The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-05-15
Among the Books
"The Complete Poems OF Hdgnr Annn

"The Complete Poems of ndgnr AlInn
Poo.n
Edited by ]. H. witty. Houghton-
Minin Company. of Boston. 81 net.
This complete text OF Edgar Allan
Poo's poems, including reviyions and
additions. has an UNUSUAL history.
When Poo was in the office of tho
Richmond Examiner, in September,
1S49. few weeks before hts death. no
had all his major poems5 and several
of his minor ones put into type. and
revised them moro or less extensively.
Changes In punctuation were made in
almost all of them. In two instances
several lines wcro added. and two
poems were entirely rewritten. With
SO artistic and painstaking a. poet as
Poo, even an added comma Is Import
ant, and tho altering OF lines and
verses makes this edition, representing
hts final judgment and taste. one which
all lovers OF poety Will be glad to read
On Poc's death these revised PROOFS
came into possession of n MIR. Thomps
member of the editorial STAFF, and in
turn were committed to his successor.
J. III. Witty. who offered them, to-
gether with hie services us editor, for
publication.
IT SO happened that in addition to
being n literary investigator of re-
lifelong student of Poo. Consequently
he has been able from manuscript
sources to add to the edition eleven
authentic and hitherto uncollected
poems. and to contribute a brief me-
moir, making numerous important cor
rectlons regarding certain curious cpl
codes in Poe's iifo.
Tho frontispiece OF Mr.. Whitty.s
hook shows the earliest authentic Poe
0n Int u
by his sister. Ieosalie Poe. which was
takon at the Lee Gallery" In Rich
mond, Va. Other illustrations show
the window of tho room where Poo
worked in the Southern Literary Mess
enger building. the desk at which he
sat while at work, and the fragment
OF n poem written a that desk
In the memoir which Mr.. Witty has
written of Poe there are many Incl
dents OF interest. among them several
connected with Catherine Elizabeth
Poltaux. OF Richmond. Poe's child love.
and the godchild of the poets mother
by adoption. tho first Mrs. John Allan
The date OF Poe's arrival in Richmond
on his last visit is given as July / l.
1888. He remained here. says MIR.
Witty, until September 81, lecturing
in Richmond ana Norfolk. and doing
work in the office of the Examiner
He left manuscript work also with
John r. Thompson. of the Southern
Literary Messenger.
among the poems which Mr. Witty
mentions as now first collected are
those entitled Spiritual Song" ELIZA
beth" From an Album" "'ro Sarah.
Enigma" and "Impromptu, to Kate
Carol" Additional poems. with poetry
attributed to Poe, appear as Song
OF Triumph" Latin Hymn" The
Skeleton Hand" The Magician and
several othcrs.
An authors note following "oh.
Tempora! Oh. Moreal' published in
October of 1852. by the Baltimore No
! Name Magazine. states that Eugene
l. Didier. the magazine editor. said the
poem was sent him, with an introduce
ton. by John r. Thompson. of the
Southern Literary Messenger.
An important part of Mr.. whitty's
work appears under the heading of
Notes and Variorum Text of the
Poems" Variations from the text OF
The Raven" the author points out
! show the poem IN eight states. nrst
as sent to tho American Whig Review.
February. 1915; second. to the Evening
| Mirror. January 90, 1915; third, as re.
vised In the Southern Literary Messen-
ger; fourth. In the London Critic Juno.
1915: fifth. in the 1885 edition OF Poes
poems: sixth. in the j. Iorimer Graham
copy of the poems; seventh. as revised
In the Literary Emporium. 1876; eighth
and finally. the Richmond Examiner,
! September 25. 1919.
| Variations from the text of THE
! Valley of Unrest" from 1.-The Bridal
Ballad" from The Sleeper" from
Ienore." from ''Israfel" and other
| poems are also given.
| Regarding "The Bells" MIR. Witty
! quoting from j. II. Ingram's Life of
| Poe" says that Poe wrote the first
| rough draft of tho poem during a visit
to the home of Mrs. Marie Louise
.Shew. of New York. who sugg ested
several stanzas. SO that Poe, when it
| was complete. called 1t Mrs. shew's
! poem. Mr.. Witty also says that Poe
| gave the Southern Literary Messen
ger copy OF ''Annabel Lee" to John IT,
| Thompson, the day before his final
| departure from Richmond.
( From first page to last, Mr.. Whittys
i book bears the impress of his thor
| ough research and extreme accuracy
| In editing and authorship. He has all
ways been an enthusiastic student OF
Poe and has employed all Of Ills ability