General notes.

Period:

     The main narrative takes place during Lent of a year in the nineteenth century, at the earliest in the 1870s (see the period note under “Alice’s Christmas”) and at the latest 1886, from afternoon of one day through the morning of the second day following, with the last paragraph encompassing the remainder of that morning, the morning following, and the remainder of Lent. Two of the characters also narrate an incident occurring the night before the opening of the narrative. Occurs about two years and eight months prior to the events of its sequel, “Alice’s Christmas.”

Setting:

     A train enroute from the college town of Dulwich to an unnamed city whose rural hinterland it is part of, the train station in the city itself, a carriage enroute from the train station to the home of Kate’s relatives, the home itself, and, summarily, a ticket office on the way from her relatives’ to her uncle’s place of business, another train enroute from the city to Dulwich, and Dulwich itself.

Characters:

     This story is unusual in being one of only a few of Wright’s tales sharing characters with others, these others being “Alice’s Christmas” and “The Gray Fur Rug,” both of which occur later. According to “Alice’s Christmas” the MacDonald sisters, Alice and Norah, must have been members of the Faber household at the time of this story, but there is no mention of them; possibly they were away visiting other relatives. All three stories are tied to the Dulwich sequence by the mention of that town in the present tale.

• Kate. A girl of Dulwich, about seventeen years of age, traveling by train to the city to stay with her relatives.
• Theodore, also called Theo. A cousin of Kate’s, older than her. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.” His surname, as revealed in that story, is Faber.
• Katharine. A cousin of Kate’s, about twenty years of age (three years older than Kate); Theodore’s sister. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.” Her surname, as revealed in that story, is Faber.
• The train-boy. A service employee of the railroad selling magazines on the train.
• Dr. Junkins, also (disparagingly) called Junk. An elderly man, stout and overweight, physician to Kate’s aunt. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.”
• Marion. Kate’s aunt, a cheerful invalid; Theodore and Katharine’s mother. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.” Her surname, as revealed in that story, is Faber.
• Uncle. Kate’s uncle, a gloomy convalescent; Theodore and Katharine’s mother and Marion’s husband. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.” His surname, as revealed in that story, is Faber.
• Jennie. Mentioned. A married older sister of Katharine.
• Paul. Mentioned. Jennie’s baby, reputedly possessed of an alarming color when two weeks old.
• Elizabeth. A younger sister of Katharine, characterized as a small child, but unlikely to be younger than ten, assuming her to be identical (as seems inescapable) to the Bessie Faber appearing in “Alice’s Christmas.”
• Annie. An Irish house-servant of Kate’s relatives. Also appears in “Alice’s Christmas.”
• Boy cousin. A cousin of Kate’s, younger brother of Theodore and Katharine. Perhaps identical to Harry Faber in “Alice’s Christmas.”
• Boy cousin. A cousin of Kate’s, youngest brother of Theodore and Katharine. Perhaps identical to Harry Faber in “Alice’s Christmas.”

     I know of two early printed texts, the original publication in The Youth’s Companion v. 60, no. 12, March 24, 1887 (here designated Y), and an early reprint in Parry’s Monthly Magazine v. 3, no. 10, July 1887 (here designated P).
     In addition to being later, P differs from Y in a number of minor respects, mostly in punctuation, but occasionally in wording. All these differences appear editorial in nature, with the exception of a few obvious errors. The text of Y is clearly superior, and has been adopted as the copy-text, its readings in every instance having been preferred to P’s. P’s alternative readings are noted below.
     There are a few difficulties in the text as it stands, generally occasioned by the failure to indicate narrative transitions, which I have corrected by the introduction of line breaks (also noted below).
     One additional difficulty may result from an actual defect in the text, probably the result the initial printer’s inadvertent omission of words present in the original manuscript. If so, the original reading cannot be recovered. I have indicated the difficulty without attempting to amend it. Fortunately, the narrative is not greatly harmed by the omission.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are also treated in the notes.

