lie que makes John Jty president,
while both Bryant aud Peter Cooper are
VIC presd' n The G Jethe club held a re-
cent reunion 1T the Flf Avenue ht tel.
Dr.. Ruppaner VAS IN the chair, aud amni z
the guests were such liierateur5 AS E. e.
Stcdnan, Patke, Gudwin abG q. 3. h,,-
ley. The lat e. made brief speech,
which /, a very rare tning. Ripley is pro
baby the bert read man in NV Y Tk, but
he las M gifL at oratoiy. What is ttIil
more reua kab.e. though he h's c IN writ
years, he has never puonshed book. La
TINS respect he stsn'is alone. D ring This
interval he has, as the crtic of It c Tribune
Issued an almost countless uum )cr ot re-
views. He has al-o b en- the master MIND
in the preparation of "AJpletons 9, clp
ppdia," but no Sc, arate volLmJ beariug The
name OF George B. KIplsy has ever APP
peared.
WHO WAS GOETHE
Speaking of this ciuD, it msy be said that
the name is very familiar, AID yet there
ia but lit lie known Of the original, aud there
are not mauy who can pronounce the name
correctly. In reply to the question above
mentioned may suy that many years ago
| heard Parke Goodwin deliver lecture up-
on his very author, BAT It was a very dull
sff ir, and gave but little real information.
We all know that in his later days Goethe
WAS .lled The Sage of Wlemsr," because
that city was bis culef residence, and also
the place of his dealh. but cannot ste the
propri, ty of calling him n sage" since his
genius was creative rather than ref ctive
However the grand duke Of W,emur has
cont 20 the club an autograph letter of sp-
provsl, and thls VIII Encourage 'hV -rri.
cation.
HIS WORKS.
Ii Is certainly remarkable to notice how
little Is known of his works, that ia CT nsid-
erng the frequent illusions to his name.
doubt if dozen members of the club have
ever read "Wilhelm Meister," and even
Faust is read but by few. This leads to
the remark that Goahe's works have never
been fashionable Even Werter, which had
so graz run in Europe, never "took" on
this side of the Allan ic. Walter Scott was
at one time an admirer Of Goethe, and they
occasionally exchanged letters, but in hi
last days he abated his admiration of tie
great German. He Bade the remark thai
much of Geothe's p' pulari;Y was due To
pieces which in his latter moments he
might wish to have I, .led." Co, the died
the Same year with Scott, but at much
grt n er age. 1t is probable that The club
which bears his name will for a while be
popular, but il never will take rank as an
important g, cial institution. The btst thing
know OF Goethe is derived from Bay ,rd
TAYLOR, who says that "ihe great poet lev
er used tobacco Would it not be well
for the club TO follow his example3
aoErHEs LOVE MATTERS.
0eOlbc IL SL'NSit, ht tho ioot uSSt'hS
of the club, delivered an address on the
great poet, but be fai ed 10 do justice to the
element OF love. Perhaps he wisely re-
frsiued from expatia ing on this point, for
in fact, 80 lar as Women were concerned,
GM the seems to have been Gem IN Don
Juan. There was the "Gretchen" Of his
boyhOOd, and then al 2l he Was in love wi h
the d Iughter OF dancing master.
nexi Year found him be rolh 10 Frederika,
ibe daughter of clergyman. He broke
ihis tntalemeLt, a ID then made love TO
ChaIloue Buff, who Iepelled his advanc 9
bet ause she "a engaged to auolher. M
discouraged be ''mnde up" 10 another girl
Dam, Anna Munich, and they were he
trttle !, but e@pe time betur. the WEDDING
day le lid le' in favor Of sIrpi & It
trsotiu NAMED Il b-th SchOneman Tue
latter held i'm tut II shOrt time. when, hav-
ing ahanuol Ell h,r, he went 10 Wiemtl
where his literary fame aid his oiorietl
for Intrigue held even pace There is the
public affair with Frau Won steln, which
j. broken uff, aud ut lat comes the story
e his h0u>ekeeper and seivtut, ChIi III"
Vulpius. Like manv other TaSes u he
ueglecis n ani ,ge with the IT tin,d OF The
tex, ard hen falls under the power of W.T.
man IN II more ,eSradn g condit"r. Th'
intrigue with The h. u ek' e. esut
marriage in old,r Ia glt mA'iz. the p e =
son. Thus the Ii er Ine came ttsieIe 20
one whom he could ei her love nor r.spec'.
l. WAS in view of 81 en- a Condillun that / e
published his be, k on Elective Ali ~ ies,"
in whi h. like Rousseau, he advOta ed he
free love system. This volume appeared
when he was 80 years Of age, and shows
how time had eobfi med him in his social
errors In view oi this, It may be said tna
the Bronklyn scandal was the most real
Goethe club" of he day.
THE WILLIS PRODIGY.
"If N. p. Willis could return to life,
what would he say to that ? Such Was the
remark made by friend on reading in the
Home Journal that the poets 6 andcbild, a
girl of eight, had written play of four
a,ls. IL In farther said that she takes the
leidi,g part in the pert rmgnce Of this
drama, whose title is "Tte Play Of Two
Lovers" The ques ion ia, would Willis be
pleased OF vexeo Probably the latter, for
he knew that there is no greater foe to per-
manent success than Just such precocity.
The prodigy thus referred TO is daughter
of "lmoeen" now Mrs. Eddy. think,
therefore, that Willis would have suppressed
his granddaugbtur's achievem, mt and sent
the child 10 Ter playthlngs. TheIe are on
4 n an