New-York tribune., 1903-03-09
,SOHE V4LU4BLE LETTERS
Passages from the Manuscripts q"
the .StOddard Collection.

aver from the representative selection mace TO-
exhibition in the cIubrooms toward the END o.
last month In ali there are considerably over
.ureIve hundred volumes. which being care
fully cataIogued; and in the array OF manuscript
sfiu TO be arranged there is e mass OF auto
~-aohic treasure of great value and interest
Mr Stoddard's correspondence among literary
peopIe was extensive, a I'd many letters 'na'
came to him in ordinary course are now no'a-
hle autographic specimens. while his interest III
the written page Of authors he knew wen anu
admired brought him large number OF oah-
scripts In a letter from swinburne written IN
Septenlber. 1871 we find the poet, after de-
scrihing Intimately his difficulties with certain
publishers making this answer TO a request for
a copy of some of his work:
never keen nv MSS bu: ii 1 find one
n have been rumTnaging in search thereof lot
the last five minutes vain), 1 viii seho thal
also as a token of good Will mao HIS
read a penciIIed word Of yours. and was answer
ing III awrv. OF course viii send you at once
3 ccpv of songs Before Sunrise incon1parab bly,
nv best bit of work in this world H. fes pc
lievel that is a mans best work into which ne
nut most OF his heart and soul and faith ano
hope
In letter Of earlier date he writes that he is
ct work ION hymn Of triumph for Italy In
the same letter he speaks of passage in a
criticism of his writings which sets him down as
mo longer young" Being then only about
thirty he was rather amused at the structure,
and referred to ''Thackeray's favorite and ef-
fective metaphor" saying he mentally In
the same condition 'as the skin of a schoolboy
after the twentieth thrtieth application Of the
birch-too we'll used o it for any cut Of the mas
ter's rod TO make the tough hide vince. The
critics must pick out a smaller boy il they want
TO make him cry" An interesting letter from
Mrs Browning, then Miss Barrett. written 10
Cornelius Mathews. Of this city, in April. 1S43.
gives glimpse of several literary figures OF the
day She speaks with high conviction Of the
talent of Mr.. Browning with whom she has had
some correspondence lately" Il in the
year following that they married The let
ter speaks thus OF Wordsworth:
The prince of poets is in London now while
vrite-having been invited or commanded" up
for the purpose of attending the Queens ball
Rogers lent him court dress and a sword
and as kissed Nic1oria's fair hand she told
him that she had never seen HIM before ana
vas glad TO do so then. And 50 do Queens speak
TO Kings
Thomas Hood whose death occurred three
davs after this letter was written then fail
ing rapidly.
Poor Hood is dying-in state of per-
feet preparation and romposure. among the
tears of his friends His disease has been con-
sumption--is in fact-but the Crisis Is COM
hined with water the chest which Is
expected to bring death To friend who
asked him the other morning how II was with
him. he answered with a characteristic play
full pathos The tide is rising:-and / shall
soon he in port II is said Of him that he has
no regrets for life except for the unborn works
which he feels stirring impotently in his dying
brain.-a species of regret which is peculiar
" affecting to me. il must be to all who
understand 1t! Also il is plain that he has
genius. greater than anything he has produced.
and If this is plain and sad to US, how
profoundly melancholy II must be 10 hlrn The
only comfort is that the end of the development
IS not here. Sir Robert Peel wrote long letter
him lately in a tone OF respect and considera-
tfon which was honorable to the minister. and
relieved him from pecuniary anxiety by attach
ing his pension to the life of his wife rather
than TO his own Poor Hood Poor Sydney
Smith, How losing Yoricks, "AN
dumb 'Al gone"
less sonbre is a little comedy gift OF
Virginia tobacco in the correspondence Of George
r Thompson nth Carlyle and Tennyson- In
one of the poets letters read:
As to the little room under the roof and your
inquiry thcreanent as to whether | still smoke
and write there. ] am writing there at this in
slant; but though l grown big. the
room has got TO be too small for me. a, 1 am
building another larger the far SIi- 1f
the greenhouse, which probably you may re-
member
never got further. helieVe. than Thomas Car
lyle. who quite forgot to forward it, Let me
thank you For il now and beg You not to take
the trouble Of forwarding another packet, since
] never smoke anything hut Birds Eye
The either side nf the story came to Mr..
Thompson from Of Cheyne Row. The
rugged essayist is unable write in his own
hand but says "A nimhe niece would prove
the best of amanuenses IL he la only learned
TO dictate"
The eift Of Virginia tobacco and Virginia pipes
came safe to hand. nor. | hope did Alfred
Tennysop want his due share. except once tran
eientIy about four months ago. | have not seen
Alfred since you left us: hut his share OF the
tobacco was twice demanded from by n
soIent Moxonite fellow 'who wanted something
quite other with me. but didn't get that: with
t7Traly Is I-vr-
him on the second demand I liberally made
over the Alfred Tobacco and happily saw him
not at all
The financial straits Of many men Of letters
are left recorded in some Of the letters of this
collection. In a finely preserved specimen Of
Cowper's handwriting letter to Lady Hesketh.
there remains the of urgency in the de
rnands that. like taxes. are inevitable as death
lie addresses his dearest Coz 10 thank her for
the tea which came safely and excellent,
and 10 entreat her to send forthwith either in
bank note or draft your own bank the money
that you have in hand for me-" Servants and
rent inspired the imnediateness OF the need
Charles Reade writes with much dignity one
Samuel Appieby. offering to part with Mr..
Goldng's perfect Stradivarius violin" for $3.50
He had had intention of parting with the in
<trurent when he came into possession OF it,
but having occasion for the sum. he has decided
20 offer it TO one person only for q space Of
twenty-four hours Mr.. Appleby whose reply
appears on the fly sheet had his doubts II it
vas a certain highly spoken OF violin he had
seen its reputation, in his opinion. greatly
Exaggerated. But IL this was instrument he
had no knowledge Of, he would be deeply indebt-
ed for the opportunity to look 1t over There
are q number of letters from Edgar Allen Poe,
and II almost goes without saying that several
Of them show a rather low estate in the worlds