1. P changes Y’s question mark to an exclamation point. P’s general editorial practice appears to be to reconcile pointing with text; here the motivation appears to be that the office boy “said” his statement rather than “asked” it. <—
2. P changes Y’s “breathed” to “thought” - presumably another instance of P’s reconciliatory editing, as the next sentence makes it plain that the statement was not uttered aloud. <—
3. The historical figure Ninon de l’Enclos (1620–1705), born Anne de Lenclos, “Ninon” being a nickname bestowed on her by her father at an early age. A French courtesan, author and patron of the arts, here cited as the author of a “receipt” (recipe) for clearing up the skin. As a celebrated beauty, her name would lend weight to the efficacy of the product. <—
4. P omits the comma. <—
5. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
6. The forty day Christian liturgical season of fasting and prayer before Easter, culminating in the Holy Week commemoration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. <—
7. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
8. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
9. A perforated metal grate plate or grate, the openings of which can be adjusted to regulate the admission of heated air into a room. <—
10. P abbreviates Y’s greeting to “Hello!” <—
11. P changes the exclamation point to a question mark. <—
12. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
13. The magazine title cited is fictional. <—
14. P reduces Y’s capital “P” to lower-case. <—
15. P changes Y’s “No-no” to “No, no”. <—
16. P omits the comma. <—
17. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
18. P adds a comma after “small”. <—
19. There appears to be an omission in the text of both Y and P here, as neither Katharine’s return nor Kate’s startlement are directly signaled. I have not added a line break here to mark the narrative transition, as doing so would not address the textual defect. <—
20. P erroneously omits the beginning quotation mark. <—
21. P omits the comma. <—
22. P omits the comma. <—
23. P omits the comma. <—
24. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
25. Negro minstrel shows, theatrical entertainments including comedic skits, variety acts, song and dance, were a staple of American theater from the early 1830s into the first decade of the twentieth century, with the height of their popularity extending from the 1840s to the Civil War. Originally performed by whites in blackface, minstrel shows portrayed negros in a disparaging fashion according to racist stereotypes. Rolling of the eyes to represent some strong emotion, generally fear, was typical of the exaggerated behavior developed in the minstrel show tradition. In time actual black performers also staged minstrel shows, which purported to greater authenticity while in actuality hewing to the demeaning conventions previously established. True black music in the form of spirituals only entered the repertoire in the 1870s. Regardless of its faults, minstrelry is considered to be the first truly American theatrical form, and provided both material and inspiration for the country’s early music industry. <—
26. P changes Y’s “Care” to “Kate”, presumably on the assumption that the former was an error for the latter. I am unconvinced, and prefer Y’s reading.<—
27. P reduces Y’s capital “G” to lower-case. <—
28. P changes Y’s question mark to an exclamation point. <—
29. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
30. P changes Y’s question mark to a comma. <—
31. A reference to the Moorish protagonist of William Shakespeare’s play Othello, during this period generally portrayed by white men in blackface. Dr. Junkins’s allusion would be to this practice. <—

General notes.

Period:

     The main narrative takes place on December 24th and 25th of a year in the nineteenth century, at the earliest in the mid-1870s (due to the reference to the impressionist movement) and at the latest 1888. Occurs about two years and eight months after the events of its prequel, “How They Cured Him.”

Setting:

     The school Alice attends and the home of the Fabers, the relatives with whom she and her sister live, in an unnamed city, apparently in the Midwest. Chicago is mentioned as the home of some patrons of one of its businesses, and hence is presumably relatively near; New York, described as hundred of miles away, as the residence of Alice’s father.

Characters:

     This story is unusual in being one of only a few of Wright’s tales sharing characters with others, these others being “How They Cured Him,” which occurs earlier, and “The Gray Fur Rug,” which occurs later. All three stories are tied to the Dulwich sequence by the mention of that town in “How They Cured Him.”

