The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-16
LETTERS.
The Poet whittier Has Something to say
ON n TickIish Subject.

Ehe Poet whittier Has Something to Say
ON q Ticklish Subject.
The poet Whittier has enunciated D
hard doctrine in a recent letter TO a
friend in regard to the publication OF
| private epistles. How it chances that
| the principles he so emphatically lays
down are violated by the publication
of this particular document is not ex-
planned: but it is rather surprising,
since he writes: "Some years ago l
destroyed a large collection OF letters
I had received, not from any regard to
nv W reputation, but from the lear
that to leave them liable to publicity
might be injurious or unpleasant 70
the writer's or their friends. They
covered much Of the ant'-slaVery
period, and the var of the rebellion
and many of them, / know, were
strictly private and confidential. L
was not able at the time to look over
the MSS, and I thought it safest to
make a bonfire of all. / have always
regarded a private and confidential
letter as sacred, and it's publicity in
anv shape a shameful breach OF trust,
unless authorized by the writer. i
only wish my own letters to thousands
of correspondents may be as carefully
disposed Of" -
The ground here taken is certainly
a sufficiently high one. The logical
deduction from the position of the
writer is that most biographies are
practically violations of the decent re-
serve which should surround the dead,
since it is difficult to believe that there
exists a modern biography which does
not W it's information largely to
what Mr.. Whittier calls private letters.
y Leaving, for the moment, the wider
question whether biographies as such
are or are mot of value, it is fair to
consider that every honest man, ii
told that his history will be written
will first of all desire that it be true.
To destroy his letters would, in the
, case of any person of sufficient ote to
EAave been c~oLcerned in important
events, be to lessen the chance OF the
truths being known, either in regard
, to himself or others. Certainly if bl'
ography and history are to be written,
it is important that they shall ap'
: proach as nearly as possible to the
truth; and neither Mr.. Whittier no
: anybody else has a right to destroy
documents which would assist IL
t bringing the truth to light. Justice
to the memory of his friend shoule
lead one who has important letters tx
r see that they are properly used, no
that the risk is run Of having history
e misrepresented for want of them. Mr.
Whittier himself would undoubtedly
e prefer that Ibis letters to Thousand
b of correspondents" should be printed
to having his life misrepresented ant
II the high causes in defense of which n,
n has fought so well misunderstood.
= The fact is that while this matter o
publication seems at first glance boil
!, unpleasant and unjustifable, it is bu
y another form of the universar trutl
'e that no mans life belongs to himself
ID Perhaps a man has no more RICH
81 either to expect or to swish to take t
~ the grave Will nAM @Iy "ohS S
Of he takes his gold the personal privac
Or which is as much a luxury of life as
he his treasure. In any case the histor
rs of man belongs to the living; and sine
le the history of man is made up OF tn
s. history of men, in their story the worl
has an inalienable right. 1t follow
that documents which ger priva'
property are often public trusts, an
IN not therefore to be disposed of accor'
10 ing to the simple will of the possesso
of who is really simply a custodian.
It lis not of course meant that all tt
details of life. the private experience
hidden emotions and intimate secre
= of the heart, are to be laid open to tt
market place. 1t is not that publ
vulgar curiosity is to be satisfied, 'b'
10 the significant. the general. the thinl
which belong to the life of the poop
a or to the growth of the public SEM
lie ment or belief-these things belor
"a not to the individual, but to the rae
na And so, despite our recognition of tt
= genuine sincerity of the act and of Il
~ delicacy of feeling which prompted
~ we can not help feeling that it is
ia least an open question whether M
= Whittier had a moral right to destr'
those letters, relating, as many
them must have done, to some of t
&c most important events which ha
~ ever shaken and shaped our Nation.
On Boston Courier.
1Gt - -
$50 Thn A;%as E.an@%sNne-