The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1904-02-12
/ a LAST CENTURY VALENTINE

Emily; present this little tribe to
one who she regards. al More than
seventy-five years ago Emily took up
her quill pen and IN dainty characters
wrote the dedication on the ny leaf
OF friendships Offering" In spite Of
her bad grammar q glance at the fad
ed and delicate writing with Its quaint
fourishes and aristocratic angles is
enough to prove that Emily was q
fine young lady and that she really
meant at least little more than she
said. Il. +:
Poor Emily! Her lilies and roses
are long withered, along with the
other flowers which bloomed in the
reign Of King George w. to whose
Most Excellent Majesty" the little
morocco bound volume Is dedicated.
And zone who she regards" has
gone also with the rest. Were they
married one day-Emily and zone
who she regards? Or did Emily die
early Of q broken heart. perhaps?
Her handwriting looks as II she
might have easily fallen q victim to
some such old fashioned malady. And
did zone who she regards" leave Emily
behind and come to the States to seek
his. fortune? Certainly in some way
the book which Emily gave him as q
valentine in 1926 found Its way to
this country and, passing from hand
to hand, finally turned up on the stalls
of q little secondhand book shop, in
the French quarter of old New Or
leans.
The little book is spotted with
brown and yellow now; its morocco
cover is badly marked and torn. But
for the sake of the unknown but dear
and dainty Emily-as we'll as for its
own-it shall be cherished hereafter
and given such care as Emily herself
might wish for the little trife" which
perhaps told tender secret to the
unnamed man who was its original
owner.
friendships Offering" is a fat and
sturdy little book of nearly 400 pages.
1t was handsomely and well bound, as
is proven by the fact that even to-day
it makes gay show with the gold
rosebuds and scrolls stamped on its
back. 1t was one of that great crop
of ANNALS which people Of good con-
dition were wont to send to their
friends on the recurrence of New
Years and ST. Valentines days.
We do such things differently now.
Instead of volume of 400 pages
stuffed with stilted verses and tragic
tales written by as many lords and
Ladies-nothing less than Esquires
being admitted under any circum-
stances-we send to our friends gay
card stamped out of colored paper by
q machine. And we pick up this old
volume of friendships Offering and
laugh as we look over the table of
y contents.
But poor E1nily's long forgotten
love affair is not the only ancient
memory revived by a glance at the
Attle book. Buried in its table of con.
tents are the names of twenty peo-
pie who in their day were famous as
literary lights, but who have long
since flickered out into oblivion.
Who remembers Mona, Eliza, Caro-
line and the rest, whose Legendary
Stanzas," Romantic Tales. and
Lines to Wreath of Dead Flowers"
moved Emily and her sisters of the
1820s to tears? Who remembers Ber-
nard Barton, the Quaker poet and
friend Of Lamb? Least of all, what
modern reader would follow him as
for half dozen pages or more he
THREADS with slow and mournful steps
the loved and lonely shore!" Lord
Byron died less than two years before
this volume of "Friendship's Offer
ing" was printed, and 1t is pretty full
of newly found verses by his Lord
ship. Mr.. Washington Irving sends
some verses by his late Lordship,
extracted by that gentleman from the
album Of Captain Medwin." and it
only needs glance at the first line
BE 1t so-we part forever Ito recog-
/ nize the true Byronic flavor.
Lady Caroline Lamb, who had been
separated from her husband the year
before, and whose intrigues with Lord
Byron were still familiar, extracted
from her album" another set Of verses
by his late Lordship, the perusal Of
which at this date Is likely to provoke
a smile Of amusement they are so
typical Of the strained and grandilo-
quent poet. s4a Il. 4. "a.
In all the emphasis and extrava-
gance of italics and capital letters,
Lord Byron implores Lady Caroline to
let him go and, Lady Caroline appar.
emily takes q malicious pleasure in
printing the verses by way Of showing
that the poet was much in love with
her.
Since still the vulture tears my heart
Let me this agony endure, Nh
b Not thee-Oi dearest as thou art! Tea
In mercy, Clara. let us part!
Who is writing poetry Of this kind
Z now? And II such Poetry were writ
tan, who would read It?
There is one paper IN friendships
So1ss