• Miss Benedict. Alice’s teacher.
• Alice MacDonald. A motherless girl, fourteen years of age, living the family of her uncle, Mr. Faber. Also appears in “The Gray Fur Rug.”
• Katharine Faber. A cousin of Alice’s, twenty-two years of age, who has had charge of her since the death of Alice’s mother. Also appears in “How They Cured Him.”
• Mr. MacDonald, also called papa and MacDonald. Alice’s father. Also appears in “The Gray Fur Rug.”
• Mrs. MacDonald. Mentioned. Alice’s mother, deceased.
• Girls. Other students of Miss Benedict, among whom, evidently, are Norah and Bessie.
• Norah MacDonald. Alice’s sister, eighteen years of age, also living with the Fabers, and also a student of Miss Benedict. Also appears in “The Gray Fur Rug.”
• Bessie Faber, also called Bess. Alice’s cousin, younger than her but not too much younger, as she is also a student of Miss Benedict; likely about twelve, assuming her to be identical (as seems inescapable) to the Elizabeth appearing in “How They Cured Him.”
• Tom. A large yellow cat, the subject of an essay by Alice.
• Mrs. Faber. Alice’s aunt. Also appears in “How They Cured Him;” her given name, as revealed in that story, is Marion.
• Mr. Faber. Alice’s uncle. Also appears in “How They Cured Him.”
• Annie. An Irish house-servant of the Fabers. Also appears in “How They Cured Him.”
• Clarke. Alluded to, the eponymous proprietor of Clarke’s, a shop visited by Katherine and Annie.
• Chicago people. Mentioned. Previous customers at Clarke’s who ordered but did not take delivery on a suit, later bought for Alice.
• Miss Sara. Mentioned. An employee at Clarke’s.
• Mrs. Murray. Mentioned. The mother of Alice’s friend Louie, and her model of all that is elegant and correct.
• Louie Murray. Mentioned. Alice’s dearest friend.
• Harry Faber. Another of Alice’s cousins. Presumably identical to one of the boy cousins in “How They Cured Him.”
• Servants. Mentioned. Servants of the Fabers, among whom Annie is one.
• Tom Hanlan. Mentioned. A cousin of Annie’s and a locksmith.
• Kate. Mentioned. A house-servant of the Fabers, apparently the cook.
• Theo Faber. Another of Alice’s cousins, Mr. Faber’s oldest son. Also appears in “How They Cured Him;” his given name, as revealed in that story, is short for Theodore.
• Dr. Junkins. An old friend of the family. Also appears in “How They Cured Him.”

     The copytext is that of the first and hitherto apparently only publication, from The Youth’s Companion v. 62, no. 41, December 19, 1889.
     I have corrected one apparent typographical error and introduced a few line breaks corresponding to transitions in the narrative, all of which are noted below.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are also treated in the notes.

1. Unusually for a piece by Mary Tappan Wright, the story does not bear her full byline in its original publication, but only the initials “M. T. W.” Her authorship is certain, however, confirmed not simply by the initials but the fact that her tale is a sequel to her earlier story “How They Cured Him” and a prequel to her later story “The Gray Fur Rug,” sharing characters with both. <—
2. Alfred Tennyson, First Baron Tennyson (1809–1892), one of the most popular English poets. His first poems were published in 1827; recognition and success came with this third publication in 1842. He was appointed Poet Laureate in succession to William Wordsworth in 1850. <—
3. An ornamental book-binding in which bright brown calf-leather is marbled or stained with acids in a tree-like branching pattern.. <—
4. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
5. Legally, a document consisting of a written and signed pledge to pay a specified amount of money, either to a stated person or the bearer of the note, at a stated date or on demand; by informal extension, any type of written pledge by one person to another, as here, the promise to complete a gift. <—
6. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
7. A wax candle or wax-coated wick, here evidently for the purpose of lighting the household’s gas lamps in the evening. <—
8. Prior to electric lighting, homes were both illuminated and heated by piped-in gas. Gas flow to a lamp fixture was initiated by turning a valve, whereupon the gas jet was lit from the taper. <—
9. Emended from “tapping” in the copy-text, apparently an error. <—
10. A purchase order entrusted to be carried out by a particular person; in this instance to Katharine, by Alice’s aunt. As made evident at the end of the story, this particular commission was for the set of Tennyson Alice had desired to purchase as a gift for her father, purchased instead as a gift for Alice. <—
11. Packets made up of dry perfume, scented wadding, or some other aromatic filler, used for freshening clothing and similar articles. <—
12. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
13. Originally withdrawing-room, a chamber adjacent to a more public room to which people in a general gathering could withdraw for the purpose of conducting private conversation or business; later a room intended for the reception of company or entertainment of visitors, or of ordinary family activity, particularly that of the females of the household. <—
14. A loose robe or gown loosely enveloping the whole body, intended to be worn indoors, either for household work or warmth, particularly prior to dressing for the day or undressing for the night. <—
15. A narrow horizontal window over the lintel of a door, formerly common. <—
16. A field-grass characteristic of Kentucky, properly “blue limestone grass” and not actually blue in color. <—
17. The impressionists were a loose group of 19th-century French artists with similar approaches to painting; their movement first coalesced in the exhibition known as the Salon des Refusés in 1863, they organized as the Société Anonyme Coopérative des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveurs in 1873. Impressionism as a movement was characterized by visible brush strokes, an emphasis on movement and the changing qualities of light, and everyday subjects. Notable impressionist painters include Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, and Paul Cézanne. <—
18. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
19. A book filled with blank leaves of blotting-paper for drying the ink of letters and such, a pad of blotting-paper used for the same purpose, or, more rarely, a notebook for entering transactions. <—
20. A case for toilet utensils. <—
21. A case for pocket mouchoirs (a now-rare term for handkerchiefs). <—
22. Presumably a small basket sporting a feline motif, not a bed for a cat. <—
23. Cases for carrying visiting or calling cards (small cards printed with the name and usually the address of the owner that were presented when paying a visit to another person’s home or place of business, or left if the other person was absent as a token that the call had been paid. <—
24. Bags made of plush, a fabric with a cut nap or pile similar to velvet. <—
25. Decorative covers for pin books, formerly folded fabric cases in which pins and needles were kept; today the same term is used for folio-type display containers of pin-backed buttons or badges. <—
26. Small brushes or wads of folded cloth used for cleaning the pen nibs of ink. <—
27. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
28. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
29. Articles made or sold by milliners, such as combs, gloves, thread, lace, ribbons, and other small fabrics, plainly encompassing, in the doctor’s view, the items crafted by Alice. <—

