Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1886-03-09

calling to the barber: "My wig! whore II
nv wigY' Behind the looking glass
general" said Lee; and the mirror revealed
that Grsene's wig was already on his head:
Again Washington joined in the general
laugh.
LITERARY SUPER.
Lowell gave supper to Thsckersy. The
other guests were FELTON,, Clough, Dana,
Dr.. Parsors (Dantes translator, Fields,
Edmund Quincy, Estes Howe and myself.
We sat down at 10 and did not leave the
table till l. Very gay with stories and
jokes: >,
"Will you take some portT said Lowell
t. Thscseray.
81 dare drink anything that becomes a
man"
"Oh, no" cried FELTON,. 1T is fast turn
ing into one"
As We were going away Thsckeray said !:
ave have staid too long" II should say,
replied the host, "one long and too short,
"a dactylic supper"
LAST GLlNPsE or PRESCOTT.
Presco,t's funeral at the Chauncey Place
Church at 3 in the afternoon. Ii was very
impressive and touched me very much. l
remember the last time spoke with Pres
colt. 1t was only few days ago met
him in Washington street just at the foot
of Winter street. He was merry, and
laughing as usual. At the close OF the
conversation he said: II am going to shave
of my whiskers; they are growing gray.
Gray hair is becoming" said. "Becou'
ing said he; what do we care about be
coming, who must so soon be goingf
Then Why take the trouble to shave them
of?' That's true, he replied with q
pleasant laugh, and crossed over TO Sum
mer street. So my last remembrance OF
him is sunny smile at the corner OF the
street
HOW A POET IS BOTHERED.
Unhappily for him. his pen was called
upon 10 busy itself with great deal Of
writing which was not poetry, and not'sl-
ways pleasure. The multitude Of letters
from entire strangers, old and young, in
structed AMI illiterate, wise and foolish, in.
cressingly encountered his study table.
His kindness prompted him to answer
the n, some Of them very willingly, others
With reluctance, as so much taken from
time valued for more valuable things |
Autographs, which 80 many asked for, were
qlickly answered with an enclosed sigma
ture, already prepared in some moment of
leisure.
By far the larger part of these letters
were OF the most trivial character; even 10
read them wasted time and patience. did
the youth 10 Excelsior attain his purpose, |
or die before he crossed the pass?
Please inform whether or not your feel
ings were in sympathy with your immortal
thought when you wrote the poem OF the
Bridge? " Please tell me who was
what country did she belong |
to, also the place of her birth" q request
which came in the very same words, ID one
day, from two different towns. Sometimes
the request was for an original poem. OF !
enc such from school girl he said Il
could not write il; but | tried TO say No so
softly that she would thin it better than
Yes" OF source there we're numberless
letters including verSes. or even long
poems, with request Tor MS CANDID crlU- |
cism." or his real opinion" BY far the
largest part Of these attempts were pstheti
cslly hopeless. Some of them comicslly
80; as those zoo the Taking Of Ticonder-
ogs,' beginning:
In dreams OF bliss from Morpheus couch,
The gar !sOn are now aroused
Their CommanCe r at the door appears,
Saying, OF this uproar AN not advised
Of which the writer said: u did so much |
bette, than l thought could, as a begin.
ner at the age of sixty-fve that have
really ielt little proud of my poems" of
course, in such cases Mr.. LopgfelloW was
100 kind to send back bis real opinion"
though it might have been given literally
in single word But the letters, in their
multitude, we're none the loss burdensome
and unwarranted. Charity suggests the
xcuss that each of the writers was igno,
rant that his or her letter was one of many
hundreds ike t. Bat It would be o reliet
10 all literary men if this knowledge could
be taught in our public schools.