The Daytona daily news. [volume] (Daytona, Fla.) 1903-1926, 1912-12-10

y
England. If false, LOR 8 BYRON
England was unfit for me. l with
drew"
So wrote a first-class genius and
third-class scoundrel, Lord Byron. He
was very pitiable sort of BLACKBOARD
at best. Not one-tenth as bad as he
tried to make people think. Yet bad
enough in a cheap, sordid way to de-
serve decent mems contempt He
was tremendously vain Not SO vain
Of his poetry, which was great, as of
the petty, melodramatic feats that
reused more laughter than applause.
Byron's father was a dissolute,
worthless army officer. His mother
was a gambler, shrew and little
better than her spendthrift husband
The couple quarreled and separated
The wife took her little boy and wen
to live in Scotland on an income o
$3.50 year. Byrons father died sooI
afterward. On the death of his great
uncle, in 1898, the ten-year-old lad sue
ceeded to the latters title and estates,
becoming Lord" Byron. His days OF
bitter poverty were over, but their
mark never wholly left him.
Byron had been lame from birth.
Part of the time his mother over
whelmed him with caresses and love
words. At other times she would
scream at him, curse him for "a lame
brat" and hurl books at his head. It
was bitter childhood for the sensi-
tive, afflicted youngster. He never
forgot it Nor did he forgive the
mother who made him so miserable.
He hated her to the day of his death.
Byron began writing poetry while
he was a mere schoolboy. 1t was an
artificial, morbid era in English litera-
tuFe, and Byron was just the sort OF
writer to catch the public's fancy.
He found that people were interested
in gloomy, mysterious heroes. So,
both in life and in poems, he proceed
ed TO become mysterious and gloomy.
He limited at black secrets that cloud
ed his life and talked vaguely of fear
full crimes he had committed
This attitude, combined with his
good looks, made him the School Girl
Idol Maidens clamored fer locks of
his hair and wrote him wildly roman
tic letters All this delighted Byron.
By this time he had plunged into the
grOssest dissipation of London life.
He halted tor a brief time in his ca
reeT OF vice to marry a Miss Mil
banke
They were wretchedly unhappy to-
Sether ana parted in less taan year.
The true reason for their separation
Was not made Pablo at the time,
though the fault was admittedly BY
.oH s. He proceeded to write touch
ing farewell" 20 his wife 1t was a
poem that sought to draw all public
sympathy from Lady Byron and TO
make himself appear more or less
MARTYR Ia spite of this rascauy eff
tort popular opinion was against BY
ron. and he LEFT England in huff.
never to return.
lie wandered around Switzerland.
italy and Greece. leading a vile life
and writing marvellous poetry. His
Jaded brain was seeking new sensa-
tions Of every sort. For instance, he
swan the Hellespont. watched the Gre
nation Of the poet Shelley and at last
decided to become a military hero.
Greece was fighting for independ-
ence against her Turkish oppressors.
Byron hurried to Missolonghi and
placed his sword and life at the serv-
ice of the Greeks. 1t seemed to him
fine thing for a poet to draw blade
in defense Of the Ancient Land of Po-
etry. The idea struck Byron as a
bit Of genuine inspiration. He is even
said to have had vague hopes of be-
coming king of Greece.
But he found that drilling, march
ing, collecting provisions and study
ing maps was not as poetic a pastim,
| as he expected. 1t bored him. H,
preferred to loaf at Missolonghi, TAX
ing long swims, writing poetic vers,
and flirting with dark-eyed Greel
girls. And thus he spent much o
his time when he might have been
| fighting for independence.
( He also had a new ambition, name
I ly, to reduce his flesh. He tried to do
/ this by drinking vinegar and taking
/ long rides. The result was not what
he had hoped, In fact be fell ill.
Don't grill ne as you did poor
Shelley" he begged his friends.
I There, after d brief sickness. he
died, on April 10, 1924. Byron was
only thirty-six at the time OF his death.
Gifted beyond ordinary mortals. he
had wilfuliy thrown away the respect
/ OF his friends and OF the world At
large.