General notes.

Period:

     The main narrative takes place from the evening of Good Friday to the early morning of Easter Sunday of a year in the nineteenth century before 1890. Practically speaking, any date prior to the 1850s is unlikely, as the village of Dulwich appears to be well-developed at the time of the story, and Gambier, Ohio, the real-life village on which it was based, only really began to be developed after the founding of Kenyon College there in 1829. Brief allusions are made to events occurring three weeks, three months, seventeen years, about twenty-five years and forty years before the main narrative.
     The period of the events can be slightly narrowed on the basis of the following evidence. The second of the three days of the narrative (a Saturday) is stated to take place in April, Which likely places the beginning of the story in April as well; March 31 at the earliest. Years from 1851-1889 when Easter Sunday and the Saturday before both fell in April include 1851-1852, 1854-1855, 1857-1860, 1862-1863, 1865, 1867-1868, 1870-1871, 1873-1874, 1876, 1878-1879, 1881-1882, 1884-1887, and 1889. The year in which the story could take place is thus limited to one of these.

Setting:

     A house in which Agatha, Henry and Minna live in the college town of Dulwich and the area surrounding, particularly the cemetery of the nearby church-yard. The nearby town of Littleton is mentioned as the source of the Easter lilies Mr. Casson brought Agatha.

Characters:

• Agatha. An orphaned girl of Dulwich, aged seventeen.
• Harry, Agatha’s little brother.
• Papa. Mentioned. Agatha and Harry’s father, who died three months before at forty years of age.
• Stephen. Agatha and Harry’s uncle, a widower who has lost his own children.
• Mr. Casson. Rector of the local church.
• Miss Burr. Mentioned. A parishioner who was to sing Easter Sunday, afflicted with a sore throat.
• Mamma. Mentioned. Agatha and Harry’s mother, who died prior to their father.
• Mildred. Mentioned. Agatha and Harry’s aunt and Stephen’s wife, deceased.
• Children. Mentioned. Stephen’s children, deceased.
• Minna. Kitchen servant of the family, a tiny woman raised among the Moravians, aged a bit over thirty.
• Moravians. Mentioned. The religious sect among whom Minna was raised.

     The copytext is that of the first and hitherto apparently only publication, from The Youth’s Companion v. 63, no. 14, April 3, 1890.
     I have introduced a few line breaks corresponding to transitions in the narrative, which are noted below.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are also treated in the notes.

