Morning journal and courier., 1883-02-28
The Last Days of Charles Dickens. THeru,an C. MerivalA in London Tinaes I

lherIuAu C. neE1Fal6 III 1<ou0Ou 11IneBI
 Biographers are parlous persons, but some times require looking after before they crys- tallize into historians. I have just taken up for the first time the memoir of Charles Dickens in Mir. Morley's 'tMen of Letters. l" The writer, I suppose following MT. Forster, describes Dickens as doing nothing but suffer in his last visit to town (197O)-not able to go into society except to meet some very es- pecial persons, and then not above the din ing room floor; and, finally, as leaving Lon don for Gadshill on the 30th of May, to be seen in town no more. On the 9th of June he died MT. Forster, think, puts this last appearance in London day or two earlier as the date of his own last dinner with Dick ems, who then, according to him, left Lon don, not to return, in state of profound de- pression, after dining with MT. Forster. But MT. Forster is thought to have taken a rather subjective view of his famous friend and no doubt thought that after himself nobody else can possibly have seen Dickens in Lon don.
 There is no need to surround 8 national loss and all it's infinite sadness with foti-- tious gloom. Will you allow me (with the consent of MT. Dickens children and from my first and last personal knowledge of him) to say that during the last weeks of May, 1870, was at his house in Hyde Park Place almost every day for some hours, for the re- hearsals of play in which the characters were taken by his two daughters MT. Has, tings Hughes (brother of Mir. Thomas Hughes and once the very school boy who wrote to Dickens to tell him what ought to be done with some of the characters in Nicholas Nickleby' and got back the de. hghtful answer beginning Respected Sirn) Mir. F. c. Grove and myself? Charles Dick ems undertook the entire stage management; and, though he was suffering from his lame- ness, directed all the rehearsals with boys spirit and boys interest in his favorite art coaching" all with untiring kindness, marking his prompt book" as he marked his readings, and acting all the parts con amaore one after another, passing from the "old man" to the ''young lover" with all his famous versatility and power. The perfor nance came off at Cromwell House MT. Freake's) on the 2d of June. The later re- hearsals took place there, and, like the per formsnce, on the drawing room floor, under Dickens active personal direction. On the night (a stifing one1 he was behind the scenes as prompter and stage e-manager, ring. ing all the bells and working all the lights, and went through the whole thing with in fectious enjoyment. I was gloomy about my part and do not forget asking him in the morning as 8 last hope Gas he seemed uncer- tain about it's bearings himself) whether he thought it was comic or serious, and the twinkle in his eye when he answered: My dear boy, God alone knows. Play it which ever way you feel at night" And I remem- Der his enjoyment at the dilemma of one of our company who lost his personal clothes behind the scenes and had to slip away as best he might, without joining the company in front, in the white regimentals of an Aus trian officer from the costumer's point of view. This story, I may add, is quite con- firmed by the second volume of his letters as edited by his daughter and sister -in-law. The last printed letter addressed to MT. Ban croft refers to his last visit to town, and the narrative which connects the letter says |: "On the 2d of June he attended @ private play at the house of MT. and Mrs. Freake. |" These letters were published in 1880. but appear to have been disregarded by the biographer of 1882. In a case of such general interest history should be set right in time. When Charles Dickens' love of the stage is remembered this story of his last days is surely much happier and more touching as it is assuredly more true than that which the biographers want to infiict on us. Biographies are fact of the day. and if this is their exactness about great men recently lost what are we to believe about those of some centuries ago?