The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1893-03-25

privations of his childhood. Yet with but
a year or two at village school his in
nate ideality led him to the expression of
his thoughts in verse sufficiently remark
able to attract the attention of the poet
Rogers, Miss Martinea9, Lady Byron
and others, and under their patronage
his first poems were published with the
significant title, "Guesses at the Beauti-
full"
At the age Of 90 he came to America,
devoting himself for a year or two after
his arrival to educational efforts among
the poor In 1856 he went to Kansas
with John Brown and threw himself into
the abolition fight until he was arrested
by order of Governor Geary. On his To-
lease he went to Canada, where a futile
movement was on foot among the abo-
litionists for the invasion of the southern
states. He was in Texas at the time of
the Harper's Ferry raid and was again
arrested and taken to Washington, mar
rowly escaping lynching on the way.
When the war broke out, Realf enlist
out with the brevet rank Rf lieutenant
colonel He received honorable mention
for gallantry at the battles Of Chicka-
1nauga and Missionary Ridge and the
publicly expressed thanks Of General
Stanley, his corps commander, for his
conduct in subsequent engagements.
After the war Realf made an unfor-
tunate marriage, SO distasteful that he
enlisted as Il private soldier in the reg
ular army, then engaged in suppressing
Indian deprcdations in the west, hoping,
as he despairingly wrote, ito get a kind
ly bullet put through me-" He was dis
charged by order of the secretary Of wur
and given a position in the internal rev.
enue service in South Carolina, Where
he devoted all his leisure to the instruc-
ton of the negroes.
He secured divorce from the woman
who had done SO much to make his life
miserable and married again. Ills sec
ond marriage was far better for hin:
than his first, though illness and a series
Of systematic prosecutions inauguratec
by his first wife did much to mar hi;
happiness In 1878 he was appointed tc
position in the San Francisco mint
and seeing unwonted felicity dawnine
upon him entered assiduously upon hi
new duties, devoting, as usual, his spare
| hours to literature.
But the happiness he coveted was no
for him. While he was preparing for tn
reception of his wife and child, who wer
yet in the east, his Nemesis descended
upon him. His first wife had succeeded
in obtaining.a a rehearing of the divorce
which had already been granted AM
began to threaten him. He was to b
declared bigamist and his wife AM
child dishonored. The blow was to-
much for him, and he ended his own lif
in hotel in Oakland, Cal.
Realf was buried in San Francisco
and for Is years nothing has marked hi
resting place except simple graveston
that recorded the fact that he had serve'
his country as soldier and risen to tn
rank of lieutenant colonel. Awakenin!
at last to the fact that something shoul'
be done to honor his memory, a few 0
his admirers, aided by the literary work
ers of the Pacific coast, recently starte'
a movement to obtain funds to erect
monument
Joaquin Miller, however, suggested il
characteristic note that the publication
of an edition Of Realfs poems would b
the most fitting memorial Of the unhaI
by poet. "Let us not" he wrote, ''giv
stone.to man to whom the public re
fused bread" Miller's suggestion ha
borne fruit, and it has been decided t
publish the book by subscription. I
the profits are sufficient, q nonumen
may be erected. 81. Z. WHITE.