New-York tribune., 1878-06-13

q duel. Previous to this there had been some per-
sonal difficulty between the editor and Mr.. Leg
Rett. and in his reply TO the challenge Mr. Bryant
remarked that when the affair with Mr. Leggett
had been disposed Of it would be his turn, and not
till then. Nothing more came of the matter. Ihe
Post followed Mr. Van Buren through the contest OF
1910 INTO FreeSoilsm as also through the contest Oh
1913 against Cass and down to the final defeat OF
the old Democratic party. In 1852 it favored
Pierce. In 1860 and '64 it supported Lincoln, ana
it aided in the election of Grant IN 1868 and ~.
The course Of Mr.. Bryant upon the Anti-Slavery
question was one of great moderation, but notwith-
standing his party connections there never was any
doubt of the side to which he gave his sympathies
If he did not agree with the original Abotionists,
who aimed at immediate emancipation, he had still
less sympathy with those who sought unfairly to
suppress discussion. He was too bigh-minded to
feel the least prejudice the score of color Even
in 1887, when the rage against the AbOhtlomsts
was not in the least abated he spoke decidedly and
wisely in favor Of putting whites and blacks upon
an equality in this State in respect to Suffrage lie
never had the least patience with the attempt 10
keep Anti-Slavery petitions out OF Congress AS
matter of course he had sustained General Jackson
in his denunciation Of the nuifers of South Caro-
lima i'm 1882, but il was not altogether as matter
of course that he opposed the annexation OF Texas
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and the OK
tension of slavery. He definitely abandoned the
political affiliations of a lifetime. when IN 1896 be
supported Fremont for the Presidency. AS soon as
there was a Republican party he became one OF lts
most decided advocates. How much it cost him
thus TO array himself against those with whom he
had so long been united will be understood when it
is remembered that he was almost afectionately
attached to the Democratic party His associate IN
the conduct Of The EreRin0 Post, Mr. Legget, had
been somew hat in advance of him IN 1880, when
the pro-savery rioters were rampant In NeW-1ork'
Whatever Mr.. Bryant may then have thought OF hls
friends course he lived to how thoroughly noble
and sagacious it was.
While Mr.. Greeley was the leader of the Protection
list party Mr. Bryant firm in his belief IN free
trade. In 1868 the friends of free trade gave HIM
a public banGuet in honor Of the doctrines he advO-
Gated and as a tribute to his perseverance during
forty years of protective tariff In 1913 Mr.. John
Bgelow became the Managing Editor OF The Posi.
About ten years later Mr.. Parke Goodwin assumed
the position In more recent years the place
has been filed by several men, among them
Charles Nordhoff. Sidney Howard Gay, Charlton
T. Lewis and A. G. Browne, jr. For the past two
wears The chair has been filed by Watson r. Sperry
who was graduated from Yale College in 1871. Mr..
Sperry became connected with The Post i'm
IFS party preferences, The Post has
steadily maintained four cardinal beliefs:
free trade, hard money an independent Government
treasury, and the impropriety of exorbitant issues
of State banks without limitation. During the past
fifteen years Mr. Bryanfs lnbors for the paper have
been comparatively few. He has remained its
nominal Editor but aside from a few occasional sug-
cestions as TO the treatment Of questions and con-
tributions TO its columns the work has mainly
fallen upon others.
MR. BRYANT IN EUROPE
In 1882 a complete edition of Mr. Bryant's poems
was published in New-York Washington Irving,
then living in London, was asked to prepare an
English edition, which he did, writing an iutroduc-
ton in which the following sentence occurred;
"Bryauts writings transport us intg the depths ol
the solemn primeval forest, TO the shores Of the
lonely lake. the banks of the Wild. namelcss stream,
orthe brow Of the rocky upland, rising like pro-
montory from amidst n wide ocean Of foliage
while they shed around the glories Of
climate ferco in its extremes but splendid
in all its vicissitudosD The book dedicated 10
the poet Rogers. Irving took the volume TO Muir
ray. who refused TO publish 1t, saying, poetry
doesn't sell nowadays" Another publisher, named
Andrews, was found who issuod the book ON condi-
ton that Irving should put his own name on the
ttIepape rs the editor Of the volume. The offer was
accepted but before the book printed Publisher
Andrews, after reading the proofshcots. ran TO Mr.
Irving and insisted that book would sell IN Eng
land which contained the following lines, and asked
that change be made:
"The British soldier tremblcs
when MuriOn's name Is told
Mr.. Irving finally consented 10 make the first line
read
"Tho foeman trembles 10 his camp"
This alteration afterward became the source Of
a newspaper controversy, IN which much injudi-
cious abuse was heapod upon Mr.. Irving. Mr..
Bryant published a letter in which he said that.
while the change was not what he would have
made himself, yet he could not blame Mr.. Irving
under the circumstances. and always felt that he
had done him great kindness IN England. The
volume was dedicated to Samuel Rogers the poet,
and was generously reviewed by Christopher
North in Bldclirood and since that time the
author has been almost as well known in England
as at home. Among the poems which appeared
at this time were "The Death Of the
Flowers" Monument Mountains" and a
Forest Hymn" The first Of these is known 10 every
schoo-boy or schoolgirl The Others are almost rs
familiar to general readers. The Forest Hymn
opens with the following lines;
The groves we're Gods first temples. Ere man learned
TO hew the shaft and lay tue archtraye,
Aud spread the roof above them-ere he framed
The lofty vault. TO gather aud roll back
The sound Of anthems; IN the dhrkling WOOD,
AmId the cOO and silence, he knelt down,
And offered 10 the Mghtest solemn thanks and suppl
cation.
All, why
Should we In the worlds riDer years, neglect
Gods ancient sanctuarles, and adore
Only among the crowd aud under roofs
That our frall hands have raised I
The poet then addresses an eloquent hymn to the
Supreme Being, which closes with these wOrds
BE II ours TO mediate,
In these calm shades, Thy nildcr majesty,
And TO the beautiful order Of Thy works
Learn TO conform the order OF our lives.
As writer of books Of travel, Mr.. Bryant at
t9ined some distinction. He visited Europe three
times; travelled in the Holy Land, and jouneyed
tlrouob tbe Soufberu STATES and fo Cuba Tho