The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-01-12
POE'S GREATEST POEM.
The Little Cottage in Which the Poet
Wrote.


thousands OF pilgrims have gone to look
upon the scene OF that remarkable inspira-
ton, and biographies of the melancholy
poet have contained in steel sngravings the
house and the very room. Until this month
the old cottage was standing alone upon the
upheaved granite, but the resistless tide of
material progress has removed it. Many
have been the relic-savors who have visited
the place. A shingie, pieces Of molding, the
''cnamber door, the mantelpiece, window
castings, etc, have been eagerly obtained,
showing the intense private mold OF readers
by the poem, of which the American En-
cylopedia mas said
ut would have made any mans fame in
any age or any language"
Warner in his 'Men Of Letters" remarks:
mo great poem established itself so i'm
medlately, so widely, and so,imperishably in
mems minds"
Mrs. Sigourney Rice, in her interesting
Memorial Volume" writes:
This masterpiece Of genius has probably
done more for the renoWn of American let
tiers than any work.
And N. T. Willis, when he copied it in
the Rerie10, prepared it with the headnote
unsurpassed in English poetry 1t will
stick to the memory Of every body who
reads it."
WHERE IT WAS WRITTEN.
No one who is impressed with the senti-
ments of ''The Raven could have stood in
the little plain room and looked upon its
walls and through the windows down the
slope and across the Hudson without pro-
found feelings entering to some extent upon
the spirit that inspired the author, and ell
most sympathiziag with him and his child
wife as II they were actually present. We
take pc ltion where tuey stood and sit at
tbs windows and bef re the fireplace, and
then recite appropriate lines of 1.-The
Raven
A newspaper of recent date implies that
The Raven" was written at the little cot
tage on the hill and roadside at Fordham.
Poe did not go there until 1916, but the
poem appeared in the Mirror and the Re
Utet0 in February Of 1S45, and Charles
Dudley Warner, biographer, says the poem
was In course of composition in 1912
and l843. To satisfy any who may
take an interest in the matter the writer
o this visited Mrs. General OBsirne at
the Gladstone hotel, in Central Park, yes
terday.
A WOMAN WHO KNEW POE.
Mrs. O'Beirne was Miss Matte Brennan,
and is a sister of Commissioner Thomas
Brennan. She is the eldest child of the
Brennan family who owned the estate, was
born in the Poe cottage in 1883 and was
married there in 1862, and was well &C
quainted as a child and years Of age with
OS, WIFI lFRIUla anu WIN MIS-. ClStil.
Your interviewer was kindly received by
Mrs O'Beirne, who is tall, graceful. in
tellgent and most interesting lady. fully
impressed with the subject, and her exact
words are given below To my direct Ques-
ton, How do you know Poe wrote THE
Raven therem Mrs OBeirne replied, and
with considerable interest and feeling all
through the interview: For the sim
pie reason that he read his manuscript to
tIa nd 7 Obi m
be in the room often visiting his wife Vir
GINA
Q-"But do you distinctly recollect the
sentiments of the poem as expressed at the
timeg'
yes used to be amused at his turning
his sheets with writing side down, and |
would stand by him at bis table and turn
them down for him at MS table and turl
them down for him. He boarded with US
two summers, in l843 and 1914, while he
wrote Tor the magazines"
HOW THE POET WROTE.
''He would 60 off in the woods and write
and come home and read to Us what he had
written. Among the pieces vas 'The
Raven My mother remembered it all well,
and many gentlemen came to see her about
it. | was married there 25 years ago, and
our family lived there up t. 1870. | have
visited the old homestead often, almost
every S6dSOt, aul ~ HAS always RENAL
the same. There has been no change in that
room except prin ing and apermg. Ny
brother drove with me past there recently,
and | wanted to secure the old carved wood
man telplece around the fireplace of Poe'S
room, but saE the house was torn down
regretted this very mucl, but the improve
ments came so quickly tCat have been sur
prised. And | suppose all ne heirlooms
that were stirred in the garrett nave gone
w nj oil
spinning wheel. The uantelpiece in
Poe's room was very quaint and oid-fash-
toned, with carved fruit and vines ID
leaves, and mother always kept it carefully
painted"
THE BUST OF PALLAS.
informed the lady that the mantel had
been bought by William Hemstreet of
Brooklyn, and erected around the fireplace
in his library, and was highly priced by
him as q disciple of Poe. And here /; the
most interesting fact in the chain of ident-
ity of The Raven" room. Mrs. O'Beirne
continued: II remember very well the old
plaster bust above the door, ard / wonder
whore it has gomez | tod her that visitors
had often emarked. with some merriment
al the meagreness Of the room, that there
was no space over that plain, fat door-cas-
ing for the ''pallid bust Of Pallasn She re-
piled that there was a little shelf over tie
door upon which she distinctly remembered
the bust. She said there was tavern or
hotel opposite, kept by q man named
Palamo, who took summer boarders and as
Virginia could not dress as the other ladies.
and as Poe said he preferred the quiet and
plainness OF a private family, he impor-
tuned Mrs Brennan to take them, which
she did for two summers-lS43 and 1914
The place was then countr ylike and very
picturesque. Mrs. O'Berne continued:
mr.. Pos used to take Virginia upstairs in
his arms. He was very devoded TO his lit
tie wife; used to bring her fruits and
candies from the city, OF which | always
had part at his knee, for the family petted
me-
HE LOOKED LIKE BOOTH.
Before te left the tavern Poe would
often come Owe; to US and read his manu-
script and e4joy under the trees, the view
of the river Several people came 10 inter-
view mother about The Raven and in
that way have always associated the poem
with that room and continued il in my
memory. | remember Poe's looks very
wei, and, unaided, pointed out his bus. in
the Central Park museum. My husband
was in charge of the defenses a. Washing
ton at the time Of the assassination of Prai-
dent Lincoln, and whea he obtained from
the pocket Of one of the aSsassins the pho
t,graph of Wilkes Booth. / Immediately
told my husband that there vas lust such q
looking man as Edgar A. Poe Poe was not
a drinking man, but yery little liquor af-
tected him: aud Or. Moran, who attended
him at the hospital during his last illness.
SAID the same Poe was always q perfect