The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1891-01-18
MRS. HELEN JACKSON
80. =, Her Life and Lstsrsy
Msfks
~ ~ S6ce1

ine ,nv wsman Of her time," Mrs.
r,sien jackson, should demand just ~" b bar
.,,.n,iou. AZ she has not done s snerica l.
saaths The public interest 10 IT., trouble.
centered upon the gtesen. in ;s.;s,ing upon
IA n was I'm unfolding ami ihs's -. .i,d ber
anu ~ go ~ the Indians that sbe o'u ~,
zoe IA m -, benehcept work: nee MAN, n.,i'er
u.s. NJ" .,as Helen Maria Fiskc, me- TO- IN
nsme Nathaniel Wiley Fiskc, proiss,.s's
v s,hers, College. Massachusetts. ~. an4
a,so a Congregati0nalis, h,,nls ., seaman.
sntbor. Her mother was pos 'od nv ali
cultivated, attractive, anu ,h,or claimed
VIZ 1 nnr ovn supuy temperament "ss Wa of ~
har,,ed from her mother. AZ w Tnntain
.'.n,,,.-one Helen Fishe fnarrfeu o. np.,.v
Ts,.a5d n HINT. United states a,r,v
Cer,air Hunt was an engineer Oh NIX a.
rsns and man Of scientihc as.'na one.
Their uiatfied life was w,nsls and the
az IL usual with military ls" III husband
taste and requirements ~ 18th many dis.
hrouoht the wife in contact WIN VIII "' A. This
..n.,,;sbed and superior people. n,,ng
.,hsuM NJ HINT was simply chaIpiss'
.i'uo H. woman, who loved soo,o':
sel oxouisitely. and had ho's ~,
a aI''is amono both men and women. Du'
| ,hara was much sadness IN stv'o ,h.ir
nrrsrg the lifetime Of her nuspsnua now
arst child died; in '63 ne, nusi while
u.s. mstor HINT. was killed IN BrookIyh ~
haJoI, ,a,,,na with an invention Oh h'e
exp Tine enid was left to ner, Wy
OWL owl, panpie. a child Of charming person
caiieu ~ ~ wonderful qualities Oh hinu'
amy az" ezra more this child died, ana .ne
Ill.,. ~ ,sas almost crushed by the OloN.
a time Of great grief followed, "neh Sar
retnsed the admittance OF shyonc cut ~
nresence. but after a season sue vanno ..,,,d
his sorrow with her usual ur's"'"S
charm of manner triumphant. oIiys
A. the age of thirty-fsur she went W ~
IN Sewnort. Rhode Island, and mere sue
was admitted 10 a circle OF irienus "ns a.
ss,,i,s were literary. Her own taste lsI
boau,v was very acute and sensitive 10 an!
svnariot tonch. she responded readliy ~
mis- new influence which had Deen Vlousn'
INTO her life. Her first literary wOIs ~ 20
sisted of several contributions Oh pve ,aI,
various papers and magazines, ,meh ofI
lowed articles in prose, ana nu .hn ,,,,H
hook Atlews written by request oil Tue pun
fishers. She had distinct literary sty
thought came TO her with great swiltnessl
| and. while composing with much esse anu
ron,dit;. she spared no pains TO execute nea
~ syell She invited criticism, ana was
luntirine In revising and improving ne'
mode OF expression. -,os Of har
his said that in the early period VI hel
Ii,arary career friend urged her to send
acme contribution to the Atlantic. ~ hle'
, sbs refused but being importuneof shS
vi.,s,ed, and nut into his hands poem e.-
;i,Iad nCofohstiou.v with permission 10
shnyy IL 10 MIR. Fields. She had hxed nlgh
nrios unon this poem, and as sue was a
new conner. its acceptance seemeu u r.,so5
full Fields read the poem ana eAOi . anj
, "Its good poem" then resd II asalnl 90.
sa,d "if,s deyllish good pOem,' ana &C
]
|, won't 10 California; and In 10 she iOuhu u
necessary. on. account OF her health, 10 70 "
: Colorado. In 1915 she contracted q secou i'
marriage with Mr. William Sharpleso JACK
son of Colorado Springs. The remaining
wears OF her life were spent IN the Tar w.
