The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-07-17

-
Cambridge. Nay ~. 1903. from scropo Davies
that you have totally given up dice. To DO sure.
you must give 1t up. For you to DO seen every
night in the very vilost companyin ~town-could
anything DO more shocking, anything moro
unilt2 Ispcak f~ecllngly on this occasion. non
iondrd mali miseris, &c. l know OF nothing
that should bride me to DO present once more
at such horrible scenes. Perhaps tits as well
that we are both acquainted with the ex-
tent Of the evil that we may be the moro
earnest In abstaining from It," The follow
ing extract from Byron's journal Is relevant to
the subject: Il have q notion that gamblers
are us happy as many people, being always err
cited. Women, wine. fame, tho table, even am
bition safe low and then but every turn OF the
card and cast OF the dice keeps tho Gamester
alive; besides, one can game ten times longer
than one can do anything else. Twas very
fond OF 1t when young that is to say OF hazard.
for / hate all card Rnmes-oven faro. When
macco. or whatever they spell It, was intro
ducod. ! gave up the whole thing. For / loved
and missed the dash aud rattle OF the box and
dice and the glorious uncertainty not only OF
good luck or bad luck. but Of any luck at all.
as ono has sometimes to throw often to decide
at all. I have thrown rs many rs fourteen
mains running and carried of all the cash on
the table. occasionally: but l had no GOODNESS
Va VI NuiSu hlo Az WAC vas NNA'
of the thing that pleased me. Upon the whole.
left of In time, without being much q winner
or loser. Since one and twenty years Of age.I
played but little. and then never above n hun
dred, or two. or three" It was not so much
gambling as his general extravaganza that
plunged Byron into debt; it must he remem-
bered that the income attached to the title
was comparatively small. In December.
1903, we find him writing to his attorney:
Il suppose It will end in my marrying q
golden Dolly. or blowing my brains out:
1t does not much matter which. the remedies
are nearly alike" Tie mother strongly advised
his marriage with All ,...,otT. Ina letter to the
family solicitor daSed Van. 20. 1909. she says:
Byron told me he H. tended to put his servants
on board wages at Newstead. 1 was very sorry
to hear OF the great expense the Newsstand fetc
would put him to. l cnn see nothing but the
road to ruin in oil this. which grieves me to the
heart. and makes me still worse than l YOU
otherwise be. unless, indeed. coal mines turn to
gold mines. or that he mends his fortune in the
old and usual way. by marrying ayoung woman
with two or three hundred thousand pounds. l
have no doubt Of his being n great speaker and
a celebrated public character and all that; but
that won't add to his fortune. but bring more
expenses on him, and there is nothing to be had
in this country to make a man rich in his line OF
life" In another letter to the same person.
penned about.a month later. she returns to the
topic: Il have had q very dismal letter from
my son informing me that he is ruined. He
wishes to borrow my money. This l shall
be very ready to oblige him In on such
security as you approve. AS 1t Is my
all. this is very necessary. and I am
sure he would not wish to have it on any other
terms. I wish he would take the debt OF n
thousand pounds that I have been security for
on himself and pay about eighty pounds he
owes here. wish to God he would exert him.
self and retrieve his affairs. He must marry a
woman of fortune this spring; love matches is
oil nonsense. Let him make use Of the talents
God has given him. He is an English peer and
has all the privileges of that situation"
1t is in a letter addressed to Henry Drury and
dated on board the Salsette frigate. May 3.
| 1910. that Byron gives an account Of his initial
ing the feat ascribed to Leauder: This morn
ing l swan from Sestos to Abydos. The i'm
mediate distance Is not above a mile. but tho
current renders it hazardous; 30 much so that
l doubt whether Leander's conjuGal affection
must not have been a little chilled in his pass
age to paradise. I attempted it a week
ago and failed. owing to the north wind
and the wonderful rapidity Of the tide.
though I have been from my childhood a
strong swimmer. This morning being calmer.
1 succeeded. and crossed the broad Hellcspont
In an hour and ten minutes" In Hobhouse's
journal. Byron made the following note: THE
whole distance which z. Lieut.. Ekenhead OF
tho Marinesl and myself swan was more than
four miles: the current was very strong and
cold; some large fish was near us when half
across; we were not fatiGued. but a little
chilled; did 1t with little difficulty" In n note
to the Lines Written After Swimming
from Sestos to Abydos.' Byron writes
| bIhayynliar q n " that n y0nn~ InHp yro m fha
same distance for his mistress. and Oliver
mentions its having been done by n Neapoli-
tan. but our Consul remembered neither OF
these circumstances and tried to dissuade us
from the attempt. A number Of tho Salsetto's
crew were known to have accomplished q
greater distance. and the only thing that sur
prised me was that. as doubt had been enter
talned Of the truth Of Leander's story. no trav-
eller had ever endeavored to Ascertain its prac-
ticabilIty." or this feat Byron was always
proud. but Hobhouse records that the poet had
before made n more perilous, but less Celebrated
passage: II ~recollect that, when we were in
Portugal, wo swan from old Lisbon to Belem
Castle. and. having to contend with the tide and
undercurrent. the wind blowing f~rightfully
were a little less than two hours In crossing"
We shall recur to this new collection Of
Byron's letters and journals upon the appear.
ance OF the second volume. which will undoubt-
eddy throw light upon the causes Of the poets
separation from his wife. NJ. W. H.