, 1882-10-14

D.
teur. well known in New York many
Years ago, contributes pleasant story 10
the Detroit Free Press concerning the
original of Dickens famous character
of ssWIlkins Micawber" He SAYS: "in
recent numbers of the Free Press there
have appeared paragraphs on the asserted
identity of this immortal character with
one Thomas Powell, soi-disa'at literary
man. still extant in New York city.
There must be some mistake about II,
was the editorial comment, afte- an aliu-
sion 10 Fosters admission that Dickens
pere sat for the portrait-of course, invoi-
UNFAIRLY. Indeed. the account OF HIM
and the specimens of his conversation
given in the biography would suffice to
prove this, if his illustriOus but scarcely
filiaI soa had not lef, evidence OF the tact
concealed in the very name guide, phil
osopher, and friend of the juvenile
David Copperfeld.' Obviously, it was
formed in this way Taking the words
my father Dickens changed the IN the
third succeeding letter ", the h into the
third preceding letter 9, but, requiring
consonant, tried back three more letters
and changed for b. The result is the
word Mycawber'; but, still more disguise
beng desired, the y was altered intoi,
which completely transformed my father
into .Micawber' In all probability, the
resemblance of the sound of the word to
thai of macaw, with its suggestiveness of
a parrot like fondness for talking, was an
additional recommendation
That by the way. But, while there
is no doubt of this identity, it can also be
proved that Dickens availed himself of
certain peculiarities of the Thomas Pow
ell aforesaid, in making up the character.
.Micawber' includes both ; and hence the
tradition.
Powell came to America in 1851. tie
was never a contributor to the New York
Tribune. Dickens letter was written to
Lewis Gaylord Clark, editor of the old
Ka,rierEocksr Maga=ine, who Ito the best
OF recollection and belief published 1t IN
that periodical, whence it was copied,
with sharp Comments by Horace Greeley
or C. A. Dana, into the Tribune. Powell
clustered a great deal and threatened
Lawsuit, but noting came of 1t. HIS ex-
ppsure was certainly not caused by his
calling Cornelius Mathews the American
Dickens for that sobriquet had been ap-
piled TO him before-notably IN Lowell
Fable for Critics, published IN lSiS,
Mathews initiated Dickens style in his
prose works, and wrote 'Chantlcleer,
Story of Thanksgiving, somewhat after
the Christmas books. Powell praised his
'Puffer Hopkins, as superior to Dickens
in his Living Authors Of America, which
Mathews unquestionably did not write,
through certain underhanded ways of his
may have caused such suspicion. Dick
ems charges against Powell, included
more than those mentioned do by Ark
met, but, as he is now an old man, do
not care TO specify particulars "
" The two were certainly acquainted,
if not intimate, in England before 1851,
Powell had some connection with the press
in the old country, and once supplied an
article To a volume contributad to by
Wordsworth, Leigh Hunt and others.
The Philadelphia life of Dickens, by DR..
Shelton Mckenzie, was mainly based on
his very dubious information. His re-
semblance to 'Micawber' has been accu-
rately and minutely set forth III a story
entitled Paul Cover, printed nine years
ago in the Boston IIideJ. 1t was Powell
! who first proclaimed the quasi identity of
Harold Skimpoie' with Leigh Hunt, as |
hid the honor of informing Dickens in
letter from New York, to which possess
an answer Dickens he not Onl y traduced
and maligned, through many obscure
publications, but also slandered indirectly
after his death. But for that should
hardly care to volunteer these details