The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-03-20

srsarkakye personality from the tirme wsest.
~ the age 81 e. she RrfsTss over the ioss
OF 4 mother 'wisozs tenderness ard watch
fuincss I have fslt every day aid nosf
s.roe sne gave me that lie wh.eh hsr scas
eusbsfters's4-;o tie time = years later.
when the LAST letter, written ia Fsorssses
crsee. "sfsy e;o-i save Italy"
These letters are ais FIRST adequate eTfs~
tytbu,lon which las b@sa made 20 real
esIedgs Of MIS- Browning, Apart from
tbs lnssgfss they afford into tbs heart asld
mind Of woman 81 gen!1ss, they are ~Sssh
suading fog the passages Of exquisite ARD
suhth criticism that are segsferea
en,nu.hoa. ire f.ta.r~ FOR ssstaasea.
thh description u asppfsos--'.sto broks on
. fraxms,ts Of her yosss - oe guessed by
- creation did ny Gts s0ssIss
Hare are lest1Fa wrstssn 10 the closest
srtsnAs OF every peFiod of hey HE. Hugh
0trAss Boyd. the blind scholar. "1oNe
friendship In conauseransatea in hsr poem.
irvine OF Cypress" Miss Milford, and
lassr Mrs Jameson ana Miss Browning.
Mn. Martin aud Mr.. Kenyon ainnEs
throughout and 10 Charley RaSSsn and
lnss intimate friends. ThaEc ~ one caarae~
ter1stic fstsag about than ali. Surely the
nnoet aneetionate letters ever ssItten,
Every correspondent Is very dear AMI
dearest" always wkh ample sincerity
and without cite touch Of Tie quality
she writes Ar Ru@kin. 'lsut for my life
] never esais help being grateful TO the
psopis WHO iGysd me. even II they hap
pensd Co say / can't help IL. not J..
The letters naturally fass into Two
groups. fhoa. written before and after hsF
marriage. II Ii difficult 10 realize she s4s
% years Of age at she time of her mar
rage. All the letters previous 10 taat Trip
across she channel with Robert Browning
on the psriious wise undertaking. are
the letters Of girt~a learned lady in
deed and full Of genius. but ssill a girl
leading a secluded ngailds life, ard
making Greek tina equivalent 0f a narcotic
for hours of pain.
.you know She answers a question
from Mr. Boyd, II have gone Through
every line of the three tragedisHs long
ago, In the way % regular consecutive
reading You know also that ] had al
different times read different dialogues of
Plato. but wh.E. three years ago. and
few months previous TO ms leaving he1ne,
1 became possessed OF a complete edition
OF his works. edited by Becker why. then
i began with the arst volume ard went
through the whole OF MS writings. both
those I knew and those ! did not knew.
and have at this timo read rot only all
that Is properly attributed 10 Plato. auI
kvsn thos@ dialogues and episties which
paas falsely under his nar1er~sysrythsns
oxncrt two books. think. OF three. or tina
treatise DE Lsgihus which l shall finish
IN q week or two" And Immediately fol-
lowing this la news of "a carriage, a pas-
emf carriage with bed In II. and Tet
upon Some hundreds OF springs. on It's
read down 90 me al Torquay." And in
letter further on IL this rsficcison' That
life in short ard arr iong appears TO liz
more true than usual when We live ali
day long on sofa and are as frightened
In
Tut wlth the coming OF frowal L. and
Italy, Greek went. There Is scs.rsy q
reference 10 IL in any subsequent let:Nr.
During the Greek period. however. sh,
was writing some of her best poetry and
as early a. 1874 had conceived the idea Of
SOME day writing IA poem ronsprebcnding
tne aspect arid manners IF modern life
and tlinching at nothing of the conyea>
fianal Now ! do think that a true
poe,icai novel modern. and Ola the level
of the manners Of The day. might b. ar
good poem as any other. snd much more
popular hasidss+'
Poetry IL always The supreme thing with
her, and seen clearly 10 be her Iifs's work.
hut she has little Theory In regard Ia IL.
II is always 70 her mol an art. but mis-
sion. IN a letter 90 Mr.. Charisy, written
towards the end OF her ilfe for the fifss
time. ehr defines her conception uf H. II
you or any er.gte. bttt sAe deepest truth
out of nay own head and heart | don't
dream and make 81 poem Of II. All * rot
either all beauty or all use. II " e~santsAi
truth which snakes iES way lsisouaa beau
~ into Gse.
Al an early date she has met Words
worth ard I.a1stor. ard ''felt the differ
encs between greai genius and ens!nrn,
talent. SitH looks ataitad her. soa
and gees in Tounyson zone Of t.sd y Sing
ess. whether he knows II or docs not
know it
In iSas she writes to an AmeTcaa cor-
respondent and gaatfnenEs on a review
OF Hrown ming nl9t IsB she Sl1teheat. -
ia the following way: There he truth en-
hath sldes. hat II seems 80 ue hard truth
on BROWNING / no assure you | never
saw him In uy lifs~-ao mos kaow him
even ~ correspond ncs4~aud yet. wieth-
er through fellow feeling FOR Fieusin ian
mysteries. or whether through the more
gensrous motive ~ aHUft "a ioa ~ ~
pcwer- | am very sensitive - tNe &hou-
sand and une stripes with which the AS
semo,y ~ critics doth cSpauna It's Voca-
.Ien over him. aad tbs AihsnaeuH' for
Instance. made ma quite cross ans ra's-
anshYonteai iasi week TIE truth is
and tie sorld should know The truth II
IS easter 81 flra more fAHitiess
writer shan noef os veasl genius
Ard y little later she writes - Sc.
we~tw oed, lie tEtraxnugl cuts b..
Language Into bits ana one has So }oiu
fhrm together. as yCaaE vhitifsn 81 sheig
disssctsi maps. IN order ~ max sny
snea ninS ~ al Ne' shat ! erudEs tbs
study Of the time, The depth an powe'
~ tEs ~fEnsH sfev (NAvn Il is ap2scbe8d
eiA Eierities ths uus=je @l1h y5a ard
tse 70 IS So. bat Wi}fs the aaH ieFfsv ~
ysslsiegs eFTa # geasisFa OF poetry. Il Is
Tes sad cannot. hc -. T'ksa cease ,lteur,
is, thst Ae s. get rad except $50 a pe
etiiiar circle. Nery s:tsEsA ami narrow
lie will not dse. hNgsusT ire pyfaeipte al
ffv ~ n A.fn. bat Re WI nat I've fh-
warm suwsncv isss was-h s. permitted g.
ssaby e very fHfsrieF faculty because b
isa1 uat some aUs 3n the esfn
These criticisms sanw ihs stssF tstercs
the poet. Sgt Wnk0oWo. Inspired .H aer-
aea W. are Ooe rBvHrsse3 Nhen SIZE sflty@
after she3r nseessaw.
NcA. t'1rgS / scl getting aeeper az.
DEEPER 5Ete cstrrsae7 sdvnea with HaS p
Prov nfag rees ana naa sst> ard ~ a.,
g0essns ga h@ gar tTtsFNg ~ ri aaS e
The ietleg - e1eVea fsaEss Ntfl9sm q
HFs Nseiisa fForn Z 80 ifssfuvsf5&tsiN affF
hsg marriage. BsNes the y ha1e skerx 81
faat tsst considered ri swaaNsv nssr
Fasses y IS 8sfeuif 81 aaaze sgetu ~
letter w1the4$t fsfsfsss}5et- J Fev&ss AZ n.