The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-05-05
A LITERARY SHRINE.
Dove Cottage, Former Home of
Wordsworth and De Quincy.

Professor William Knight of the Univer-
sity of st. Andrews. Scotland. writes at
length in the May Century of Dove Cot
tage, best known as the home of Words
worth his article being illustrated by
Harry Fem.
1t was good news 10 the literary world
when 1t was announced a few years ago
that Dove Cottage, Grasmere. the humble
nome IN winch the poet Wordsworth lived
with his sister from 1900 TO 1903. and TO
which he brought mis- wife in 1902 had
been acquired by the English nation. to
be held in trust for posterity; for in that
house the poet passed the seven wears of
MS poetic prime, and accomplished his
choicest work.
The story of Dove Cottage, both before
and after it became the home of Words
worth, is a curious one. 1t was originally
small public house" or hostelry. mere
travellers going from Ambleside to Kes-
wick were entertained. AS all such houses
had some sensible sign" of their exist
and an olive branch.
After the purchase of the house and its
orchard ground, a great deal Of labor was
undertaken to put It IN order, and to ar
range TOR keeping it up. Before 1891 more
than fl,O00 had been subscribed in aid of
the scheme, and some of the entries in
the list of contributors are interesting. e.
g: "A Disciple of the Poet Who Gave Us
The Prelude;' " Three Lovers of Words
worth" I'VE are Seven working Wo-
men, etc. Both Lord rennysOn and Hen
~ Irving subscribed. 1t is worth while to
note the number of visitors to the cottage
since 1882. In 1928 it was LOIS; I'm 1884
it was 1884: in 1S94-95 it was 1893: it IS95-g6
1t was 1877; in 1S96-97, 2,375; since 1897 it
has been larger still
Adjoining WordSwOrth's room is the
guest chamber. of which so many of the
friends of the household made use. 1t is
tiny room, with a bright outlook on the
orchard garden to the north. Here have
slept John Wordsworth, the poets sailor
doc
Scutbey, John Wilson, Walter Scott Sir
George and Lady Beaumont Thomas
Clarkson, Charles LLOYD, Thomas Wiikin-
son ard the COleridge children As the
family increased in number it was found
necessary TO build an addition to the
house; and, poor as the Wordsworths
Were, they managed to design and erect a
smaller room Oft the old guest chamber.
1t is on the eastern side of the cottage
about level to the parlor floor. It used to
be called the Newspaper Room because
for economy. Dorothy had covered its
walls with the newspapers of the day.
In November. 1909, De Quincy went to
live in Dove Cottage, and became a near
neighbOr of the poet for many a year. De
Quincy had many books, but no book
cases, and kept his volumes on the fiOOr
in long miscellaneous rows and lofty piles
and even, tradition says. hid his money
among them. When Coleridge came to be
WOrdsW0rths guest at Allan Bank he saw
much of De Quincy, and borrowed his
books from Dove Cottage, in order that
he might read them leisurely at Allan
Bank. He carried SO much away for con-
suitatiOn that sometimes 500 volumes We're
transferred on loan. IS. 7. C's" ex-
traOrdinaTy consciousness as to loans of
books was illustrated in a very significant
and honorable manner N this period OF
his life. He used TO write upon each vol
ume which he took away from Dove Cot
tase. Thomas De Quincey. Esquire. and
their owner tells US of the trouble he
afterward had in erasing these dreadful
nr41
that lie had ever styled himself Esquire"
on any book belonging to him. He tells US
that in 1916 he had 5000 books in the cot
tage, collected gradually since his 18th
year. His rooms were populous with
books" He kept two cups and saucers
near the fire and IAN eternal teapot "for
I drink tea" he saiG. from s O'Clock at
night to in the morning"