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diff --git a/41506-8.txt b/41506-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 1c373f7..0000000 --- a/41506-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6197 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Dorothy Wordsworth, by Edmund Lee - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Dorothy Wordsworth - The Story of a Sister's Love - -Author: Edmund Lee - -Release Date: November 28, 2012 [EBook #41506] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOROTHY WORDSWORTH *** - - - - -Produced by sp1nd, Richard J. Shiffer, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net for -Project Gutenberg. (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive.) - - - - - -[Transcriber's Note: Every effort has been made to replicate this text -as faithfully as possible, including obsolete and variant spellings and -other inconsistencies.] - - - - -Dorothy Wordsworth. - - - - -DOROTHY WORDSWORTH - -_THE STORY OF A SISTER'S LOVE._ - -BY - -EDMUND LEE. - -London: - -JAMES CLARKE & CO., 13 & 14, FLEET STREET. - -1886. - - - - -TO - -MISS QUILLINAN, - -A STRONG LINK - -BETWEEN THE PAST AND PRESENT GENERATIONS - -OF THE FAMILY OF WHICH - -DOROTHY WORDSWORTH - -WAS SUCH A DISTINGUISHED ORNAMENT, - -THIS LITTLE WORK IS (BY PERMISSION) - -GRATEFULLY INSCRIBED. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -This little book owes its origin to the fact that, with the exception of -Professor Shairp's Sketch contained in the preface to the "Tour in -Scotland," no biography or memoir of the subject of it has hitherto been -written. Seeing what an important part Miss Wordsworth occupied in -influencing the revival of English poetry at the close of the last -century, this has frequently been to me a matter of surprise. To the -best of my knowledge, she does not even occupy any place in the numerous -sketches of famous women which have from time to time appeared. At the -same time the references to her in the biographies of her brother and in -the reviews of his works are many. - -My main object in the present work has been, so far as permissible, to -gather together into the form of a Memoir of her life various allusions -to Miss Wordsworth, together with such further particulars as might be -procurable, and with some reflections to which such a life gives rise. -My task has, therefore, been one of a compiler rather than an author. - -I acknowledge my great indebtedness to all sources from whence -information has been obtained. In addition to the authorities after -mentioned, I desire especially to mention the kindness of Dr. Sadler for -his permission to reprint the letters of Miss Wordsworth to the late -Mr. Henry Crabb Robinson, published in his "Diary and Reminiscences"; -and of Mr. F. W. H. Myers for the like permission to make use of some -letters which for the first time appeared in his "Wordsworth." - -However far I have failed in my original design, and however imperfectly -I may have performed my self-appointed task of love, it cannot be -doubted that no name can more fittingly have a place in female biography -than that of Dorothy Wordsworth. - - BRADFORD, 1886. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - CHAPTER I. - - Introductory 1 - - CHAPTER II. - - Childhood and Early Life--Early Influence--Wordsworth - in France--Settlement at Racedown 6 - - CHAPTER III. - - Raisley Calvert--Residence at Racedown--Coleridge--Removal - to Alfoxden 17 - - CHAPTER IV. - - Alfoxden--Hazlitt--Charles and Mary Lamb--Cottle--Residence - in Germany 29 - - CHAPTER V. - - The Lake District 44 - - CHAPTER VI. - - Life at Grasmere 59 - - CHAPTER VII. - - Some Memorial Nooks--Lancrigg Wood--Emma's Dell--William's - Peak--Point Rash Judgment--Rock of Names 71 - - CHAPTER VIII. - - The Circle Widened--Mrs. Wordsworth 81 - - CHAPTER IX. - - Tour in Scotland--Miss Wordsworth's Journal 93 - - CHAPTER X. - - Life at Grasmere--Capt. Wordsworth 112 - - CHAPTER XI. - - De Quincey--His Description of Miss Wordsworth--Removal - to Allan Bank 120 - - CHAPTER XII. - - The Children of Blentarn Ghyll--Deaths of Wordsworth's - Children 131 - - CHAPTER XIII. - - Removal to Rydal Mount--Dora Wordsworth 139 - - CHAPTER XIV. - - Friends--Tour on Continent 146 - - CHAPTER XV. - - Further Influence 155 - - CHAPTER XVI. - - Illness and Last Years 169 - - CHAPTER XVII. - - A Quiet Resting-place 186 - - CHAPTER XVIII. - - Miss Wordsworth's Poems 194 - - CHAPTER XIX. - - Journal of Tour at Ullswater 203 - - - - -LIST OF AUTHORITIES. - - _The Poetical Works of Wordsworth._ - - _Memoirs of Wordsworth_, by the late Bishop of Lincoln. - - _Wordsworth's Prose Works._ - - _Miss Wordsworth's Tour in Scotland._ Edited by Principal Shairp. - - _Wordsworth's Description of the Lakes._ - - _Tait's Edinburgh Magazine_, 1839 and 1840. - - _Recollections of the Lakes_, by De Quincey. - - _Life of De Quincey_, by H. A. Page. - - _Memoirs of Hazlitt_, by W. Carew Hazlitt. - - _Diary and Reminiscences of Henry Crabb Robinson._ - - _Wordsworth_, by F. W. H. Myers (_English Men of Letters_). - - _Autobiography of Sir Henry Taylor._ - - _Memoir of Sara Coleridge._ - - _Autobiography of Mrs. Fletcher._ - - _Cottle's Early Recollections of Coleridge._ - - _Howitt's Homes and Haunts of the British Poets._ - - _Letters of Charles Lamb_, by T. N. Talfourd. - - _The Lake Country_, by Mrs. E. Lynn Linton. - - _The English Lake District as Interpreted in the Works of Wordsworth_, - by Professor Knight. - - _Blackwood's Magazine._ - - _The Transactions of the Wordsworth Society._ - - - - - "I knew a maid, - - . . . . . . . . . . - Birds in the bower, and lambs in the green fields - Could they have known her, would have loved; methought - Her very presence such a sweetness breathed, - That flowers, and trees, and even the silent hills, - And everything she looked on, should have had - An intimation how she bore herself - Towards them, and to all creatures. God delights - In such a being; for, her common thoughts - Are piety, her life is gratitude." - - THE PRELUDE. - - - - -DOROTHY WORDSWORTH. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -INTRODUCTORY. - - -The influences which help to shape human destiny are many and varied. At -some period in the early history of two lives, beginning their course -separately, one of them, by coming into contact with the other, is -quickened into deeper vitality, and the germ of a great and unthought-of -future is formed. Lives touch each other, and from thenceforth, like -meeting waters, their onward course is destined, and flows through -deeper and broader channels. - -Among the most commanding of human influences is that of _woman_. As -mother, or sister, or wife we find her, at every period of a man's -existence, occupying a prominent part as his guide, comforter, and -friend. Not unfrequently it happens that the influence of a sister is -the greatest, and that to which a career is due. Especially is this so -when the mother dies whilst the brother and sister are young. The -influence of the wife, all-powerful though it may be, is of a later -date, when character and conduct have to a great extent become formed, -and the tendency of genius settled. When the sister's companionship -gives place to that of the wife, a career may have become developed. In -this way the most dominant power may remain unrevealed; and the -blossoming and perfection of character may never be traced to their -original source. - -Many pleasant stories of affection between brothers and sisters, and of -their inspiration of each other, have been told; and many more have -existed among those who have lived unhistoric lives, and whose annals -are recorded only among memories which linger round lonely hearths. -Lovely and pleasant in their saddened lives were Charles and Mary Lamb. -The way in which they were each devoted to the other, and in which they -were bound up in each other's well-being to the complete forgetfulness -of self, suggests a pleasing and pathetic picture of fraternal fidelity, -while it reveals a domestic history the most touching and tragic the -world has known. - -We have a companion picture, but a more happy and pleasant one, in the -lives of William and Dorothy Wordsworth. - -The culture and well-being of a nation depend largely upon the -character, purity, and progress of its literature. To no class of -writers has the world been more indebted than to its poets--those "rare -souls, whose thoughts enrich the blood of the world." It was well said -by one of these: "Poetry has been to me its own exceeding great reward. -It has soothed my afflictions; it has multiplied and refined my -enjoyments; it has endeared solitude; and it has given me the habit of -wishing to discover the good and the beautiful in all that meets and -surrounds me." - -Among those who have permanently elevated and enriched our English -literature during the present century, none is entitled to a more -honoured place than is William Wordsworth, our greatest laureate; and -none of the influences which entered into his life, and served to build -up his great career, and to complete his great work, can fail to be of -interest. And of all the world's benefactors--of all who in any of the -primary departments, have achieved most signal distinction, has none -been more indebted to the aid of another, than was Wordsworth to the -devoted aid and the constraining and softening power of his sister. - -In many respects there is a marked similarity between the lives of -Charles and Mary Lamb and those of William and Dorothy Wordsworth. The -burden of the story of each is that of a brother's and sister's love. -But there is also a great difference. While one is the tale of an elder -sister's affection, and of the brother's self-sacrifice for the tender -care of her during periods of nature's saddest affliction, the other -tells how a younger sister consecrated her life to her brother's -greatest good, relinquishing for herself everything outside him in such -a way that she became absorbed in his own existence. But as a -self-sacrificing love always brings its own reward, the poet's sister -attained hers. She is for all time identified and associated with her -brother, who, with a grateful love, has "crowned her for immortality." -As Mr. Paxton Hood remarks: "Not Laura with Petrarch, nor Beatrice with -Dante, nor the fair Geraldine with Surrey, are more really connected -than is Wordsworth with his sister Dorothy." - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -CHILDHOOD AND EARLY LIFE. - - -Dorothy Wordsworth was the only daughter and third child of John and -Anne Wordsworth. She was born on Christmas Day, 1771, at Cockermouth, in -Cumberland, being a year and nine months younger than her famous -brother, the poet. John Wordsworth, the father, was an attorney-at-law, -who had attained considerable success in his profession, being the -solicitor of the then Earl of Lonsdale, in an old manor-house belonging -to whose family he resided. Miss Wordsworth's mother was, on the -maternal side, descended from an old and distinguished family, being the -only daughter of William Cookson, of Penrith, who had married Dorothy -Crackenthorp, whose family, we are informed, had, since the early part -of the fourteenth century, resided at Newbiggen Hall, Westmoreland. The -Wordsworths themselves traced their descent from a Yorkshire family of -that name who had settled in the county about the time of the Norman -Conquest. - -Dorothy had the misfortune to lose her excellent mother when she was a -little more than six years old. After this great loss her father's -health declined, and she was left an orphan at the early age of twelve. -The sources of information concerning her childhood are very meagre. - -We cannot doubt that for the qualities of mind and heart which -distinguished her she was, in common with the other members of her -family--her four brothers, who all won for themselves successful -careers--indebted to her parenthood, and especially to her mother, of -whom the poet says:-- - - "She was the heart - And hinge of all our learning and our loves." - -The beauty and gentleness of disposition by which, in after years, -Dorothy Wordsworth developed into such a perfect woman were not absent -in her early childhood. Although we know so little, we have abundant -testimony that as a child she was fittingly named _Dorothea_--the gift -of God--and that then her life of ministry to her poet-brother began. We -can well imagine how the little dark-eyed brunette, sparkling and -impulsive damsel as she was, and the only girl in the family, became the -darling of the circle. In after years, when her favourite and famous -brother had entered on the career which she helped so much to stimulate -and to perfect, we find in his poems many allusions to her, as well in -her prattling childhood as in her mature years. The sight of a butterfly -calls to the poet's mind the pleasures of the early home, the time when -he and his little playmate "together chased the butterfly." The kindness -of her child heart is told in a few expressive words. He says:-- - - "A very hunter did I rush - Upon the prey;--with leaps and springs - I followed on from brake to bush; - But she--God love her!--_feared to brush - The dust from off its wings_." - -The sight of a sparrow's nest, many years after, also served to bring to -the poet's remembrance his father's home and his sister's love. The -"bright blue eggs" appeared to him "a vision of delight." In them he saw -another sparrow's nest, in the years gone by daily visited in company -with his little sister. - - "Behold, within that leafy shade, - Those bright blue eggs together laid! - On me the chance-discovered sight - Gleamed like a vision of delight. - I started, seeming to espy - The home and sheltered bed, - The Sparrow's dwelling, which, hard by - My Father's house, in wet or dry, - My sister Emmeline and I - Together visited. - She looked at it and seemed to fear it, - Dreading, though wishing, to be near it: - Such heart was in her, being then - A little Prattler among men. - The Blessing of my later years - Was with me when a boy: - She gave me eyes, she gave me ears; - And humble cares, and delicate fears; - A heart, the fountain of sweet tears, - And love, and thought, and joy." - -It is to her early thoughtfulness that the poet alludes in another poem -having reference to the same period. In this poem he represents his -sister and her young play-fellows gathering spring flowers, and thus -records her prudent "Foresight":-- - - "Here are daisies, take your fill; - Pansies, and the cuckoo-flower: - Of the lofty daffodil - Make your bed or make your bower; - Fill your lap and fill your bosom; - Only spare the strawberry-blossom! - - * * * * * - - God has given a kindlier power - To the favoured strawberry-flower. - Hither soon as spring is fled - You and Charles and I will walk; - Lurking berries, ripe and red, - Then will hang on every stalk, - Each within the leafy bower; - And for that promise spare the flower!" - -An incident showing the tender sensibility of her nature when a child is -also deserving of special mention. In a note to the "Second Evening -Voluntary," Wordsworth says: "My sister, when she first heard the voice -of the sea from this point (the high ground on the coast of Cumberland -overlooking Whitehaven and the sea beyond it) and beheld the sea spread -before her, burst into tears. Our family then lived at Cockermouth, and -this fact was often mentioned among us as indicating the sensibility for -which she was so remarkable." - -The death of their mother was, however, the signal for separation. Her -brother William was sent to school at Hawkshead, in North Lancashire, -and Dorothy went to reside with her maternal grandfather at Penrith. -Subsequently, during her brother's school and college days, we are -informed that she lived chiefly at Halifax with her cousin, occasionally -making lengthened visits at Forncett, to her cousin, Dr. Cookson, Canon -of Windsor. Although they were in this way for some years deprived of -each other's society, except during occasional college vacations, they -were not forgotten by each other, and their early love did not grow -cold. Wordsworth, having gone to Cambridge in 1787, during one of his -early vacations visited his relations at Penrith, when he was for a -short period restored to his sister's society. In his autobiographical -poem, "The Prelude," he has thus recorded the fact:-- - - "In summer, making quest for works of art, - Or scenes renowned for beauty, I explored - That streamlet whose blue current works its way - Between romantic Dovedale's spiry rocks; - Pried into Yorkshire dales, or hidden tracts - Of my own native region, and was blest - Between these sundry wanderings with a joy - Above all joys, that seemed another morn - Risen on mid noon; blest with the presence - Of that sole Sister ---- - Now, after separation desolate, - Restored to me--such absence that she seemed - A gift then first bestowed." - -It cannot be doubted that the poetic tendency of Dorothy Wordsworth's -mind, like that of her brother, was fostered by the beauties of the -natural scenery in the midst of which a large portion of her childhood -was cast. The beauty of wood, and lake, and mountain early sank into -their receptive minds, and helped to make them what they became, both to -each other, and to the world. To the influence of Nature in the maturing -of their intellect, the development of both mind and heart, it may be -necessary to refer later. - -During the last of his college vacations--that of the year 1790, so -remarkable in French history--Wordsworth made a three months' tour on -the Continent with his friend, Mr. Robert Jones. Writing to his sister, -then budding into womanhood, from the Lake of Constance, a fine -description of the scenery through which they were passing, he says: "I -have thought of you perpetually; and never have my eyes rested upon a -scene of great loveliness but I have almost instantly wished that you -could for a moment be transported to the place where I stood to enjoy -it. I have been more particularly induced to form those wishes, because -the scenes of Switzerland have no resemblance to any I have found in -England; consequently it may probably never be in your power to form an -idea of them." And he concludes by saying: "I must now bid you adieu, -with assuring you that you are perpetually in my thoughts." - -Wordsworth took his degree, and left Cambridge in 1791. Being undecided -as to his future occupation, he spent the succeeding twelve months in -France. His life for some time was wandering and uncertain. He has -himself stated that he was once told by an intimate friend of his -mother's that she had said the only one of her five children about -whose future life she was anxious was William; and he, she said, would -be remarkable either for good or for evil. - -Wordsworth's experience of the French Revolution was far from being -happy. His expectations were ruthlessly disappointed. With his ardent -spirit he could not be an unconcerned observer of the stirring events -which then agitated that ill-fated country. He had bright hopes of great -results from the Revolution--of signal benefits to mankind. How bitterly -he was disappointed we learn something from "The Prelude." The awful -scenes of the time of blood and terror which followed were so deeply -imaged on his mind, that for years afterwards they haunted his dreams, -and he seemed - - "To hear a voice that cried, - To the whole city, sleep no more." - -Fortunately for him he was obliged to return home, led, as he afterwards -acknowledged, "by the gracious Providence of heaven." - -It was now quite time that Wordsworth should determine upon his future -career; and this important subject seems to have occasioned some anxiety -amongst his friends. His father, having been taken away in the prime of -life, had not been able to make much provision for his children, -especially as a considerable sum which had been due to him from the Earl -of Lonsdale remained unpaid. It had been intended that, after leaving -the University, Wordsworth should enter the Church. To this, however, he -had conscientious objections. On other grounds the profession of the law -was equally distasteful to him. His three brothers had chosen their -pursuits, in which they all lived to distinguish themselves; but the one -who was destined to be the greatest of them all, we find, at the age of -twenty-three, still undetermined as to his future course of life. He -had, indeed, at an early age, begun to write some of his earlier poems, -to which, it is worthy of remark, he was incited and encouraged by his -sister. Among other pieces, his "Evening Walk," addressed to his sister, -had been composed when, at school and during his college vacations, he -had been "far from that dearest friend." - -However much Wordsworth's relatives and friends generally may have been -disappointed in his want of decision, Dorothy's confidence in him and -her love to him never wavered. In a letter, written to a dear friend, -dated February, 1792, she says, speaking of her brothers Christopher and -William: "Christopher is steady and sincere in his attachments. William -has both these virtues in an eminent degree, and a sort of violence of -affection--if I may so term it--which demonstrates itself every moment -of the day, when the objects of his affection are present with him, in a -thousand almost imperceptible attentions to their wishes, in a sort of -restless watchfulness which I know not how to describe, a tenderness -that never sleeps, and, at the same time, such a delicacy of manner as I -have observed in few men." Again, writing in June, 1792, to the same -friend, she says: "I have strolled into a neighbouring meadow, where I -am enjoying the melody of birds and the busy sounds of a fine summer's -evening. But, oh! how imperfect is my pleasure whilst I am alone! Why -are you not seated with me? and my dear William, why is he not here -also? I could almost fancy that I see you both near me. I hear _you_ -point out a spot, where, if we could erect a little cottage and call it -our own, we should be the happiest of human beings. I see my brother -fired with the idea of leading his sister to such a retreat. Our parlour -is in a moment furnished; our garden is adorned by magic; the roses and -honeysuckles spring at our command; the wood behind the house lifts its -head, and furnishes us with a winter's shelter and a summer's noonday -shade. My dear friend, I trust that ere long you will be, without the -aid of imagination, the companion of my walks, and my dear William may -be of our party.... He is now going upon a tour in the West of England -with a gentleman who was formerly a schoolfellow--a man of fortune, who -is to bear all the expenses of the journey, and only requests the favour -of William's company. He is perfectly at liberty to quit this companion -as soon as anything more advantageous offers. But it is enough to say -that I am likely to have the happiness of introducing you to my beloved -brother. You must forgive me for talking so much of him. My affection -hurries me on, and makes me forget that you cannot be so much interested -in the subject as I am. You do not know him; you do not know how amiable -he is. Perhaps you may reply: 'But I know how blinded you are.' Well, my -dearest, I plead guilty at once; I _must_ be blind; he cannot be so -pleasing as my fondness makes him. I am willing to allow that half the -virtues with which I fancy him endowed are the creation of my love; but -surely I may be excused! He was never afraid of comforting his sister; -he never left her in anger; he always met her with joy; he preferred her -society to every other pleasure--or, rather, when we were so happy as to -be within each other's reach, he had no pleasure when we were compelled -to be divided. Do not, then, expect too much from this brother, of whom -I have delighted so to talk to you. In the first place, you must be with -him more than once before he will be perfectly easy in conversation. In -the second place, his person is not in his favour--at least, I should -think not--but I soon ceased to discover this; nay, I almost thought -that the opinion I had formed was erroneous. He is, however, certainly -rather plain, though otherwise has an extremely thoughtful countenance; -but when he speaks, it is often lighted up by a smile which I think very -pleasing. But enough, he is my brother; why should I describe him? I -shall be launching again into panegyric." Again she says: "William -writes to me regularly, and is a most affectionate brother." - -It is gratifying to know that this warm attachment of Miss Wordsworth to -her brother was at all times returned. In the year 1793, when they were -discussing the means of realising their cherished idea of retiring to -their little cottage, Wordsworth writes: "I will write to my uncle, and -tell him I cannot think of going anywhere before I have been with you. -Whatever answer he gives me, I certainly will make a point of once more -mingling my transports with yours. Alas! my dear sister, how soon must -this happiness expire; yet there are moments worth ages." Again he says: -"Oh, my dear, dear sister, with what transport shall I again meet you! -with what rapture shall I again wear out the day in your sight!... I see -you in a moment running, or rather flying, to my arms." - -In the early part of 1794, having still no fixed residence, we find -Wordsworth staying at Halifax. Writing in February of that year to a -friend, he says: "My sister is under the same roof with me; indeed, it -was to see her that I came into the country. I have been doing nothing, -and still continue to do nothing. What is to become of me I know not." -About this time the brother and sister together made a tour in the Lake -District. She writes: "After having enjoyed the company of my brother -William at Halifax, we set forward by coach towards Whitehaven, and -thence to Kendal. I walked, with my brother at my side, from Kendal to -Grasmere, eighteen miles, and afterwards from Grasmere to Keswick, -fifteen miles, through the most delightful country that was ever seen. -We are now at a farmhouse about half a mile from Keswick. When I came I -intended to stay only a few days; but the country is so delightful, and, -above all, I have so full an enjoyment of my brother's company, that I -have determined to stay a few weeks longer." - -In his uncertainty of mind Wordsworth projected the publishing of a -periodical, and afterwards contributing to the London Newspaper Press. -That the latter scheme was not put into practice was owing to the fact -that just at this time an incident occurred which had no small influence -upon what may be considered the turning point in his life. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -RACEDOWN AND ALFOXDEN. - - -To all lovers of Wordsworth it is well known how, while he was yet -undecided as to his future calling, he went to nurse a young friend -named Raisley Calvert, who was afflicted with a malady which threatened -to prove fatal, and by whose side he felt it his duty to remain. After a -protracted illness his friend died, and bequeathed him a legacy of £900. -It is probable that in this generous act, to which Wordsworth has more -than once recorded his indebtedness, Mr. Calvert was actuated by mixed -motives; that it was to be regarded not only as an expression of -gratitude, but that he also perceived in his friend talents which others -were slow to recognise, and desired thus to provide him with the means -of devoting himself, at any rate for a time, to the pursuit of poetry. -However this may be, the incident cannot but be regarded as a link in -the chain of providential circumstances which combined to prepare the -poet for his future high calling. It is not, however, intended in this -sketch to refer to Wordsworth himself more than is necessary for the -purpose of elucidating any events in the life and character of his -sister, or of tracing her influence upon him. Having thus obtained the -means of livelihood for a few years, one of their cherished hopes was -realised. His childhood's playmate became his constant and lifelong -companion, devoting herself to him and his interests and aims as only a -noble woman could have done. - -At what a critical time Miss Wordsworth thus entered more closely into -the life of her brother we learn from his biography, as well as from his -works. Dejected and despondent by reason of the scenes of which he had -been an eyewitness in France, and the terrible days which followed, -Wordsworth was at this time greatly in danger of becoming misanthropic, -and of giving way to a melancholy which might have coloured all his -life, and deprived his works of the healthful and educating influence -which they breathe. All disappointment and sorrow may become the -precursor of blessing, the mother of a great hope. It is the bruised -herb that exudes its fragrance; the broken heart that, when bound, -pulsates most truly. It was a saying of Goethe that he never had an -affliction which did not turn into a poem. But disappointment may also -be the parent of gloom, and pave the way to a spirit of morose -indifference. At such junctures a life may, by the skilful leading of a -wise affection, be saved for beauty and happiness, for greater good and -more exalted attainment and enjoyment, by reason of the very sorrow -which, unhallowed, would have plunged it into bitterness. - -However much Wordsworth's goodness of heart and ardent love of Nature -helped to protect him, it was at this critical period that he was -chiefly indebted to the soothing and cheering power of his sister for -uplifting him from the gloom which had gathered around him, and for -restoring and maintaining that equable frame of mind which from -thenceforth unvaryingly characterised him. Her clear insight and womanly -instinct at this time saw deeper into the sources of real satisfaction; -and her helpful and healing sympathy came to his aid. By her tact she -led him from the distracting cares of political agitation to those more -elevating and satisfying influences which an ardent and contemplative -love of Nature and poetry cultivate, and which sweet and kindred human -affections strengthen and develop. It remained for Miss Wordsworth, if -not to awaken, to draw out and stimulate her brother's better nature, to -deaden what was unworthy, and to encourage, by tender care and patient -endeavour, that higher life towards which his mind and soul were turned. -She became, and for many years continued to be, the loadstar of his -existence, and affords one of the most pleasing instances of sisterly -devotion and fidelity on record. In her brother was verified the poet's -prophecy:-- - - "True heart and shining star shall guide thee right." - -Well was it for Wordsworth, and for us, that he had a sister, and that -it was to this brother--one after her own heart--she at this juncture -devoted herself. In this we may see another of the providential -circumstances that beset the career of Wordsworth. As Spenser says:-- - - "It chanced-- - Eternal God that chance did guide." - -Writing of Miss Wordsworth at this time, her nephew, the late Bishop of -Lincoln, says: "She was endowed with tender sensibility, with an -exquisite perception of beauty, with a retentive recollection of what -she saw, with a felicitous tact in discerning and admirable skill in -delineating natural objects with graphic accuracy and vivid -gracefulness. She weaned him from contemporary politics, and won him to -beauty and truth." - -A writer in _The Quarterly Review_, many years ago (I believe the late -Mr. J. G. Lockhart), referring to this period, writes: "Depressed and -bewildered, he turned to abstract science, and was beginning to torment -his mind with fresh problems, when, after his long voyage through -unknown seas in search of Utopia, with sails full set and without -compass or rudder, his sister came to his aid, and conducted him back to -the quiet harbour from which he started. His visits to her had latterly -been short and far between, until his brightening fortunes enabled them -to indulge the wish of their hearts to live together, and then she -convinced him that he was born to be a poet, and had no call to lose -himself in the endless labyrinth of theoretical puzzles. The calm of a -home would alone have done much towards sobering his mind. While he -roamed restlessly about the world he was drawn in by every eddy, and -obeyed the influence of every wind; but when once he had escaped from -the turmoil, into the pure and peaceful pleasures of domestic existence, -he felt the vanity and vexation of his previous course." - -Wordsworth himself, afterwards writing of this same period of his life, -says:-- - - "Depressed, bewildered thus, I did not walk - With scoffers, seeking light and gay revenge - From indiscriminate laughter, nor sit down - In reconcilement with an utter waste - Of intellect. - - * * * * * - - Then it was-- - Thanks to the bounteous Giver of all good!