1. The Friday preceding Easter Sunday, commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. <—
2. The Moravian Church, the earliest Protestant denomination, prefiguring the Reformation of Martin Luther and predating it by over a century. The movement was founded by John Huss in the late 1300s in the area then known as Bohemia and Moravia (the present Czech Republic), as a movement to restore the simplicity of early Christian practice. Hus was executed as a heretic in 1415, but in 1457 some of his followers organized the “Bohemian Brethren” in Kunvald, Bohemia, rebelling against Rome. The church is known for its emphasis on personal piety, missionary work, music and Christian ecumenism. <—
3. An ecclesiastical office of the Episcopal Church, designating a priest controlling a self-sustaining parish as opposed to a vicar, a priest controlling a mission, or congregation supported by the diocese. <—
4. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
5. Line break added by the current editor to mark the narrative transition. <—
6. The hymn used in the story is an old one, preserved in many versions, of which the earliest is a three stanza Latin hymn from the 14th century, first published in English translation as “Jesus Christ is Risen Today” in Lyra Davidica, London, 1708; another translation appeared in John Arnold’s Compleat Psalmodist, 1749.
        The prime influence on later versions was early Methodist leader Charles Wesley (1707-1788), the brother of Methodist founder John Wesley, chiefly remembered for his hymns and perhaps most famous as the composer of “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing.” He composed a ten stanza version, “Hymn for Easter Day,” published in the Wesley brothers’ Hymns and Sacred Songs, 1739. It is still widely sung as a processional hymn on Easter Sunday, usually to the tune Easter Hymn from Lyra Davidica, or an alternative arrangement by William Henry Monk.
        Most subsequent variants derive in some fashion from Wesley’s and that of the Compleat Psalmodist. They generally feature 4-6 stanzas and incorporate text from both, and while variously titled all, like the Wesley version, are more commonly known as “Christ the Lord is Risen Today,” after the usual first line. They are usually sung to the anonymous German tune Nassau, or to the Welsh tunes Gwalchmai by Welsh composer Joseph David Jones and Llanfair by Robert Williams.
        The complete text of the version used in the story follows, as given in The Christian Hymn Book: A Compilation of Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs, Original and Selected. By A[lexander]. Campbell and Others. Revised and Enlarged by a Committee. Cincinnati: H. S. Bosworth, Publisher, 1866, pp. 118-119. The lines quoted in the story are italicized.
   
                                           CHRIST, the Lord, is risen to-day!
                                           Sons of men and angels say:
                                           Raise your joys and triumphs high;
                                           Sing, ye heavens! thou, earth, reply!
   
                                           Love’s redeeming work is done,
                                           Fought the light, the battle won:
                                           Lo! our sun’s eclipse is o’er;
                                           Lo! he sets in blood no more.
   
                                           Vain the stone, the watch, the seal—
                                           Christ hath burst the gates of hell:
                                           Death in vain forbids his rise,
                                           Christ hath opened Paradise.
   
                                           Lives again our glorious King!
                                           Where, O Death, is now thy sting?
                                           Once he died, our souls to save:
                                           Where’s thy vict’ry, boasting Grave?
   
                                           Soar we now where Christ hath led,
                                           Following our exalted Head:
                                           Made like him, like him we rise,
                                           Ours the cross, the grave, the skies!
   
                                           King of glory. Fount of bliss,
                                           Everlasting life is this:—
                                           Thee to know, thy power to prove,
                                           Thus to sing, and thus to love.
   
   Other sources recording the version used by Wright include:
   - Robinson, Charles Seymour. Annotations Upon Popular Hymns: For Use in Praise Meetings, by Charles Seymour Robinson, D. D., New York: Hunt & Eaton, c.1893, p.190.
   - Robinson, Charles Seymour. Laudes Domini A Selection of Spiritual Songs Ancient and Modern, New York: Century Co., 1884, p.178. <—

General notes.

Period:

     The narrative takes place on December 22nd through 24th of a year in the nineteenth century; if roughly contemporary with the date of publication, the year would be 1899.

Setting:

     A boarding house located in an unnamed large city, in which the Moores and Mr. Cadwallader are temporarily staying, and a neighboring house and yard that can be viewed from the boarding house. The Moores' country home and usual residence, located in a community called Overbrooke, is also mentioned.

