The St. Louis Republic., 1900-11-18
Edgar Allan Poe

vilified and so praised so hated and SO
loved. Edgar Allan Poe. His romantic
and erratic career. the sad death OF his
| beautiful young wife. the mystery which
surrounded his own death, the devotion OF
his friends and the hate of his enemies conf
bne to make him notable. Above all else,
the poetry and the prose produced by this
man make him stand out alone. unap-
| preached by any writer III the group of
great authors of America.
1t seems strange to think that Poe, a man
whose work Is much alive as that Of
any modern writer. was born in 1909 and
died IN 1871. His conts nporary. friend. pa
tron and defender. Nathaniel Parker VIII
liz. is almost forgotten save for q very few
minor poems. In his day Willis was the
fashion, q great man. The women Of the
day who wrote verse and who were ad-
mired by Poe are forgotten. Frances Sar-
gent Osgood and Sarah Helen Whitman
are no longer familiar names. Margaret
Fuller,who did not understand Poe.and who
was unfriendly to him. Is only remembered
because that other unique American writer,
Ha wthorne. knew her.
In his book In the poets Of America. Ed
mund Clarence Stedman says Of Poe's par
entage and youth: "a well-born, dissolute.
Maryland hoy. with a passion for the stage,
| marries an actress and adopts her profess
sion. taking up life that was stroliinS,
precarious. half-despised in the pioneer
times From his father Edgar inherited
Italian. French and Irish blood; the Celtic
pride of disposition and certain weaknesses
that were his bane. His mother, Elizabeth
Arnold, an actress of some talent, was as
purely English as her name. Two years
after his birth the hapless parents. wear
led and destitute. died at Richmond. botn
in the same week. The orphans found kind
friends and were adopted-the oldest,
William. BY his grandfather Poe of Balti-
more: Edgar and Rosaile by citizens OF
Richmond Edgar gained protector In Mr..
Allan of Richmond, a Scotchman. and a
wealthy merchant. who was chiidiess
Mrs. Allan was devoted to her adopted
son. but 1t seems that Ir. Allan was SIMPLY
proud Of his talent, precocity and flne ap-
pearance Servants, horses, dogs, the finest
of clothes purse well filled, all these were
at his disposal from the outset. Great pains
were taken with his education, the one ele-
ment of moral discipline seemingly ex-
Cepted."
At eight years OF age Edgar Allan went
to England with Mr.. Allan and was at
school In Stoke Newington. When he came
to mans estate he found that his expecta-
tions Of inheriting property from his adop-
tive father were not to be realized That
gentleman cast him out, disguised with his
course. Mrs. Allan had died. and the Sec
ond wife was unfriendly to the youth.
His life as man of letters, man who
never earned a cent save by his pen. be-
gan. His first conspicuous success was his
editorship of the Southern Literary Messen-
ger, where his fine work won fame.
In 1896 he married his cousin, Virginia
GLENN. only child Of his fathers sister.
Maria Poe who had married Mr.. Clenlm OF
Baltimore and was then widow. Vir-
ginia was only IA years old at the date
Of her marriage. His more than moth
er,'' Mrs. GLENN. vas an important mem
ber of his household. Perhaps Poe owed
more to her than to any other person. In
many ways he and his wife were unified
for the cares Of life. Mrs. Clemm stood
between them and many of the worlds
buffetings. though all three suffered pow
erty and privation.
Mr. Stedman says "for the struggle
now begun his resources Of tact. good sense,
self-poise. were as deficient as his intel
lectual equipment was great
For the Southern Literary Messenger he
did uncommon work. At this time he pro-
duced Hans Pfaal' and "Berenice." His
first literary attempts were successful.
yet he felt with all the morbid sensitive
ness of one spoiit by luxury and arrogance
In youth. the difference between his pres
ent work-a-day life and the independence,
the social standing. which II again at hia
command would enable him to indulge his
finer tastes and finish at ease the work
best suited to his powers. From this
time he was subject to moods Of breeding
and despair, Of CRYING out upon fate, tnat
were his pest and ultimate destruction.
"And SO we are again not surprised to
find this good beginning no true omen OF
the fifteen years to come: and that these
years are counted by fittings here and
there betwee,. ! nints that offered employ
ment: by new engagements taken up be-
fore he was of with the old; by Legends
Of his bearing and entanglements IN the
social world he entered: by alternate sue
cesses and disgraces in Richmond. Phila-
deIphia, Boston and New York.
I'VE begin to understand his spasmodic.
versatile Industry, his balks and breaks.
his frequent poverty, dependency. self
abandonment. and almost to wonder that
the sensitive feminine sp!rit-worshipinS
beauty and ahhorrent Of ugiiness and pain.
combating with pride. with inherited dig
ease Of appetite-did not sooner yield, was
not utterly overcome almost at the outset
Of these experiences So have 1 wondered
ut seeing a delicate forest bird. leagues
from the shore, keep itself on the wing,
above relentless waters into which IL was
sure to fall at last"
Poe wrote many things which are un-
known to the general reader to-day. and
yet which are cherished by students end
lovers of literature everywhere. He Is
almost as we'll known in Europe as in his
oxn country. Among his tales are "Ligeia"
and the Fall Of the House of Usherr'' His
poems. THE Raven.' THE Bells. The
city in the Sea-" "Lenore." ITO Helen."
The Valley of Unrest For Annie
"Ulalume." "AI Aaraaf." "Tamerlane."
The SleeptTT,'' 1.-THE Conqueror Worm."
"Annabel Lee" 1.-The Haunted Palace"
"Israfel." express the mans dreams OF
beauty, of love, of terror and despair. His
prose has not been surpassed. His lee
ture on 1.-THE Poetic Principle" is read by
all poets to-day. His tales are little more
than prose poems; they are Arthur Gordon
Pym,, The Murders in the Rue Morgue."
THE Mystery of Marie Roget" 1.-The Pur-
loined Letter. THE Gold Bug" THE
Descent Into the MaeIstrom,'' THE Black
Cat and the "Tell-Taie Heart
Poetry" said Poe, has been with me
a passion. not Il purpose.
mo man ever lived says Stedman. in
speaking of Poe, ''in whom the passion for
loveliness more plainly governed the emo
tiors and convictions" He was consecrat-
ed to absolute beauty.
The excesses in which Poe INDUCED, SO
often charged against him, and which
doubtless brought him to his death, cursed
him all his life. He made Il noble effort to
reform his habits even after the death of
his dOliaed wife. but to no avail. He was
not a habitual drunkard. He had woful
fits of drunkenness. varying in frequency.
and sometimes degradation: for single
glass made him the easy prey OF any
coarse and pitiiess hands into which he
might fall.
He was man iBebriate when sober. his
brain surgiug with emotion, and stimuli
ant that only served to steady common
men bewildered him. His mature years