-- - That the beloved sister in whose sight - Those days were passed, now speaking in a voice - Of sudden admonition--like a brook - That did but _cross_ a lonely road, now - Is seen, heard, felt, and caught at every turn, - Companion never lost through many a league-- - Maintain'd for me a saving intercourse - With my true self; for, though bedimmed and changed - Much, as it seemed, I was no further changed - Than as a clouded, and a waning moon; - She whispered still that brightness would return. - She in the midst of all preserved me still - A poet; made me seek beneath that name, - And that alone, my office upon earth." - -We thus find Miss Wordsworth keeping house with her brother, who, having -at length determined upon his course of life, was, in 1795, living at -Racedown Lodge in Dorsetshire. From this time forth, amid all the -changes of fortune and condition, they were close and life-long -companions. - -However great may have been her influence upon him previously, it now -became a moulding and educating power. They were both in the strength of -their youth--that time of radiant enjoyment--bound not only by that most -endearing of natural ties, but by tastes, aims, and hopes most -singularly mutual. The close association of daily intercourse and -community of thought, together with a thorough sympathy, seemed now, as -only an ardent enthusiasm and devoted love of kindred objects can do, to -cement their lives. In this their first home, the only one which they -had really known since childhood, and to which they had so longingly -looked forward, they were all in all to each other. Separation from the -busy world, and from society, was no hardship to them, so long as they -were uninterrupted in the society of each other, and in the pursuits -they loved. Though in a part of the country, then so remote that they -had only a post once a week, they went into raptures over their lot. The -house which they temporarily occupied was, we are informed, pretty well -stocked with books, and they were industrious in both indoor and outdoor -occupations. They read, and thought, and talked together, rambling -through the lovely combs and by the ever-changing sea. "My brother," she -says, "handles the spade with great dexterity," while she herself was -engaged in reading Italian authors. - -A writer in _Blackwood_, a few years ago, referring to Miss Wordsworth -at this time, says: "She had been separated from her brother since their -childhood, and now at the first moment when their re-union was possible, -seems to have rushed to him with all the impetuosity of her nature. -Without taking his sister into consideration, no just estimate can be -formed of Wordsworth. He was, as it were, henceforward, the spokesman to -the world of two souls. It was not that she visibly or consciously aided -and stimulated him, but that she _was_ him--a second pair of eyes to -see, a second and more delicate intuition to discern, a second heart to -enter into all that came before their mutual observation. This union was -so close, that in many instances it becomes difficult to discern which -is the brother and which the sister. She was part not only of his life, -but of his imagination. He saw by her, felt through her, at her touch -the strings of the instrument began to thrill, the great melodies awoke. -Her journals are Wordsworth in prose, just as his poems are Dorothy in -verse. The one soul kindled at the other. The brother and sister met -with all the enthusiasm of youthful affection, strengthened and -concentrated by long separation, and the delightful sense that here at -last was the possibility of making for themselves a home." After -referring to their pecuniary means, the writer adds: "And with this, in -their innocent frugality and courage, they faced the world like a new -pair of babes in the wood. Their aspirations in one way were infinite, -but in another modest as any cottager's. Daily bread sufficed them, and -the pleasure to be derived from Nature, who is cheap, and gives herself -lavishly without thought or hope of reward." - -Although at this remote place friends and visitors were few, it was here -the Wordsworths first made the acquaintance of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, -who, in conjunction with Southey, had already begun to make a name. This -acquaintance ripened into a close and uninterrupted friendship, only to -be ended by death. It was here also that Wordsworth composed his tragedy -_The Borderers_ and "The Ruined Cottage," which latter poem afterwards -formed the first part of the "Excursion." The ardour with which the -young poets entered into each other's plans, and the enthusiasm of the -sister, who was in such perfect _rapport_ with them, is gathered from -her statement that the "first thing that was read when he (Coleridge) -came was William's new poem, 'The Ruined Cottage,' with which he was -much delighted; and after tea he repeated to us two acts and a half of -his tragedy _Osorio_. The next morning William read his tragedy _The -Borderers_." - -The following description of Coleridge, from the pen of Miss Wordsworth, -cannot fail to be of interest. Writing to a friend, she says: "You had a -great loss in not seeing Coleridge. He is a wonderful man. His -conversation teems with soul, mind, and spirit. Then he is so -benevolent, so good-tempered and cheerful, and, like William, excites -himself so much about every little trifle. At first I thought him very -plain--that is, for about three minutes. He is pale, thin, has a wide -mouth, thick lips, and not very good teeth; longish, loose-growing, -half-curling, rough, black hair. But if you hear him speak for five -minutes, you think no more about them. His eye is large and full, and -not very dark, but grey--such an eye as would receive from a heavy soul -the dullest expression; but it speaks every emotion of his animated -mind. It has more of the 'poet's eye in fine frenzy rolling' than I ever -witnessed. He has fine dark eyebrows and an overhanging forehead." - -By the side of this striking picture of Coleridge may be fittingly -placed his first impressions of Miss Wordsworth. Writing to Mr. Cottle -from Nether Stowey, in Somersetshire, where he was then residing, he -says: "Wordsworth and his exquisite sister are with me. She is a woman, -indeed!--in mind, I mean, and heart; for her person is such that, if you -expected to see a pretty woman, you would think her ordinary; if you -expected to see an ordinary woman, you would think her pretty; but her -manners are simple, ardent, impressive. In every motion her most -innocent soul outbeams so brightly that who saw her would say: - - 'Guilt was a thing impossible in her.' - -Her information various; her eye watchful in minutest observation of -Nature; and her taste a perfect electrometer. It bends, protrudes, and -draws in at subtlest beauties and most recondite faults." - -From this description of Coleridge it might appear that Miss Wordsworth -was one of those happy possessors of a face and features which though in -repose might appear homely, became illumined by the sweet smiles of -love--flashed into beauty by the gleam of the soul-lit eye. - -The pleasure which the friendship of Coleridge afforded them induced -Wordsworth and his sister to change their residence in order to be near -him. Accordingly, in the summer of 1797, they settled at Alfoxden, near -Nether Stowey. Alfoxden is described by Hazlitt as a "romantic old -family mansion of the St. Aubins," and he gives the additional -information that it was then in the possession of a friend of the poet, -who gave him the free use of it. De Quincey states that he understood -that the Wordsworths had the use of the house on condition of keeping it -in repair. - -Although Miss Wordsworth afterwards spoke of Racedown as the dearest -place of her recollections upon the whole surface of the island, as the -first home she had, she was soon enamoured of her new abode, and the -scenery of Somersetshire. Of the neighbourhood of Nether Stowey she -says, in a letter to a friend, dated 4th July: "There is everything -there--sea, woods wild as fancy ever painted; brooks clear and pebbly as -in Cumberland; villages as romantic; and William and I, in a wander by -ourselves, found out a sequestered waterfall in a dell formed by steep -hills, covered by full-grown timber-trees. The woods are as fine as -those at Lowther, and the country more romantic; it has the character of -the less grand parts of the neighbourhood of the lakes." - -Being settled at Alfoxden, she writes again, on 14th August: "Here we -are, in a large mansion, in a large park, with seventy head of deer -around us. But I must begin with the day of leaving Racedown to pay -Coleridge a visit. You know how much we were delighted with the -neighbourhood of Stowey. The evening that I wrote to you, William and I -had rambled as far as this house, and pryed into the recesses of our -little brook, but without any more fixed thoughts upon it than some -dreams of happiness in a little cottage, and passing wishes that such a -place might be found out. We spent a fortnight at Coleridge's: in the -course of that time we heard that this house was to let, applied for it, -and took it. Our principal inducement was Coleridge's society. It was a -month yesterday since we came to Alfoxden. - -"The house is a large mansion, with furniture enough for a dozen -families like ours. There is a very excellent garden, well stocked with -vegetables and fruit. The garden is at the end of the house, and our -favourite parlour, as at Racedown, looks that way. In front is a little -court, with grass-plot, gravel-walk, and shrubs; the moss roses were in -full beauty a month ago. The front of the house is to the south; but is -screened from the sun by a high hill which rises immediately from it. -This hill is beautiful, scattered irregularly and abundantly with trees, -and topped with fern, which spreads a considerable way down it. The deer -dwell here, and sheep, so that we have a living prospect. From the end -of the house we have a view of the sea, over a woody, meadow country; -and exactly opposite the window, where I now sit, is an immense wood, -whose round top from this point has exactly the appearance of a mighty -dome. In some parts of this wood there is an under-grove of hollies, -which are now very beautiful. In a glen at the bottom of the wood is the -waterfall of which I spoke, a quarter of a mile from the house. We are -three miles from Stowey, and not two miles from the sea. Wherever we -turn we have woods, smooth downs, and valleys with small brooks running -down them, through green meadows, hardly ever intersected with -hedgerows, but scattered over with trees. The hills that cradle these -valleys are either covered with fern and bilberries, or oak woods, which -are cut for charcoal.... Walks extend for miles over the hill-tops; the -great beauty of which is their wild simplicity: they are perfectly -smooth, without rocks. - -"The Tor of Glastonbury is before our eyes during more than half of our -walk to Stowey; and in the park, wherever we go, keeping about fifteen -yards above the house, it makes a part of our prospect." - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -RESIDENCE AT ALFOXDEN.--REMOVAL TO GRASMERE. - - -The year succeeding the time when Miss Wordsworth and her brother became -resident at Alfoxden was one of glowing enjoyment and fruitful industry. -We are not without a few pleasing pictures of this charmed primitive -period of their lives--its profitable intercourse, its delightful -rambles. - - "Upon smooth Quantock's airy ridge we roamed, - Unchecked, or loitered 'mid his sylvan combs; - Thou, in bewitching words with happy heart, - Didst chant the vision of that ancient man, - The bright-eyed mariner; and rueful woes - Didst utter of the Lady Christabel-- - And I, associate with such labours, steeped - In soft forgetfulness the livelong hours, - Murmuring of him who, joyous hap, was found - After the perils of his moonlight ride, - Near the loud waterfall; or her who sate - In misery near the miserable thorn." - -We can imagine the happy meetings and rapturous feelings of the two -young poets in the company of the bright young woman, who was gifted -with a no less poetic soul, wandering amid the delightful scenery of -Somersetshire, revelling in the beauties of woodland and ocean, and the -pleasant evenings, when each read to the other his growing poems; and -they together discussed their ambitious schemes for the golden future, -receiving the suggestions and approval of the ever-sympathetic sister -and friend. Wordsworth has described this as a "very pleasant and -productive time" of his life. - -It was during one of the short tours of Wordsworth and Coleridge, with -the bright and faithful Dorothy by their side, inspiring and stimulating -(the expenses of which tour they desired to defray by writing a poem), -that the story of "The Ancient Mariner" was conceived. Wordsworth has -said of it in a passage oft-repeated:-- - -"In the autumn of 1797, Mr. Coleridge, my sister, and myself, started -from Alfoxden pretty late in the afternoon, with a view of visiting -Linton and the valley of stones near it; and as our united funds were -very small, we agreed to defray the expense of the tour by writing a -poem, to be sent to the new Monthly Magazine. In the course of this walk -was planned the poem of 'The Ancient Mariner,' founded on a dream, as -Mr. Coleridge said, of his friend, Mr. Cruikshank. Much the greatest -part of the story was Mr. Coleridge's invention; but certain parts I -suggested. For example, some crime to be committed, which was to bring -upon the Old Navigator, as Coleridge afterwards delighted to call him, -the spectral persecution, as a consequence of that crime and his own -wanderings. I had been reading in 'Shelvocke's Voyages,' a day or two -before, that, while doubling Cape Horn, they frequently saw albatrosses -in that latitude--the largest sort of sea-fowl, some extending their -wings 12 or 13 feet. Suppose, said I, you represent him as having killed -one of these birds on entering the South Sea, and that the tutelary -spirits of these regions take upon them to avenge the crime. The -incident was thought fitting for the purpose, and adopted accordingly. I -also suggested the navigation of the ship by the dead man; but I do not -recollect that I had anything more to do with the scheme of the poem." - -It was about this time that the Wordsworths made the acquaintance of -Hazlitt. He was then staying with Coleridge, who took him over to -Alfoxden. Of this visit Hazlitt says:-- - -"Wordsworth himself was from home; but his sister kept house, and set -before us a frugal repast; and we had free access to her brother's -poems, the lyrical ballads, which were still in manuscript, or in the -form of sybilline leaves. I dipped into a few of these with great -satisfaction, and with the faith of a novice. I slept that night in an -old room, with blue hangings, and covered with the round-faced family -portraits, of the age of George I. and II., and from the woody declivity -of the adjoining park that overlooked my window, at the dawn of day, - - 'Heard the loud stag speak.' - -"Next morning, as soon as breakfast was over, we strolled out into the -park, and, seating ourselves on the trunk of an old ash tree, that -stretched along the ground, Coleridge read aloud, with a sonorous and -musical voice, the ballad of 'Betty Foy.' I was not critically or -sceptically inclined. I saw touches of truth and nature, and took the -rest for granted. But in 'The Thorn,' 'The Mad Mother,' and 'The -Complaint of the Poor Indian Woman,' I felt that deeper power and -pathos, which have been since acknowledged, - - 'In spite of pride, in erring reason's spite,' - -as the characteristics of this author, and the sense of a new style and -a new spirit in poetry, came over me. It had to me something of the -effect that arises from the turning up of the fresh soil, or of the -first welcome breath of spring, - - 'While yet the trembling year is unconfirmed.' - -"Coleridge and myself walked back to Stowey that evening, and his voice -sounded high, - - 'Of Providence, foreknowledge, will, and fate; - Fixt fate, free will, foreknowledge absolute,' - -as we passed through the echoing groves, by fairy stream or waterfall, -gleaming in the solemn moonlight.... We went over to Alfoxden again the -day following, and Wordsworth read us the story of 'Peter Bell' in the -open air. There is a _chant_ in the recitation, both of Coleridge and -Wordsworth, which acts as a spell upon the hearer, and disarms the -judgment. Perhaps they have deceived themselves by making habitual use -of this ambiguous accompaniment. Coleridge's manner is more full, -animated, and varied; Wordsworth's more equable, sustained, and -internal. Coleridge has told me that he himself liked to compose in -walking over uneven ground, or breaking through the straggling branches -of a copsewood, whereas Wordsworth always composed walking up and down -a straight gravel walk, or in some spot where the continuity of his -verse met with no collateral interruptions.... Returning the same -evening, I got into a metaphysical argument with Wordsworth, while -Coleridge was explaining the different notes of the nightingale to his -sister, in which we neither of us succeeded in making ourselves -perfectly clear and intelligible." - -This year was also celebrated by an introduction to Charles Lamb (the -quaint and gentle-hearted "Elia") and his excellent sister Mary. Lamb -was an old schoolfellow, and a close friend of Coleridge. They had been -boys together at the Christ's Hospital, where the sympathy between them -had been formed which became a life-long bond. A short emancipation from -the toils of the East India House found Lamb and his sister spending a -little time with Coleridge at Nether Stowey. From the time of the -commencement of the acquaintance of Mary Lamb and Dorothy Wordsworth in -this manner, their friendship was constant and their correspondence -frequent. While, in temperament, they were totally unlike each other, -there was that in the tenor of their lives, in the tender and helpful -devotion of each of them to her brother--a devotion in both cases so -warmly reciprocated--together with much in common in their tastes and -pursuits, which served to cement a friendship begun under such -pleasurable circumstances. - -The poem "To my Sister," written in front of Alfoxden, is suggestive of -the happy rural life at this time enjoyed by the poet and his sister. -What lover of Wordsworth does not remember how on "the first mild day -of March," when, to the receptive spirit of the poet, each minute of the -advancing, balmy day appeared to be lovelier than the preceding one, -while, sauntering on the lawn, he wrote, desiring her to hasten with her -household morning duties, and share his enjoyment of the genial -sunshine? - - "It is the first mild day of March: - Each minute sweeter than before - The red-breast sings from the tall larch - That stands beside our door. - - "There is a blessing in the air, - Which seems a sense of joy to yield - To the bare trees, and mountains bare, - And grass in the green field. - - "'My sister! ('tis a wish of mine), - Now that our morning meal is done, - Make haste, your morning task resign; - Come forth and feel the sun. - - "'Edward will come with you--and, pray, - Put on with speed your woodland dress; - And bring no book; for this one day - We'll give to idleness. - - "'No joyless forms shall regulate - Our living calendar: - We from to-day, my Friend, will date - The opening of the year. - - "'Love, now a universal birth, - From heart to heart is stealing, - From earth to man, from man to earth; - --It is the hour of feeling. - - "'One moment now may give us more - Than years of toiling reason: - Our minds shall drink at every pore - The spirit of the season. - - "'Some silent laws our hearts will make, - Which they shall long obey; - We for the year to come may take - Our temper from to-day. - - "'And from the blessed power that rolls - About, below, above, - We'll frame the measure of our souls: - They shall be tuned to love. - - "'Then come, my Sister! come, I pray, - With speed put on your woodland dress; - And bring no book: for this one day - We'll give to idleness.'" - -It was also during their residence at Alfoxden that Miss Wordsworth and -her brother made their tour on the banks of the Wye, so signally -memorialised in his famous lines on Tintern Abbey, of which he says, no -poem of his was composed under circumstances more pleasant for him to -remember. Its elevating reflections and rhythmic strains take captive -the affections of the lover of Nature, and linger in his memory like the -music of youth. In this place our interest in it arises from the -allusions it contains to his beloved companion. He refers to the sweet -sensations which, in hours of weariness in towns and cities, he has owed -to the beauteous forms of Nature to which his mind has turned. He calls -to memory the time when he had, indeed, loved Nature more passionately, -and compares it with his present more mature and thoughtful affection, -concluding with a fervid address to her who was by his side, and whose -presence imparted an added charm--that of double vision--to every object -and feeling; a sense of blessing shared:-- - - "For thou art with me here upon the banks - Of this fair river: thou, my dearest Friend, - My dear, dear Friend; and in thy voice I catch - The language of my former heart, and read - My former pleasures in the shooting lights - Of thy wild eyes. Oh! yet a little while - May I behold in thee what I was once, - My dear, dear Sister! And this prayer I make, - Knowing that Nature never did betray - The heart that loved her; 'tis her privilege - Thro' all the years of this our life, to lead - From joy to joy: for she can so inform - The mind that is within us, so impress - With quietness and beauty, and so feed - With lofty thoughts, that neither evil tongues, - Rash judgments, nor the sneers of selfish men, - Nor greetings where no kindness is, nor all - The dreary intercourse of daily life, - Shall e'er prevail against us, or disturb - Our cheerful faith, that all which we behold - Is full of blessings. Therefore let the moon - Shine on thee in thy solitary walk; - And let the misty mountain-winds be free - To blow against thee; and, in after years, - When these wild ecstasies shall be matured - Into a sober pleasure; when thy mind - Shall be a mansion for all lovely forms, - Thy memory be as a dwelling-place - For all sweet sounds and harmonies; oh! then, - If solitude, or fear, or pain, or grief, - Should be thy portion, with what healing thoughts - Of tender joy wilt thou remember me, - And these, my exhortations! Nor, perchance, - If I should be where I no more can hear - Thy voice, nor catch from thy wild eyes these gleams - Of past existence--wilt thou then forget - That on the banks of this delightful stream - We stood together.... - Nor wilt thou then forget - That after many wanderings, many years - Of absence, these steep woods and lofty cliffs, - And this green pastoral landscape, were to me - More dear, both for themselves and for thy sake!" - -Although Coleridge was at this time married, his wife does not seem to -have entered very warmly into his pursuits--not, indeed, with the same -interest that Miss Wordsworth did. It cannot be out of place, since it -is a matter of almost common knowledge, to remark that we have in -Coleridge one more instance of the many men of genius who have not been -very suitably mated. Mrs. Coleridge did not feel the sympathy in her -husband's aims to enable her to take pleasure in their intellectual -conversations or perpetual rambles. In both of these Miss Wordsworth -delighted. De Quincey, in his uncontrollable propensity to chatter, has -taken occasion from this fact to suggest that Mrs. Coleridge resented -the familiar friendship of the poetic trio. Although not mentioning Miss -Wordsworth by name, he refers to a young lady who became a neighbour and -a daily companion of Coleridge's walks, and who was "intellectually much -superior to Mrs. Coleridge," in a way that shows that none other than -Miss Wordsworth could be alluded to. He adds: "Mrs. Coleridge, not -having the same relish for long walks or rural scenery, and their -residence being at this time in a very sequestered village, was -condemned to a daily renewal of this trial. Accidents of another kind -embittered it still further. Often it would happen that the walking -party returned drenched with rain; in which case the young lady, with a -laughing gaiety, and evidently unconscious of any liberty that she was -taking, or any wound that she was inflicting, would run up to Mrs. -Coleridge's wardrobe, array herself, without leave asked, in Mrs. -Coleridge's dresses, and make herself merry with her own -unceremoniousness and Mrs. Coleridge's gravity. In all this she took no -liberty that she would not most readily have granted in return; she -confided too unthinkingly in what she regarded as the natural privileges -of friendship, and as little thought that she had been receiving or -exacting a favour as, under an exchange of their relative positions, -she would have claimed to confer one." Although De Quincey states that -the feelings of Mrs. Coleridge were moderated by the consideration of -the kind-heartedness of the young lady, that she was always attended by -her brother, and that mere intellectual sympathies in reference to -literature and natural scenery associated them, it is to be regretted -that the perfectly innocent friendship should have been the cause of -this small gossip, a thing in which De Quincey rather delighted, and -which sometimes mars the pleasurableness of his otherwise felicitous -recollections. He was not at this time acquainted either with Coleridge -or the Wordsworths, and the information could only have been derived -from them during subsequent years of confidential friendship, and not -intended for repetition. However it may have appeared to her then, Mrs. -Coleridge had in the future much cause to be thankful for the -disinterested friendship of Miss Wordsworth. - -How conducive to the best interests of her brother at this time was the -companionship of Miss Wordsworth, and how complete was his restoration -to a healthy and vigorous life after the political distractions of his -Continental experience we gather from an allusion in the _Biographia -Literaria_ of Coleridge. Referring to his life at Nether Stowey, he -says: "I was so fortunate as to acquire, shortly after my settlement -there, an invaluable blessing in the society of one to whom I could look -up with equal reverence, whether I regarded him as a poet, a -philosopher, or a man. His conversation extended to almost all subjects, -except physics and politics; with the latter he never troubled -himself." - -The residence of Miss Wordsworth and her poet brother at Alfoxden, was -terminated by circumstances which serve to illustrate at once something -of the political attitude of the times, and also of the mental condition -of their rustic neighbours in Somersetshire. Coleridge tells an amusing -story how he and Wordsworth were followed and watched in their rambles -by a person who was suspected to be a spy on their proceedings employed -by the Government of the day. Whether this be well founded or not, the -mere fact of two men living in their midst, without any apparent object, -appears to have rather discomposed their neighbours. Why should they be -continually spending their time in taking long and apparently -purposeless rambles, engaged in earnest conversation? It was -inconceivable that any one should walk a few miles in the light of the -moon merely to look at the sea! They must be engaged in smuggling, or -have other nefarious designs. In connection with this subject, there is -one good story told. Some country gentlemen of the neighbourhood -happened to be in the company of a party who were discussing the -question whether Wordsworth and Coleridge might be traitors, and in -correspondence with the French Administration, when one of them -answered: "Oh! as to that Coleridge, he is a rattlebrain that will say -more in a week than he will stand to in a twelvemonth. But Wordsworth, -he is the traitor. Why, bless you! he is so close that you'll never hear -him open his lips on the subject from year's end to year's end." The -public belief in the absurd theory of Wordsworth's traitorous designs -was, however, sufficient to induce the owner of the mansion in which he -lived to put an end to the occupation. - -The reputation of his friends and visitors suffered with his. In -allusion to this, Mr. Howitt says: "The grave and moral Wordsworth, the -respectable Wedgewoods, the correct Robert Southey, and Coleridge, -dreaming of glorious intellectualities beyond the moon, were set down -for a very disreputable gang. Innocent Mrs. Coleridge and poor Dolly -Wordsworth were seen strolling about with them, and were pronounced no -better than they should be. Such was the character that they -unconsciously acquired that Wordsworth was at length actually driven out -of the country." - -It may not be out of place to repeat here Mr. Cottle's version of the -affair. He says: "Mr. Wordsworth had taken the Alfoxden house, near -Stowey, for one year (during the minority of the heir), and the reason -why he was refused a continuance by the ignorant man who had the letting -of it arose, as Mr. Coleridge informed me, from a whimsical cause, or -rather a series of causes. The wiseacres of the village had, it seemed, -made Mr. Wordsworth the subject of their serious conversation. One said -that he had seen him wandering about by night and look rather strange at -the moon! And then he roamed over the hills like a partridge! Another -said he had heard him mutter, as he walked, in some outlandish brogue -that nobody could understand! Another said: 'It is useless to talk, -Thomas. I think he is what people call a wise man (a conjurer).' Another -said: 'You are every one of you wrong. I know what he is. We have all -met him tramping away toward the sea. Would any man in his senses take -all that trouble to look at a parcel of water? I think he carries on a -snug business in the smuggling line, and in these journeys is on the -look-out for some _wet_ cargo!' Another very significantly said: 'I know -that he has got a private still in his cellar; for I once passed his -house at a little better than a hundred yards' distance, and I could -smell the spirits as plain as an ashen faggot at Christmas!' Another -said, 'However that was, he was surely a desperd (desperate) French -Jacobin; for he is so silent and dark that nobody ever heard him say one -word about politics!' And thus these ignoramuses drove from their -village a greater ornament than will ever again be found amongst them." - -After leaving Alfoxden, in the autumn of 1798, Miss Wordsworth -accompanied her brother during a residence of six months in Germany, -their chief object being the attainment of a knowledge of the language. -Although, from the absence of society at Goslar, where they were, they -do not seem to have been fortunately circumstanced in this respect, -Wordsworth was, according to his sister, very industrious, and here -composed several poems. - -Their life in Germany was not altogether without adventure. Mr. Howitt -gives an account of an incident related to him by the poet of his -arriving late one evening, accompanied by Miss Wordsworth and Coleridge, -at a hamlet in Hesse Cassel, where they were unable to gain admittance -to the inn, and feared having to pass the night in the open street. A -continued knocking at the inhospitable doors only brought out the -landlord armed with a huge cudgel, with which he began to beat them. -Regardless of their personal danger, and thinking of their female -companion, to whom the prospect of an inclement night in the open air -was by no means cheering, Wordsworth and his friend managed, after -warding off the blows of the cudgel, to force their way into the house, -and by reasoning with the surly landlord, and appealing to his better -feelings, induced him to afford them a scanty lodging for the night. It -appears that strangers travelling in these remote parts at this time -received scant courtesy, even from those professing to provide them with -entertainment, and that personal violence and plunder were not -unfrequently resorted to. - -On returning to England in the spring of 1799, Wordsworth, after -spending some months with friends at Sockburn-on-Tees, wisely determined -to have a fixed place of abode for himself, and, of course, his sister; -eventually selecting that spot which is more than all others associated -with his name and memory. A walking tour in company with his friend -Coleridge in Westmoreland and Cumberland, resulted in his fixing upon -Grasmere as the future home of himself and his faithful sister. To this -place they accordingly repaired, walking a considerable part of the -way--that from Wensleydale to Kendal--"accomplishing as much as twenty -miles in a day over uneven roads, frozen into rocks, in the teeth of a -keen wind and a driving snow," amid the crisp and biting blasts of a -winter day, arriving at Grasmere--so long the scene of their future -labours and rambles--on the shortest day of the last year in the last -century. