The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1888-01-26
Byronia.

ny Lord BNron was the one composed on his
36th birthday, Jan. 22l, 1924. Recently facts
have come to light which show two poems Of
later date, as well rs several letters never be-
fore published. These letters and poems were
discovered among the literary effects Of John
| Cam Hohhousr, who was Bvron's most inti-
mate friend. They have just been published,
| with other "reminiscences of Byron, In Mur-
rays Magazine, an English publication of the
highest excellence and standing. 1t also ap-
pears that the opening lines of his beautiful
poem, Lara We're an aiterthought of Byron.
Here they are as he originally wrote them:
"When she is gone, the loved, the best, the one
Whose smile latA gtaH'ened though perchance I'M
done,
Whose name, too dearly cherished to impart
| Dies ON the lip but tremlcs in the heart
Whose sudden mention can almost conyulsc
And Tighten through the unSos ernablc pulse.
lilI the heart leaps so kecnly to the word
| v eaE that thrOb can har'ily be unhcard,
Then sinks ut once beneath that sickly chill
| lhat follows when we find her absent still;
"hen 5nch Is gone, too far again to bless,
Ih Coz, now slowly comes forgetfuhess
Let none complain how faithlcss and how brief
The brains remembrance or the hoscm's grief;
I, Or, ere they thus forbid us 10 forget,
| Let IAcrcN strip the memory of regret
| Nei-seh>h stil--.ve would not be forgot;
| What lip dare say, "My love remember not?'
Oh, best and dearest, thou whose thrilling
! NJ heart adorcs too deeply to proclaim
| Ny memory, almost ccasing to repne,
| Would mount to Hope ii once secure Of thine
| Meantime the tale weave must mournful lie,
| As absence to the heart that lives on thee
These lines strong and graceful; but
would hc entirely inappropriate to Lara" as
| The character was afterward drawn by that
| master hand. For this reason he threw them
aside, and probably never made mention of the
iHci,Iet.t, they will prove of intense interest
| 10 all lover, of that magnificent poem.
| AiMou- the prose letters is written by
| Byron from Ravcnna. In 1921, descriptive Of
| his first meeting with Madame De Stall. 1t is
Il curior> mixture Of criticism and a'lulation.
TIE .!,.ttcr is quite lengthy, win content
| myself with 4 few extracts:
''ln the year l+i3. | had the hotter of htin.
| amongst the earliest of my countryinrn pre-
| >entt,l tp Mi,,ane D, stnrl on ti- very night
| of ter arrival in LoiitloH. She arrived, was
| dressed. and cainc with her glory to Lady
Jt r>cl'<. where. in common with many Others,
| bow",!-'.t the knee. but the head and heart
ia homage to an extraordinary and able
woman driven from her own country by
The most extraordinary of men. They are
| both dt.a:l and buried, 20 we may speak
without offence. Thine. absence
and death mellow and >anrify all things.
/ thea saw around me but the men
whom heard daily in the Senate, and
met nightly in the London assemblies. | re-
vcrc,. | respected them: but | sdr them;
and neither bcauty nor glory can stand this
daily t.,t. SAW the woman of whom had
hcgrd narvc!S: She justified what | had heard.
but >hc was >,H a mortal. and made long
speeches ilay, the very DAY Of this philosophical
feast in her honor. Ike made refy long speeches
to those who had been accustomed to hear such
only III The two Houses. She interrupted Whit
bread; he dcclaincd to Lord L.: she mi>untcr
stood ehcrilan's jokes for assent; She har
aH@uco. she ecturca. she preached English
politics to the first of our English W hig poll
tican>. 'lr day after her arrival in England;
and. if am not much misinformed preached
polite, 10 lo>s 10 our Tory politicians the day
after The Sovereign himself, if | am not in
error. was rot exempt from this flew of
cloqucrce. As Napoleon had been lectured on
the dt>jinics Of France. the Prince Regent Of
England WIS :~kcl what lie meant to do with
Amnric;r: AT present night, with all
humility. ask, VI bit America neaiis to do with
hn:''
Il i, clearly evident t!iat Madame De stacl,
With ail Her genius AMI intelligence, was not
| ahoFc hting piqHcd l'y opposition from Others.
II is also c,cagiy evident that Byron delighted
in teasing her. in'l gave in play to his genius
III this direction. In the same strong box with
| INro;', letters, was found another from Miss
NJ
le>eril,c> another dinner party at Sir Hum
| lhrey Days. at which Madame De StHci and
| Byron We're the principal guests. This letter
is chiefly Interesting from the pen portrait it
| gives of Byron himself.
| II have Just stayed il London long enough
| to -ct SIGHT of the last imported lion. Madame
| DE Slarl hut il wa>a sight worth twenty peeps
through ordinary show boxes. Eoquencc is a
| great word. but not too BIG for her. she speaks
as 81" writes; and. upon t'siS occasion, she was
| inspired hy Indignation. finding herself between
| Two opposition spirits, Who gave full play to
all her energies. She was astoni>hed to hear
! that th~ pure and perfect constitution was in
| need of radical reform; that the ONLY safety
| 70: ireland WAS to open wide the doors which
| had been locked and barred by the glorious
revolution; and that Great Britain, the bulwark
of the world. WAS herself feeble, di>jonted.
| and almost OH tle eve Of ruin. so, at least, it
WAS represented 10y her antagonist in argument,
| Chile Harold. W hose sentin!eEt,-partlv, per-
| har>. Tor the sake Of argumcnt-grew deeper
and darker in proportion to her enthusiasm.
| The trU was his. lie is a mixture Of gloom
and sarcasm, cla>tencd, however. by good
| breeding, and with vein Of original genius
that makes some atouement for the unheroic
| AMI un@eniai cast Of his who e mind. 1t Is "a
mind HAT never conveys the idea of sunshine.
1t is Il dark night upon which the lightning
flashes"
This is a portrait where the shading is darkly
drawn: but tlion we arc used to this in the case
Of Byron. At the time Of the above meeting
between Miss Fan>hawe and the author of
Chil,ic Harold, English politics were running
extremely i!gh Byron was pronounced
Liberal; and no doubt drew dark picture of
the Tory regime. This was done partly from
Il hatred of that political party. and also to
draw the fire Of their French guest. That
Byron was at times gloomy and taciturn there
can be no doubt; but it is equally certain that
there WAS much sunshine In his nature. His
friendships We're strong and lasting. but to
those who injured him he was an implacable
foe. For Southey he entertained the utmost
contempt. Here is an extract from letter to
his publisher, Murray:
"Yon may make what say here as public a,
you please, more particularly to Sourhey, whom
! look upon-and will say so publicy-to be
dirty, lying rascal, and will prove it in ink-ol
in his blood, if did not believe him to be toe
much of Il coward to risk i'll If he had fort,
Reviews at his back. as he has the Quarterly
I would have at him in his scribblng capacit!
now that he has begun with me; but will dc
nothing underhand; tell him what say from
me and every one else you please"
''You ask me of the two reviews of Child
Harold in the Quarterly and the Edinburgh
! | will tell YOU. Scott's Is the review Of on,
poet on another-hiS friend, Wilson's, the re
, view of poet too, on another-his idol; TO
j.. he liked ne better than he chooses to avow t
the public with all his cuogy. speak judgin.
, only from the article, for don't know hin
personally
come now to the last lines ever written b,
Lord Byron. TO these is prefiXed the follow
ing endorsement in the handwriting of Hob