New-York tribune., 1909-12-19
At Sl.l5 q Pair
SIMPSON CRAWFORD CO, ST

And here IS the parallel have referred
70. Tbs poet has come 10 America with a
deeply rooted belief that he has q mission
Of hostility against a certain family IN high
staten IN England. Nothing can dissuads
him from that wild infatuatiou. which is
controlling him night and day. Terrible
things, absolutely unforgivable things. have
been lightly hurled ar that distinguished
family things that have no manner of JUS
tihcation or defence things which it must
be admitted seem 10 brand the author OF
them a. beyond the pale OF our liberation
forever.
And yet when have put il in that way
I who alone have the fight 10 speak out,
say deliberately, il full knowledge and
with full emphasis, thar those things are
in 40 sense the respdsible utterances OF
the poet William Watson. They arc the
outcome Of mental Tnalady alien 10 him
self: snd when he returns to himself the
William Watson we knew Will regret and
condemn them with burning words and bit
ter tears.
NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR WORDS.
And that manifesto. full OF It's utterly
insignificant details about teas and talks,
and void of all dignity and grace, what of
Il? The hand that wrote II was truly the
hand OF my brother; but NOT so much as
cns solitary sentence of II was his, not a
line, not word; and when the poet IS re-
habilitated his lips will unsparingiy oon-
denim what his hand has done, but 10 which
his real mind has never given assent
Tn Canadian journal of December 9,
which has only this dsy been put before me.
there Is leading article which ernpodies
Tka~ I,zd
been applied 10 my brother by the Rev. Dr.
Aked OF New York, during an interview
with The New York Evening Mail On
seeing a partial transcript Of The Evening
Mail article, : wrote brief protest TO DR..
Aked. and in reply received letter from
him Of apology. IN which he says
had, as you know. il YOU have seen
the whole interview. and not merely quo
tatlons from IL, suspiciGns OF the truth
Yet, OF all those who had seen him person
ally. nor one seemed 10 divine - Ny ad-
after all a very small matter when the
lnagnitude Of The sorrow IS seen. ] agree
with yeu in your estimates Of your broth
er 5 genius. Il was not Tor notnins LI1at
described nirn as "a prophet OF COD ard
as. after Gladstone. the one great English
voice
70 YOU the brutality OF my words 70 The
Evening Mall you will not care 70 accept
anV word OF symp2thy. But be very sure
that II you can 80 tar forgive The Even
ing Mali interview as 10 tolerate this eN-
precision OF friendlinesS ] stand ready 70
sympathize and help 10 the limit OF my
power and opportunity
''In the light OF this deeply apologize
letter from Dr AKed 1 earnestly say. Let
no one dare 70 prejudge in this case let
no one presume 10 lightly criticise: much
less 10 hurI the mud OF his vituperation
against the man whom England has de-
lighted TO honor.
something more than apology is due
from one who. himself an author and poet.
I need not melton by name here, but who
was fully cognizaat OF the dire events OF
the close OF 1892. II might at least have
been expected of him that he would have
shielded where he has assailed or that at
any rate he would have remained wisely
silent
II l am asked 10 assign a definite cause
for this present mental cstaclysm. as
have done for that of 1892. ] can only say.
! 40 not know.
To myself ] have my surmises which
may DO wrong. snd ] will therefore not
give them But any one who deeply reads
on carefully analyEes the 'Sonnets 90
Miranda may possibly for himself nnd
therein clew; and In those sonnets.
written at white heat. will nnd depth OF
tragic personal human interest unsurpassed
IN the whole wide range OF English itera-
ture"