The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-12-19
WILLIAM watson
HAS JOINED COOK
English Poet Disappears and
His Whereabouts Is I'm
known to Friends.
HIS BROTHER DECLARES
WILLIAMS MIND IMPAIRED
Poet, 1t Is Declared, Has No
Reason to Dislike Herbert
ASquith.
'y Leased Wire to The Tribune.

BY Leased Wire to The Tribune
NEW YORK. Dec lS.-William Wat
son, English poet, has joined Dr.. Cook
In retirement. If any Of his friends
know where the author Of "The Woman
With the Serpent's Tongue" is they
will not tell. When Poet Watson left
the Hotel Astor with his sixteen trunks
and bags and his bride, he did not
even tell the hotel people where to
forward his mail, Rutgcr Blocker
Jewett of the John Lane company,
Watson s publishers, says that be has
stack Of mail foot high for the poet,
but he don't know where TO send it,
In an extended statement following
the widespread attacks upon Mr.. Wat
son. Robinson Watson. a brother, today
declared that his brother IS mentally
unbalanced; that he has come back; {;
that he has come 10 the United States
with Emission Of hostility" against
the family of Premier Asquith and that
all the sensational implications in the
now world famed "The Woman With
the Serpent S Tongue are the result OF
halluclnatlons IN disordered brain.
Moved to defense of hIs brother by
the caustic statements OF Dr. Charles
L. Aked that William Watson was
either cad or an insane man. Robin
son Watson enters into detailed eX-
planation of William Watson s mental
state and the causes that contributed
to II. That there is no reason for
William Watson s hatred Of the Her
bert Asquiths is stated by Robinson
Watson, who SAYS that with the return
of his sanity, William Watson Will live
TO deplore and decry his own bitter
accusations.
Poets Mental Balance Upset.
In his statement Robinson Watson
points ont that DR.. Asquith had apollo
gl1ed for his interview, but holds that
this should be a lesson to all thinking
persons not 10 criticize the acts Of an
other before investigating the mental
condition or other probable causes lead
ing up Ia them. Mr.. Watson S state
ment says that his brothers. mental
balance has been upset since 1902
when the poet worked for fifty conSe
cutive hours without break for rest
and barely touching food-worhed in al
most tTemulous eagerness and anXlously,
his whole mind vibrating i'll painful
sympathy with his theme, apd deliv-
cred to the London News his immortal
Lachrymae Musarum, poem OF
W ul'u MI hlduSlbUf GJlu ~ Et. Id
majesty. Queen Victoria, that in his
opinion ii was 'grcater than Tenny-
son 5 own ode on the death OF the Duke
Of Wellington.
''Ouly a week later said Mr.. Wat
son, "and it became evident beyond all
doubt that his mental balance was
gone. Sudden success and Joy had told
on him more than all adversely and
pain.
Feature Mental Aihnent.
"Aud now ] must refer To q pc
culiar feature of that mental ailment
which has its parallel again today. In
the first few weeks, he would not bruise
a worm, he was dominated by the single
idea that he had a mission to accom-
plish against certain persons in exalted
station in England, the most Of his talk
being in that strain. and be it SAID
here. that those very persons were they
to whom afterwards be showed himself
most sincerely devoted aud LOYAL.
$50 far I have been dwelling on the
events of seventeen years ago. 1t is q
long stretch Of time, and during such
an interval one is apt TO lose sight of
what took place so far from today. Yet
it is all as vivid TO nae AS arc tho events
Of this December, IN 1909.
Here Is the Parallel
"And here Is the parallel The poet
has come to America with deeply
rooted belief that he has mission Of
hostility against n certain family In
high station in England. Nothing can
dissuade him from that wild nfatua tion
which is controlling him night and day,
''Terrihle tbings-nbsoutel unfav
orable things-have been lightly hurled
at that distinguished family; things
hat have 10 lnanucr of justification or
defense; things which il must be ad
mitted seem to brand tho author of
them as beyond the palc of our tolcra.
tion forever.
And yet when | have put ii on that
wa" | alone have the right TO speak
out. say deliberately. in full knowledge
and with full omnhasiS that these things
are in no sense the responsible utter
ances of the poet, William Watson
They are the outcome of mental
malady alien 10 himself. and when he
returns to himself the William Watson
we know viii regret and condemn thcm
with burning words and bitter tears.