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -THE LAKE DISTRICT. - - -The lake and mountain district of England, which has now become so -famous, was happily chosen by these children of Nature as their -residence. Born as they both were on its outskirts, they had long been -familiar with its beauties, and the only matter for surprise is that -they had not earlier turned their faces to their native hills instead of -spending some intervening years elsewhere. - -No region could have been more in harmony with their sympathies and -pursuits. The hardy inhabitants of these dales, and the simplicity of -their lives and manners, formed fitting objects of study and reflection -for the single-minded poet of Nature, who came to live and die amongst -them. It is quite unnecessary, in these days of travel and of -guide-books, which have done so much to make the district familiar -ground, to give any description of it. It may not, however, be out of -place to quote an extract or two from Wordsworth's own Description of -the lakes. Referring to the aspect of the district at different seasons -of the year, he says:--"It has been said that in human life there are -moments worth ages. In a more subdued tone of sympathy may we affirm -that in the climate of England there are, for the lover of Nature, days -which are worth whole months--I might say even years. One of these -favoured days sometimes occurs in spring-time, when that soft air is -breathing over the blossoms and new-born verdure which inspired Buchanan -with his beautiful 'Ode to the First of May'; the air which, in the -luxuriance of his fancy, he likens to that of the golden age--to that -which gives motion to the funereal cypresses on the banks of Lethe; to -the air which is to salute beatified spirits when expiatory fires shall -have consumed the earth, with all her habitations. But it is in autumn -that days of such affecting influence most frequently intervene. The -atmosphere becomes refined, and the sky rendered more crystalline, as -the vivifying heat of the year abates; the lights and shadows are more -delicate; the colouring is richer and more finely harmonised; and, in -this season of stillness, the ear being unoccupied, or only gently -excited, the sense of vision becomes more susceptible of its appropriate -enjoyments. A resident in a country like this we are treating of will -agree with me that the presence of a lake is indispensable to exhibit in -perfection the beauty of one of these days; and he must have -experienced, while looking on the unruffled waters, that the imagination -by their aid is carried into recesses of feeling otherwise impenetrable. -The reason of this is that the heavens are not only brought down into -the bosom of the earth, but that the earth is mainly looked at, and -thought of, through the medium of a purer element. The happiest time is -when the equinoctial gales are departed; but their fury may probably be -called to mind by the sight of a few shattered boughs, whose leaves do -not differ in colour from the faded foliage of the stately oaks from -which these relics of the storm depend; all else speaks of tranquillity; -not a breath of air, no restlessness of insects, and not a moving object -perceptible, except the clouds gliding in the depth of the lake, or the -traveller passing along, an inverted image, whose motion seems governed -by the quiet of a time to which its archetype, the living person, is -perhaps insensible; or it may happen that the figure of one of the -larger birds--a raven or a heron--is crossing silently among the -reflected clouds, while the voice of the real bird, from the element -aloft, gently awakens in the spectator the recollection of appetites and -instincts, pursuits and occupations, that deform and agitate the world, -yet have no power to prevent Nature from putting on an aspect capable of -satisfying the most intense cravings for the tranquil, the lovely, and -the perfect, to which man, the noblest of her creatures, is subject." - -His description of the Cumbrian cottages-- - - "Clustered like stars some few, but single most, - And lurking dimly in their shy retreats, - Or glancing on each other cheerful looks, - Like separated stars with clouds between--" - -is exceedingly happy. - -"The dwelling-houses and contiguous outhouses are, in many instances, of -the colour of the native rock, out of which they have been built; but -frequently the dwelling or fire-house, as it is ordinarily called, has -been distinguished from the barn or byre by rough-cast and whitewash, -which, as the inhabitants are not hasty in renewing it, in a few years -acquires, by the influence of weather, a tint at once sober and -variegated. As these houses have been, from father to son, inhabited by -persons engaged in the same occupations, yet necessarily with changes in -their circumstances, they have received without incongruity additions -and accommodations adapted to the needs of each successive occupant, -who, being for the most part proprietor, was at liberty to follow his -own fancy; so that these humble dwellings remind the contemplative -spectator of a production of Nature, and may (using a strong expression) -rather be said to have grown than to have been erected--to have risen, -by an instinct of their own, out of the native rock--so little is there -of formality, such is their wildness and beauty. Among the numerous -recesses and projections in the walls, and in the different stages of -their roofs, are seen bold and harmonious effects of contrasted sunshine -and shadow. It is a favourable circumstance that the strong winds which -sweep down the valleys induced the inhabitants, at a time when the -materials for building were easily procured, to furnish many of these -dwellings with substantial porches; and such as have not this defence -are seldom unprovided with a projection of two large slates over their -thresholds. Nor will the singular beauty of the chimneys escape the eye -of the attentive traveller. Sometimes a low chimney, almost upon a level -with the roof, is overlaid with a slate, supported upon four slender -pillars, to prevent the wind from driving the smoke down the chimney. -Others are of a quadrangular shape, rising one or two feet above the -roof; which low square is often surmounted by a tall cylinder, giving -to the cottage chimney the most beautiful shape in which it is ever -seen. Nor will it be too fanciful or refined to remark that there is a -pleasing harmony between a tall chimney of this circular form, and the -living column of smoke, ascending from it through the still air. These -dwellings, mostly built, as has been said, of rough unhewn stone, are -roofed with slates, which were rudely taken from the quarry before the -present art of splitting them was understood; and are, therefore, rough -and uneven in their surface, so that both the coverings and sides of the -houses have furnished places of rest for the seeds of lichens, mosses, -ferns, and flowers. Hence buildings, which in their very form call to -mind the processes of Nature, do thus, clothed in part with a vegetable -garb, appear to be received into the bosom of the living principle of -things, as it acts and exists among the woods and fields; and, by their -colour and their shape, affectingly direct the thoughts to that tranquil -course of Nature and simplicity, along which the humble-minded -inhabitants have, through so many generations been led. Add the little -garden with its shed for beehives, its small bed of pot-herbs, and its -borders and patches of flowers for Sunday posies, with sometimes a -choice few too much prized to be plucked; an orchard of proportioned -size; a cheese-press, often supported by some tree near the door; a -cluster of embowering sycamores for summer shade; with a tall fir -through which the winds sing when other trees are leafless; the little -rill, or household spout, murmuring in all seasons; combine these -incidents and images together, and you have the representative idea of -a mountain cottage in this country so beautifully formed in itself, and -so richly adorned by the hand of Nature. - -"Till within the last sixty years[1] there was no communication between -any of these vales by carriage-roads; all bulky articles were -transported on pack-horses. Owing, however, to the population not being -concentrated in villages, but scattered, the valleys themselves were -intersected, as now, by innumerable lanes and pathways leading from -house to house and from field to field. These lanes, where they are -fenced by stone walls, are mostly bordered with ashes, hazels, wild -roses, and beds of tall fern, at their base; while the walls themselves, -if old, are overspread with mosses, small ferns, wild strawberries, the -geranium, and lichens; and if the wall happen to rest against a bank of -earth, it is sometimes almost wholly concealed by a rich facing of -stone-fern. It is a great advantage to a traveller or resident, that -these numerous lanes and paths, if he be a zealous admirer of Nature, -will lead him on into all the recesses of the country, so that the -hidden treasures of its landscapes may, by an ever-ready guide, be laid -open to his eyes." - -A much more recent writer, Mrs. E. Lynn Linton, in her charming work, -full of graceful description and exquisite poetry, thus writes of the -scenery of one of the lakes after a storm:-- - -"The woods glittered and sparkled in the sun, each dripping branch a -spray of golden light, and the light was married to the loud music of -the birds flowing out in rivulets of song. Countless flies shot through -the air, and vibrated on the water; and the fish leaped up to catch -them, dimpling the shining surface with concentric ripples, and throwing -up small jets of light in the smooth black bays. Every crag and stone, -and line of wall, and tuft of gorse, was visible on the nearer hills, -where the colouring was intense and untranslatable; and on the more -distant mountains, we could see, as through a telescope, the scars on -the steeps, the slaty shingles, and the straight cleavings down the -sides, the old grey watercourses, threaded now like a silver line--those -silver lines, after the storm, over all the craggy faces everywhere; we -could see each green knoll set like an island among the grey boulders, -each belt of mountain wood, each purple rift, each shadowed pass, slope -and gully, and ghyll and scaur--we could count them all glistening in -the sun, or clear and tender in the shade; while the sky was of a deep, -pure blue above, and the cumulus clouds were gathered into masses white -and dazzling as marble, and almost as solid-looking. - -"And over all, and on all, and lying in the heart of everything, -warming, creating, fashioning the dead matter into all lovely forms, and -driving the sweet juices like blood through the veins of the whole of -earth, shone the glad sun, free, boundless, loving--life of the world's -life, glory of its glory, shaper and creator of its brightest beauty. -Silver on the lake, gold in the wood, purple over the hills, white and -lazuli in the heavens--what infinite splendour hanging through this -narrow valley! What a wealth of love and beauty pouring out for the -heart of all Nature, and for the diviner soul of man!" - -Of the mountain tarns, which in their solitary grandeur gleam like -diamonds, she writes:-- - -"It is very lovely to watch the ripple of a tarn: a wonderful lesson in -wave curvature, if small in scale, yet as true as the wildest ocean -storm could give. Ever changing in line, and yet so uniform in law, the -artist and the hydrographer might learn some valuable truths from half a -day's study of one of these small mountain sheets of water. Now the -broad, smooth, silky curves flow steadily across; now a fine network -spreads over these, and again another network, smaller and finer still, -breaks up the rest into a thousand fragments; then the tarn bursts out -into tiny silver spangles, like a girl's causeless laughter; and then -comes a grey sweep across the water, as if it shivered in the wind; and -then again all subsides, and the long, silky flow sets in again, with -quiet shadows and play of green and grey in the transparent shallows. It -is like a large diamond set in emerald; for the light of the water is -radiance simply, not colour; and the grass, with the sun striking -through, is as bright as an emerald." - -If one more extract from Mrs. Linton may be culled, it is to the -following reflections that a day spent on Helvellyn gives rise:-- - -"Ah! what a world lies below! But grand as it is on the earth, it is -mated by the grandeur of the sky. For the cloud scenery is of such -surpassing nobleness while it lasts, and before it is drawn up into one -volume of intensest blue, that no kind or manner of discord mars the -day's power and loveliness. Of all forms and of all colours are those -gracious summer clouds, ranging from roseate flakes of dazzling white -masses and torn black remnants, like the last fragments of a widow's -weeds thrust aside for her maturer bridal; from solid substances, firm -and marble-like, to light baby curls set like pleasant smiles about the -graver faces: words and pictures, in all their changes, unspeakably -precious to soul and sense. And when, finally, they all gather -themselves away, and leave the sky a vault of undimmed blue, and leave -the earth a gorgeous picture of human industry and dwelling--when field -and plain, and mountain and lake, and tarn and river are fashioned into -the beauty of a primeval earth by the purity of the air and the -governing strength of the sun and the fragrant sweetness of the summer, -and when the very gates of heaven seem opening for our entering where -the southern sun stands at gaze in his golden majesty--is it wonder if -there are tears more glad than many smiles, and a thrill of love more -prayerful than many a litany chanted in the church service? In the very -passion of delight that pours like wine through the veins is a solemn -outfall--in the very deliciousness of joy an intensity that is almost -pain. It is all so solemn and so grand, so noble and so loving, surely -we cannot be less than what we live in! - -"Let any one haunted by small cares, by fears worse than cares, and by -passions worse than either, go up on a mountain height on such a -summer's day as this, and there confront his soul with the living soul -of Nature. Will the stately solitude not calm him? Can the nobleness of -beauty not raise him to like nobleness? Is there no Divine voice for him -in the absolute stillness? No loving hand guiding through the pathless -wilds? No tenderness for man in the lavishness of Nature? Have the -clouds no lesson of strength in their softness? the sun no cheering in -its glory? Has the earth no hymn in all its living murmur? the air no -shaping in its clearness? the wind no healing in its power? Can he stand -in the midst of that great majesty the sole small thing, and shall his -spirit, which should be the noblest thing of all, let itself be crippled -by self and fear, till it lies crawling on the earth when its place is -lifting to the heavens? Oh! better than written sermon or spoken -exhortation is one hour on the lonely mountain tops, when the world -seems so far off, and God and His angels so near. Into the Temple of -Nature flows the light of the Shekinah, pure and strong and holy, and -they are wisest who pass into it oftenest, and rest within its glory -longest. There was never a church more consecrated to all good ends than -the stone waste on Helvellyn top, where you sit beneath the sun and -watch the bright world lying in radiant peace below, and the quiet and -sacred heavens above." - -Probably there is no spot of English ground to which more pilgrimages -have, during the last half-century, been made than the vale of Grasmere, -which has for all time been rendered classic by the residence therein of -Wordsworth and those sons of genius who loved to gather around him; and -almost every prominent object and scene in which has been immortalised -by his pen. - -To lovers of his poetry the spirit of Wordsworth yet casts a spell over -the landscape; and mountain and vale and lake are almost as articulate -to the hearing ear as are the storied stones of Rome. But Life's -grandest music is audible only to the ready ear. It is to the "inward -eye" of love, gathering its treasured harvest, that the brightest halo -is revealed. Earth may be - - "Crammed with heaven,"-- - "But only he who sees takes off his shoes." - -As Nature whispers her secrets to her true lovers; so it is to the -searching eye that the historic pile presents a vision of years, and the -decaying cottage or hoary mountain speak of those who consecrated its -stones or roamed beneath its shade. - -Apart, however, from the interest which attaches to this locality from -its many cherished associations, it is of unsurpassed beauty and -loveliness. The scenery of this favoured district, so pleasingly varied -as to inspire at once with gladness and awe, to thrill with rapture or -to charm into repose, culminates in the transcendent loveliness of the -mountain-guarded vale of Grasmere. It takes captive the affections like -the features of a familiar friend. - -The poet Gray, writing concerning it more than a century ago, says: -"Passed by the little chapel of Wiborn [Wythburn], out of which the -Sunday congregation were then issuing. Passed by a beck near Dunmail -Raise, and entered Westmoreland a second time; now began to see Helm -crag, distinguished from its rugged neighbours, not so much by its -height, as by the strange, broken outline of its top, like some -gigantic building demolished, and the stones that composed it flung -across each other in wild confusion. Just beyond it opens one of the -sweetest landscapes that Art ever attempted to imitate. The bosom of the -mountains here spreading into a broad basin, discovers in the midst -Grasmere Water; its margin is hollowed into small bays, with eminences, -some of rock, some of soft turf, that half conceal and half vary the -figure of the little lake they command. From the shore a low promontory -pushes itself into the water, and on it stands a white village, with a -parish church rising in the midst of it, having enclosures, cornfields, -and meadows, green as an emerald, which, with trees, and hedges, and -cattle, fill up the whole space from the edge of the water, and just -opposite to you is a large farmhouse at the bottom of a steep, smooth -lawn, embosomed in old woods, which climb half way up the mountain -sides, and discover above a broken line of crags that crown the scene. -Not a single red tile, no staring gentleman's house breaks in upon the -repose of this unsuspected paradise; but all is peace, rusticity, and -happy poverty, in its sweetest, most becoming attire." - -This description must, of course, at the present day be somewhat -modified. The scene upon which the eyes of the author of the Elegy -rested is now varied by many residences and signs of human contact then -absent. - -In an account of a visit to Grasmere at a much later period, the late -Nathaniel Hawthorne says: "This little town seems to me as pretty a -place as ever I met with in my life. It is quite shut in by hills that -rise up immediately around it, like a neighbourhood of kindly giants. -These hills descend steeply to the verge of the level on which the -village stands, and there they terminate at once, the whole site of the -little town being as even as a floor. I call it a village, but it is no -village at all; all the dwellings stand apart, each in its own little -domain, and each, I believe, with its own little lane leading to it, -independently of the rest. Many of these are old cottages, plastered -white, with antique porches, and roses, and other vines, trained against -them, and shrubbery growing about them, and some are covered with ivy. -There are a few edifices of more pretension and of modern build, but not -so strikingly as to put the rest out of countenance. The Post Office, -when we found it, proved to be an ivied cottage, with a good deal of -shrubbery round it, having its own pathway, like the other cottages. The -whole looks like a real seclusion, shut out from the great world by -those encircling hills, on the sides of which, whenever they are not too -steep, you see the division lines of property and tokens of -cultivation--taking from them their pretensions of savage majesty, but -bringing them nearer to the heart of man." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] This was written in 1810. - - - - - "Only a sister's part--yes, that was all; - And yet her life was bright, and full, and free. - She did not feel, 'I give up all for him;' - She only knew, ''Tis mine his friend to be.' - - "So what she saw and felt the poet sang-- - She did not seek the world should know her share; - Her one great hunger was for 'William's' fame, - To give his thoughts a voice her life-long prayer. - - "And when with wife and child his days were crowned - She did not feel that she was left alone, - Glad in their joy, she shared their every care, - And only thought of baby as 'our own.' - - "His 'dear, dear sister,' that was all she asked, - Her gentle ministry, her only fame; - But when we read his page with grateful heart, - Between the lines we'll spell out Dora's name." - - --ANON. IN _The Spectator_. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -LIFE AT GRASMERE. - - -The unpretentious cottage which became the first Grasmere home of -Wordsworth and his sister in those days when they were still sole -companions, though changed in its surroundings, is happily still allowed -to retain its old features. It stands on the right of the highway, just -on the entry into Grasmere, on the road from Rydal--the old coach -road--a little distance beyond the "Wishing Gate," and at the part of -the village called Town End. It was formerly an inn, called "The Dove -and Olive Bough," and is still known by the name of Dove Cottage. It -overlooks from the front the beauteous lake of Grasmere, though the view -from the lower rooms is now considerably obstructed by buildings since -erected. Behind is a small garden and orchard, in which is a spring of -pure water, round which the primroses and daffodils bloom, as they did -when lovingly reared by Miss Wordsworth. A dozen steps or so, cut in the -rocky slope lead up to a little terrace walk, on a bit of mountain -ground, enclosed in the domain, and sheltered in the rear by a fir-clad -wood. Altogether it was an ideal cottage-home for the enthusiastic young -couple. From the orchard are obtained views almost unrivalled of -mountain, vale, and lake, embracing the extensive range from Helm Crag -and the vales of Easdale and Wythburn, down to the wooded heights of -Loughrigg. Words cannot do justice to the idyllic sweetness and beauty -of this poet's home, as it must have been when Wordsworth described his -chosen retreat as the - - "Loveliest spot that man hath ever found." - -The "sweet garden-orchard, eminently fair," has now, however, a -neglected appearance, and must be very different from the time when the -loving hands of the poet and his sister carefully tended the trees and -flowers, of which he says:-- - - "This plot of orchard ground is ours, - My trees they are, my sister's flowers." - -De Quincey speaks of the house as being immortal in his -remembrance--just two bow shots from the water--"a little white cottage, -gleaming in the midst of trees, with a vast and seemingly never-ending -series of ascents rising above it, to the height of more than three -thousand feet." - -Wordsworth's satisfaction at finding himself, at length, in the -companionship of his beloved sister, in this his first permanent and -peaceful abode, is thus expressed in a portion of a poem which was -intended to form part of the "Recluse," of which, as is well known, the -Prelude and the Excursion only were completed. I am indebted for the -extract to the "Memoirs of Wordsworth," by the late Bishop of Lincoln. -It will be observed that the poet's ardent attachment to his sister was -in no degree abated, and that he ungrudgingly bestowed upon her the -generous praise so much merited:-- - - "On Nature's invitation do I come, - By Reason sanctioned. Can the choice mislead, - That made the calmest, fairest spot on earth, - With all its unappropriated good, - My own, and not mine only, for with me - Entrenched--say rather, peacefully embowered-- - Under yon orchard, in yon humble cot, - A younger orphan of a home extinct, - The only daughter of my parents dwells; - Aye, think on that, my heart, and cease to stir; - Pause upon that, and let the breathing frame - No longer breathe, but all be satisfied. - Oh, if such silence be not thanks to God - For what hath been bestowed, then where, where then - Shall gratitude find rest? Mine eyes did ne'er - Fix on a lovely object, nor my mind - Take pleasure in the midst of happy thought, - But either she, whom now I have, who now - Divides with me that loved abode, was there, - Or not far off. Where'er my footsteps turned, - Her voice was like a hidden bird that sang; - The thought of her was like a flash of light - Or an unseen companionship, a breath - Or fragrance independent of the wind. - In all my goings, in the new and old - Of all my meditations, and in this - Favourite of all, in this, the most of all.... - Embrace me, then, ye hills, and close me in. - Now, on the clear and open day I feel - Your guardianship: I take it to my heart; - 'Tis like the solemn shelter of the night. - But I would call thee beautiful; for mild - And soft, and gay, and beautiful thou art, - Dear valley, having in thy face a smile, - Though peaceful, full of gladness. Thou art pleased, - Pleased with thy crags, and woody steeps, thy lake, - Its one green island, and its winding shores, - The multitude of little rocky hills, - Thy church, and cottages of mountain stone - Clustered like stars some few, but single most - And lurking dimly in their shy retreats, - Or glancing at each other cheerful looks - Like separated stars with clouds between." - -The early years of their residence at Grasmere were signalised by calm -enjoyment, no less than by active industry. Miss Wordsworth's life -retained its characteristic unselfishness, its devoted ministry. The -cottage itself was furnished at a cost of about £100--a legacy left to -her by a relative, and their joint annual income at that time amounted -to about as much. That they were still poor did not detract from their -happiness, but probably served only to promote it. We find this refined, -sensitive young woman (she was now twenty-eight), engaged very much in -domestic duties, doing a considerable part of the work of the house, -without a thought of discontent. Her poetic enthusiasm and cultured mind -did not unfit her for the common duties of life, or detract from her -high sense of duty and service. Happily she had learnt--as every true -woman does--that there is no degradation in work; that it is not in the -nature of our tasks, but the spirit in which they are performed, that -the test of fitness is to be found. Notwithstanding, however, her other -duties, Miss Wordsworth found time to be a true help to her brother. As -his amanuensis she wrote or transcribed his poems, read to him, and -accompanied him in his daily walks. She had also that rare gift of the -perfect companion of being able to be silent with and for him, -recognising the apparently little-known truth that a loved presence is -in itself society. In one of his poems, "Personal Talk," he says:-- - - "I am not one who much or oft delight - To season my fireside with personal talk,-- - Of friends, who live within an easy walk, - Or neighbours, daily, weekly, in my sight: - And, for my chance acquaintance, ladies bright, - Sons, mothers, maidens withering on the stalk, - These all wear out of me, like forms with chalk - Painted on rich men's floors, for one feast-night. - Better than such discourse doth silence long, - Long, barren silence, square with my desire; - To sit without emotion, hope, or aim, - In the loved presence of my cottage-fire, - And listen to the flapping of the flame, - Or kettle whispering its faint undersong." - -In one of the MSS. notes, alluding to this sonnet, Wordsworth has said: -"The last line but two stood at first better and more characteristically -thus: - - "'By my half-kitchen and half-parlour fire,'" - -And he adds: "My sister and I were in the habit of having the tea-kettle -in our little sitting-room; and we toasted the bread ourselves, which -reminds me of a little circumstance, not unworthy of being set down -among these _minutiæ_. Happening both of us to be engaged a few minutes -one morning, when we had a young prig of a Scotch lawyer to breakfast -with us, my dear sister, with her usual simplicity, put the toasting -fork, with a slice of bread, into the hands of this Edinburgh genius. -Our little book-case stood on one side of the fire. To prevent loss of -time he took down a book, and fell to reading, to the neglect of the -toast, which was burnt to a cinder. Many a time have we laughed at this -circumstance and other cottage simplicities of that day." - -Miss Wordsworth, at this period, also kept a diary, or journal, which, -we are informed, is "full of vivid descriptions of natural beauty." The -few extracts from it which the world has hitherto been allowed to see -are of deep interest, affording, as they do, a pleasing picture of their -daily occupations, the incidents which gave birth to many of her -brother's poems, and the circumstances under which they were written. -For the subject of many of them he was indebted to her ever-watchful and -observant eye, and several were composed while wandering over woodland -paths, by her side. The knowledge of this not only serves to remind us -of the sustained character of Miss Wordsworth's directing and -controlling influence upon her brother, but gives an additional interest -to the poems. Thus, in her journal, she writes: "William walked to -Rydal.... The lake of Grasmere beautiful. The Church an image of peace; -he wrote some lines upon it.... The mountains indistinct; the lake calm, -and partly ruffled, a sweet sound of water falling into the quiet lake. -A storm gathering in Easedale, so we returned; but the moon came out, -and opened to us the church and village. Helm Crag in shade; the larger -mountains dappled like a sky." Again: "We went into the orchard after -breakfast, and sat there. The lake calm, the sky cloudy. William began -poem on 'The Celandine.'" The next day: "Sowed flower-seeds: William -helped me. We sat in the orchard. W. wrote 'The Celandine.' Planned an -arbour; the sun too hot for us." "W. wrote the 'Leech Gatherer.'" These -instances might be multiplied. Wordsworth has himself recorded how that -about this time he composed his first sonnets, "taking fire" one -afternoon after his sister had been reading to him those of Milton. Her -helpful aid, as a literary companion, is thus referred to by Mr. -Lockhart: "His sister, without any of the aids of learned ladies, had a -refined perception of the beauties of literature, and her glowing -sympathy and delicate comments cast new light upon the most luminous -page. Wordsworth always acknowledged that it was from her and Coleridge -that his otherwise very independent intellect had derived great -assistance." - -In a letter, dated September 10, 1800, Miss Wordsworth thus describes -their home and home-life: "We are daily more delighted with Grasmere and -its neighbourhood. Our walks are perpetually varied, and we are more -fond of the mountains as our acquaintance with them increases. We have a -boat upon the lake, and a small orchard, and smaller garden, which, as -it is the work of our own hands, we regard with pride and partiality. -Our cottage is quite large enough for us, though very small, and we have -made it neat and comfortable within doors, and it looks very nice on the -outside; for though the roses and honeysuckles which we have planted -against it are only of this year's growth, yet it is covered all over -with green leaves and scarlet flowers; for we have trained scarlet beans -upon threads, which are not only exceedingly beautiful but very useful, -as their produce is immense. We have made a lodging-room of the parlour -below stairs, which has a stone floor, therefore we have covered it all -over with matting. We sit in a room above stairs; and we have one -lodging-room, with two single beds, a sort of lumber-room, and a small, -low, unceiled room, which I have papered with newspapers, and in which -we have put a small bed. Our servant is an old woman of sixty years of -age, whom we took partly out of charity. She was very ignorant, very -foolish, and very difficult to teach. But the goodness of her -disposition, and the great convenience we should find, if my -perseverance was successful, induced