Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-10-27
rHE RIoHMoND DIsPArcH-sUNDAY. OCTOBER q: 1895:

could not easily be allayed. especially as
he himself had aspirations In authorship.
In that lay his risk and the secret OF
much Of his later experience. A man VINO
could write of the "atrabilious set OF
hvprr. patriots, who ind fault with Mrs
Troilopes fum-nummery about the good
people of the Union" who could In his
Miller autographed hoax say that no
opinion could be had OF w. IL. stone
style; that Edward Everett would not
attain the Hottest pinnacle OF renown;
that Fays handwriting had an air Of
swagger. and that no one would suspect
from the penmanship OF Washington IT.
wing "a high finish In the authors COM
position." had apparently never been i'm
messed by the worldly wisdom taught In
the Parable Of the Unjust Steward. II 1t
had never been necessary to palliate by
reference TO the eccentricity OF genius
those traits of Poe, that certainly de-
tracted from his personality, or to allege
that professional jealousy was the basis
of antaronism to him. living and dead,
the critical work he did as editor Of the
Messenger would be sufficient to account
for much OF the disparagcment OF him as
a man and as an author.
Few other writer's have had stronger
friends and more bitter enemies. His
genius commanded the one class; his In
dependence of opinion. often expressed
erratically, opened the way Tor the cuiu-
va,ion of the others. Into his criticisms
sn,een NAV have entered at times. but
that did not detract from their originality
Few recognized literary critics, though,
can tell "the truth, the whole truth. ana
nothing but the truth" and remain popu-
lar with authors and their friends. Fifty
or sixtv wears ago authorship was not
the nrofession that 1t is to-day. There was
,,,ore work for fame and less for money.
TIE writer and his book were more closely
assoc;ated I'm the mind Of readers. saving,
~ course. the present practice In some
cases Of floating rubbish upon name
that once meant worth. The desire to De
known as an author. commensurate as "
nav have been under existing circum-
stances. was the mother OF sensitive
ness that would not easily brook uIl-
f,vorabIe criticism, however just. Where
,bera were few writers, each one was
the moro prominent target. Criticism hau
= more personal bearing on that account
and the resentment aroused By 1t was
readily extended TO the person or the
or,,tc II il therefore, not surprising
mat when Poe passed from his httul me-
,he animosities engendered by his pen
shcnId have been added to well-founded
nereonaI grievances, or that the former
Should have tended toward the becloud-
ing of the mental greatness Of Poe by
means of condemnation Of his physicai
failings. to which the latter were due.
A PEACEFUL FAREWELL.
He was not oblivious to the possibility
NJ adverse feeling, for In January, lsS.'
I'm the number of the magazine In whicn
Thomas w. White, its worthy founder,
made n graceful allusion to his with
drawal from the editorship and was
tborphtfuI enough to relieve him from the
responsibility for writing mat ne nad not
done. Poe announced that ne retreo
with the best wishes for the magazine
and babe a peaceful farewell TO IT'S ioes'
as we'll as its many friends.
White expected that Poe would continue
N write for the magazine, but with slight
execution the work that he afterward did
for II was comparatively Insignificant. III
no had no grievance against White at the
time he developed 1t later, in spite or
Whites friendliness toward him. In 1853
the Messenger expressed pleasure AT
Poe's connection with Borton in the man
agement of the Gentleman's MagaZine'
and said: "Mr. Poe is favorably known to
the readers of the Messenger as gentle
man of fine endowments, possessing
taste classical and refined. and magma
tion affiuent and splendid. and withal
singular capacity for minute ard maine
matical detail. We always predicted that
Mr.. Poe would reach a high grade IN
American literature, but we always
Thought. and still think. that he Is too
much attached to gloomy German mys-
ticlsm to be a. useful and effective writer
without a total divorce from that somore
school. - We wish Mr.. Poe would
stick to the department OF criticism; thert
he Is an able professor, and he uses w
the yer1nin who are continually crawnnn
unbldden into the literary arena with
the skill and nonchalence or practiset
surgeon. He cuts them up piecemeal anc
rids the republic of letters OF such nui
sances. Just as a good officer or ponce
sentences to their proper destination tn
night strollers and vagabonds who infes
our cities. We sincerely wish Mr.. POI
would. and hope that he will. take ou
advice in good part"
Under the editorshlp OF Benjamin u
Minor Poe name appeared again IN IN
Messenger, and II is said that the mrs
complete version of the Raven" wa
published in the magazine In the sprini
OF 1916. In the two or three years betor
| his death ha was frequently in the Mes
senger office making the place his resor
| whenever he was in Richmond. He ais
| wrote some criticisms and renewed hi
"Margnalia." Just before leaving Rich
mond for his fateful trip to Baltimore h
| gave to John X. Thompson a manuscrir
| of "Annabel Lee" though the publicatio
| of the poem In the magazine was ant
cipated by its appearance In news
paper that had been furnished with ar
| other copy.
Fifteen years later 1.-THE Fire Legen'
a Nightmare" from an unpublished mar
uscript attributed to him, was printe'
The magazine was then within re
months OF its end. and that poem wa
the last appearance in 1t Of the writln
of the man whose genius had done muc
to raise II from a struggling local issr
to an American monthly.