Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1890-05-22
Foes Death Retold,

\ former Baltimorcan, now living i'm
san francisco, gives the Philadelphia |
Times what he claims to he a true oc-
count of the poets last days and death.
This is his story: 81 was an intimate
associate of Edyer Allen Poe for wears
Much that has been said and written
regarding his death is false. His habit
ual resort in Baltimore was the Widow
Meagher's place. This was an oyster
stand and liquor bar on the city front.
corresponding in some respects with
the coffee houses of San Francisco. II
was frequented much by printers, and
ranked as respectable place, where
parties could enjoy a game of cards or
engage in social conversation. Poe
was great favorite with the old
women. His favorite seat was lust be-
hind the stand, and he was about AS
quiet and sociable as an oyster himself.
He went by the name of Bard and
when parties came into the shop it was
Bard, come up and take a nip;' or,
Bard, come and take hand in this
game
Whenever the Widow Meagher met
with any accident or idea that ticllled
her fancy she would ask the Bard to
verslfy it. Poe always complied, writ
ing many witty couplet and at times
poems of some length. These verses,
quite as meritorious as some by which
his name was immortalized, were thus
frittered into obscurity. 1t was in this
little shop that Poe's attention was
called to an advertisement in a Phil
adelphia paper of a prize for the best
story, and it was there that he wrote
his famous Gold Bug which carried
off the 500 prize.
"Poe had been shifting for several
years between Baltimore, PHILADELPHIA
and New York. He had been away
from Philadelphia for three or four
months, when he turned up one even
ing at the Widow Meagher's. was
there when he came in. He privately
told me that he had been to Richmond
and was on his way north to get ready
for his wedding. It was drinking all
round and repeat, until the crowd was
pretty jolly, 1t was the night before
election, and four of us, including Poe,
started up town. We had not gone
half a dozen squares when we were
nabbed by a gang of men who were on
the lookout for voters to coop 1t was
the practice in those days to seize peo-
pie, whether drunk or sober, lock them
up until the polls were opened and
then march them around to every pre-
cinct, where they were made to vote
the ticket of the party who controlled
the coop. Our coop was in the rear of
an engine house on Calvert street. 1t
was part of the game to stupefy the
prisoners with drugged liquor. Well,
the next day we We're voted at thirty
one different places, and over and over,
it being as much as mans life was
worth to rebel. Poe was so badly
drugged that after he was carried on
two or three different rounds the gang
said it was no use to vote dead man
any longer, SO they showed him into Il
cab and sent him to a hospital to get
him out of the way.
1.-The commonly accepted story that
Poe died from the effects of dissipation
is all bosh. 1t was nothing of the kind
He died from laudanum or some Other
poison that was forced upon him in the
coop. He was in dying condition
while he was being voted around the
city. The story told by GriswOld OF
Poc's having been on weeks spree
and being picked up on the street, il
false. l saw him showed into the cal
myself, and he told me he had just ar
rived in the city,"