me to go on." - -It is recorded in the transactions of the Wordsworth Society for 1882, -that Professor Knight thus alluded to the journals of Miss Wordsworth, -written during the years 1800, 1801, 1802, and 1803: "These journals -were a singularly interesting record of 'plain living and high -thinking;'--of very plain living, and of very lofty thought, -imagination, and feeling. They were the best possible commentary on the -poems belonging to that period; because they shewed the manner of life -of the brother and the sister, the character of their daily work, the -influences of Nature to which they were subjected, the homeliness of -their ways, and the materials on which the poems were based, as well as -the sources of their inspiration. One read in these journals the tales -of travelling sailors and pedlars who came through the lake country, of -gipsy women and beggar boys, which were afterwards, if not immediately, -translated into verse. Then the whole scenery of the place and its -accessories, the people of Grasmere Vale, Wordsworth's neighbours and -friends, were photographed in that journal. The Church, the lake, its -Island, John's Grove, White Moss Common, Point Rash Judgment, Easedale, -Dunmail Raise--everything given in clearest outline and vivid colour. -Miss Wordsworth's delineations of Nature in these daily jottings were -quite as subtle and minute, quite as delicate and ethereal, as anything -in her brother's poems. Above all there was in these records a most -interesting disclosure of Dorothy Wordsworth's friendship with -Coleridge--and a very remarkable friendship it was. One also saw the -sister's rare appreciation of her brother's genius, amounting almost to -a reverence for it; and her continuous self-sacrifice that she might -foster and develop her brother's powers. Well might Wordsworth say, 'She -gave me eyes, she gave me ears,' Another very interesting fact -disclosed in those journals was the very slow growth of many of the -poems, such, for example, as 'Michael' and the 'Excursion,' and the -constant revisions to which they were subjected." - -The poem, "To a Young Lady, who had been reproached for taking long -walks in the country," written about this time, was, I am informed on -excellent authority, addressed to Miss Wordsworth. It will be observed -that the prophecy therein contained did not in all respects meet with -fulfilment:-- - - "Dear Child of Nature, let them rail! - --There is a nest in a green dale, - A harbour and a hold; - Where thou, a Wife and Friend, shalt see - Thy own heart-stirring days, and be - A light to young and old. - - "There, healthy as a shepherd-boy, - And treading among flowers of joy, - Which at no season fade, - Thou, while thy babes around thee cling, - Shalt shew us how divine a thing - A Woman may be made. - - "Thy thoughts and feelings shall not die, - Nor leave thee, when grey hairs are nigh, - A melancholy slave; - But an old age serene and bright, - And lovely as a Lapland night, - Shall lead thee to thy grave." - -Thus were passed, in happy converse and mutual love and help, the three -years which intervened between Miss Wordsworth and her brother going to -Grasmere, and the marriage of the latter. A tour which they together -made on the Continent in 1802 pleasantly varied this period. A sonnet of -Wordsworth's composed when on this occasion, they were, in the early -morning, passing Westminster Bridge is well known. It is here repeated -only that his sister's account of her impressions may be placed along -with it. He says:-- - - "Earth hath not anything to shew more fair; - Dull would he be of soul who could pass by - A sight so touching in its majesty; - This City now doth, like a garment, wear - The beauty of the morning; silent, bare, - Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie - Open unto the fields, and to the sky; - All bright and glittering in the smokeless air. - Never did sun more beautifully steep - In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill; - Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep! - The river glideth at his own sweet will: - Dear God! the very houses seem asleep; - And all that mighty heart is lying still!" - -Miss Wordsworth in her almost equally graceful prose writes: "Left -London between five and six o'clock of the morning, outside the Dover -coach. A beautiful morning. The city, St. Paul's, with the river--a -multitude of boats--made a beautiful sight as we crossed Westminster -Bridge; the houses not overhung by their clouds of smoke, and were -spread out endlessly; yet the sun shone so brightly, with such a pure -light, that there was something like the purity of one of Nature's own -grand spectacles." She adds: "Arrived at Calais at four in the morning -of July 31st. Delightful walks in the evening; seeing, far off in the -west, the coast of England, like a cloud, crested with Dover Castle, the -evening star and the glory of the sky; the reflections in the water were -more beautiful than the sky itself; purple waves brighter than precious -stones for ever melting away upon the sands." - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -SOME MEMORIAL NOOKS - - -It may not be inopportune to mention, in this place, a few of the spots -in the neighbourhood of this, their early home, with which the memory of -Miss Wordsworth is more especially associated. By Wordsworth himself, -indeed, the whole of the Lake district of England has been immortalised, -and is more associated with his name and life than is the country of the -Trossachs with that of Sir Walter Scott. In illustration of this it is -only necessary to refer to his poems on the naming of places and -inscriptions. This fact alone, no less than the exalted teaching and -beauty of many of his works, will serve to preserve the memory of -Wordsworth; and probably thousands, to whom he would otherwise be only a -name, will become acquainted with him as a loved and trusted teacher. If -the spirits of the departed ever return and hover over the scenes of -earth which were loved and hallowed in the old-world life, it needs no -force of the imagination to fancy that of this most spiritual of women, -lingering by sunny noon or shady evening near the haunts, where, with -her kindred companion, she walked in happy converse. Among such favoured -nooks probably the next in interest to their loved "garden-orchard" -would be found the beauteous vale of Easedale. Here is a terrace walk in -Lancrigg wood which Wordsworth many years after said he and his sister -discovered three days after they took up their abode at Grasmere; and -which long remained their favourite haunt. The late Lady Richardson, in -an article in "Sharpe's London Magazine," referring at a later period to -this place, says: "It was their custom to spend the fine days of summer -in the open air, chiefly in the valley of Easedale. The 'Prelude' was -chiefly composed in a green mountain terrace, on the Easedale side of -Helm Crag, known by the name of Under Lancrigg, a place which he used to -say he knew by heart. The ladies sat at their work on the hill-side, -while he walked to and fro, on the smooth green mountain turf, humming -out his verses to himself, and then repeating them to his sympathising -and ready scribes, to be noted down on the spot and transcribed at -home." - -The winding path leading up to the tarn on the west of Easedale brook, -on the other side of the valley, is, perhaps, still more closely -identified with Miss Wordsworth. The first of his "Poems on the Naming -of Places" was, he has stated, suggested on the banks of the brook that -runs through Easedale, by the side of which he had composed thousands of -verses. The poem is as follows:-- - - "It was an April morning: fresh and clear - The Rivulet, delighting in its strength, - Ran with a young man's speed; and yet the voice - Of waters which the winter had supplied - Was softened down into a vernal tone. - The spirit of enjoyment and desire, - And hopes and wishes, from all living things - Went circling, like a multitude of sounds. - The budding groves seemed eager to urge on - The steps of June; as if their various hues - Were only hindrances that stood between - Them and their object: but, meanwhile, prevailed - Such an entire contentment in the air - That every naked ash, and tardy tree - Yet leafless, shewed as if the countenance - With which it looked on this delightful day - Were native to the summer.--Up the brook - I roamed in the confusion of my heart, - Alive to all things, and forgetting all. - At length I to a sudden turning came - In this continuous glen, where down a rock - The Stream, so ardent in its course before, - Sent forth such sallies of glad sound that all - Which I till then had heard appeared the voice - Of common pleasure: beast and bird, the lamb, - The shepherd's dog, the linnet and the thrush - Vied with this waterfall, and made a song - Which, while I listened, seemed like the wild growth - Or like some natural produce of the air, - That could not cease to be. Green leaves were here; - But 'twas the foliage of the rocks--the birch, - The yew, the holly, and the bright green thorn, - With hanging islands of resplendent furze: - And, on a summit, distant a short space, - By any who should look beyond the dell, - A single mountain-cottage might be seen. - I gazed and gazed, and to myself I said, - 'Our thoughts at least are ours; and this wild nook, - MY EMMA, I will dedicate to thee.' - --Soon did the spot become my other home, - My dwelling, and my out-of-doors abode. - And, of the Shepherds who have seen me there, - To whom I sometimes in our idle talk - Have told this fancy, two or three, perhaps, - Years after we are gone and in our graves, - When they have cause to speak of this wild place, - May call it by the name of EMMA'S DELL." - -It is hardly necessary to mention that Miss Wordsworth is more than once -in the poems referred to as the poet's sister "Emma" or "Emmeline." It -is, perhaps, rather difficult to determine on what precise spot they -stood when this poem was composed, and to which the name of "Emma's -Dell" was given. Professor Knight, in his very interesting work, "The -English Lake District, as interpreted by Wordsworth," concludes that the -place is where the brook takes a "sudden turning" a few hundred yards -above Goody Bridge; but there are other spots in the brook a little -further up the valley to which the description in the poem is probably -equally applicable. - -Another poem of the same series may appropriately here find a place, -containing, as it does, a loving allusion to Dorothy. This time it is -Miss Wordsworth herself who gives the name of _William's Peak_ to the -rugged summit of Stone Arthur, situated between Green Head Ghyll (the -scene of Wordsworth's pastoral poem "Michael") and Tongue Ghyll, a short -distance on the right-hand, side of the road leading from Grasmere to -Keswick:-- - - "There is an Eminence,--of these our hills - The last that parleys with the setting sun; - We can behold it from our orchard-seat; - And, when at evening we pursue our walk - Along the public way, this Peak, so high - Above us, and so distant in its height, - Is visible; and often seems to send - Its own deep quiet to restore our hearts. - The meteors make of it a favourite haunt: - The star of Jove, so beautiful and large, - In the mid heavens, is never half so fair - As when he shines above it. 'Tis in truth - The loneliest place we have among the clouds. - _And She who dwells with me, whom I have loved - With such communion, that no place on earth - Can ever be a solitude to me_, - Hath to this lonely Summit given my Name." - -As this poem was written in the first year of their residence at -Grasmere, the reference in the closing lines can be to no other person -than Miss Wordsworth. - -Still another poem of the series owes its origin to a walk by the poet, -in the company of his sister and Coleridge. The path here referred to, -by the side of the lake has, we are informed, lost its privacy and -beauty, by reason of the making of the new highway from Rydal to -Grasmere:-- - - "A narrow girdle of rough stones and crags, - A rude and natural causeway, interposed - Between the water and a winding slope - Of copse and thicket, leaves the eastern shore - Of Grasmere safe in its own privacy: - And there, myself and two beloved Friends, - One calm September morning, ere the mist - Had altogether yielded to the sun, - Sauntered on this retired and difficult way. - - --"Ill suits the road with one in haste; but we - Played with our time; and, as we strolled along, - It was our occupation to observe - Such objects as the waves had tossed ashore-- - Feather, or leaf, or weed, or withered bough, - Each on the other heaped, along the line - Of the dry wreck. And, in our vacant mood, - Not seldom did we stop to watch some tuft - Of dandelion seed or thistle's beard, - That skimmed the surface of the dead calm lake, - Suddenly halting now--a lifeless stand! - And starting off again with freak as sudden; - In all its sportive wanderings, all the while - Making report of an invisible breeze - That was its wings, its chariot, and its horse, - Its playmate, rather say, its moving soul. - - --"And often, trifling with a privilege - Alike indulged to all, we paused, one now, - And now the other, to point out, perchance - To pluck, some flower or water-weed, too fair - Either to be divided from the place - On which it grew, or to be left alone - To its own beauty." - -The poem goes on to relate how they saw in the distance, angling by the -margin of the lake, a man in the garb of a peasant, while from the -fields the merry noise of the reapers fell upon their ears. They -somewhat hastily came to the conclusion that the man was an idler, who, -instead of spending his time at the gentle craft, might have been more -profitably engaged in the harvest. Upon a near approach they, however, -found that he was a feeble old man, wasted by sickness, and too weak to -labour, who was doing his best to gain a scanty pittance from the lake. -It concludes by alluding to the self-upbraiding of the three friends, in -consequence of their too rashly formed opinion:-- - - "I will not say - What thoughts immediately were ours, nor how - The happy idleness of that sweet morn, - With all its lovely images, was changed - To serious musing and to self-reproach. - Nor did we fail to see within ourselves - What need there is to be reserved in speech, - And temper all our thoughts with charity. - --Therefore, unwilling to forget that day, - My Friend, Myself, and She who then received - The same admonishment, have called the place - By a memorial name, uncouth indeed, - As e'er by mariner was given to bay - Or foreland, on a new-discovered coast; - And _Point Rash-Judgment_ is the name it bears." - -Another memorial of Miss Wordsworth in her prime is to be found in the -"Rock of Names," which stands on the right-hand side of the road from -Grasmere to Keswick, near the head of Thirlmere, and about a mile beyond -"Wytheburn's modest House of Prayer." This was a meeting-place of -Wordsworth and Coleridge, who was then resident at Keswick, and their -friends. On the surface of this "upright mural block of stone," -moss-crowned, smooth-faced, and lichen-patched, are cut the following -letters:-- - - W. W. - M. H. - D. W. - S. T. C. - J. W. - S. H. - -It is hardly necessary to state that the initials are those of William -Wordsworth, Mary Hutchinson (afterwards his wife), Dorothy Wordsworth, -Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Wordsworth (the poet's brother), and Sarah -Hutchinson (the sister of Mrs. Wordsworth). It is greatly to be -regretted that on the completion of the projected reservoir of the -Manchester Corporation, this rock, unless steps are taken for its -preservation, will be submerged in its waters. Seldom did half-a-dozen -more poetic and fervent natures meet and leave a more unique, and -attractive memorial. It is to be hoped that means will be adopted not -only to have the rock removed to a place of safety, but also to preserve -it from further mutilation. Although these initials have withstood the -storms and blasts of more than four score winters, they are yet -perfectly distinct and legible, and their original character is -preserved. Whilst there are, unfortunately, now other initials and marks -upon the face of the rock, it is more free from them than might have -been expected. The very fact of attention being called to such an -interesting memento, while being a source of pleasure to the admirers of -the gifted children of genius who made this their trysting-place, also -arouses the puerile ambition of those whose interest centres in -themselves, and to whom no associations are dear, to inscribe their own -scratch. In this way there has already been added the letter J. before -the original D. W. of Miss Wordsworth. Wordsworth's allusion to this -rock, in a note to some editions of his poem, "The Waggoner," is as -follows:-- - - - ROCK OF NAMES! - - "Light is the strain, but not unjust - To Thee, and thy memorial-trust - That once seemed only to express - Love that was love in idleness; - Tokens, as year hath followed year, - How changed, alas, in character! - For they were graven on thy smooth breast - By hands of those my soul loved best; - Meek women, men as true and brave - As ever went to a hopeful grave: - Their hands and mine, when side by side, - With kindred zeal and mutual pride, - We worked until the Initials took - Shapes that defied a scornful look.-- - Long as for us a genial feeling - Survives, or one in need of healing, - The power, dear Rock, around thee cast, - Thy monumental power, shall last - For me and mine! O thought of pain, - That would impair it or profane! - - * * * * * - - And fail not Thou, loved Rock! to keep - Thy charge when we are laid asleep." - -In this place a reference by Wordsworth to his little poem, commencing -"Yes, it was the mountain echo," will be of interest. "The echo came -from Nab-scar, when I was walking on the opposite side of Rydal Mere. I -will here mention, for my dear sister's sake, that while she was sitting -alone one day, high up on this part of Loughrigg fell, she was so -affected by the voice of the cuckoo, heard from the crags at some -distance, that she could not suppress a wish to have a stone inscribed -with her name among the rocks from which the sound proceeded." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE CIRCLE WIDENED.--MRS. WORDSWORTH. - - -The year 1802 was a memorable one to Miss Wordsworth no less than to her -brother. With interests so inseparable, the happiness of one was that of -the other. After the somewhat agitated period of his early life, when he -was for a time in danger of shipwreck, and his noble-hearted sister came -to his rescue and helped to steer his course into the placid waters of -content and well-grounded hope, Wordsworth was in all respects -remarkably fortunate, and his life more than usually serene and happy. -Next to the blessing which he possessed in his sister, Wordsworth was -largely indebted to his admirable wife. In October of this year he had -the good fortune to marry his cousin, Mary Hutchinson, of Penrith--a -lady whom it would be almost presumption to "even dare to praise." As -his early friend (and they had in childhood attended the same dame's -school together) they had strong sympathies in common, with, at the same -time, much of that contrast of temperament which, in married life, -renders one the complement of the other, and contributes not a little to -the completion and unity of the dual life. The marriage of those whom -"friendship has early paired" can hardly be otherwise than serenely -happy; beginning their life, as they thus do, each with the same store -of early memories, they have a common history into which to engraft -their new experiences and hopes. Speaking of his marriage, the poet's -nephew says: "It was full of blessings to himself, as ministering to the -exercise of his tender affections, in the discipline and delight which -married life supplies. The boon bestowed upon him in the marriage union -was admirably adapted to shed a cheering and soothing influence upon his -mind." In a poem, entitled "A Farewell," Wordsworth has thus expressed -the thoughts with which he left his cottage with his sister to bring -home the bride and friend:-- - - "Farewell, thou little Nook of mountain-ground, - Thou rocky corner in the lowest stair - Of that magnificent temple which doth bound - One side of our whole vale with grandeur rare; - Sweet garden-orchard, eminently fair, - The loveliest spot that man hath ever found, - Farewell!--we leave thee to Heaven's peaceful care, - Thee, and the Cottage which thou dost surround. - - * * * * * - - Fields, goods, and far-off chattels we have none: - These narrow bounds contain our private store - Of things earth makes, and sun doth shine upon; - Here are they in our sight--we have no more. - - "Sunshine and shower be with you, bud and bell! - For two months now in vain we shall be sought; - We leave you here in solitude to dwell - With these our latest gifts of tender thought; - Thou, like the morning, in thy saffron coat, - Bright gowan, and marsh-marigold, farewell! - Whom from the borders of the Lake we brought, - And placed together near our rocky Well. - - "We go for One to whom ye will be dear; - And she will prize this Bower, this Indian shed, - Our own contrivance, Building without peer! - --A gentle Maid, whose heart is lowly bred, - Whose pleasures are in wild fields gatherèd, - With joyousness, and with a thoughtful cheer, - Will come to you--to you herself will wed-- - And love the blessed life that we lead here. - - "Dear Spot! which we have watched with tender heed, - Bringing thee chosen plants and blossoms blown - Among the distant mountains, flower and weed, - Which thou hast taken to thee as thy own, - Making all kindness registered and known; - Thou for our sakes, though Nature's child indeed, - Fair in thyself and beautiful alone, - Hast taken gifts which thou dost little need. - - * * * * * - - "Help us to tell Her tales of years gone by, - And this sweet spring, the best beloved and best; - Joy will be flown in its mortality; - Something must stay to tell us of the rest. - Here, thronged with primroses, the steep rock's breast - Glittered at evening like a starry sky; - And in this bush our sparrow built her nest, - Of which I sang one song that will not die. - - "Oh happy Garden! whose seclusion deep - Hath been so friendly to industrious hours; - And to soft slumbers, that did gently steep - Our spirits, carrying with them dreams of flowers, - And wild notes warbled among leafy bowers; - Two burning months let summer overleap, - And, coming back with Her who will be ours, - Into thy bosom we again shall creep." - -I cannot refrain from also quoting here the exquisite picture of Mrs. -Wordsworth, written after the experience of two years of married life. - - "She was a Phantom of delight - When first she gleamed upon my sight; - A lovely Apparition, sent - To be a moment's ornament: - Her eyes as stars of Twilight fair, - Like Twilight's, too, her dusky hair; - But all things else about her drawn - From May-time and the cheerful Dawn; - A dancing Shape, an Image gay, - To haunt, to startle, and way-lay. - - "I saw her upon nearer view, - A Spirit, yet a Woman too! - Her household motions light and free, - And steps of virgin-liberty; - A countenance in which did meet - Sweet records, promises as sweet; - A Creature not too bright or good - For human nature's daily food; - For transient sorrows, simple wiles, - Praise, blame, love, kisses, tears, and smiles. - - "And now I see with eye serene - The very pulse of the machine; - A Being breathing thoughtful breath, - A traveller between life and death; - The reason firm, the temperate will, - Endurance, foresight, strength, and skill; - A perfect Woman, nobly planned, - To warn, to comfort, and command; - And yet a Spirit still, and bright - With something of angelic light." - -Without the exultant spirits or rare mental endowment of Miss -Wordsworth, the poet's wife was eminently fitted for his companionship, -one which lasted during the fifty following years. Mr. Lockhart speaks -of her as having one of the most benignant tempers that ever diffused -peace and cheerfulness through a home. Although not written till some -years after, perhaps the present is the most fitting place in which to -quote De Quincey's description of Mrs. Wordsworth:[2] - -"I saw sufficiently to be aware of two ladies just entering the room, -through a doorway opening upon a little staircase. The foremost, a -tallish young woman, with the most winning expression of benignity upon -her features, advanced to me, presenting her hand with so frank an air, -that all embarrassment must have fled in a moment before the native -goodness of her manner. This was Mrs. Wordsworth, cousin of the poet, -and, for the last five years or more, his wife. She was now mother of -two children, a son and a daughter; and she furnished a remarkable proof -how possible it is for a woman, neither handsome nor even comely, -according to the rigour of criticism--nay, generally pronounced very -plain--to exercise all the practical fascination of beauty, through the -mere compensatory charms of sweetness all but angelic, of simplicity the -most entire, womanly self-respect and purity of heart speaking through -all her looks, acts, and movements. _Words_, I was going to have added; -but her words were few. In reality, she talked so little, that Mr. -Slave-Trade Clarkson used to allege against her, that she could only -say, '_God bless you!_' Certainly, her intellect was not of an active -order; but, in a quiescent, reposing, meditative way, she appeared -always to have a genial enjoyment from her own thoughts; and it would -have been strange, indeed, if she, who enjoyed such eminent advantages -of training, from the daily society of her husband and his sister, -failed to acquire some power of judging for herself, and putting forth -some functions of activity. But, undoubtedly, that was not her element: -to feel and to enjoy in a luxurious repose of mind--there was her -_forte_ and her peculiar privilege; and how much better this was adapted -to her husband's taste, how much more adapted to uphold the comfort of -his daily life, than a blue-stocking loquacity, or even a legitimate -talent for discussion, may be inferred from his verses, beginning-- - - 'She was a Phantom of delight, - When first she gleamed upon my sight.' - -...I will add to this abstract of her _moral_ portrait, these few -concluding traits of her appearance in a physical sense. Her figure was -tolerably good. In complexion she was fair, and there was something -peculiarly pleasing even in this accident of the skin, for it was -accompanied by an animated expression of health, a blessing which, in -fact, she possessed uninterruptedly. Her eyes, the reader may already -know, were - - 'Like stars of Twilight fair, - Like Twilight, too, her dark brown hair, - But all things else about her drawn - From May-time and the cheerful Dawn.' - -Yet strange it is to tell that, in these eyes of vesper gentleness, -there was a considerable obliquity of vision; and much beyond that -slight obliquity which is often supposed to be an attractive foible in -the countenance: this _ought_ to have been displeasing or repulsive; -yet, in fact, it was not. Indeed all faults, had they been ten times -more and greater, would have been neutralised by that supreme expression -of her features, to the unity of which every lineament in the fixed -parts, and every undulation in the moving parts of her countenance, -concurred, viz., a sunny benignity--a radiant graciousness--such as in -this world I never saw surpassed." - -It will be observed that De Quincey here speaks rather slightingly of -Mrs. Wordsworth's intellect, almost in such a way as suggests a desire -to "damn with faint praise." Notwithstanding the unique charm of his -style and power of language, of which his extensive learning and reading -had made him such a master, his pen, even when portraying his most -cherished friends, seems to be slightly touched with an envious venom. -That Mrs. Wordsworth's intellect was of no mean order there are in her -life abundant traces. The dignified repose and simplicity of her manner, -doubtless, formed a striking contrast to that of the impassioned and -ardent Dorothy. But it could hardly be other than a lofty intellect that -added two of the most exquisite and thoughtful lines to one of the -poet's most charming of pieces. Who, having once read, does not remember -the lines on the daffodils?-- - - "I wandered lonely as a cloud - That floats on high o'er vales and hills, - When all at once I saw a crowd, - A host, of golden daffodils; - Beside the lake, beneath the trees, - Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. - - "Continuous as the stars that shine - And twinkle on the milky way, - They stretched in never-ending line - Along the margin of a bay; - Ten thousand saw I at a glance, - Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. - - "The waves beside them danced; but they - Out-did the sparkling waves in glee: - A poet could not but be gay, - In such a jocund company: - I gazed, and gazed, but little thought - What wealth the show to me had brought; - - "For oft, when on my couch I lie - In vacant or in pensive mood, - _They flash upon that inward eye - Which is the bliss of solitude_; - And then my heart with pleasure fills, - And dances with the daffodils." - -The lines in italics, suggested by Mrs. Wordsworth, here form the kernel -of truth, the central gem around which the lesser beauties are -clustered. - -What a true "inmate of the heart" the poet's wife was, and continued to -be, to him, we well know. Among other tributes to her soothing and -sustaining aid might be mentioned the dedication to her of the "White -Doe of Rylstone," and many other pieces. Happy is the man who, after -twenty years of married companionship, can thus write of his wife:-- - - "Oh, DEARER far than light and life are dear, - Full oft our human foresight I deplore; - Trembling, through my unworthiness, with fear - That friends, by death disjoined, may meet no more! - - "Misgivings, hard to vanquish or control, - Mix with the day, and cross the hour of rest; - While all the future, for thy purer soul, - With 'sober certainties' of love is blest, - - "That sigh of thine, not meant for human ear, - Tells that these words thy humbleness offend; - Yet bear me up--else faltering in the rear - Of a steep march; support me to the end. - - "Peace settles where the intellect is meek, - And Love is dutiful in thought and deed; - Through Thee Communion with that Love I seek: - The faith Heaven strengthens where _He_ moulds the Creed." - -And when many following years had passed over them, and they had -together grown old, their love and devotion, which had increased with -their years, retained that freshness and fervour of youth which enables -aged hearts to rejoice in all things young and beautiful:-- - - "Morn into noon did pass, noon into eve, - And the old day was welcome as the young, - As welcome, and as beautiful--in sooth - More beautiful, as being a thing more holy: - Thanks to thy virtues, to the eternal youth - Of all thy goodness, never melancholy; - To thy large heart and humble mind, that cast - Into one vision, future, present, past." - -The marriage of the poet only introduced into the circle another kindred -spirit, and did not to any extent deprive him of the society of his -sister, who, as before, continued to reside with him, finding a genial -companion in one who had long been a cherished friend. Shall we not then -say that Wordsworth was in his companionships at this period happy in a -degree to which most of his brother bards have been strangers? With -these two high-souled and appreciative women to encircle him with their -love and minister to him, to stimulate to lofty thought and high -endeavour, what wonder that his life and work attained a fulness and -completion seldom reached? - -_On Reading Miss Wordsworth's Recollections of a Journey in Scotland, in -1803, with her Brother and Coleridge._ - - "I close the book, I shut my eyes, - I see the Three before me rise,-- - Loving sister, famous brother, - Each one mirrored in the other; - Brooding William, artless Dora, - Who was to her very core a - Lover of dear Nature's face, - In its perfect loveliness,-- - Lover of her glens and flowers, - Of her sunlit clouds and showers, - Of her hills and of her streams, - Of her moonlight--when she dreams; - Of her tears and of her smiles, - Of her quaint delicious wiles; - Telling what best pleasures lie - In the loving, unspoiled eye, - In the reverential heart, - That in great Nature sees God's art. - - "And him--the man 'of large discourse,' - Of pregnant thought, of critic force, - That grey-eyed sage, who was not wise - In wisdom that in doing lies, - But who had 'thoughts that wander through - Eternity,'--the old and new. - Who, when he rises on our sight, - Spite of his failings, shines all bright, - With something of an angel-light. - - "We close the book with thankful heart, - Father of Lights, to Thee, who art - Of every good and perfect gift - The Giver,--unto Thee we lift - Our souls in prayer, that all may see - Thy hand, Thy heart, in all they see." - - ANON. IN _The Spectator_. