New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-09-08

religious DOCKS. Inc DlDe hau tne nIsJ place,
and the boy was fully instructed in it. Then
there were lives of Quaker missionaries apostles
of the dispensation according to George Fox. and
other doeful books for an ardent boy. But the
heaviest and dullest book Of that or any age
was The Davideis' sacred epic written. by
Ellwood. the friend of Milton. /" The Davideis"
| remained in Whttier's possession since,
vellowed and soiled a specimen OF verse that is
trulv blank and warning which the poet
| evidently kept in mind
| Rut the bright boy made friends, and they
| lent him books The family physician DR.. Elias
| Weld. did much in this way. The neighborhood
WAS laid under contribution for miles around,
and when aftcrward Whittier went to the
| academy. it was found that he
we'll informed on almost every subject. lie
| has related with exceeding lveliness and humor
the coming of pedler-minstrel. who sang songs
| of Burns The Quakers, it should be remem-
bered. did not approve Of music. least Of all of
| love songs Consider, then, this thoughtful boy,
| with his eager and impossible nature, and with
the blood of adolescence beginning to tingle in his
veins hearing for the first time in his existence
the exquisite poetry and music of Highland
| Mary and the " Banks O. Doom" 1t WAS
| revelation q heaven upon earth. Not long after
his schoolmaster lent him volume of Burns, and
| he mastered the dialect by committing the glossary
! TO memory. From this point his life as poet
began. The valley around him was peopled with
| life The woods made him partaker In their
mystery The stars looked kindly down upon
! him. He continued his labors on the farm, but
| his thoughts were his own, and the flame burned
| in his breast.
| He went to the AGA lemy in llaverhill. rather
more than three miles distant, for six months
lie was then nineteen years of age. tall, erect.
| 7 eel Of
wonderful depth and power, and with the natural
manrsrs of gentleman. He was reserved, but
never awkward This was especially noticed
By the young ladies of the school and village;
and it was considered wonderful that youth who
had never before left his fathers farm should
appear as if he had been always accustomed TO the
| hest society A lady who remembers him at
that period says that his air and manner were
sinrularly attractive, and that his clothes were
worn with such ease that it was hard to imagine
! that he had ever been q ploughman or barefoot
bow" He pursued his studies in English and be-
gan to read French The next winter, like all am
bilious Yankees he taught school, returning to the
academy the second season Thus is summed up
his total preparation for his appointed work in the
world.
FIRST WRITINGS.
lie had written for The Gazette" Of llaver-
hill and for The Free Press" of Ncwburyport-
the latter conducted by Garrison He was for a
few months in Boston in 1929, editing Inc
American Manufacturer a protective talH pa
per- but the prospect was not good, and ne re-
turned home In 1880 he went TO Hartford,
Conn. where he edited " The New-England Review,
rs successor TO the celebrated George d. Prem
tice. who had gone to Kentucky to establish Tho
Louisville Journal His contributions. both in
fed
and his first volume was composed OF articles
he had written for his paper, entitled " Legends
Of New-England in Prose and Verse 1s3ll. HIS
noems during this period of year and hall were
numerous, and some were oil c0nslderaple tAc'l-
lcnce few of them are retained IN ms , fonipIr
works to this day He was recalled 10 liaNcrnlil
by the death of hs father and he resumed ms
daily labor upon the farm: His mother his aunt
his two sisters and his brother constituted unc
household and there has never been an instance
of more entire and perfect devotion than has been
shown by Whittier TO his family. The love mas
had the intensity and the cNcluslveneSs OF pa
SION and il may 60 far toward explaining the
cehbate life of the poet. The descriptions OF the
various members Of the family are among the
most delightful passages IN snow boumu ,ooir
By this time the name OF Whittier was Degln-
ming TO be mentioned in the literary periodicals.
of the day, and his poems were welcomed by editors
and the public. He wrote for Buckingham
- New En- GLAND Magazine" wherein his verses may
he seen in company with those of Longfelow ana
Holmes. and with the airy imaginative. skeich enc,
of Hawthorne. He wrote stu more i3r Tor, me
| Democratic Review, then one OF the apIes1 IT,
| views in the country.
ANTISLAvERY AGITATION.
| Rut he WAS called by duty TO other work, and
| tbe voice of duty was 70 him the voice of God.
he had become deeply interested in the question
of slavery; and gave it a thorough study; ana the
result was the production OF an able and exhaustive
| argument entitled Justice and EXpedency
| This apreared in ! $685. and was paid for out OF
! his earnings from the labor of his hands FROM
this time all his powers were devotrd 10 me one
| philanthrOpic purpose. lie put hohors peIii''
| him, and counted his fame as nothing ii ne cou"
aid in awakening the moral sense OF the Nation 10
its great crime. Then began TO be heard those
ti-slovery lyrics that rang through the land.
Some heard them gladly some with anger, and
more with indifference. Whenever called upon
" No uas trne TO the Voice. though the service was
hard"
All through his volumes may he seen traces OF
his part in the great contest But his lame rs
root does not rest upon these ant-slavcry lyrics;
Inc did not profit by his connection with the cause
NJ freedom: rather he sacrificed himself and his
literary reputation that he might do something
for the slave His best work is seen in later
mems which have no strain of controversy, which
are founded upon ideal themes and treated III an
ideal way. 49,, ,,,,
In ls35-'s6 he was member of the Massachu-
sette Legislature for IIaverhill In the latter year
he became one Of the secretaries OF the American
Anti-SIayery Society and soon after ne ie.n9'e'
to Philadelphia, where ne remained until ls4e
one notable trial he had TO endure In Phih-
dephia in 1885, when he was conducting me
Pennsylvania Freeman" His Office was IN the
basement OF a new ediiice erected for public meet
inps. chiefly by AbolitiOnists. IL was named
Pennsy ivanla Hail. and opened with elaborate
| ceremony. There were an Grafton by DaVid iauI
Brown speeches by Garrison and other leaders,
| and an ode written by Whittier On the thIrd
| day the building was set on lire and totauy de
| strovcd by an organized mob, without the least
| hindrance on the part OF the Mayor and the Clty
| Government. Whittier had been mobbcd before
at Concord, y. H., for the crime OF having driven
there with GcOree IhOmps1n, tie Ensllsh ADOl-