Characters:

• Mr. Moore, also called papa and Moore. Ethel's father, a man often called upon to serve as executor or guardian for other people. Currently the guardian of Jack Fairington, on the business of whom he has been called to the city.
• Ethel Moore. A strong girl, five feet eight in height and nearly sixteen years of age, staying with her father for the school holidays, and hence with him in the city while he is on the Fairington business.
• Mr. Cadwallader, also called Cadwallader. A lawyer working with Mr. Moore, and like him called to the city on the Fairington business.
• Jack Fairington, also called Baby. A tiny boy, recently orphaned; four years of age, with a charming little face and a mop of yellow hair. Heir to half the Fairington estate.
• Auntie. A small, dark, scolding woman, half-sister to Jack's deceased father. Heir to half the Fairington estate.
• Mrs. Fairington, called Mamma. Mother of Jack Fairington, deceased about a month prior to the beginning of the story.
• Furnace-man. An old negro employed in that capacity by Auntie, not named.
• Landlady. Mentioned. Proprietoress of the boarding house, not named.
• Boys. Rowdy street celebrants of Christmas, heard but not seen.
• Mr. Fairington. Father of Jack, apparently deceased well before the beginning of the story, prior to the death of Jack's mother. His heirs in the wake of his wife's death are his half-sister "Auntie" and his son Jack.

     The copytext is that of the first and hitherto apparently only publication, from The Churchman v. 81, no. 3 (whole no. 2870), January 20, 1900.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are treated in the notes.

1. Notes in progress. <—

General notes.

Form:

     The piece is an essay setting down the author's thoughts on the value of literature for children and their caregivers, and the means of instilling the love of it.

Textual notes.

     The copytext is that of the first and hitherto apparently only publication, from The Churchman v. 81, no. 9 (whole no. 2876), March 3, 1900.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are treated in the notes.

1. Notes in progress. <—

General notes.

Form:

     In structure, the poem is an Italian sonnet of the standard form, written in iambic pentameter with the rhyme scheme a-b-b-a, a-b-b-a in the octet and c-d-e, c-d-e in the sestet.

Period:

     The narrative of the poem is symbolic or allegorical and is not tied to any particular time period, nor is the duration of the twin voyages either specified or relevant.

Setting:

     Aboard two boats on parallel voyages across a sea from an unspecified home port or ports to a destination port or ports in a “far unknown countrie.”

Characters:

• A man. A reluctant sailor who questions his voyage and whose inattention to his purpose leads to disaster.
• Another man. A sailor who focuses on and attends to the task before him, whose efforts are therefore crowned with success.

     The poem evidently first appeared in an issue of the literary college journal The Harvard Advocate, though I have not located this initial publication; it was reprinted in the anthology Verses from the Harvard Advocate, Third Series, 1886-1906. Cambridge: The Harvard Advocate, 1906, p. 202. It is unknown whether or not the text was revised between the first and second publications, but the latter has necessarily become the copy-text used. The text given here is reproduced exactly as it appears in the anthology.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are treated in the notes.

1. The “far unknown countrie” could represent an actual, intended destination, or be a figurative way of indicating the future, death, heaven, or all at once. The idiosyncratic spelling is in the original. <—
2. A bar or lever attached to the post of the underwater rudder at the back of the boat, allowing the sailor to steer the craft. It is faithful in the sense that it precisely translates the steersman’s intention into action. Letting go of the bar and allowing it to “swing” leaves the rudder, and the boat’s course, subject to the erratic forces of current, wave and wind; its random motions are reflected in the “swing” of the tiller in the absence of the directing hand of the steersman. <—
3. The lines attached to the sails, allowing them to be raised, lowered and set in accordance with the direction and force of the wind. As in the instance of letting the tiller swing, allowing the ropes to slip free (as here) or run slack (as the other sailor does not do in line 10) sacrifices control of the boat to the elements. <—
4. At sea, storm winds interact with crashing waves to whip water and foam into the air, and at anything that happens to be in their way; hence the foam figuratively becomes “teeth” the winds can “bare” at the sailor. <—
5. The dome is the sky, figuratively heaven in the sense of a personification of God or of the purpose in nature. It is “eyeless” in the sense that the storm clouds hide the sun and moon, its symbolic “eyes.” God’s attention, in other words, is not on the disgruntled sailor. <—
6. Another reference to God, or to fate, here given a connotation of indifference. The sailor’s struggle with nature is vain because its laws can neither be disputed, altered nor broken by man; they run on regardless. To save himself he would have to work with or in accord with them as the second sailor does, not, as he himself does, by in essence abandoning the struggle and protesting the result.<—
7. The second sailor’s boat, here likened to a manned redoubt assailed by enemy forces, who would represent the storm. <—
8. A bark or barque is a technical term for a sailing ship with three or more masts, rigged with fore-and-aft sails on the mast nearest the stern and square sails on the others. The term was also used by the British Navy in the eighteenth century to refer to any ship that did not correspond to any of its standard types then in use, and is used more generally as a synonym for barca-longa, a two or three masted ship rigged with lugsails found in the Mediterranean Sea. The poet here uses the word casually (and incorrectly) to refer to a small one-person sailboat. <—

General notes.

