Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1889-03-20
"Lrvrs or zKsAs T. emLrsoHAM.
"Dearest Zenas, thou hsst left us,
But Gods own viii is always bost;

"LISEs on ZESAS 7. 6nLIE0HAh.
"Dearest Zenas, thou hast left us,
But Gods own viii is always bost;
Beneath the sod We lay thee Tow.
And hope % meet tsee with the blest."
Consider next tho facts supporting the hy-
| pothseis that "The Way Oi Love - was written
bv Mr. Eugene Field and by him attributed 10
Mr. George w. Chds, A. NJ, out OF pure good
ness OF heart and professional smity, Just as one
LAWYER IN court sometimes espOnds 10 the call
OF another's name 10 spare the latter the un-
pleasant consequences OF nOn-appearance.
IL Is true that the poem was printed IN MI.
Golfers once u Hsst Oi tho date oi teoruhry
| 23d and That the name " George W. thilds " was
there attached 70 It, But Il Is likewise true that
| Eve days before February 2Jd-that ~ 70 say, on
! February letb-thc samo pocm. also signed
| "George ". Cnilds" and credited 10 once Week.
appeared In the Chicago DqAg Ners, the news
| paper whO.e columns gro the shelves on which
| Mr. Eugene Field hallunlly nrst displays me
poachDl0w products Of his rare genius.
suppose then, that the Chicago poet OBJ
serving that the literary pr0duc,yeness ot his
great Philadelphia contemporary was torpid, as
signed 70 him the sonnet The way OF Love-
creiidng 1t TO Oi,ce Week. and simultaneously
sending il 10 that periodical in order 10 cloak the
generous deception. If that Is the case. now
does II happen that Mr.. George w. Childs writes
from Richmond claiming tho poem we NO
not know sometimes We imagine that beneath
the bland benevolence and ingenious plscldlty
OF the great obituarian there Is an unsuspec'ed
fund of rich humOr.
OUR RICHNONDER'S THEORY.
Mr.. Chids being asked yesterday how he
exnlained the statement that the poem APP
peared in the DAILY News before 1t was pub
ll.hed In Once Week, said to Dispatch
representative:
The explanation OF the whole matter is
Simply that practical joke has been played
| by some one. ! sent toe poem In question
| to Once Week about two weeks before its
/ ,,,f hot
| ten by me several years AGO, and remained
almost forgotten IN my desk. Some one on
| Once n Week, in collusiOn with Field, OF
| Chicago, "put up the job" seeing, sup
pose. in the similarity OF my name with that
| Of the Philadelphia "Obltuarian chance
| for having some fun at the lalter's expense.
| As YOU may know the sun has been "making
game" OF hin. for a long time on account OF
| his obituary" poetry.
At the time OF the publication OF my poem
in Once Week two Of the Suns stall
Messrs. Mayo w. Hazletine and Blakely
Hall-were, and may yet be, also connected
with the former paper. one or botn oi
| these gentlemen, in ColiusiOn with Field,
undoubtedly perpetrated the ioke-at least,
| think so, as | can see no other possible eX-
nlanation OF the matter. Fields Well.known
habit OF ascribIng his productions to other
authors suggested him to the Sun man as
pardCeps CTinllnis.
This is the whole matter. The poem Is nm
ouesionably mine, and IL was |, not the
Philadelphia man, who charged tleld with
| tsking my property, which | was lustlhed
| at that time in doing, as the sun had printed
nv poem with Fields name signed to II and
credited to the Chicago Daily News, Fields
paper.
| have already made this explanation TO
the San, but 1t has not yet printed my let
ter; and, as intimated to the Sun that II
was in the joke, which stu believe, do
not know thst It will publish it. | am there
fore plad TO have the opportunity to make
This correction, as there is considerable con-
fusion about the matter; and more especially
as some of my Richmond friends have seen
| the SUMS article and naturally 40 not know
| what TO make OF II.
PERSONAL.
| Mfr. Childs lives on Beverley street, IN
Clay Ward. He is about thirty-tiye years OF
ace. and though be has been liberal contrl-
| butor 10 the columns Of the Virginia and
| New York papers, and occasionally TO the
| northern magazines, he has never wholly de-
| voted himself to literature until within few
months past. For great many years be was
| book keeper for Franklin Davis q co. lie
is rather bookworm; Is well posted on all
current litersture; and has library OF con-
siderable extent aud value.
lie says he wrote the poem in question,
and with those who know him that IA sutfi-
cient TO settle the question OF authorship in
his favor; but that is not all. At any time
nc wishes he scan produce witnesses who
saw bis MS. several weeks before the poem
was published anywhere.
A gentleman we'll known in society aud
literary circles here said to Dispatch re.
porter Yesterday: Weeks before the alleged
date OF publication ia the Chicago News
George Guilds showed Inc the poem and
asked rue IL l thought it was worth printing.
IL was written on small sheet OF paper {;
was in pencil and much interlined. | told
him that it was certainly worth publishing,
and | advised him to send 1t to Once
Week, which he did, and later on 1t was
published in that Journal"
So. whether the New York sun is MIS-
leading its readers iOculary or seriously,
there can be no doubt about Ar. George W.
Cbilds. OF Richmond, being the author OF