Louise Chandler Moulton, Poet and FriendWhiting, Lilian
General
Louise Chandler Moulton, Poet and Friend
Whiting, Lilian
Moulton, Louise Chandler, 1835-1908
"Older still than these, although the fact that Mr. Trowbridge has
happily been with us to the present time makes him seem less a figure
of the past, are the inscriptions in the first and second series of
Emerson's 'Essays': 'Ella Louise from Paul Creyton, April 10th, 1854';
'To Ellen Louise from J.T.T., April 10th, 1854.' To the same year
belongs a copy of 'Mrs. Partington,' in which is written: 'To my
granddaughter, Ellen Louise, Ruth Partington by B.P. Shillaber.' I
confess to something of a wistful feeling at these reminders of a
time in the midyears of a century already dead, when I was in the
nursery and 'Ellen Louise,' 'Paul Creyton,' and 'Mrs. Partington' were
the literary stars glimmering out with yet ungauged power in the sky
where Emerson and Whittier and Longfellow were the fixed and shining
lights.
"The autographed books, for the most part, however, belong to the
years since Mrs. Moulton had won her place as the leading woman-poet
of America. Her intimate connection with the literary world in England
has brought it about that almost as many English as American names are
found written on the fly-leaves of presentation copies. Largely, of
course, the sentiments are simple expressions of regard or admiration,
and it has not seemed worth while to include these here. Of those
which are more full or less conventional the following are examples:
Oswald Crawfurd has written in his 'Portugal': 'My friends consider
this my best work, and if they are right it is the fittest present I
can give to Mrs. Chandler Moulton, the best friend this year, 1887,
has brought me.' In the 1896 edition of 'Dawn' the author says: 'To
Mrs. Chandler Moulton with the kind regards of H. Rider Haggard. P.S.
Her appreciation of this old "three-decker," which he remembers
working very hard over, has pleased its antiquated author very much
indeed, as he imagined that nowadays it only possessed a prehistoric
interest.' In Lloyd Mifflin's 'The Fields of Dawn' is written: 'You
who know so well--by having so often encountered them yourself--the
almost insuperable difficulties of the sonnet form, will be among the
first to pardon the many short-comings of this little volume'; and in
'The Slopes of Parnassus' are quoted with graceful modesty the lines
of Tennyson:
"For though its faults were thick as dust
In vacant chambers, I could trust
Your kindness.
Nothing could be more graceful than the inscription of Arthur
Sherburne Hardy: 'If the _salut_ Passe Rose sang to Queen Hildegarde
(p. 354) had not already been verified for you, I should repeat it
here. Faithfully yours, etc.' The _salut_, as those will remember who
are as fond of 'Passe Rose' as I am, was:
"God give thee joy,
And great honor.
In her 'Brownies and Boggles' Miss Guiney has written:
"'Of Brownyes and of Boggles fulle is this Beuk.
GAWAIN DOUGLAS, 1474-1522.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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