but many trips were made between nei nc"
p and her old haunts. Sbe had iohs Ivu
4 Gus IL was never ner piVasVte W 'e
e in one place. ~. tacli-
E II was during these years OF life 10 'Aii-
D fornia and Colorado that her interest III Tue
2 indians was aroused. In 1878, while In
. Roston. she heard "Standing Bear ana
/ bright Eyes lectute on the wrongs oil tne
Poncas. She later met these INDIANS Al
j the house of a friend In New lots ely. a. a.
g sympathy was enlisted, the slumOerlns nIe
! was tanned into consuming, deVOurins
e hsme. and henceforth she subOrdinated III.
V erature 10 this single aim: the defence ol
D the rights OF the Indians.
In 1SSO she wrote to a friend; 81 have
i done now, | believe, the last OF the thlngs
= mad said never would do; | have Decolhe
4 what have said thousand times was the
b most odious thing in life, "a woman WIN a
. hobbyJ But ! cannot help it. | think i
5 feel az YOU must have felt in the old aooli'
tion DAYS. Icannot think Of anything else
from night 10 morning, and from morning
10 night. | believe the time Is
v drawing near for a great change IN our
3 policy toward the Indian. In some re-
;, spects, it seems TO me, he IS really WoIse
n on than the slaves. They did have, IN the
a majority of cases, good houses, ana
g thew were not much more arbitrarily con-
@ troiled than the Indian is by the
q agent on reservation. lie can order
# corporaPs guard TO fire on An Indian at
d any time he sees fit. He is duly empow-
. cred by the Government" 1t was then that
{ she went to work in earnest. studied iacts'
r correspondent with statesmen, and wrote
y those Two books sRamOra." and "Centu-
i nv of DshonOr," which have 80 helped 10
n Inform the intelligent world regarding the
}. cruelty and treachery which have charac-
e terized the course the United states Gov
: ernment has pursued toward the lndlans.
She became vastly interested III the history
Il OF the early Spanish mission IN Calllorhla,
e and she wrote series Of papers regarding
Il them.
o "RamOra" is a story which instructs,
l. and kindles love and sympathy for NAL
II treated people, as few books have ever
l. done. Its literary merit is Of high order,
n and none but the hand OF an artist and the
10 soul of poet could have portrayed, with
b so delicate touch, such nobility OF charac-
l. ter and manly yigor. Alexandra, the In
It dian, is character unique In romance
l. and his strength, his passion, and his de-
: spair emphasized the possibilities OF
It race great and natural, and true To the
, mark as their own answering arrow
heads when once their lsye or their graft
e tude has been awakened.
b After long, distressing Illness, Mrs.
|. Jackson died in 1886, with her "wOrk but
o lust begun" where In the due course Of
d events she might rightfully count upon
n many years yet Of activity ana usefulness.
,r IL was loss which her friends and tn G
e cause TO which she had given her mature,
e we'll developed talents, could but poorly
% astain. Possibly no human life has re-
d ceived so beautiful tribute as that, which
], has been expressed by the manner In which
8 her last resting place has been marked. In
= accordance with her own wishes, her re-
d mains were inferred on a spot near the sum-
o init Of the Cheyenne mountains. four miles
from Colorado Springs. The Indians and
those OF her own race, who have come 10
view the spot and honor her, have placed
II each stone upon il, until a monument has
l. been reared, telling TO the world in what
v loving remembrance she il held Her work
b was noble, and was nobly done; savage and
Y. civilian alike attesting II.
1. Her poetry is OF SO fine order that Emer-
e son ranked il above that Of nearly every
- American man. Her writing at large upon
,r all subjectsi was considered by her con-
lie freres so excellent in quality. so attractive
d ia form, that j. G.. Holland and his ass0ci-
n ates determined at one time that every con.
l. tribution In one number Of "rhe Century,
r should be from her pen, and that il should
II go forth the product Of one person. Had
IF they not feared that this would have been
X received as sensational, 1t would have been
IT done.
VI AZ a woman she had great virtues
q marked Inconsistencies, many faults thai
v came near 10 virtues, heart a-tune 10 sym