Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1879-03-06
RICHARD REALF.
The Sad Story Of His Life.

ANSNAA - @AAS VI fJOfC4lf ebAAA~
and death of shame. 1t is the old
story of unrewarded genius. Yet his
can hardly be called unknown or unap-
preciated genius, for, says Mr.. John
SON
"Since the close Of this wonderful
career [ have been astonished to find
how much celebrity a man could have
who was publicly talked about so little.
From all parts Of the country
come letters inquiring as to Realfs
life and writings, and to scores OF
journals unknown correspondents
have sent "reminiscences and copies
of his fugitive poems. Within
my knowledge, six pers have set
out to write his biography. There
is stern and mournful moral in the
fact that among all his friends and ad-
mirers, when Fortune was dealing so
mercilessly with him and Vengeance
had pursued him to the last cruel ex-
tremity, there was no one to deliver
him from the body of that DEATH"
Mr.. Johnson came into commuica-
ton with Rcalf in 1875, when collecting
material for biographical sketches of
the authors represented in his "Little
CLASSICS" series, and finally became his
friend and confdant. Realf had
wrecked his life by marrying a woman
of the town in Rochester, but having
fled from her, obtained employment as
an editorial writer on the Pittsburg
Commercial The woman got track of
him after time by seeing a poem pGb-
lished with his signature, and dated
from Pittsburg. She at once made her
way to that city, and claimed support.
Realf then brought suit for divorce, and
after costly trial obtained it. This
stood unquestioned for two years, and
during that time he married. Then
the supreme court, on a technically,
reopened the case and ordered new
trial. But Realf was too poor to afford
another. His poverty was not from his
failures as tt producer, but from there
being too many to consume. He had
a fair salary on the Commercial, earned
a good deal by outside work, and spent
very little on himself. In a letter
written to Mr. Johnson at this time, he
said:
"The lecture-platform is my proper
place, and | must make more money,
or | cannot much longer feed all the
mouths that depend on me. -Four years
ago sent for my youngest sister and
her husband. They have ten little chill
dren, and another babe will cry within
a month. They are near me here. very
poor In this worlds goods. but very rich
in love and tenderness. 1t has so been
ordered also that a widowed sister and
her family in England, and a poor par
alytic brother and his family there are
my wards. And sacred mother and
father are old, and poor, too; all poor
together, are we, and all we'll beloved.
Don't you think my work, even if it is
hard and Wearisome, is lifted out if
drudgery by this?"
Here was load indeed for the shout
ders of poor and Woodworking Jour
naEst. Poor, that is, to the general APP
prehension, but to these poorer people,
his kinsmen and women, he must have
seemed a very Lord Bountiful; he was,
by virtue of his talents, and of his sue
cess as compared with the fate of his
kindred, the head of that peasant fam
lily, and doubtless It's pride and admira-
ton. He failed of the worlds apprecia-
ton, but he was the king and sun of his
own little circle, whose trust and affec-
ton must have gone some way toward
atoning for the sights of fortune. Mr.
Johnson comments upon the letter we
have quoted:
That such an accumulation of bur-
dens should be heaped upon one man
seems incredible, but | am satisfied
from other information than his state
ment was literally true. The supreme
court of Pennsylvania doubtless con-
sidering in its wisdom that a trife more
would be nothing to a man already
weighted to this extent, decreed that
he must pay $50 a month as alimony
to woman who had disgraced his name.
And that money was paid regularly till
Christmas, 1877, when he was no longer
able to raise it. But meanwhile she
made it her business to pursue him with
an avenging fury. One day, when he
was returning from a drive into the
country, with his new wife, her gigantic
form suddenly doomed up across the
road like that of Neg Merriiies; but she
was even more forcible than Meq, for,
together with curses she hurled brick
into the carriage. Another time Mrs.
Realf had feeling come over her that
that woman was somewhere near and
going to her front window and looking
out, there she beheld her standing in
the middle OF the street and gazing up
at the house. Her battery of epithets
was Immediately opened, and Mrs.
Realf was obliged to retreat from the
window"
We pass on, and take up Mr.. John
sons narrative at later date:
early last spring (1878) my eye fell
upon paragraph in a New York daily
to the effect that woman named Realf
in the northern part Of the city had re-
Gently given birth to triplets, and that
she was in destitute circumstances.
Then followed a sentence which OBJ
securely limited that the husband and IA
Their was man we'll known in literature
and otherwise. Though the name was
misspelt, there seemed little reason to
doubt the identity, and my wife and /
set out to find her. A curious chase we
had of it. We chased down several
faint clews and were sent to five diffef-
ent houses before we arrived at the
right one.
'.We found a single room occupied by
the young mother and her children "a
little boy of two or three years besides
the triplets), a valuble Irish nurse, and
a kindly neighbor or two. Col. Realf
had gone to fulfill a lecture-engage-
ment. The nurse was full of the occa-
sion, and was not long in setting forth
the story in the following dramatic fash
ion: When he came home to dinner
says to him, "Ye've an addition to
your family, Mr.. Realf." 'Ye don't
cauco ~ SayS bo sENoC - Sovc EIt,,;,,g