Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1882-01-19
his drink, Jerry babe the crown good night
and started home, and the game of poker was
anowod
GEORGE ELIOT.
A Conversation With one of Her Most Init
mate Friends.

. u1auO e rl0uUSs
A correspondent of the New York MaSl,
writing about an interview he had recently
with warm and intimate friend of George
Eliot. gives some interesting information
about the great novelist A portion of the
interview is given herewith:
George Eliot, in early youth, was not so
bad looking, " said our common friend to
me, "but latterly she was absolutely plain.
Tall and gaunt always, as she waxed-scrip
tural phraseology, excuse it-as she waxed
in years, she became exceedingly thin and
emaciated. Her face was the longest and
narrowest imaginable, and rendered her all
the more peculiar because she invariably
wore her hair down on either side, like a
window curtain, and hanged over her ears.
Her nose was large, and sharp as paper
cutter, and her complexion sallow Her
mouth was thin and her teeth large She
possessed two redeeming features--her
eyes, which were magnificent, dark and full
of expression, and her voice, which was
divinely musical, whether in speaking or
in singing. Her manner was pleasant
enough, and she was earnest in her en-
deavor to be kindly, and what the Italians
call simpGtic0. She dressed badly, but
often richly; that is to say, she loved good
clothes such as we're costly in texture, and
dainty linen. She was passionately fond of
flowers, and was, on the whole, I observed,
what would be called generally a good
housekeeper. can't say she was gener-
GUS, but she was just and exceedingly con-
scientious, so much so that her manu-
scripts caused her no end Of trouble, and
are very beautiful specimens Of caligraphy,
simply because she believed it her duty to
give her publishers little trouble and their
moneys WORTH"
II suppose" I broke in, you loved her
dearly and reverenced her greatly?"
II did neither one thing aor the other. I
liked her and was, I believe, true friend
to her through life, and I respected her
greatly. But even as young woman she
was not endearing; nothing like, in this re-
spect, Charlotte Bronte, who was dear
IN every sense of the word; but somehow
Miss Evans was always retired, and
although she gave herself trouble to be
liked she never was beloved. She spoke
we'll, and sometimes a marvellous light
shone in her eyes when she was in earnest,
but she did not like what you call sentiment
tality or gush. She hated gossip and COM
mon place talk, 50 that her conversation to
the ordinary run Of mortals was apt to be
dry. I believe she felt this to be the case
and avoided general society; besides that,
you know, her position, say what you will.
was an awkward one."
You mean her position as regards Mr..
Lewis?"
Certain. You see for years she was
neither legally nor religiously his wife, and
many women, would not visit her. Lewis
wife was hopelessly mad, and, as George
Elliot was not orthodox in her religious
opinions, and did not consider the mar.
riage service essential, she only acted ac-
cording to the dictates of her conscience in
remaining as she did, under the roof Of
Mr. Lewis; but it did her no good socially
You know as soon as Mrs. Lewis died.
Miss Evans became legally George Lewis
wife, although he calls her Miss Evans in
his will. AS to the second marriage with
Mr.. Cross, very young man, coming, as
did, so soon after Lewis death, the less
said about it the better. I suppose it was
to set Baroness Burdett- Coutts an example.
In early youth Miss Evans had keen sense
of the ridiculous, but it wore away, and her
last novels prove this fact, for the charming
humor which characterized her early books
is lacking utterly. To give an idea
how true this is I will read you a
phrase in one of the last letters she ever
wrote: I am intensely happy. We Chat is
MIR. Gross and herself) are sitting on the
balcony overlooking the river. The scene
is striking and impressive. Dark clouds
are rising as if for storm. yet everything
is peaceful in the calm twilight. We are
very happy. All we long for is the ino-
possible. We wish that George Lewis was
with US. When you consider that George
Lewis was her first husband and only dead
a year, and that we included q young and
second husband, this phrase, which you
can see in her own handwriting, is to me
an evidence that she has no idea of the
ludicrous, at any rate at this time Of her
life,"
WAS she careful writer?"
Most careful. She wrote and rewrcte
every paragraph, and it took her a very
long time to write book"