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[2] For the copious description here given of Mrs. Wordsworth, and that, -on a subsequent page, of Miss Wordsworth, I am indebted to the -contributions of De Quincey to "Tait's Edinburgh Magazine," which -afterwards formed part of his collected works. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -TOUR IN SCOTLAND. - - -It was in the months of August and September, in the year following that -of his marriage, that Wordsworth and his sister made their memorable six -week's tour in Scotland. The character of this tour, as well as the -remarkable memorial of it given to the world after a lapse of seventy -years, render it, in this place, deserving of more than a mere passing -notice. Of the daily incidents of this journey, and the impressions and -reflections caused by it, Miss Wordsworth kept a minute journal. -Although not intended as a literary production, and written only for the -perusal and information of friends, the style is not only pleasing but -elegant; and it is a matter for congratulation that the family of the -writer at length consented to its publication. This was done in 1874, -under the able editorship of Principal Shairp, of St. Andrews, and the -work rapidly passed through several editions. Not only is it of much -value to those taking an interest in the lives of the poet and his -sister; but, containing as it does descriptions at once graceful and -graphic of the scenes through which they passed, it cannot fail to -afford pleasure to the general reader. The Editor, in his preface, says -of it, that he does not remember any other book "more capable of -training heart and eye to look with profit on the face of Nature, as it -manifests itself in our northern land." - -Mrs. Wordsworth was not of the party, being detained at home by maternal -duties. For the first fortnight the Wordsworths were accompanied by -Coleridge, who does not, however, on this occasion, seem to have been -the desirable companion of old. Wordsworth has said of him that he was -at the time "in bad spirits, and somewhat too much in love with his own -dejection." - -The manner of their travelling was altogether in keeping with the humble -character of their lives. The Irish car, and the ancient steed--which, -from his various wayward freaks, and the difficulty with which he was on -certain occasions managed by the poets, must have been somewhat of a -screw--were not calculated to afford much luxury or ease. But the object -of the tourists was not to make a fashionable holiday. The very love of -Nature drew them to her wildest solitudes, and to woo her in her varied -moods, as well when frowning and repellant as when smiling and inviting. -As they were harvesting for future memories the deep experiences and -lingering harmonies which are reaped and garnered by a loving -companionship with Nature, it mattered little to them that these were -frequently obtained at the cost of weariness and discomfort. - -It need not be repeated that for the in-gathering of Nature's most -beneficent gifts the poet could not have had a more fitting companion -than his sister. Not only did she idolise him from the depth of the warm -and tender heart of young womanhood, but she was possessed of a mind -singularly sympathetic with his own, and with a kindred enthusiasm as -to the objects in view. Her splendid health, also, at this time, and -strength of limb, made her such a comrade that this tour became to them -an enduring joy, to be remembered for all life: She was - - "Fleet and strong-- - And down the rocks could leap along - Like rivulets in May." - -In giving a short account of this tour, it will be permissible to take -the liberty of a reviewer of quoting a few extracts. What strikes a -reader the most in Miss Wordsworth's record is her quickness of -observation. Nothing seemed to escape her notice. It was not only the -general aspect of Nature in both storm and sunshine, and the diversity -of scenes, that spoke to them; but Miss Wordsworth's eye took in objects -the most minute, she was alive to those subtle influences, which serve -so much to impart an interest to any journey or circumstance it would -not otherwise possess. She took with her her warm loving heart, so full, -for all with whom she came into contact, of the milk of human -kindness--grateful for little attentions given or favours bestowed, and -touched by those traits of humanity which make the whole world kin. -There is the constant loving remembrance of small events, to which -association sometimes lends such a charm. It was a very simple thing for -Miss Wordsworth, writing to her sister-in-law at Grasmere, at an inn by -no means remarkable for comfort, to mention that she wrote on the same -window-ledge on which her brother had written to her two years before; -but it reveals a loving heart. - -On the second day of their journey we find the following entry in Miss -Wordsworth's diary: "Passed Rose Castle upon the Caldew, an ancient -building of red stone with sloping gardens, an ivied gateway, velvet -lawns, old garden walls, trim flower-borders, with stately and luxuriant -flowers. We walked up to the house and stood some minutes watching the -swallows that flew about restlessly, and flung their shadows upon the -sunbright walls of the old building; the shadows glanced and twinkled, -interchanged and crossed each other, expanded and shrunk up, appeared -and disappeared every instant; as I observed to William and Coleridge, -seeming more like living things than the birds themselves." - -Going by way of Carlisle, the small party entered Scotland near Gretna, -and proceeded by Dumfries and the Vale of Nith. At Dumfries, the grave -and house of Burns had a melancholy interest for them, Miss Wordsworth -stating that "there is no thought surviving in Burns's daily life that -is not heart depressing." - -On leaving the Nith, Miss Wordsworth thus describes the scenery: "We now -felt indeed that we were in Scotland; there was a natural peculiarity in -this place. In the scenes of the Nith it had not been the same as -England, but yet not simple, naked Scotland. The road led us down the -hill, and now there was no room in the vale but for the river and the -road; we had sometimes the stream to the right, sometimes to the left. -The hills were pastoral, but we did not see many sheep; green smooth -turf on the left, no ferns. On the right the heath plant grew in -abundance, of the most exquisite colour; it covered a whole hill-side, -or it was in streams and patches. We travelled along the vale, without -appearing to ascend, for some miles; all the reaches were beautiful, in -exquisite proportion, the hills seeming very high from being so near to -us. It might have seemed a valley which Nature had kept to herself for -pensive thoughts and tender feelings, but that we were reminded at every -turn of the road of something beyond by the coal-carts which were -travelling towards us. Though these carts broke in upon the tranquility -of the glen, they added much to the picturesque effect of the different -views, which indeed wanted nothing, though perfectly bare, houseless, -and treeless. - -"After some time our road took us upwards towards the end of the valley. -Now the steeps were heathy all around. Just as we began to climb the -hill we saw three boys who came down the cleft of a brow on our left; -one carried a fishing-rod, and the hats of all were braided with -honeysuckles; they ran after one another as wanton as the wind. I cannot -express what a character of beauty those few honeysuckles in the hats of -the three boys gave to the place; what bower could they have come from? -We walked up the hill, met two well-dressed travellers, the woman -barefoot. Our little lads, before they had gone far, were joined by some -half-dozen of their companions, all without shoes and stockings. They -told us they lived at Wanlockhead, the village above, pointing to the -top of the hill; they went to school and learned Latin, Virgil, and some -of them Greek, Homer; but when Coleridge began to inquire further, off -they ran, poor things! I suppose afraid of being examined." - -The following anecdote is related of Coleridge, when at the falls of -Cora Linn: "We sat upon a bench, placed for the sake of one of the -views, whence we looked down upon the waterfall, and over the open -country, and saw a ruined tower, called Wallace's Tower, which stands at -a very little distance from the fall, and is an interesting object. A -lady and gentleman, more expeditious tourists than ourselves, came to -the spot; they left us at the seat, and we found them again at another -station above the Falls. Coleridge, who is always good natured enough to -enter into conversation with anybody whom he meets in his way, began to -talk with the gentleman, who observed that it was a _majestic_ -waterfall. Coleridge was delighted with the accuracy of the epithet, -particularly as he had been settling in his own mind the precise meaning -of the words grand, majestic, sublime, &c, and had discussed the subject -at some length with William the day before. 'Yes, sir,' says Coleridge, -'it _is_ a majestic waterfall.' 'Sublime and beautiful,' replied his -friend. Poor Coleridge could make no answer, and, not very desirous to -continue the conversation, came to us and related the story, laughing -heartily." - -Of the falls of the Clyde, Miss Wordsworth observes: "We had been told -that the Cartland Crags were better worth going to see than the falls of -the Clyde. I do not think so; but I have seen rocky dells resembling -these before, with clear water instead of that muddy stream, and never -saw anything like the falls of the Clyde. It would be a delicious spot -to have near one's house; one would linger out many a day in the cool -shadow of the caverns, and the stream would soothe one by its murmuring; -still, being an old friend, one would not love it the less for its -homely face. Even we, as we passed along, could not help stopping for a -long while to admire the beauty of the lazy foam, for ever in motion, -and never moved away, in a still place of the water, covering the whole -surface of it with streaks and lines and ever-varying circles." - -The Highlands were entered at Loch Lomond, of which Miss Wordsworth -writes:--"On a splendid evening, with the light of the sun diffused over -the whole islands, distant hills, and the broad expanse of the lake, -with its creeks, bays, and little slips of water among the islands, it -must be a glorious sight." ... "We had not climbed far before we were -stopped by a sudden burst of prospect, so singular and beautiful, that -it was like a flash of images from another world. We stood with our -backs to the hill of the island, which we were ascending, and which shut -out Ben Lomond entirely, and all the upper part of the lake, and we -looked towards the foot of the lake, scattered over with islands without -beginning and without end. The sun shone, and the distant hills were -visible, some through sunny mists, others in gloom with patches of -sunshine; the lake was lost under the low and distant hills, and the -islands lost in the lake, which was all in motion with travelling fields -of light, or dark shadows under rainy clouds. There are many hills, but -no commanding eminence at a distance to confine the prospect, so that -the land seemed endless as the water." - -In her description of their adventures at Loch Katrine and the -Trossachs, Miss Wordsworth is very happy. Writing of the view from one -point she says:--"We saw Benvenue opposite to us--a high mountain but -clouds concealed its top; its side, rising directly from the lake, is -covered with birch trees to a great height, and seamed with innumerable -channels of torrents; but now there was no water in them, nothing to -break in upon the stillness and repose of the scene; nor do I recollect -hearing the sound of water from any side, the wind being fallen and the -lake perfectly still; the place was all eye, and completely satisfied -the sense and heart. Above and below us, to the right and to the left, -were rocks, knolls, and hills, which, wherever anything could grow--and -that was everywhere between the rocks--were covered with trees and -heather; the trees did not in any place grow so thick as an ordinary -wood; yet I think there was never a bare space of twenty yards, it was -more like a natural forest, where the trees grow in groups or singly, -not hiding the surface of the ground, which, instead of being green and -mossy, was of the richest purple. The heather was indeed the most -luxuriant I ever saw; it was so tall that a child of ten years old -struggling through it would often have been buried head and shoulders, -and the exquisite beauty of the colour, near or at a distance, seen -under the trees, is not to be conceived. But if I were to go on -describing for evermore, I should give but a faint, and very often a -false idea of the different objects and the various combinations of them -in this most intricate and delicious place; besides, I tired myself out -with describing at Loch Lomond, so I will hasten to the end of my tale. -This reminds me of a sentence in a little pamphlet written by the -minister of Callander, descriptive of the environs of that place. After -having taken up at least six closely-printed pages with the Trossachs, -he concludes thus:--'In a word, the Trossachs beggar all description,' a -conclusion in which everybody who has been there will agree with him. I -believe the word 'Trossachs' signifies 'many hills'; it is a name given -to all the eminences at the foot of Loch Ketterine, and about half a -mile beyond." - -As an illustration of the expedients to which they were obliged to -resort, and the scanty accommodation afforded to them, may be quoted the -following:--"Our companion from the Trossachs, who, it appeared, was an -Edinburgh drawing-master, going, during a vacation, on a pedestrian tour -to John o'Groat's house, was to sleep in the barn with William and -Coleridge, where the man said he had plenty of dry hay. I do not believe -that the hay of the Highlands is often very dry; but this year it had a -better chance than usual. Wet or dry, however, the next morning they -said they had slept comfortably. When I went to bed the mistress, -desiring me to 'go ben,' attended me with a candle, and assured me that -the bed was dry, though not 'sic as I had been used to.' It was of -chaff; there were two others in the room, a cupboard, and two chests, on -one of which stood the milk in wooden vessels, covered over. I should -have thought that milk so kept could not have been sweet; but the cheese -and butter were good. The walls of the whole house were of stone -unplastered. It consisted of three apartments--the cow-house at one end; -the kitchen, or house, in the middle; and the spence at the other end. -The rooms were divided, not up to the rigging, but only to the -beginning of the roof, so that there was a free passage for light and -smoke from one end of the house to the other. - -"I went to bed sometime before the family. The door was shut between us, -and they had a bright fire, which I could not see; but the light it sent -up among the varnished rafters and beams, which crossed each other in -almost as intricate and fantastic a manner, as I have seen the -under-boughs of a large beech-tree, withered by the depth of the shade -above, produced the most beautiful effect that can be conceived. It was -like what I should suppose an underground cave or temple to be, with a -dripping or moist roof, and the moonlight entering in upon it by some -means or other and yet the colours were more like melted gems. I lay -looking up till the light of the fire faded away, and the man and his -wife and child had crept into their bed at the other end of the room. I -did not sleep much, but passed a comfortable night--for my bed, though -hard, was warm and clean; the unusualness of my situation prevented me -from sleeping. I could hear the waves beat against the shore of the -lake; a little 'syke' close to the door made a much louder noise; and -when I sat up in my bed I could see the lake through an open -window-place at the bed's-head. Add to this, it rained all night. I was -less occupied by remembrance of the Trossachs, beautiful as they were, -than the vision of the Highland hut which I could not get out of my -head. I thought of the Fairyland of Spenser, and what I had read in -romance at other times, and then what a feast would it be for a London -pantomime-maker, could he but transplant it to Drury Lane, with all its -beautiful colours!" - -Extracts from this admirable and fascinating book might be multiplied; -but I must resist the temptation. It is a book which must be read to be -enjoyed. The tourists received impressions not only from the natural -scenery, but also from the simple-minded and hospitable Highlanders, -with whom they from time to time met. They were so delighted with two -Highland girls, in their fresh, youthful beauty, whom they met at the -ferry at Inversneyde, that Wordsworth made them the subject of a -pleasant poem. Miss Wordsworth, after describing her pleasurable meeting -with these girls, says:--"At this day the innocent merriment of the -girls, with their kindness to us, and the beautiful figure and face of -the elder, come to my mind whenever I think of the ferry-house and -waterfall of Loch Lomond; and I never think of the two girls but the -whole image of that romantic spot is before me--a living image, as it -will be, to my dying day." - -The poem of her brother, which cannot be much more poetic than the -graceful prose of the sister, is as follows:-- - - "Sweet Highland Girl, a very shower - Of beauty is thy earthly dower! - Twice seven consenting years have shed - Their utmost beauty on thy head: - And these grey rocks; that household lawn; - Those trees, a veil just half withdrawn; - This fall of water that doth make - A murmur near the silent Lake; - This little Bay, a quiet road - That holds in shelter thy abode; - In truth, together do ye seem - Like something fashioned in a dream; - Such Forms as from their covert peep - When earthly cares are laid asleep! - But, O fair Creature! in the light - Of common day, so heavenly bright, - I bless thee, Vision as thou art, - I bless thee with a human heart: - God shield thee to thy latest years! - Thee neither know I, nor thy peers; - And yet my eyes are filled with tears. - - "With earnest feeling I shall pray - For thee when I am far away: - For never saw I mien or face, - In which more plainly I could trace - Benignity and home-bred sense - Ripening in perfect innocence. - Here, scattered like a random seed, - Remote from men, Thou dost not need - Th' embarrass'd look of shy distress, - And maidenly shamefacedness; - Thou wear'st upon thy forehead clear - The freedom of a Mountaineer; - A face with gladness overspread! - Soft smiles, by human kindness bred! - And seemliness complete, that sways - Thy courtesies, about thee plays; - With no restraint but such as springs - From quick and eager visitings - Of thoughts that lie beyond the reach - Of thy few words of English speech: - A bondage sweetly brook'd, a strife - That gives thy gestures grace and life! - So have I, not unmoved in mind, - Seen birds of tempest-loving kind-- - Thus beating up against the wind. - - "What hand but would a garland cull - For thee, who art so beautiful? - O, happy pleasure! here to dwell - Beside thee in some heathy dell; - Adopt your homely ways, and dress, - A Shepherd, thou a Shepherdess! - But I could frame a wish for thee - More like a grave reality: - Thou art to me but as a wave - Of the wild sea: and I would have - Some claim upon thee if I could, - Though but of common neighbourhood. - What joy to hear thee, and to see! - Thy elder Brother I would be, - Thy Father--anything to thee. - - Now thanks to Heaven! that of its grace - Hath led me to this lonely place! - Joy have I had; and going hence - I bear away my recompence. - In spots like these it is we prize - Our Memory, feel that she hath eyes; - Then, why should I be loth to stir? - I feel this place was made for her; - To give new pleasure like the past, - Continued long as life shall last. - Nor am I loth, though pleased at heart, - Sweet Highland Girl, from thee to part; - For I, methinks, till I grow old, - As fair before me shall behold, - As I do now, the Cabin small, - The Lake, the Bay, the Waterfall, - And Thee, the Spirit of them all." - -In a somewhat primitive way, and having to contend with bad roads, -accidents to their car, and sometimes hard lodging and scanty fare, they -managed to traverse a great part of the country which has since become -so familiar to tourists, taking on their way Inverary, Glen Coe, Loch -Tay, the Pass of Killicrankie, Dunkeld, Callander, back by the Trossachs -to Loch Lomond, and eventually to Edinburgh. Approaching Loch Lomond for -the second time, Miss Wordsworth remarks that she felt it much more -interesting to visit a place where they had been before than it could -possibly be for the first time. By the lake they met two women, without -hats but neatly dressed, who seemed to have been taking their Sunday -evening's walk. One of them said, in a soft, friendly voice, "What! you -are stepping westward?" She adds: "I cannot describe how affecting this -simple expression was in that remote place, with the western sky in -front, yet glowing with the departed sun." Wordsworth himself some time -afterwards, in remembrance of the incident, wrote the following poem:-- - - "'_'What! you are stepping westward?_' '_Yea._' - --'Twould be a _wildish_ destiny, - If we, who thus together roam - In a strange Land, and far from home, - Were in this place the guests of Chance; - Yet who would stop or fear to advance, - Though home or shelter he had none, - With such a sky to lead him on? - - "The dewy ground was dark and cold, - Behind all gloomy to behold, - And stepping westward seem'd to be - A kind of _heavenly_ destiny; - I liked the greeting; 'twas a sound - Of something without place or bound; - And seemed to give me spiritual right - To travel through that region bright. - - "The voice was soft; and she who spake - Was walking by her native lake; - The salutation was to me - The very sound of courtesy; - Its power was felt, and while my eye - Was fix'd upon the glowing Sky, - The echo of the voice enwrought - A human sweetness, with the thought - Of travelling through the world that lay - Before me in my endless way." - -With Edinburgh Miss Wordsworth was delighted. She says; "It was -impossible to think of anything that was little or mean, the goings on -of trade, the strife of men, or every-day city business; the impression -was one, and it was visionary; like the conceptions of our childhood of -Bagdad or Balsora, when we have been reading the 'Arabian Nights' -Entertainments.'" - -Not the least memorable part of their tour was a visit to Sir--then -Mr.--Walter Scott, who was then unknown to fame as a novelist, but who, -as Sheriff of Selkirk, and considered a very clever and amiable man, was -universally respected. With him they visited Melrose and other places of -interest. Miss Wordsworth writes: "Walked up to Ferniehurst--an old -hall, in a secluded situation, now inhabited by farmers; the -neighbouring ground had the wildness of a forest, being irregularly -scattered over with fine old trees. The wind was tossing their branches, -and sunshine dancing among the leaves, and I happened to exclaim, 'What -a life there is in trees!' on which Mr. Scott observed that the words -reminded him of a young lady who had been born and educated on an island -of the Orcades, and came to spend a summer at Kelso, and in the -neighbourhood of Edinburgh. She used to say that in the new world into -which she was come nothing had disappointed her so much as trees and -woods; she complained that they were lifeless, silent, and, compared -with the grandeur of the ever-changing ocean, even insipid. At first I -was surprised, but the next moment I felt that the impression was -natural. Mr. Scott said that she was a very sensible young woman, and -had read much. She talked with endless rapture and feeling of the power -and greatness of the ocean; and, with the same passionate attachment, -returned to her native island without any probability of quitting it -again. The Valley of the Jed is very solitary immediately under -Ferniehurst; we walked down the river, wading almost up to the knees in -fern, which in many parts overspread the forest-ground. It made me think -of our walks at Alfoxden, and of _our own_ park--though at Ferniehurst -is no park at present--and the slim fawns that we used to startle from -their couching-places, among the fern at the top of the hill." - -The journal contains many short passages which might be quoted to show -its poetic character. The following are selected almost at random: "I -can always walk over a moor with a light foot; I seem to be drawn more -closely to Nature in such places than anywhere else; or, rather, I feel -more strongly the power of Nature over me, and am better satisfied with -myself, for being able to find enjoyment in what, unfortunately to many -persons, is either dismal or insipid." "The opposite bank of the river -is left in its natural wildness, and nothing was to be seen higher up -but the deep dell, its steep banks being covered with fine trees, a -beautiful relief or contrast to the garden, which is one of the most -elaborate old things ever seen--a little hanging garden of Babylon." -Again, she writes: "The greatest charm of a brook or river is in the -liberty to pursue it through its windings; you can then take it in -whatever mood you like--silent or noisy, sportive or quiet. The beauties -of the brook or river must be sought, and the pleasure is in going in -search of them; those of the lake or of the sea come to you of -themselves." "The sky was grey and heavy--floating mists on the -hillsides, which softened the objects, and where we lost sight of the -lake it appeared so near to the sky that they almost touched one -another, giving a visionary beauty to the prospect." From the reflection -of the crimson clouds the water appeared of a deep red, like melted -rubies, yet with a mixture of a grey or blackish hue; the gorgeous light -of the sky, with the singular colour of the lake, made the scene -exceedingly romantic; yet it was more melancholy than cheerful. With all -the power of light from the clouds there was an overcasting of the gloom -of evening--a twilight upon the hills." - -This tour was rich in its results, not only in the sister's journal but -also in the poems of the brother, to which it gave birth. Alluding to -these a contributor to _Blackwood_, so long ago as 1835, says: -"Wordsworth in Scotland as in England and Switzerland, and Italy and the -Tyrol, is still Wordsworth. Here, too, he reaps:-- - - 'The harvests of a quiet eye - That broods and sleeps on his own heart.'" - -His thoughts, and feelings, and visions, and dreams, and fancies, and -imaginations, are all his own, by some divine right which no other -mortal shares along with him; and, true as they all are to nature, are -all distinguished by some indefinable, but delightful charm peculiar to -his own being, which assuredly is the most purely spiritual that ever -was enshrined in human dust. Safe in his originality he fears not to -travel the same ground that has been travelled by thousands--and -beaten, and barren, and naked as it may seem to be--he is sure to detect -some loveliest family of wild flowers that had lurked unseen in some -unsuspected crevices--to soothe his ears with a transient murmur, the -spirit of the wilderness awakens--the bee that had dropped on the moss -as if benumbed by frost--the small moorland bird revivified by sunshine, -sent from heaven for the poet's sake, goes twittering in circles in the -air above his head, nor is afraid that its nest will be trodden by his -harmless feet; and should a sudden summer shower affront the sunshine, -it is that a rainbow may come and go for his delight, and leave its -transitory splendours in some immortal song. On the great features of -Nature--lochs and mountains, among which he has lived his days--he looks -with a serene but sovereign eye, as if he held them all in fee, and they -stood there to administer to the delight--we must not say the pride--of -him, 'Sole king of rocky Cumberland;' and true it is that from the -assemblage of their summits, in the sunset, impulses of deeper mood have -come to him in solitude than ever visited the heart of any other -poet.... The true Highland spirit is there; but another spirit, too, -which Wordsworth carries with him wherever he goes in the sanctuary of -his own genius, and which colours all it breathes on--lending lovelier -light to the fair, and more awful gloom to the great, and ensouling what -else were but cold death." - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -LIFE AT GRASMERE. CAPTAIN WORDSWORTH. - - -A visit paid by Coleridge to Grasmere, shortly after the Scottish tour, -is thus alluded to in a letter written by him to his friend, Mr. Thomas -Wedgewood, in January, 1804. He says:--"I left my home December 20th, -1803, intending to stay a day and a half at Grasmere and then walk to -Kendal, whither I had sent all my clothes and viatica, from thence to go -to London, and to see whether or no I could arrange my pecuniary -matters, so as, leaving Mrs. Coleridge all that was necessary to her -comforts, to go myself to Madeira, having a persuasion strong as the -life within me, that one winter spent in a really warm, genial climate, -would completely restore me.... I stayed at Grasmere (Mr. Wordsworth's) -a month; three-fourths of the time bedridden; and deeply do I feel the -enthusiastic kindness of Wordsworth's wife and sister, who sat up by me, -the one or the other, in order to awaken me at the first symptoms of -distressful feeling; and even when they went to rest continued often and -often to weep and watch for me even in their dreams." - -The death of her brother, Captain John Wordsworth, in the early part of -1805, was a great sorrow to Miss Wordsworth, as well as to the other -members of the family. Captain Wordsworth was a younger brother of the -poet, and a great favourite with him and his sister. In consequence of -their early orphaned condition, and subsequent separation, they had not -enjoyed much of each other's society until the time of Wordsworth's -residence at Grasmere. Previously to this, and since the two brothers -had been at school together at Hawkshead, they had only occasionally -seen each other. - -After the settlement of Wordsworth and his sister at Grasmere, this -brother, who was in the service of the East India Company, had paid them -a prolonged visit, extending over eight months. The fraternal ties were -then renewed and strengthened, cemented as they became by mature -sympathies. A kinship of thought and feeling, added to warm natural -affections, bound together these three poetic souls in mutual love more -than usually devoted. Captain Wordsworth recognised his brother's genius -and greatness of soul, and felt assured that the time would arrive when -they would be widely acknowledged. Writing of him to Miss Wordsworth, -Coleridge says:--"Your brother John is one of you--a man who hath -solitary usings of his own intellect, deep in feeling, with a subtle -tact, and swift instinct of true beauty." Himself so thoroughly in -harmony with his brother's pursuits, and an ardent lover of the -beautiful in Nature, as well as in life, he became, as Wordsworth says, -"a silent poet," and was known among those of his own craft as "The -Philosopher." Captain Wordsworth had so identified himself in heart with -his brother's pursuits, and had become so enamoured of the life led by -him and their sister in this quiet and beautiful vale, "far from the -madding crowd's ignoble strife," that he had formed the idea, if -prospered during a few voyages, of settling at Grasmere, and adding his -worldly store to theirs, in the hope of thus enabling Wordsworth to -devote his attention to his muse, unfettered by anxious thoughts of a -monetary character. With this loving object before him, he had made a -voyage in the year 1801 without success. Again, in the spring of 1803, -he sailed with the same hope in his heart, but only on this occasion -also to return, without having in any degree been able to further its -realisation. - -In the meantime, money which had been long withheld from the Wordsworths -by the former Earl of Lonsdale, had been honourably paid by his -successor. Although the main object which Captain Wordsworth had in view -in his former expeditions thus no longer existed, he decided once more -to brave the fortunes of the deep. Being, in the year 1804, appointed