Form:

     The piece is a letter of comment to the editor of the periodical Life.

Textual notes.

     The letter was published in Life v. 54, no. 1406, October 7, 1909, pp. 461-462, in reaction to “One of the Immortals,” an anonymous article previously published in the same periodical in v. 54, no. 1401, September 2, 1909, p. 304. The text reproduced here is that of the published version.
     Words or allusions in the text that might warrant explication to some present-day readers are treated in the notes.

1. Wright would not have titled his letter; the title here given was supplied by the editorial department of Life as a heading to the letter as published. <—
2. The date of Wright’s letter would have been that on which it was written, in contrast to the issue date of the magazine in which appeared the article he was commenting on; see note 5, below. <—
3. George Meredith (1828-1909) was a prominent Victorian-era English novelist and poet, famous as the author of The Egoist (1879) and a large number of other works. His death on May 18, 1909 was the occasion for retrospective articles in numerous periodicals, including the one in Life that prompted Wright’s letter. <—
4. The article in question appeared in Life v. 54, no. 1401, September 2, 1909, p. 304. The text of the article was as follows:
   One of the Immortals

   SINCE the death of George Meredith articles about him have been appearing in all the leading periodicals. There is probably not a literary magazine in the country—or in the English-speaking world—that has not had something to day about him. A large proportion of the magazines not exclusively literary have had long articles, descriptive and critical, bearing upon his place in literature.
        Yet how many are there, among the people who have read these periodicals, who are familiar with the works of George Meredith, or who could be induced on any pretext whatever to read one of his novels?
        How many of the editors of these periodicals who considered it absolutely necessary to publish these articles about George Meredith have made a study of him? How many of them have read him through? How many have read one of his books?
        Everybody admits, of course, that George Meredith was a notable literary figure. No one would dare to admit anything else. As the Atlantic Monthly puts it:
        It is impossible to liken Meredith to anything small. Perhaps his style is more obscure than Browning’s or his plots lack the simplicity of Moliere. We sometimes go so far as to say that he lacks the robust vitality of Shakespeare. No mean condemnation, certainly! To what, then, shall we turn for the unifying secret of Meredith’s art, the saving grace which keeps it forever above the level of the mediocre, and perpetually significant?
        This is the kind of talk that makes a high caste literary reputation, whatever that is. We don’t know whether George Meredith deserves it, but we hope that he doesn’t. The fact remains, however, that he has taken his secure place among that small body of immortals whom nobody knows or cares anything about, whom nobody reads, but whom everybody admits is a great artist.
        Charles Darwin, when his book “The Origin of Species,” was published, received a letter from a young woman in Australia stating that she had sent him a review of his book, which was published in an Australian magazine, and asking him if he would kindly let her know his opinion of what she had written. He replied that he had duly received the review, but did not feel competent to give her an opinion about it, as it was too deep for him. <—

5. It was common in retail magazines then, as it is now, for an issue to be post-dated well after the date it actually went on sale, in order to assure it of a longer “shelf-life” with the retailers. Hence, appearances to the contrary, Wright was not actually commenting on an article that was published after his letter was written! <—
6. Meredith’s admirers among contemporary authors included Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Oscar Wilde, amid many others. Honors received during his lifetime included election by his peers to be the second president of Britain’s Society of Authors in succession to Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and appointment to the Order of Merit by King Edward VII as a recognition of distinguished service in literature. <—
7. “Waving a red flag” is a familiar metaphor for the willful baiting of an opponent, actual or potential; Wright here implies that the intention of the anonymous writer of the article may have been exactly that, in order to stir up an artificial controversy. The metaphor is from the sport of bullfighting, in which the bull is baited to charge the bullfighters by the waving a red cape.<—
8. Castine, Maine, was Wright’s residence at the time of his writing the letter. <—

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