The morning times., 1896-06-14
Poem by J. |. mcCreery Accred-
tied to Lord Lytton.
SAVED WITH DIFFICULTY
Authorship of There Is No Death"
Long Matter of Doubt-StOry of
Its Origin Told by the Writer, Who
vouches for the Truth of the As
SertiOn.

| OF flIllauelpDld, winch EuS slilce Deen PRINT.
| ed in every State in the Union. i'll England,
| Scotland, Ireland, Wales Canada, aud even
| in far-away Australia; has been reproduced
| in magazines, in school books, in various
| periodicals, has been quoted from pulpit,
! from stage and lecture plat form; has
| emphasized the eloquence OF Congressional
| 0ratory-in short it has cncircled the
| world, and achieved deathess fame, on its
| merits, under the expressive and alto
| gether striking caption of There Is No
| Death.''
| 1t had the fate OF many other more or
! less pretentiOus productions, through the
modesty OF its author aud the bungiing or
the press-its paternity was long matter
| OF doubt.
Through singular combination of cir
| cumstauces the authorship was ascribed
| to Lord Lytton, whose fame, while adding
| nothing TO the attractions OF the poem,
| was nevertheless potent agency in the
perpetuation OF the error made by
| Wisconsnpublication that quoted the verses
from journal known as the Farmers
Advocate, then printed in Chicago, which
but for the disinterested work of personal
friends, would without doubt have for all
time robbed the real genius OF his property.
The poem was written by Mr.. j. l.. Nc
Crcery, at present and for a number OF
years past, an official in the Patent Office
in this city. Mr.. McCreery is native of
New York, but was reared in Iowa, the
home of many men of ability. 1t was
composed when he was serving us editor.
owner, foreman and office boy of a weekly
named the Delaware County Journal.
THE AUTHORS STORY.
His story OF the circumstances from which
the Inspiration was drawn that evolved the
verses is one of unusual interest. 1t was
told at length, in modest way, several
years ago in publication yclept Annals
of Iowa." and from that recital, in the
main, are drawn the facts here narr ated.
Referring to his paper, the Delaware
County Journal, Mr.. McCreery said II
was at the time in that financial condition
which insured the early foreclosure OF the
mortgage he had given for the purchase
money. Not being able 10 forcsee the
notoriety-that is the word he used-that
was destined TO attach to his verses, he did
not mark down in his diary II he kept
one, the exact da te when they first graced
paper. The nearest he can come TO 1t is to
say that it was in February or March, of
1868.
He was at The time a resident OF Della
ware county, in his adopted State, and the
sentiment, in updress, came 10 his mind
while lie was riding horseback from tile
northwestern section Of the State to his
home, Delhi.
The animal be was riding, borrowed
one, he says, could only proceed in walk,
as the last of the winters snow was melt
ing from the ground, and the roads were
very muddy. His journey was not COM
pleted until after nightfall. He was yet
half dozen miles from home when dark
ness overlook him, and he finished the trip
by starlight.
THE splendid censtella, ion Orion, the
brightest visible III our northern Iati-
tudes," Mr.. McCreery proceeded to say,
was just past his meridian, riding in
| triumph down the western sky. The sub
dued and tranquil radia nee of the heavenly
host relieved the somberness of his medi-
tations, and impaired serene and more
hopeful tinge TO his thoughts and feelings
Just at this juIcture the first four lines
of the poem came 10 him in their COM
pleteness.
II say came to me- " he observed, "as
the most nearly appropriate manner of
expressing the fact that the first i knew
1 found them in my mind. / certainly
| had not the least idea of setting myself at
work TO make poem for the occasion, and
IL would be equally incorrect to say that
heard n voice uttering the words In my
| bodily or spiritual ear.
MUSE DESERTED him.
1.-The next morning ! sat myself about
| making some more of that poem. But
labored-Iuse the word advisedly-Ilabored
| at disadvantage. The exalted and i'm
lboOt Vi tHS tNeHluR BtIOIt
| vanished. The inspiration though earn
| esrly invoked, refused to inspire. but in the
| course of the forenoon / constructed in a
| mechanical sortofa way,severalmorev verses
and aid them aside for while to dry.
sometime IN the spring OF that year
| the poem was sent to Arthur's Magazine
| and within three or four months it appeared.
| the first verse, as the foundation of the
| sentiment being in exactly the words
| first combined as the rider wended his
| way through the night on the way to
Delhi. and whichhas ever since retainedt that
| form.
The verse is as follows:
There is no death; the stars 60 down
To rise upon some other shore;
| And bright in heavens jeweled crown
| They shine forevermore.'
| Mr.. McCreerys version of the disputation
that arose over the authorship of his poem
| is not less entertaining than the record OF
| its production, and of equal interest is
| bis story of the effect the verses had
| upon his life work.
| AS to the first he gives in detail the facts
here briefed. In youth be was printer.
| and worked in the office of the Telegraph
| at Dixon, ILL.,, His earliest and green
| est literary productions, he says, were
| printed in that paper.
| After his poem was launched. Mr.. Nc
| Creery reproduced it in his own paper in
| Iowa. and forwarded a copy, marked, to
| friend. John H. Moore, a ne ewspapernan
in Dixon, who published 1t in full.
| South of Dixon, some where, Mr.. Nc
Creery forgets the location, there lived a
| man at that time named Eugene Bulmer-
one. at all events, who wrote for the press
| over that signature-who soon after the
| verses appeared used them. without CIV
| ing credit, to close an article which he
| published in the Farmers Advocate on
| the subject of .'Immortality."
The signature. E. Bulmer, was appended
to the article, which ended with the
poem, and subsequently the poetry was
detached and printed by itself. By the
| time it made its third appearance the en-
terprising fraternity had changed the name
| OF Bulmer to Bulwer, and its author lost
his footing In the literary world.
CREDITED TO LORD LYTTON.
| Mr.. McCreery had a good deal of trouble
in recovering his property. The poem ap
peared as late as 1870 in Harper Brothers
| United States Fifth Reader. accredited to
| Lord Lyttou. and a friend brought it to
the rightful authors attention. suggesting
that he present the firm with proof of
his right to claim it.
This was done. and in about year after
the verses reappeared in the school Reader
with the real authors name attached. Lip.
pincott's Magazine exposed the same error.
though under different circumstances. and
still later. in 1891, there again arose q
controversy as to its authorship.
Finally, to settle this lastdisputation, Mr.
McCreery was appealed to, and to bring the
matter to a finish he offered the editor OF
Masonic Tyler, of Detroit, 81 900 If he
would produce the verses, or any one o1
them written by Bulwer, or any one else
printed In magazine, book, newspaper or in
any other shape, prior to their publica tion
| or nrr-sc n rfh ~