to -the command of the East Indiaman, _Abergavenny_, bound for the East, he -sailed from Portsmouth, in the early part of 1805, upon a voyage on -which many hopes were built. We are informed that on this occasion the -value of the cargo (including specie) was £270,000, and that there were -on board 402 persons. Not only did Captain Wordsworth take with him the -share which had come to him of the money paid by the Earl of Lonsdale, -but also £1,200 belonging to his brother William and his sister. The -bright hopes were, however, doomed to end in the saddest of disaster. -Owing to the incompetence of a pilot, the ship struck off the Bill of -Portland on the 5th February, 1805. Captain Wordsworth died, as he had -lived, cheerfully doing his duty. Though he might have saved his own -life, he bravely remained at his post to the last, and perished with -most of the crew. - -Writing of the sad occurrence to Sir George Beaumont shortly after, -Wordsworth says:--"My poor sister and my wife, who loved him almost as -we did (for he was one of the most amiable of men) are in miserable -affliction, which I do all in my power to alleviate; but, Heaven knows, -I want consolation myself. I can say nothing higher of my ever-dear -brother than that he was worthy of his sister, who is now weeping beside -me, and of the friendship of Coleridge; meek, affectionate, silently -enthusiastic, loving all quiet things, and a poet in everything but -words." In a postscript he adds:--"I shall do all in my power to sustain -my sister under her sorrow, which is, and long will be, bitter and -poignant. We did not love him as a brother merely, but as a man of -original mind, and an honour to all about him. Oh! dear friend, forgive -me for talking thus. We have had no tidings from Coleridge. I tremble -for the moment when he is to hear of my brother's death; it will -distress him to the heart,--and his poor body cannot bear sorrow. He -loved my brother, and he knows how we at Grasmere loved him." - -The friendship between the Wordsworths and Charles and Mary Lamb, formed -during the Nether Stowey period, had continued, and they had been -regular correspondents. Shortly after the sad death of her brother Miss -Wordsworth had, in the fulness of her heart, written to Miss Lamb. -Although the response to the communication is well known it should find -a place here. Miss Lamb's reply shows how well qualified she was to -sympathise in her friend's sufferings. She had, indeed, been taught in -the same school. She says:--"I thank you, my kind friend, for your most -comfortable letter; till I saw your own handwriting I could not persuade -myself that I should do well to write to you, though I have often -attempted it; but I always left off dissatisfied with what I had -written, and feeling that I was doing an improper thing to intrude upon -your sorrow. I wished to tell you that you would one day feel the kind -of peaceful state of mind, and sweet memory of the dead, which you so -happily describe as now almost begun; but I felt that it was improper -and most grating to the feelings of the afflicted to say to them that -the memory of their affliction would in time become a constant part, not -only of their dream, but of their most wakeful sense of happiness. That -you would see every object with and through your lost brother, and that -that would at last become a real and everlasting source of comfort to -you I felt, and well knew from my own experience in sorrow; but till you -yourself began to feel this I didn't dare tell you so; but I send you -some poor lines, which I wrote under this conviction of mind, and before -I heard Coleridge was returning home. I will transcribe them now before -I finish my letter, lest a false shame prevent me then, for I know they -are much worse than they ought to be, written as they were with strong -feeling and on such a subject; every line seems to me to be borrowed; -but I had no better way of expressing my thoughts, and I never have the -power of altering or amending anything I have once laid aside with -dissatisfaction:-- - - "'Why is he wandering on the sea? - Coleridge should now with Wordsworth be. - By slow degrees he'd steal away - Their woe and gently bring a ray - (So happily he'd time relief) - Of comfort from their very grief. - He'd tell them that their brother dead, - When years have passed o'er their head, - Will be remembered with such holy, - True, and perfect melancholy, - That ever this lost brother John - Will be their heart's companion. - His voice they'll always hear, - His face they'll always see; - There's nought in life so sweet - As such a memory.'" - -Miss Wordsworth's reply to this letter has not been preserved. It came -to the hands of Charles Lamb when his sister was undergoing one of her -temporary but most sad confinements, in the asylum she periodically -visited. On the 14th of June, 1805, Charles wrote for her to acknowledge -the letter, one from which the following extract may be given:--"Your -long, kind letter has not been thrown away (for it has given me great -pleasure to find you are all resuming your old occupations and are -better); but poor Mary, to whom it is addressed, cannot yet relish it. -She has been attacked by one of her severe illnesses, and is at present -_from home_. Last Monday week was the day she left me, and I hope I may -calculate upon having her again in a month or little more. I am rather -afraid late hours have, in this case, contributed to her indisposition. -I have every reason to suppose that this illness, like all the former -ones, will be but temporary; but I cannot always feel so. Meantime she -is dead to me, and I miss a prop. All my strength is gone, and I am like -a fool, bereft of her co-operation. I dare not think lest I should think -wrong, so used am I to look up to her in the least as in the biggest -perplexity. To say all that I know of her would be more than I think -anybody could believe, or even understand; and when I hope to have her -well again with me, it would be sinning against her feelings to go about -to praise her, for I can conceal nothing that I do from her. She is -older and wiser and better than I, and all my wretched imperfections I -cover to myself by resolutely thinking on her goodness. She would share -life and death, heaven and hell with me. She lives but for me; and I -know I have been wasting and teasing her life for five years past -incessantly with my cursed drinking and ways of going on. But even in -this upbraiding of myself I am offending against her, for I know that -she has clung to me for better for worse; and if the balance has been -against her hitherto it was a noble trade." - -The following letter of Charles Lamb, addressed "to Mr. and Miss -Wordsworth," on the 28th of September, 1805, enclosing his "Farewell to -Tobacco" may also find a place here:--"I wish you may think this a -handsome farewell to my 'Friendly Traitress.' Tobacco has been my -evening comfort and my morning curse for nearly five years; and you -know how difficult it is from refraining to pick one's lips even, when -it has become a habit. This poem is the only one which I have finished -since so long as when I wrote 'Hester Savory.' I have had it in my head -to do this two years, but tobacco stood in its own light when it gave me -headaches that prevented my singing its praises. Now you have got it, -you have got all my store, for I have absolutely not another line. No -more has Mary. We have nobody about us that cares for poetry; and who -will rear grapes when he shall be the sole eater? Perhaps if you -encourage us to show you what we may write, we may do something now and -then before we absolutely forget the quantity of an English line for -want of practice. The 'Tobacco' being a little in the way of Withers -(whom Southey so much likes) perhaps you will somehow convey it to him -with my kind remembrances. Then, everybody will have seen it that I wish -to see it, I having sent it to Malta. - - "I remain, dear W. and D., - - "Yours truly, - - "C. LAMB." - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -DE QUINCEY.--HIS DESCRIPTION OF MISS WORDSWORTH.--ALLAN BANK. - - -It was in the year 1807 that De Quincey was added to the number of the -literary friends of the Wordsworths. He has given an interesting account -of the way in which the acquaintanceship was first formed. He had, -indeed, been for some years an ardent admirer of the poet, and had had -some correspondence with him in 1803. The characteristic timidity of -this wayward genius is illustrated by the fact, that although De Quincey -had conceived an eager longing to form the personal acquaintance of -Wordsworth, and had been favoured with a standing invitation to visit -him, he allowed upwards of four years to pass without availing himself -of the privilege of the meeting, "for which, beyond all things under -heaven, he longed." - -He has recorded how he had on two occasions taken a long journey with no -other object. On one of these occasions he had proceeded as far only as -Coniston--a distance from Grasmere of eight miles--when, his courage -failing him, he returned. - -The second time he actually so far kept up his courage as to traverse -the distance between Coniston and the Vale of Grasmere, and came in -sight of the "little white cottage gleaming among trees," which was the -goal of his desire. After, however, he had caught "one hasty glimpse of -this loveliest of landscapes," he "retreated like a guilty thing." This -was in 1806. During the following year circumstances combined to bring -about the much desired meeting. - -A short time after an introduction to Coleridge, in the summer of this -year, De Quincey learnt that Coleridge, who was engaged to lecture in -town, desired to send his family to Keswick, and he was glad to accept -De Quincey's offer to escort them. As Grasmere lay in their route, and -Mrs. Coleridge was a cherished friend of the Wordsworths, a call upon -them was the most natural thing, as was also an invitation to spend the -night, and resume their journey on the following day. - -Describing the cottage, De Quincey says: "A little semi-vestibule -between two doors prefaces the entrance into what may be considered the -principal room. It was an oblong square, not above eight and a-half feet -high, sixteen feet long, and twelve feet broad; very prettily -wainscotted from the floor to the ceiling with dark-polished oak, -slightly embellished with carving. One window there was, a perfect and -unpretending cottage window, with little diamond panes, embowered at -almost every season of the year with roses, and, in the summer and -autumn, with a profusion of jasmine, and other fragrant shrubs." - -After a description of Mrs. Wordsworth, as before alluded to, he follows -with a most interesting account of the appearance of Miss Wordsworth: -"Immediately behind her moved a lady shorter, slighter, and, perhaps, -in all other respects, as different from her in personal -characteristics, as could have been wished for the most effective -contrast. Her face was of Egyptian brown; rarely in a woman of English -birth had I seen a more determinate Gipsy tan. Her eyes were not soft, -as Mrs. Wordsworth's, nor were they fierce or bold; but they were wild -and startling, and hurried in their motion. Her manner was warm, and -even ardent; her sensibility seemed constitutionally deep; and some -subtle fire of impassioned intellect apparently burned within her, -which, being alternately pushed forward into a conspicuous expression, -by the irrepressible instincts of her temperament, and then immediately -checked, in obedience to the decorum of her sex and age, and her -maidenly condition, gave to her whole demeanour, and to her -conversation, an air of embarrassment, and even of self-conflict, that -was almost distressing to witness. Even her very utterance and -enunciation often suffered in point of clearness and steadiness from the -agitation of her excessive organic sensibility. At times the -self-counteraction and self-baffling of her feelings caused her even to -stammer, and so determinately to stammer, that a stranger who should -have seen her, and quitted her in that state of feeling, would certainly -have set her down for one plagued with that infirmity of speech as -distressingly as Charles Lamb himself. This was Miss Wordsworth, the -only sister of the poet--his 'Dorothy,' who naturally owed so much to -the life-long intercourse with her great brother, in his most solitary -and sequestered years; but, on the other hand, to whom he has -acknowledged obligations of the profoundest nature; and, in particular, -this mighty one, through which we also, the admirers and worshippers of -this great poet, are become equally her debtors--that whereas the -intellect of Wordsworth was, by its original tendency, too stern, too -austere, too much enamoured of an ascetic harsh sublimity, she it -was,--the lady who paced by his side continually through sylvan and -mountain tracts--in Highland glens and in the dim recesses of German -charcoal burners--that first _couched_ his eye to the sense of beauty, -humanised him by the gentler charities, and engrafted with her delicate -female touch those graces upon the ruder growths of his nature, which -have since clothed the forest of his genius with a foliage corresponding -in loveliness and beauty to the strength of its boughs and the massiness -of its trunks. The greatest deductions from Miss Wordsworth's -attractions, and from the exceeding interest which surrounded her in -right of her character, of her history, and of the relation which she -fulfilled towards her brother, were the glancing quickness of her -motions, and other circumstances in her deportment (such as her stooping -attitude when walking) which gave an ungraceful, and even unsexual, -character to her appearance when out of doors. She did not cultivate the -graces which preside over the person and its carriage. But, on the other -hand, she was a person of very remarkable endowments, intellectually; -and, in addition to the other great services which she rendered to her -brother, this I may mention as greater than all the rest, and it was one -which equally operated to the benefit of every casual companion in a -walk--viz., the exceeding sympathy, always ready and always profound, -by which she made all that one could tell her, all that one could -describe, all that one could quote from a foreign author, reverberate, -as it were, _à plusieurs reprises_, to one's own feelings, by the -manifest impression it made upon _hers_. The pulses of light are not -more quick or more inevitable in their flow and undulation than were the -answering and echoing movements of her sympathising attention. Her -knowledge of literature was irregular and thoroughly unsystematic. She -was content to be ignorant of many things; but what she knew and had -really mastered lay where it could not be disturbed--in the temple of -her own most fervid heart." - -Proceeding to compare his impressions of the two ladies he adds:--"Miss -Wordsworth had seen more of life, and even of good company; for she had -lived, when quite a girl, under the protection of Dr. Cookson, a near -relative, Canon of Windsor, and a personal favourite of the Royal -family, especially of George III. Consequently she ought to have been -the more polished of the two; and yet, from greater natural aptitudes -for refinement of manner in her sister-in-law, and partly, perhaps, from -her more quiet and subdued manner, Mrs. Wordsworth would have been -pronounced very much the more lady-like person." - -De Quincey excuses the large latitude used in his descriptions on the -ground of "the interest which attaches to any one so nearly connected -with a great poet," and the repetition of them is, perhaps, to be -justified only for the same reason. - -In further allusion to Miss Wordsworth he says:--"Miss Wordsworth was -too ardent and fiery a creature to maintain the reserve essential to -dignity; and dignity was the last thing one thought of in the presence -of one so natural, so fervent in her feelings, and so embarrassed in -their utterance--sometimes, also, in the attempt to check them. It must -not, however, be supposed, that there was any silliness, or weakness of -enthusiasm, about her. She was under the continual restraint of severe -good sense, though liberated from that false shame which, in so many -persons, accompanies all expressions of natural emotion; and she had too -long enjoyed the ennobling conversation of her brother, and his -admirable comments on the poets, which they read in common, to fail in -any essential point of logic or propriety of thought. Accordingly, her -letters, though the most careless and unelaborate--nay, the most hearty -that can be imagined--are models of good sense and just feeling. In -short, beyond any person I have known in this world, Miss Wordsworth was -the creature of impulse; but, as a woman most thoroughly virtuous and -well principled, as one who could not fail to be kept right by her own -excellent heart, and as an intellectual creature from her cradle, with -much of her illustrious brother's peculiarity of mind--finally as one -who had been, in effect, educated and trained by that very brother--she -won the sympathy and respectful regard of every man worthy to approach -her." - -De Quincey subsequently relates how he was entertained for the night in -the best bedroom of the poet's home, and on the following morning -discovered Miss Wordsworth preparing the breakfast in the little -sitting-room. He adds:--"On the third morning the whole family, except -the two children, prepared for the expedition across the mountains. I -had heard of no horses, and took it for granted that we were to walk; -however, at the moment of starting, a cart--the common farmer's cart of -the country--made its appearance; and the driver was a bonny young woman -of the vale. Accordingly, we were carted along to the little town, or -village, of Ambleside--three and a half miles distant. Our style of -travelling occasioned no astonishment; on the contrary, we met a smiling -salutation wherever we appeared--Miss Wordsworth being, as I observed, -the person the most familiarly known of our party, and the one who took -upon herself the whole expenses of the flying colloquies exchanged with -stragglers on the road." - -Although the little home at Town End is so closely identified with -Wordsworth as being his residence in his poetic prime he this year -(1807) found it necessary, in consequence of his increasing family, to -remove to a larger house. He went to Allan Bank, about a mile distant, -and remained there four years. This residence is not nearly so closely -connected with the memory of the Wordsworths as either Dove Cottage or -Rydal Mount. The time was not, however, by any means an unproductive -one, for here he composed the greater part of the "Excursion," the whole -of which poem is said to have been transcribed by his faithful and -industrious sister. It is interesting to know that the now historic -cottage, which is possessed of such a charm as the first mountain home -of Miss Wordsworth in this district, was afterwards for some years the -residence of De Quincey himself. After his first visit, of which he has -given such a graphic account, it appears that he paid another towards -the end of 1808; and that he then enjoyed the hospitality of the -Wordsworths until the February following, when, having assisted during a -stay in London in the correction in its progress through the press of -Wordsworth's pamphlet, "The Convention of Cintra," he formed the project -of settling in Grasmere. Writing to him Miss Wordsworth says:--"Soon you -must have rest, and we shall all be thankful. You have indeed been a -treasure to us while you have been in London, having spared my brother -so much anxiety and care. We are very grateful to you." - -Whatever service De Quincey rendered to Wordsworth in assisting in the -publication of "The Convention of Cintra" was much more than repaid in -the active kindness of Miss Wordsworth herself, who, was for some months -engaged in preparing the cottage at Town End for its new resident. It -was, indeed, no small service for her to undertake the multifarious and -exhausting duties in connection with the furnishing and fitting up of a -home; and shows not only her unflagging activity and energy, but also -her sound sense and excellent judgment. As an instance of her thoughtful -economy on the occasion may be mentioned her reason for choosing -mahogany for book shelves instead of deal, for she says:--"Native woods -are dear; and that in case De Quincey should leave the country and have -a sale, no sort of wood sells so well at second-hand as mahogany." To -Miss Wordsworth was also entrusted the duty of engaging a housekeeper -for De Quincey. - -The frequent allusions in these pages to De Quincey, and his close -association for some years with the Wordsworths, render it necessary -that some further reference should be made to his subsequent connection -with Grasmere. The following is a description given by him of his own -life in 1812:-- - -"And what am I doing among the mountains? Taking opium. Yes; but what -else? Why, reader, in 1812, the year we are now arrived at, as well as -for some years previous, I have been chiefly studying German -metaphysics, as the writings of Kant, Fichte, Schelling, &c. And how, -and in what manner do I live? In short, what class or description of men -do I belong to? I am at this period,--viz., in 1812,--living in a -cottage; and with a single female servant, who, amongst my neighbours, -passes by the name of my 'housekeeper.' And, as a scholar and a man of -learned education, I may presume to class myself as an unworthy member -of that indefinite body called _gentlemen_. Partly on the ground I have -assigned,--partly because, from having no visible calling or business, -it is rightly judged that I must be living on my private fortune,--I am -so classed by my neighbours; and by the courtesy of modern England, I am -usually addressed on letters, &c., _Esquire_.... Am I married? Not yet. -And I still take opium? On Saturday nights.... And how do I find my -health after all this opium-eating? In short, how do I do? Why, pretty -well, I thank you, reader. In fact, if I dared to say the simple truth -(though, in order to satisfy the theories of some medical men, I ought -to be ill), I was never better in my life than in the spring of 1812; -and I hope, sincerely, that the quantity of claret, port, or 'London -particular Madeira,' which, in all probability, you, good reader, have -taken, and design to take, for every term of eight years during your -natural life, may as little disorder your health as mine was disordered -by all the opium I had taken (though in quantity such that I might well -have bathed and swum in it) for the eight years between 1804 and 1812." - -In 1816 De Quincey married a young woman named Margaret Simpson, the -daughter of a farmer living in a cottage under Nab Scar, not far from -his own at Town End, who became devoted to his interests. He continued -to reside partly at Grasmere until the year 1830, although his literary -duties necessitated his being much at London and Edinburgh. It was in -1821 that his now famous "Confessions of an Opium Eater" began to appear -in the pages of the _London Magazine_. Afterwards his connection with -Blackwood took him a good deal to Edinburgh. Although he and his wife -did not like the idea of quitting altogether the peaceful vale where she -had been reared, it became evident that it was undesirable to keep up -two houses, leaving his wife and children so much alone at Grasmere. The -following extract from a letter written by Miss Wordsworth to him in -November of this year shows her warm interest in him and his family, and -her readiness to give well-timed sympathy and aid. After alluding to a -visit paid by her to Mrs. De Quincey, and the health of the children, -she says:--"Mrs. De Quincey seemed, on the whole, in very good spirits; -but, with something of sadness in her manner, she told me you were not -likely very soon to be at home. She then said that you had, at present, -some literary employments at Edinburgh, and had, besides, an offer (or -something to this effect) of a permanent engagement, the nature of which -she did not know, but that you hesitated about accepting it, as it might -necessitate you to settle in Edinburgh. To this I replied, 'Why not -settle there, for the time, at least, that this engagement lasts? -Lodgings are cheap at Edinburgh, and provisions and coals not dear. Of -this fact I had some weeks' experience four years ago.' I then added -that it was my firm opinion that you could never regularly keep up your -engagements at a distance from the press, and, said I, 'pray tell him so -when you write.' She replied, 'do write yourself.' Now I could not -refuse to give her pleasure by so doing, especially being assured that -my letter would not be wholly worthless to you, having such agreeable -news to send of your family." - -This excellent advice was soon afterwards acted upon, and Edinburgh -became the scene of De Quincey's further life and labours. Here he died -on the 8th of December, 1859, aged 74 years. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -THE CHILDREN OF BLENTARN GHYLL. - -DEATH OF WORDSWORTH'S CHILDREN. - - -A melancholy incident which occurred during her residence at Allan Bank -may be mentioned, since Miss Wordsworth took such an active, sympathetic -interest in the relief and succour of the sufferers. It is not, however, -necessary to relate in detail the sad story, as this has been done by De -Quincey and others. - -Nestling in the valley of Easedale still stands a humble farm-house -called Blentarn Ghyll, which takes its name from a mountain ravine near -by. Here, in the year 1808, lived an industrious farmer and his wife -named George and Sarah Green, with their six children, the youngest a -baby, and the eldest a girl of nine or ten. On the morning of a day long -to be remembered George Green and his wife started off over the -mountains--a distance of five or six miles--to Langdale, to attend a -sale of furniture (on which occasions these scattered neighbours used to -meet) intending to return the same evening. Notwithstanding that some of -their friends endeavoured to dissuade them from returning by the -mountains, they, in the afternoon, started on their return journey. And -neither of them was ever seen in life again. A fall of snow came, in -which they hopelessly lost their way, and, as De Quincey says, "they -disappeared into the cloud of death." Meanwhile, the poor little -children sat round the fire waiting in vain for their parents' return. -The eldest, little Agnes Green, whose emotions were, during that and -subsequent days, changed from those of a child of tender years to those -of a mother, became heroic in her devotion to her tiny brothers and -sisters. The lonely farmhouse, with its little inhabitants, was for some -days surrounded by drifts of snow, which prevented their leaving it. -Meantime, as day succeeded day, the brave Agnes cheered up the others as -best she could, preparing their scanty meals, and making the elder ones -say their prayers night and morning. It was not until the third day that -she was able to force her way through the snow and tell the sad tale, -inquiring with tearful face whether her father and mother had been seen. - -Such was the interest felt in the story of their loss, that all the -able-bodied men of Grasmere formed themselves into a search band; but it -was not until after the expiration of three days that the bodies of the -faithful couple were found near Dungeon Ghyll, the husband being at the -bottom of a rock, from which he had fallen, where his wife had crept -round to him. They were only a few hundred yards from a farmhouse, to -which, however, their cries for help had not reached, or had been -mistaken. In the future of the helpless orphans Miss Wordsworth took an -active interest, and raised a considerable sum of money for their -benefit. The Royal Family were made acquainted with the sad history, and -the Queen herself and her daughters became subscribers to the fund. The -children were taken into different families in the neighbourhood, one of -them going to live with the Wordsworths. The heroic little Agnes died -many years ago, and is buried in Grasmere Churchyard beside her parents. -Three of these children yet survive, the eldest of whom, now 85 years -old, has given me some of the foregoing particulars. He still well -remembers the circumstances of that fatal journey, and the vain waiting, -during the hours of night, for the father and mother who never returned. -Another survivor--the one who was at the time a little baby girl--is now -blind, and, I believe, a great grandmother. - -Among other lasting friendships of the Wordsworths which we find -existing about this period is that with Mr. Henry Crabb Robinson, whose -"Diary and Reminiscences" afford some pleasant recollections of many of -the _literati_ of his time among whom he had a very extensive -acquaintance. In 1810 Miss Wordsworth had been paying a visit to Mr. and -Mrs. Clarkson (of anti-slave trade celebrity) at Bury. Mr. Robinson met -her there, and, being about to return to London when Miss Wordsworth was -intending to pay a visit to Charles and Mary Lamb, he undertook to -escort her thither. Upon her return home she wrote to him the following -letter:-- - - "_Grasmere, November 6, 1810_. - - "MY DEAR SIR,--I am very proud of the commission my brother has - given me, as it affords me an opportunity of expressing the - pleasure with which I think of you, and of our long journey side - by side in the pleasant sunshine, our splendid entrance into the - great city, and our rambles together in the crowded streets. I - assure you I am not ungrateful for even the least of your kind - attentions, and shall be happy in return to be your guide amongst - these mountains, where, if you bring a mind free from care, I can - promise you a rich store of noble enjoyments. My brother and - sister will be exceedingly happy to see you; and, if you tell him - stories from Spain of enthusiasm, patriotism, and detestation of - the usurper, my brother will be a ready listener; and in presence - of these grand works of nature you may feed each other's lofty - hopes. We are waiting with the utmost anxiety for the issue of - that battle which you arranged so nicely by Charles Lamb's - fireside. My brother goes to seek the newspapers whenever it is - possible to get a sight of one, and he is almost out of patience - that the tidings are delayed so long. - - * * * * * - - "Pray, as you are most likely to see _Charles_ at least from time - to time, tell me how they are going on. There is nobody in the - world out of our house for whom I am more deeply interested. You - will, I know, be happy that our little ones are all going on well. - The delicate little Catherine, the only one for whom we had any - serious alarm, gains ground daily. Yet it will be long before she - can be or have the appearance of being a stout child. There was - great joy in the house at my return, which each showed in a - different way. They are sweet wild creatures, and I think you - would love them all. John is thoughtful with his wildness; Dora - alive, active, and quick; Thomas, innocent and simple as a - new-born babe. John had no feeling but of bursting joy when he saw - me. Dorothy's first question was, 'Where is my doll?' We had - delightful weather when I first got home; but on the first morning - Dorothy roused me from my sleep with, 'It is time to get up, Aunt; - it is a blasty morning--it does blast so.' And the next morning, - not more encouraging, she said, 'It is a hailing morning--it hails - so hard.' You must know that our house stands on a hill, exposed - to all hails and blasts.... - - "D. WORDSWORTH." - -From the above letter it will be seen, as can be well understood, that -Miss Wordsworth was a great favourite with the poet's children, of whom -there were then born the four mentioned. To these children, and the -interests and enjoyments of their young lives, she devoted herself with -the unselfish devotion and zeal which so pervaded her life and animated -her conduct. - -Sara Coleridge, the daughter of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, between whose -family and that of Wordsworth the most cordial relations always existed, -in the record of her early life has a pleasant recollection of a visit -paid by her to Allan Bank when she was six years old. She writes:--"That -journey to Grasmere gleams before me as the shadow of a shade. Allan -Bank is a large house on the hill overlooking Easedale on one side and -Grasmere on the other. Dorothy, Mr. Wordsworth's only daughter, was at -the time very picturesque in her appearance, with her long thick yellow -locks, which were never cut, but curled with papers, a thing which seems -much out of keeping with the poetic, simple household. I remember being -asked by my father and Miss Wordsworth, the poet's sister, if I did not -think her very pretty. 'No,' said I, bluntly, for which I met with a -rebuff, which made me feel as if I was a culprit." - -Miss Coleridge also gives the following reminiscence:--"Miss Wordsworth, -Mr. Wordsworth's sister, of most poetic eye and temper, took a great -part with the children. She told us once a pretty story of a primrose, I -think, which she espied by the wayside when she went to see me soon -after my birth, though that was at Christmas, and how this same primrose -was still blooming when she went back to Grasmere." - -The life of Miss Wordsworth had hitherto been, on the whole, one of -serene and calm enjoyment. In the social circle bound so closely in -mutual affection, and so richly endowed with the faculty of making -herself happy--of truly living--the only cloud during many years of -brightness had been the death of her brother John. It could not, -however, but have been expected that the happy circle would become still -more acquainted with the common lot of mortal life. - -During their residence at the parsonage at Grasmere, where they were -living in 1812, the circle was broken by the loss of two of their -children, then five in number. In the case of one, the interesting and -delicate little Kate, then about four years old, the circumstances were -peculiarly distressing. The way in which her very brief illness was -caused has not been very clearly stated. De Quincey has attributed it to -what he calls by the harsh name of the "criminal negligence" of one of -the children of the George and Sarah Green before-mentioned, whom the -Wordsworths had taken to live with them. He relates that while little -Catherine was under the care of Sarah Green she was allowed to eat a -number of raw carrots, in consequence of which she was very shortly, -seized with strong convulsions. Although she partially recovered the -immediate effect, her left side remained in a disabled condition. - -It was some months after this that little Kate, having gone to bed -bright and happy at the hour of a June sunset, was discovered in a -speechless condition about midnight, and died in convulsions after a few -hours' suffering. While, as may be imagined, the grief of her parents at -the loss was great, that of De Quincey (who was not at Grasmere at the -time, and was informed of the event by Miss Wordsworth) was so poignant -and extravagant as to become romantic. The dear child had got so near -the heart of the little dreamy opium-eater--had, in fact, found so warm -a corner there--that he seemed to be almost overwhelmed. The heart was -empty, and the eyes that could no longer gaze upon the living form were -filled with its image. He used to imagine that he saw her. So great was -his grief that we are told he often spent the night upon her grave. This -may appear very extravagant, as it doubtless is; but we cannot measure a -man like De Quincey by any ordinary standard. Possessing as he did a -gigantic and immortal genius, he was at the same time one of the most -unimaginable and eccentric, unreal and dreamy of beings that ever owned -a warm human heart. The Wordsworth children were especially dear to him, -and particularly so little Catherine. And they returned his affection. -Three weeks before her death he had seen her for the last time. In his -letter to Miss Wordsworth he says:--"The children were speaking to me -altogether, and I was saying one thing to one and another to another, -and she, who could not speak loud enough to overpower the other voices, -had got on a chair, and putting her hand upon my mouth, she said, with -her sweet importunateness of action and voice, 'Kinsey, Kinsey, what a -bring Katy from London?' I believe she said it twice; and I remember -that her mother noticed the earnestness and intelligence of her manner, -and looked at me and smiled. This was the last time that I heard her -sweet voice distinctly, and I shall never hear one like it again." - -The death of Catherine was followed six months later by that of her -brother Thomas, six and a half years old. This double affliction made -the Wordsworths glad to remove from the neighbourhood of the churchyard, -which so constantly reminded them of their loss. It was for this reason -that, in 1813, they went to reside at Rydal Mount, which was thenceforth -the home of Miss Wordsworth until her death--a period of more than forty -years. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -REMOVAL TO RYDAL MOUNT.--DORA WORDSWORTH. - - -Since their settlement in Grasmere, the worldly circumstances of -Wordsworth, as well as those of his sister, had considerably improved. -We have seen upon what slender, combined means they began housekeeping, -living in "noble poverty"--and were happy. Shortly afterwards the then -Earl of Lonsdale honourably paid to the Wordsworths the large sum of -money which, as has been before mentioned, had been withheld by his -father. The share of each of them of this is said to have been about -£1,800. In addition to this the poet's muse had begun to be more -profitable to him. Though he had not then been awarded that high and -foremost rank in the inspired choir which he has since attained, yet his -power as a great poet was beginning to be acknowledged by more than the -select number who had from the first recognised his genius. - -About this time he also had conferred upon him the appointment as -distributor of stamps for Westmoreland. While the emoluments of this -office formed a substantial addition to the poet's income, its duties -were such that they could be chiefly performed by deputy. - -In obtaining for their new home the now classic RYDAL MOUNT, the good -fortune of the Wordsworths did not fail them. The "modest mansion" is -well known, and many descriptions of it have been given. For the beauty -of its situation, and the amenities of its surroundings, it is almost -unsurpassed. It has been somewhere stated that whilst most persons, who, -having chosen their own residences, think them the first, they are all -ready to give the second place to Rydal Mount. I have on two occasions -since the poet's death had the good fortune to obtain admittance to the -grounds, and, with feelings of reverence and emotion, paced the -terrace-walks, worn by the footsteps of the great departed. We are on -such occasions strikingly reminded of the words of Foster: "What a tale -could be told by many a room were the walls endowed with memory and -speech." The house stands in an elevated position, being on a plateau on -the south side of Nab Scar. Striking off from the side of the house is a -walk called the Upper Terrace. From this path the views are exceedingly -lovely. Immediately in front is the Rothay Valley, backed by the -richly-wooded heights of Loughrigg, with Windermere in the distance to -the left, "a light thrown into the picture in the winter season, and in -the summer a beautiful feature, changing with every hue of the sky." -About halfway along the terrace we come to a rustic alcove, built of fir -poles, and lined with cones. Here, we should think, the walk ends, for -we are parallel with the boundary wall of the garden below; but opening -a door, we find the road branches slightly to the right, and, opening -into the far terrace, reveals a surprise view. Here we see beneath us -Rydal Water, gemmed with its romantic islands, and beyond, the green -heights of Loughrigg Terrace. Following the path, with its sloping banks -of fern and flowers, for about fifty yards, we find it terminated by a -little wicket-gate, which opens upon a field, whence the old, and now -grass-green, road to Grasmere is reached. On the left side of the Upper -Terrace is a dwarf wall, niched with ferns and mosses. Below this wall -is another terrace--a level one--formed by the poet himself, chiefly for -the sake of Miss Fenwick, who was a valued friend, and, in after years, -an inmate at Rydal Mount. To her the poet dictated the MSS. notes upon -his poems, referred to in the "Memoirs," and elsewhere, as the "MSS. I. -F." - -In speaking of the nocturnal aspect of Rydal Mount, Wordsworth mentions -"the beauty of the situation, its being backed and flanked by lofty -fells, which bring the heavenly bodies to touch, as it were, the earth -upon the mountain tops, while the prospect in front lies open to a -length of level valley, the extended lake, and a terminating ridge of -low hills." - -A poetical description of this chosen retreat, by Miss Jewsbury, and -published in the _Literary Magnet_, for 1826, may be quoted here:-- - - "THE POET'S HOME." - - "Low and white, yet scarcely seen, - Are its walls for mantling green; - Not a window lets in light, - But through flowers clustering bright; - Not a glance may wander there, - But it falls on something fair; - Garden choice, and fairy mound, - Only that no elves are found; - Winding walk, and sheltered nook, - For student grave and graver book: - Or a bird-like bower, perchance, - Fit for maiden and romance. - Then, far off, a glorious sheen - Of wide and sunlit waters seen; - Hills that in the distance lie, - Blue and yielding as the sky; - And nearer, closing round the nest, - The home of all the 'living crest,' - Other rocks and mountains stand, - Rugged, yet a guardian band, - Like those that did, in fable old, - Elysium from the world enfold. - - ". . . . . . . Companions meet - Thou shalt have in thy retreat: - One of long-tried love and truth; - Thine in age as thine in youth; - One, whose locks of partial grey, - Whisper somewhat of decay; - Yet whose bright and beaming eye - Tells of more that cannot die. - - "Then a second form beyond, - Thine, too, by another bond, - Sportive, tender, graceful, wild-- - Scarcely woman, more than child-- - One who doth thy heart entwine, - Like the ever-clinging vine; - One to whom thou art a stay, - As the oak that, scarred and grey, - Standeth on, and standeth fast, - Strong and stately to the last. - - "Poet's lot like this hath been; - Such, perchance, may I have seen; - Or in fancy's fairy land, - Or in truth, and near at hand: - If in fancy, then, forsooth, - Fancy had the force of truth; - If, again, a truth it were, - Then were truth as fancy fair; - But, which ever it might be, - ''Twas a Paradise to me.'" - -Of the "companions meet" referred to above it is evident that the -first-named "of long-tried love and truth" is Miss Wordsworth; the -second, Mrs. Wordsworth; and the third, Miss Dora Wordsworth, the poet's -daughter, to whom some further reference should now be made. - -At the time of the removal to Rydal Mount, in the spring of 1813, the -family, in addition to the parents and Miss Wordsworth, consisted of -three children, of whom the second--Dorothy, or Dora, born in 1804--was -of the interesting age of nine years. She was named after her aunt, Miss -Wordsworth; for, although her father would have preferred to have called -her Mary, the name Dorothy, as he stated to Lady Beaumont, had been so -long devoted in his own thoughts to the first daughter he might have, -he could not break his promise to himself. By way of further -distinguishing her from her aunt, Mr. Crabb Robinson used to call her -Dorina. To this surviving daughter, as she grew up to womanhood, -Wordsworth was passionately attached. Inheriting as she did, in no -slight degree, the family genius, he seemed to see reproduced in her a -harmonious blending of the characteristics and mental lineaments of his -wife and sister, the two beings in the world whom he had most devotedly -loved. - -Wordsworth's later poems contain several allusions to Dora. In this -place I will quote a stanza or two only, from one, entitled "The Triad," -written in celebration of Edith Southey, Dora Wordsworth, and Sara -Coleridge:-- - - "Open, ye thickets! let her fly, - Swift as a Thracian Nymph o'er field and height! - For She, to all but those who love her, shy, - Would gladly vanish from a Stranger's sight; - Though where she is beloved and loves, - Light as the wheeling butterfly she moves; - Her happy spirit as a bird is free, - That rifles blossoms on a tree, - Turning them inside out with arch audacity. - Alas! how little can a moment show - Of an eye where feeling plays - In ten thousand dewy rays; - A face o'er which a thousand shadows go! - --She stops--is fastened to that rivulet's side; - And there (while, with sedater mien, - O'er timid waters that have scarcely left - Their birth-place in the rocky cleft, - She bends) at leisure may be seen - Features to old ideal grace allied, - Amid their smiles and dimples dignified-- - Fit countenance for the soul of primal truth: - The bland composure of eternal youth! - - "What more changeful than the sea? - But over his great tides - Fidelity presides; - And this light-hearted Maiden, constant is as he. - High is her aim as heaven above, - And wide as ether her good-will; - And, like the lowly reed, her love - Can drink its nurture from the scantiest rill: - Insight as keen as frosty star - Is to _her_ charity no bar, - Nor interrupts her frolic graces - When she is, far from these wild places, - Encircled by familiar faces." - -Writing of Dora Wordsworth, Miss Coleridge says:--"There is truth in the -sketch of Dora--poetic truth, though such as none but a poetic father -would have seen. She was unique in her sweetness and goodness. I mean -that her character was most peculiar--a compound of vehemence of feeling -and gentleness, sharpness and lovingness, which is not often seen." - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -FRIENDS.--TOUR ON CONTINENT. - - -Some reference more special than hitherto should be made to the more -outer influences which entered into the life of Miss Wordsworth. -Although so bound up in her brother, her life presented many sides, and -her sympathies, as will have been seen, were by no means limited in -their operation to the household circle. Her brother's friends were -hers. Probably few have been more independent of outside friendships, -and of society, than the family at Rydal; and at the same time few have -been blessed with such genial and cultured associates. - -We have seen how close had, for many years, been the companionship with -Coleridge, whom Lamb has called "an archangel a little -damaged"--Coleridge, the incomprehensible, versatile genius, poet, -philosopher, theologian, metaphysician, and critic--of whom it has -recently been said that "even in the dilapidation of his powers, due -chiefly, if you will, to his own unthrifty management of them, we might, -making proper deductions, apply to him what Mark Antony says of the dead -Cæsar:-- - - 'He was the ruins of the noblest man - That ever lived in the tide of time.'" - -Then we have the sedate and scholarly Southey, the brother-in-law of -Coleridge, and both of whom, up to 1810, when Coleridge left the -district, resided at Greta Hall, near Keswick. Charles and Mary Lamb, -also, although they could seldom be lured from their beloved London, -were, as we have seen, among the earliest friends of the Wordsworths, -and their home generally the abode of Miss Wordsworth during her -occasional visits to the metropolis. Charles Lloyd, of Brathay--the -dreamy Quaker, and bosom friend of Lamb--also became a neighbour, and an -esteemed friend. Later, we have seen De Quincey, the intellectual opium -eater, whose growth seems to have been almost entirely in the direction -of brain (and of whom Southey said he wished he was not so very little, -and did not always forget his great coat!) received into the charmed -circle; Crabb Robinson, also, who, though not a writer himself, counted -amongst his friends some of the most eminent literary men of the day. -Professor Wilson, of Elleray, the physical and mental giant, who resided -within, what was to the Wordsworths and himself, fair walking distance; -afterwards Hartley Coleridge, loving and lovable, who inherited no small -portion of the poetic genius of his more illustrious father; and Dr. -Arnold, of Rugby fame, who settled almost within a stone's-throw of -Rydal Mount, added to the _coterie_ of men of genius, among whom, -Wordsworth, from time to time, if not at the same time, moved as a -revered master, added to the interest of this warm centre of -intellectual activity. - -Among many other sons of genius who should be ranked as friends of -Wordsworth was Haydon, the painter. He painted Wordsworth on several -occasions, and introduced him into his famous picture of "Christ's Entry -into Jerusalem." Of this Hazlitt said it was the "most like his drooping -weight of thought and expression." Of this picture Haydon, in his -autobiography, says: "During the progress of the picture of Jerusalem, I -resolved to put into it (1816), in a side group, Voltaire, as a sneerer, -and Newton, as a believer. I now (1817) put Hazlitt's head into my -picture, looking at Christ as an investigator. It had a good effect. I -then put in Keats into the background, and resolved to introduce -Wordsworth, bowing with reverence and awe.... The Centurion, the -Samaritan Woman, Jairus and his daughter, St. Peter, St. John, Newton, -Voltaire, the anxious mother of the penitent girl, and the girl blushing -and hiding her face, many heads behind; in fact the leading groups were -accomplished, when down came my health again, eyes and all." This -painting, so enthusiastically received in England, was, unfortunately, -sent to America, whence it has never returned. Haydon writes, under date -September 23, 1831: "My 'Jerusalem' is purchased, and is going to -America. Went to see it before it was embarked. It was melancholy to -look, for the last time, at a work which had excited so great a -sensation in England and Scotland. It was now leaving my native country -for ever." - -In speaking of the friends of the Wordsworths, some allusion should be -made to others, who, if they were less widely known, were not less -warmly appreciative of their worth, or less closely identified with -them. Sir George Beaumont, of Coleorton Hall, Leicestershire, was for -many years a close friend and admirer; and from time to time we find -Miss Wordsworth visiting there. - -Among the ladies who, in after years, became closely intimate with the -inmates of Rydal Mount were Mrs. Fletcher, herself a lady of some -literary distinction, and her daughter Mary, afterwards Lady Richardson. -For the sake chiefly of the society of the Arnolds and Wordsworths, Mrs. -Fletcher--who speaks of a tea-party at Rydal Mount as "perhaps the -highest point in man's civilised life, in all its bearings"--became the -purchaser of the little mountain farm of Lancrigg before-mentioned, so -nearly identified with Miss Wordsworth's Easedale rambles, and which she -converted into the charming retreat it is at the present time. Miss -Fenwick also, to whom the world owes the valuable notes upon the poems, -dictated to her, at her urgent request, by the poet, after having, for -very love of the Wordsworths, resided for some time in the -neighbourhood, became, and was for many years, a resident at the Mount. -From the recently-published autobiography of Sir Henry Taylor, we learn -that this amiable lady, many years before she became an inmate at Rydal -Mount, had stated she would be content to be a servant in that house, -that she might hear the poet's wisdom. Of the life of Miss Fenwick -herself, Sir Henry says, it was "a life of love and beneficence, as -nearly divine as any life upon earth that I have known, or heard of, or -been capable of conceiving." - -From the time of taking up her abode at Rydal Mount, the outward life -of Miss Wordsworth was passed without much change. After the trials -which had preceded, life in this ideal home appears to have been for -many years unbroken by any sorrow. It is needless to say that Miss -Wordsworth's close interest in her brother and his career, and in all -the incidents of his life, never waned. A letter of Miss Wordsworth, -which has recently been given to the world, written when "The White Doe -of Rylstone" was about to be published (in 1815), shows that he and his -work were still the first objects of her thought and affection. She -writes: "My brother was very much pleased with your frankness in telling -us that you did not perfectly like his poem. He wishes to know what your -feelings were--whether the tale itself did not interest you, or whether -you could not enter into the conception of Emily's character, or take -delight in that visionary union which is supposed to have existed -between her and the doe. Do not fear to give him pain. He is far too -much accustomed to be abused to receive pain from it (at least, so far -as he himself is concerned). My reason for asking you these questions -is, that some of your friends, who are equally admirers of the 'White -Doe,' and of my brother's published poems, think that _this_ poem will -sell on account of the story; that is, that the story will bear up those -points which are above the level of the public taste; whereas the two -last volumes--except by a few solitary individuals, who are passionately -devoted to my brother's works--are abused by wholesale. - -"Now, as his sole object in publishing this poem at present would be for -the sake of the money, he would not publish it if he did not think, -from the several judgments of his friends, that it would be likely to -have a sale. He has no pleasure in publishing--he even detests it; and -if it were not that he is not over wealthy he would leave all his works -to be published after his death. William himself is sure that the 'White -Doe' will not sell or be admired, except by a very few at first, and -only yields to Mary's entreaties and mine. We are determined, however, -if we are deceived this time to let him have his own way in future." - -The year 1820 was signalised by a lengthened tour on the Continent, -including France, the Rhine, Italy, and Switzerland, in which Miss -Wordsworth accompanied her brother and Mrs. Wordsworth, and their -kinspeople--Mr. and Mrs. Monkhouse. Mr. Crabb Robinson was also of the -party, and his diary contains some pleasant reminiscences of the tour. -It is interesting to note such an entry as the following: "On the 5th -September the Wordsworths went back to the Lake of Como, in order to -gratify Miss Wordsworth, who _wished to see every spot which her brother -saw in his first journey_--a journey made when he was young." "The women -wear black caps, fitting the head closely, with prodigious black gauze -wings. Miss Wordsworth calls it the 'butterfly cap.'" - -The "Memorials of a Tour on the Continent," published by Wordsworth, in -1822, did not constitute the only literary result of the tour. Mrs. and -Miss Wordsworth kept a journal of events and impressions, which it is to -be greatly regretted has not been published, notwithstanding the -expressed desire of the poet to the contrary. As a charming memorial of -this interesting journey, it could not fail to prove of great interest. - -Shortly after the publication of these poems we find the following -letter written by Miss Wordsworth to Mr. Crabb Robinson:-- - - "_3rd March, 1822._ - - "My brother will, I hope, write to Charles Lamb in the course of a - few days. He has long talked of doing it; but you know how the - mastery of his own thoughts (when engaged in composition, as he - has lately been) often prevents him from fulfilling his best - intentions; and since the weakness of his eyes has returned, he - has been obliged to fill up all spaces of leisure by going into - the open air for refreshment and relief to his eyes. We are very - thankful that the inflammation, chiefly in the lids, is now much - abated. It concerns us very much to hear so indifferent an account - of Lamb and his sister; the death of their brother no doubt has - afflicted them much more than the death of any brother, with whom - there had, in near neighbourhood, been so little personal or - family communication, would afflict any other minds. We deeply - lamented their loss, and wished to write to them as soon as we - heard of it; but it not being the particular duty of any one of - us, and a painful task, we put it off, for which we are now sorry, - and very much blame ourselves. They are too good and too confiding - to take it unkindly, and that thought makes us feel it more.... - With respect to the tour poems, I am afraid you will think my - brother's notes not sufficiently copious; prefaces he has none, - except to the poem on Goddard's death. Your suggestion as to the - bridge at Lucerne set his mind to work; and if a happy mood comes - on he is determined even yet, though the work is printed, to add a - poem on that subject. You can have no idea with what earnest - pleasure he seized the idea, yet before he began to write at all, - when he was pondering over his recollections, and asking me for - hints and thoughts, I mentioned that very subject, and he then - thought he could make nothing of it. You certainly have the gift - of setting him on fire. When I named (before your letter was read - to him) your scheme for next autumn his countenance flushed with - pleasure, and he exclaimed: 'I'll go with him.' Presently, - however, the conversation took a sober turn, and he concluded that - the journey would be impossible; 'and then,' said he, 'if you or - Mary, or both, were not with me, I should not half enjoy it; and - that is impossible.' ... We have had a long and interesting letter - from Mrs. Clarkson. Notwithstanding bad times, she writes in - cheerful spirits, and talks of coming into the North this summer, - and we really hope it will not end in talk, as Mr. Clarkson joins - with her; and, if he once determines, a trifle will not stop him. - Pray read a paper in the _London Magazine_ by Hartley Coleridge on - the uses of the 'Heathen Mythology in Poetry.' It has pleased us - very much. The style is wonderful for so young a man--so little of - effort and no affectation.... - - "DOROTHY WORDSWORTH." - -The following extract from a letter written by Mr. Robinson, in June, -1825, shortly after Lamb's retirement from the East India Office, will -be of interest. He writes: "I have not seen the Lambs so often as I used -to do, owing to a variety of circumstances. Nor can I give you the -report you naturally looked for of his conduct at so great a change in -his life.... The expression of his delight has been child-like (in the -good sense of that word). You have read the 'Superannuated Man.' I do -not doubt, I do not fear, that he will be unable to sustain 'the weight -of chance desires.' Could he--but I fear he cannot--occupy himself in -some great work requiring continued and persevering attention and -labour, the benefit would be equally his and the world's. Mary Lamb has -remained so well, that one might almost advise, or rather permit, a -journey to them. But Lamb has no desire to travel. If he had, few things -would give me so much pleasure as to accompany him. I should be proud of -taking care of him. But he has a passion for solitude, he says, and -hitherto he finds that his retirement from business has not brought -leisure." - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -FURTHER INFLUENCE. - - -Before alluding to the affliction which for many years darkened the -later life of Miss Wordsworth, and gathering together some of the -remaining threads of her history, it is fitting that something further -should be said in relation to her sustained influence upon her brother -and her devotion to him, although it is with a feeling of how impossible -it is adequately to do this, or that the fruit of her dominant presence -should ever be fully known. - -Those who know Wordsworth, and who, recognising his commanding place in -literature, have had their sympathies enlarged, their eyes opened to -discern in Nature and Providence their boundless sources of satisfaction -and delight--whose hearts have been expanded by his high and holy -teaching--will be ready to recognise all the spiritual aids by which he -was himself inspired. It would be unjust to others, who held high sway -over his heart, to say that everything was due to his sister. At the -same time it is manifest that she bore no insignificant part, and during -his early life the largely predominant part in that work, and thus was -to a great extent instrumental in introducing the new evangel of song -by which the century's literature has been uplifted. The elevating -presence of such a woman, in the delightful and close relationship of -sister, was to a man of Wordsworth's character, itself an inspiration. -If it be good to learn to look on Nature with a reverential eye, seeing -therein the Creation of God brought near, then to this poet, as Nature's -high priest and interpreter is due the gratitude of generations. - -As the close companion and stimulator of this great poet during the -years of preparation and discipline, who "first couched his eye to the -sense of beauty," we owe it indirectly to Miss Wordsworth that Nature -has become to us so much more than she was to our forefathers, has been -revealed in a clearer and brighter light; that she speaks to us in a new -language, calling us away from the lower cares of life, and uplifting us -to a higher soul-inbreathing and restoring atmosphere of repose; thus -begetting a dignity of soul and making us capable of higher good, of -nobler endeavour, of capacities for enjoyment before unknown--keener, -more satisfying, and enduring. - -Probably few natures are capable of receiving the more subtle -impressions of beauty in such a way as was that of Wordsworth, and fewer -still meet with the responsive soul able to touch them to the finest -issues. His boyhood's mind had been impregnated with thought, and his -young heart bounded with delight amid the beauties of earth. His sister -came, and together they seemed to possess the earth. His powers of -perception were intensified and rarified. The solitudes of Nature became -their home, their hearts grew still amidst its loveliness: the solemn -night breathed a benediction. They loved - - "The silence that is in the starry sky, - The sleep that is among the lonely hills." - -Shall we not say that, viewed in this way, the earth becomes almost as -an ante-chamber of Heaven, subduing, and awe-inspiring, leading us to - - "Move along its shades, - In gentleness of heart; with gentle hand - Touch--for there is a spirit in the woods." - -"What a life there is in trees," said Miss Wordsworth; and her own life -was one not only helping to reveal the living speech of the mute world, -not only finding life where it is by the duller eye unseen, and by the -dull sense unfelt, but helping to show what a noble thing all life may -be made. - -It must not be supposed that in what may seem to have been a complete -abandonment to the worship of her brother and of Nature Miss Wordsworth -had no heart for others, no room for human sympathy. She was, on the -contrary, during their early years at Grasmere especially, widely known -and beloved; her ready ear was always open to the tale of sorrow, and -her helping hand ready to aid. It was after the commencement of her long -and tedious illness that Wordsworth said of her he did not believe her -tenderness of heart was ever exceeded by any of God's creatures, that -her loving kindness had no bounds. The following lines written by Mrs. -Fletcher, when 82 years of age, after reading Miss Wordsworth's -Grasmere journal, are very appropriate:-- - - "If in thine inmost soul there chance to dwell - Aught of the poetry of human life, - Take thou this book, and with a humble heart - Follow these pilgrims in their joyous walk; - And mark their high commission--not to domes - Of pomp baronial, or gay fashion's haunts, - Where worldlings gather; but to rural homes, - To cottages and hearths, where kindness dwelt, - They bent their way; and not a gentle breeze - Inhaled in all their wanderings, not a flower, - Blooming by hedge-wayside, or mountain rill, - But lent its inspiration, scent, and sound, - Deepening the inward music of their hearts. - _She_ touched the chord, and he gave forth its tone; - Without her he had idly gazed and dreamed, - In fancy's region of celestial things; - But she--by sympathy disclosed the might, - That slumbered in his soul, and drew it thence, - In richest numbers of subduing power, - To soften, harmonise, and soothe mankind; - Nor less to elevate, and point the way - To truth Divine--not with polemic skill, - He sought from Nature and the human heart, - That sacred wisdom from the fount of God." - -It has been well said that with a masculine power of mind Miss -Wordsworth "had every womanly virtue, and presented with those splendid -gifts such a rare combination, that even the enthusiastic strains in -which her brother sang her praises borrowed no aid from his poetic -imagination. It was she who in childhood moderated the sternness of his -moody temper, and she carried on the work which she had begun. His chief -delight had been in scenes which were distinguished by terror and -grandeur, and she taught him the beauty of the simplest products and -mildest graces of Nature; while she was softening _his_ mind she was -elevating _herself_; and out of this interchange of gifts grew an -absolute harmony of thought and feeling." What was originally harsh in -Wordsworth was toned by the womanly sweetness of his sister, and his -spirit softened by her habitual delicacy of thought and act. Not only -so, but with a devotion (I will not say self-sacrifice, for it was none) -as rare as it is noble, she simply dedicated to him her life and -service, living in and for him. She read for him, saw for him, and heard -for him; found subjects for his reflection, and was always at hand--his -willing scribe. Rejecting for herself all thoughts of love and marriage, -she gave to him and his her mature life as willingly and cheerfully as -when he was alone and unfriended, she had done her bright girlhood. With -a mental capacity and literary skill, which would have enabled her to -carve out for herself an independent reputation and position of no mean -order, she preferred to sink herself, and her future, in that of her -brother, with whom she has thus become, for all time, so indelibly -associated. And he was grateful, and returned her devotedness with a -love, tender, and almost reverential. One other allusion to her in his -poems should be given. It may be thought that his praise of her is -exaggerated; but none so well as he himself knew the extent of his -obligation to her--and he was not one to bestow praise for the sake only -of poetic effect. Writing in the "Prelude," he says:-- - - "Child of my parents! Sister of my soul! - Thanks in sincerest verse have been elsewhere - Poured out for all the early tenderness - Which I from thee imbibed: and 'tis most true - That later seasons owed to thee no less; - For, spite of thy sweet influence, and the touch - Of kindred hands that opened out the springs - Of genial thought in childhood, and in spite - Of all that, unassisted, I had marked - In life, or Nature, of those charms minute, - That win their way into the heart by stealth; - Still, to the very going out of youth, - I too exclusively esteemed _that_ love, - And sought _that_ beauty, which, as Milton sings, - Hath terror in it. But thou didst soften down - This over-sternness; but for thee, dear Friend! - My soul, too reckless of mild grace, had stood - In her original self too confident, - Retained too long a countenance severe; - A rock with torrents roaring, with the clouds - Familiar, and a favourite of the stars: - But thou didst plant its crevices with flowers, - Hang it with shrubs that twinkle in the breeze, - And teach the little birds to build their nests - And warble in its chambers. At a time - When Nature, destined to remain so long - Foremost in my affections, had fallen back - Into a second place, pleased to become - A handmaid to a nobler than herself, - When every day brought with it some new sense - Of exquisite regard for common things; - And all the earth was budding with these gifts - Of more refined humanity; thy breath, - Dear Sister! was a kind of gentler spring, - That went before my steps." - -It has, by some, been stated, in the way of objection, that Wordsworth -was not a Christian poet, that he looked too exclusively to Nature as -his inspirer and guide, and sought from her the consolation which -Christianity alone can afford. His friend and admirer, Professor Wilson, -states that all his poetry, published previously to the "Excursion," is -but the "Religion of the Woods"; and that though in that poem there is a -high religion brought forward, it is not the religion of Christianity. -But it must be admitted that although a large proportion of the poetry -of Wordsworth does not contain any specific Christian teaching, yet it -breathes the spirit of devotion and of Christian charity. Some of the -earlier poems, especially the lines composed at Tintern Abbey, have been -referred to as evidence, that at the shrine of Nature alone Wordsworth, -in his earlier, and presumably wiser, years worshipped. As this subject -has been more than once exhaustively dealt with, it is not now necessary -to do more than mention it. It should be remembered, that the same pen -which wrote what have been styled the pantheistic poems, also wrote the -Ecclesiastical Sonnets, the Ninth Evening Voluntary, and the -Thanksgiving Odes. What is much more needed by the heart of mankind than -specific Christian doctrine, is the high and holy teaching with which -the works of Wordsworth abound. His work was most conscientious, ever -done under the "eye that hath kept watch o'er man's mortality." If -lessons of endurance and fortitude under the ills and privations of -life, and faith in the future, are needed, we have them taught us in -such poems as that containing the story of the poor leech gatherer; if -storms of passion and suffering are to be allayed, we are reminded of -"the sure relief of prayer," and the advice given to the Solitary to aid -in the restoration of a lost trust and hope: - - "One adequate support - For the calamities of mortal life - Exists--one only: an assured belief - That the procession of our fate, however - Sad or disturbed, is ordered by a Being - Of infinite benevolence and power; - Whose everlasting purposes embrace - All accidents, converting them to good. - --The darts of anguish _fix_ not where the seat - Of suffering hath been thoroughly fortified - By acquiescence in the Will supreme - For time and for eternity; by faith, - Faith absolute in God, including hope, - And the defence that lies in boundless love - Of His perfections; that habitual dread - Of aught unworthily conceived, endured - Impatiently, ill done, or left undone, - To the dishonour of His holy name. - Soul of our Souls, and safeguard of the world! - Sustain, thou only canst, the sick of heart; - Restore their languid spirits, and recall - Their lost affections unto Thee and Thine!" - -If Wordsworth and his sister in their early life seem to have too -exclusively glorified Nature, it cannot with any shadow of reason be -said that they were at any period devoid of that faith and trust in the -Creator through which we receive Nature's most beneficent lessons. It -is, indeed, noticeable that during their Scottish tour no difference -seems to have been made in the days of the week--that their Sundays were -spent in travel. Such a thing is certainly to be regretted, which in -after years probably no one would have been more ready than they to -acknowledge. Thus the last entry in that journal--one made after an -interval of many years--we find as follows: October 4th, 1832.--"I find -that this tour was both begun and ended on a Sunday. I am sorry that it -should have been so, though I hope and trust that our thoughts and -feelings were not seldom as pious and serious as if we had duly attended -a place devoted to public worship. My sentiments have undergone a great -change since 1803 respecting the absolute necessity of keeping the -Sabbath by a regular attendance at church.--D. W." It cannot be doubted -that the feeling which dictated those words marks a distinct advance. I -doubt not that Miss Wordsworth was able to worship the Creator as -devoutly on the green slope of a sun-crowned mountain or in the solemn -woods, murmuring their eternal mysterious secrets, as in the public -assembly of saints. And such would be in accord with the glow of -youthful life with which she bounded to greet Nature's subtle -influences. But a longer experience brought its inevitable sobering -tendencies, accompanied by the longing for a closer approach towards the -Infinite which is felt by all searching and great souls. Wordsworth -could truly say, in view of his work, that it was a consolation to him -to feel that he had never written a line which he could wish to blot. To -this happy and rare result his sister contributed. Remembering the -exalted character of that work, there is no other conclusion than that -she had no mean part in a work, the issues of which were beneficial not -only for time--adding to the sweet influences and graces of life--but -will be far-reaching as eternity. - -In illustration of Miss Wordsworth's own literary style, I take the -liberty to insert in later chapters a few poems which have been deemed -worthy to have a place with those of her brother, as well as a journal -of a tour on Ullswater. What most in her journals arrests the attention -is her unusual quickness and minuteness of observation, combined with a -graceful and poetic diction. With her ardent love of Nature, nothing -seems to have escaped her notice; and all the varying shades of beauty -in earth and sky, which, to the observant eye and loving heart, invest -with such a glory this old world, were duly appreciated. Describing a -birch tree, she says: "As we went along we were stopped at once, at a -distance of, perhaps, fifty yards from our favourite birch tree. It was -yielding to a gust of wind, with all its tender twigs; the sun shone -upon it, and it glanced in the wind like a flying sunshiny shower. It -was a tree in shape, with stem and branches; but it was like a spirit of -water." Noticing a number of daffodils near Ullswater, she writes: "When -we were in the woods below Gowbarrow Park we saw a few daffodils close -to the water side. As we went along there were more and yet more; and at -last, under the boughs of the trees, we saw there was a long belt of -them along the shore. I never saw daffodils so beautiful. They grew -among the mossy stones about them. Some rested their heads on these -stones as on a pillow; the rest tossed, and reeled, and danced, and -seemed as if they verily laughed with the wind, they looked so gay and -glancing." These daffodils suggested to her brother one of the most -beautiful of his short poems, that which has been previously quoted, -commencing - - "I wandered lonely as a cloud." - -Of this description of Miss Wordsworth Mr. Lockhart says: "Few poets -ever lived who could have written a description so simple and original, -so vivid and picturesque. Her words are scenes, and something more." - -Miss Wordsworth was for many years a great correspondent, and it is to -be regretted that more of her letters have not been given to the world. -From those quoted in this volume it will be seen that they exhibit the -same fluent, graceful, and animated style which characterised all her -productions. - - - - - - "I have seen - That reverent form bowed down with age and pain, - And rankling malady. Yet not for this - Ceased she to praise her Maker, or withdraw - Her trust in Him, her faith, and humble hope; - So meekly had she learnt to bear her cross-- - For she had studied patience in the school - Of Christ; much comfort she had thence derived, - And was a follower of the NAZARENE." - - LAMB. - - "So fails, so languishes, grows dim and dies. - All that the world is proud of." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -ILLNESS AND LAST YEARS. - - -Reference must now be made, however reluctantly, to the sad illness with -which Miss Wordsworth was more or less afflicted for over twenty years. -At this distance of time particulars as to the commencement and progress -of this affliction are not easily procurable. It appears, however, to -have been about the year 1826 that her splendid physical energies began -to show signs of decay. In October of that year Mr. Crabb Robinson, -after mentioning a visit to Southey at Keswick, wrote in his diary: -"Miss D. Wordsworth's illness prevented me going to Rydal Mount." From -this illness it is, however, evident she successfully rallied. I am -indebted to _Notes and Queries_ for the following extract from a letter -by Miss Dora Wordsworth, dated 1st February, 1827: "Aunt Wordsworth has -not yet walked herself to death, which I often tell her she will do, -though she still continues the same tremendous pedestrian." Here we have -the key to the cause of her subsequent prostration. From her ardent and -impassioned nature her career had been what may be termed singularly -intense. De Quincey, who knew her well, speaks of there being clearly -observable in her "a self-consuming style of thought." Both as regards -her mental and physical nature, she appears to have run a race with -time. As her brother's companion, she had indeed been so exclusively and -passionately devoted to him as to identify herself not only with his -mental pursuits, but also, probably more than wisely, with his long -pedestrian and mountain rambles. If it were not that the great work of -her life was so signally achieved, and her satisfaction therein -abundant, we should be inclined to regret that she thus drew an -over-draft on the fountains of her life. It could not be expected that -her frailer frame could sustain, without any mischievous effects, the -physical fatigues and labours of her more robust brother; for with him -she was ever ready to explore the mountain force, to climb the rocky -heights, or walk over moor and fell apparently almost regardless of -distance. Within due limits, no doubt all this is as healthful as it is -delightful. But Nature's powers are limited; and Nature in Miss -Wordsworth eventually gave way. And her spirits suffered in sympathy -with her physical nature. - -As an illustration of Miss Wordsworth's home rambles and adventures, I -may here mention a reminiscence which is given by Mr. Justice Coleridge, -of an excursion made with Wordsworth into Easedale. The poet, pointing -to a precipitous and rocky mountain above the tarn, told of an incident -which befell him and his sister on one occasion on their coming over the -mountains from Langdale. From some cause they had become a little -parted, when a heavy fog came on and Miss Wordsworth became bewildered. -After wandering about for some time she sat down and waited. When the -fog cleared away and she could see the valley before her, she found -that she had stopped very providentially, as she was standing almost on -the verge of the precipice. - -It is not, however, to be supposed that Miss Wordsworth accompanied her -brother over the 200,000 miles which De Quincey calculated the poet must -have walked, nor is it stated by what means the figures are arrived at! -A twenty or thirty miles walk was not an uncommon thing. As an instance, -I find it stated that one summer afternoon, as the Keswick coach was -approaching Grasmere, it met Wordsworth, and stopped. A lady, who was -going on a visit to the poet, put out her head to speak to him, -whereupon he said to her: "How d'ye do? Mrs. Wordsworth will be -delighted to see you. I shall be back in the evening. I'm only going to -tea with Southey," who, it will be remembered, lived at a distance of -about fifteen miles, and the road by no means a good one. - -It is stated by Principal Shairp, in the introduction to the "Tour in -Scotland," that in the year 1829 Miss Wordsworth "was seized with a -severe illness, which so prostrated her, body and mind, that she never -recovered from it." This can, however, hardly be the fact, as is -evidenced by the following letter to Mr. Crabb Robinson, which certainly -shows no indication of mental prostration, and contains no allusion to a -physical one:-- - - - "_FRIDAY, December 1st, 1831._ - - "Had a rumour of your arrival in England reached us before your - letter of yesterday's post you would ere this have received a - welcome from me, in the name of each member of this family; and, - further, would have been reminded of your promise to come to Rydal - as soon as possible after again setting foot on English ground. - When Dora heard of your return, and of my intention to write, she - exclaimed after a charge that I would recall to your mind your - written promise: 'He must come and spend Christmas with us. I wish - he would!' Thus you see, notwithstanding your petty jarrings, Dora - was always, and now is, a loving friend of yours. I am sure I need - not add that if you can come at the time mentioned, so much the - more agreeable to us all, for it is fast approaching; but that - _whenever_ it suits you (for you may have Christmas engagements - with your own family) to travel so far northward, we shall be - rejoiced to see you; and whatever other visitors we may chance to - have, we shall always be able to find a corner for you. We are - thankful that you are returned with health unimpaired--I may say, - indeed, amended--for you were not perfectly well when you left - England. You do not mention rheumatic pains, so I trust they have - entirely left you. As to your being grown older--if you mean - _feebler_ in mind--my brother says, 'No such thing; your judgment - has only attained autumnal ripeness.' Indeed, my dear friend, I - wonder not at your alarms, or those of any good man, whatever may - have been his politics from youth to middle age, and onward to the - decline of life. But I will not enter upon this sad and perplexing - subject. I find it much more easy to look with patience on the - approach of pestilence, or any affliction which it may please God - to cast upon us without the intervention of man, than on the - dreadful results of sudden and rash changes, whether arising from - ambition, or ignorance, or brute force. I am, however, getting - into the subject without intending it, so will conclude with a - prayer that God may enlighten the heads and hearts of our men of - power, whether Whigs or Tories, and that the madness of the - deluded people may settle. This last effect can only be produced, - I fear, by exactly and severely executing the law, seeking out and - punishing the guilty, and letting all persons see that we do not - _willingly_ oppress the poor. One possible blessing seems already - to be coming upon us through the alarm of the cholera. Every rich - man is now obliged to look into the bye-lanes and corners - inhabited by the poor, and many crying abuses are (even in our - little town of Ambleside) about to be remedied. - - "But to return to pleasant Rydal Mount, still cheerful and - peaceful--if it were not for the newspapers we should know nothing - of the turbulence of our great towns and cities; yet my poor - brother is often heart-sick and almost desponding--and no wonder, - for, until this point at which we are arrived, he has been a true - prophet as to the course of events, dating from the 'Great Days of - July' and the appearance of 'the Bill, the whole Bill, and nothing - but the Bill.' It remains for us to hope that now Parliament may - meet in a different temper from that in which they parted, and - that the late dreadful events may make each man seek only to - promote the peace and prosperity of the country. You will see that - my brother looks older. He is certainly thinner, and has lost some - of his teeth; but his bodily activity is not at all diminished, - and if it were not for public affairs, his spirits would be as - cheerful as ever. He and Dora visited Sir Walter Scott just before - his departure, and made a little tour in the Western Highlands; - and such was his leaning to old pedestrian habits, that he often - walked from fifteen to twenty miles in a day, following or keeping - by the side of the little carriage, of which his daughter was the - charioteer. They both very much enjoyed the tour, and my brother - actually brought home a set of poems, the product of that - journey...." - -It was not, however, long after the date of this letter, which shows -that Miss Wordsworth was still in possession of her vigorous and clear -intellect, that she was seized with a more severe illness. Her growing -weakness was, in the year 1832, accompanied by an alarming attack of -brain fever, from the effects of which she never altogether recovered. -Mr. Myers states that the illness "kept her for many months in a state -of great prostration, and left her, when the physical symptoms abated, -with her intellect painfully impaired, and her bright nature permanently -overclouded." - -In June, 1833, Mr. Crabb Robinson again writes in his diary: "Strolled -up to Rydal Mount, where I met with a cordial reception from my kind -friends; but Miss Wordsworth I did not see. I spent a few hours very -delightfully, and enjoyed the improved walk in Mr. Wordsworth's garden, -from which the views are admirable, and had most agreeable conversation, -with no other drawback than Miss Wordsworth's absence from the state of -her health." - -Wordsworth himself felt very keenly the affliction of his sister. -Writing to his brother, the Rev. Dr. Wordsworth, on April 1, 1832, he -says: "Our dear sister makes no progress towards recovery of strength. -She is very feeble, never quits her room, and passes most of the day in, -or upon, the bed. She does not suffer much pain, and is very cheerful, -and nothing troubles her but public affairs and the sense of requiring -so much attention. Whatever may be the close of this illness, it will be -a profound consolation to you, my dear brother, and to us all, that it -is borne with perfect resignation; and that her thoughts are such as the -good and pious would wish. She reads much, both religious and -miscellaneous works." On June 25 of the same year, writing to Professor -Hamilton, after referring to Coleridge, he says: "He and my beloved -sister are the two beings to whom my intellect is most indebted, and -they are now proceeding, as it were, _pari passu_, along the path of -sickness, I will not say towards the grave; but I trust towards a -blessed immortality." - -It does not, however, appear that all hope was abandoned of Miss -Wordsworth's recovery until the year 1836. In a note of his life -dictated by the poet, after referring to the deaths of his two young -children in 1812, he says: "We lived with no further sorrow till 1836, -when my sister became a confirmed invalid." - -The outward life of Miss Wordsworth was now at an end. Her condition -became such that those who loved her so dearly could only hope to -relieve her pain and cheer her lonely hours. The buoyancy of spirit and -activity of limb which had so distinguished her young and mature life -ceased--had gradually given way to a decay of her physical energies, -which was accompanied at times, and especially during her later years by -a consequent natural depression of spirit, or loss of mental elasticity. -As years passed, what may be called the symptoms of mental decay became -intensified. I am, however, inclined to think that by some writers too -much prominence has been given to the deterioration of her intellect. -Principal Shairp says: "It is sad to think that when the world at last -knew him (Wordsworth) for what he was, the great original poet of the -century, she who had helped to make him so was almost past rejoicing in -it." Mr. Howitt, writing while Miss Wordsworth was still living, said: -"The mind of that beloved sister has for many years gone, as it were, -before her, and she lives on in a second infancy, gratefully cherished -in the poet's home." - -The condition into which Miss Wordsworth had declined is not, however, -an unusual one when a severe and protracted illness lays hold upon one -advancing in years. The "nervous depression" or "nervous irritation" -which clouded her later years, apart from the prostration of the body, -was most manifest in the lapse of memory, which is frequently the case -with those who have not, indeed, suffered the affliction of Miss -Wordsworth. Her physical frame having succumbed to the overtaxing of her -energies, as an almost natural consequence her mind lost its youthful -buoyancy and brightness, and suffered in sympathy. An aged inhabitant of -the district, who knew her from youth to age, a little time ago informed -me that she could not be called low-spirited, but that she became "a -bit dull," adding that she always knew people, and was able to converse -with them. - -Meanwhile, in the poet's home and circle, the inevitable flight of time -was bringing about other changes which tended to sadden the age of its -inhabitants. Intimate friends were departing. Coleridge, the friend of -his youth, who had, as before mentioned, left the district, and been -resident in London, died in 1834, to be followed to the grave only a -month later by the friend of both, the genial-hearted Charles Lamb. In -1835, also, to add to the sorrow caused by the confirmed affliction of -Miss Wordsworth, the beloved sister of Mrs. Wordsworth, Miss Sarah -Hutchinson, who had for many years alternately resided with them and her -brother at Brinsop Court, Hereford, was added to the number of the loved -and lost. - -The year 1841 was brightened by the marriage of Miss Dora Wordsworth, -the only surviving daughter of the poet. The event was not, however, to -him one of unalloyed happiness. This daughter, having, for now some -years, grown up to bright and happy womanhood, was his cherished -companion, and in her his heart seemed to be bound up. She occupied in -his later poems, to some extent, the same position that his sister did -in his earlier. Mr. Edward Quillinan, who became the poet's son in-law, -was a gentleman of much literary culture and attainment. He was the -author of several poems, reviews, and other works, and had the -reputation of being the most accomplished Portuguese scholar in this -country. He was an officer in the Dragoon Guards, and had married for -his first wife a daughter of Sir Egerton Brydges, Bart. Long an admirer -of Wordsworth, he had become personally acquainted with him while his -regiment was stationed in Penrith in 1820. Quitting the service in 1821 -he settled at the village of Rydal, chiefly for the sake of the poet's -society. Here he had in the following year the misfortune to lose his -wife. Notwithstanding the close friendship which existed between them, -Wordsworth did not like the idea of losing the companionship of his -daughter. Sir Henry Taylor, in reference to this, says: "His love for -his only daughter was passionately jealous, and the marriage which was -indispensable to her peace and happiness was intolerable to his -feelings. The emotions--I may say the throes and agonies of emotion--he -underwent were such as an old man could not have endured without -suffering in health, had he not been a very strong old man. But he was -like nobody else--old or young. He would pass the night, or most part of -it, in struggles and storms, to the moment of coming down to breakfast; -and then, if strangers were present, be as easy and delightful in -conversation as if nothing was the matter. But if his own health did not -suffer, his daughter's did, and this consequence of his resistance, -mainly aided, I believe, by the temperate but persistent pressure -exercised by Miss Fenwick, brought him at length, though far too -tardily, to consent to the marriage." - -The marriage took place in Bath, in May, 1841; and afterwards Mr. and -Mrs. Wordsworth and Miss Fenwick made a short tour to Alfoxden and other -places so closely associated with the early life of Wordsworth and his -sister. Writing to Sir H. Taylor, Miss Fenwick says:--"We had two -perfect days for our visit to Wells, Alfoxden, &c. They were worthy of a -page or two in the poet's life. Forty-two years, perhaps, never passed -over any human head with more gain and less loss than over his. There he -was again, after that long period, in the full vigour of his intellect, -and with all the fervent feelings which have accompanied him through -life; his bodily strength little impaired, he, grey-headed, with an old -wife and not a young daughter. The thought of what his sister, who had -been his companion here, was then, and now is, seemed the only painful -feeling that moved in his mind. He was delighted to see again those -scenes (and they were beautiful in their kind) where he had been so -happy--where he had felt and thought so much. He pointed out the spots -where he had written so many of his early poems, and told us how they -had been suggested." - -It was on the death of Southey, in 1843, that Wordsworth, then in his -seventy-fourth year, was offered, and, after some hesitation, on account -of his age, accepted the appointment of Poet Laureate--an office which -has not been filled by a worthier man or greater poet. - -But other trials were in store for his advancing years. The health of -his daughter had for some years been delicate, and continued to be so -after her marriage. In 1845 Mr. and Mrs. Quillinan sought the more -genial clime of Spain and Portugal, where they remained until the summer -of the following year. Of this tour Mrs. Quillinan published a journal, -of which it has been said that it showed she "inherited no trivial -measure of her aunt's tastes and talents." It was hoped that by this -means her health had been restored; but the hope proved to be -short-lived. She gradually faded, and, to the great grief of all who -knew her, died in 1847. The effect on the poet was most saddening. Sir -Henry Taylor, referring to his cultivation of the muse in later years, -says: "At his daughter's death, a silence, _as_ of death, fell upon him; -and though during the interval between her death and his own his genius -was not at all times incapable of its old animation, I believe it never -broke again into song." - -To return to Miss Wordsworth. Mr. Crabb Robinson, in a reminiscence of -the year 1835, writes: "Already her health had broken down. In her youth -and middle age she had stood in somewhat the same relation to her -brother William as poor Mary Lamb to her brother Charles. In her long -illness she was fond of repeating the favourite small poems of her -brother, as well as a few of her own. And this she did in so sweet a -tone as to be quite pathetic. The temporary obscurations of a noble mind -can never obliterate the recollections of its inherent and essential -worth." - -In December, 1843, Mr. Quillinan, writing to Mrs. Clarkson, refers to -the pleasure with which they at Rydal had read Miss Martineau's "Life in -a Sick Room," and adds: "When I said all the Rydalites, I should have -excepted poor, dear Miss Wordsworth, who could not bear sustained -attention to any book, but who would be quite capable of appreciating a -little at a time." In a still later letter--one from Mr. Robinson to -Miss Fenwick, in 1849--referring to a visit paid to his friends at -Rydal, he says: "Poor Miss Wordsworth I found sunk still further in -insensibility. By the bye, Mrs. Wordsworth says that almost the only -enjoyment Wordsworth seems to feel is in his attendance on her, and that -her death would be to him a sad calamity." Lady Richardson has given the -following pathetic reminiscence: "There is," she says, "always something -very touching in his way of speaking of his sister. The tones of his -voice become very gentle and solemn, and he ceases to have that flow of -expression, which is so remarkable in him in all other subjects. It is -as if the sadness connected with her present condition was too much for -him to dwell upon in connection with the past, although habit and the -omnipotence of circumstances have made its daily presence less -oppressive to his spirits. He said that his sister spoke constantly of -their early days, but more of the years they spent together in other -parts of England than those at Grasmere." - -To Miss Wordsworth the "sorrow's crown of sorrow" came with the death in -April, 1850, of the brother for whom she had lived and for whom she had -done so much. Having attained his eightieth year, he caught a cold, -which resulted in a bronchial attack. After lying for a few weeks in a -state of exhaustion, the great soul passed to its everlasting rest, to -swell the song of the eternal world. - -Although cared for and dearly beloved by the survivors, the death of her -brother seemed to snap the strong tie by which she was bound to life. In -consequence of being herself confined to her room, she was not able to -witness the progress and end of her brother's illness. To the very last -they had been so completely devoted to each other that when his death -was communicated to her she was at first unable to realise it. When the -truth at length dawned upon her, she gave utterance to the pathetic -exclamation, that there was nothing left worth living for. - -Miss Wordsworth, however, survived her brother by nearly five years. It -is a satisfaction to know that even her latest years were not without -gleams of brightness. Although, compared with her early mental vigour, -there was visible a melancholy wreck of mind, it was chiefly the result -of an uncertain and vanishing memory. She had, indeed, to the very last -perfectly lucid intervals during which she was remarkably clear and -quite herself. As a not uncommon result of loss of memory in aged -people, she forgot near events, and was what might be termed somewhat -childish. She could remember quite well what took place in her girlhood, -while if asked what she had been doing or talking about an hour -previously she would have no recollection of it. - -During her latest years Miss Wordsworth was unable to read much, but -would frequently amuse herself by reciting poetry and other scraps, -which, learnt in previous years, she remembered wonderfully well. A -casual observer, who might see the placid old lady, of fourscore years, -wheeled on the terrace at Rydal Mount, her unwrinkled though somewhat -pensive face framed by a full-bordered cap, would have no suggestion of -the often vacant mind. - -Although sometimes considerably depressed in spirits, her tedious -affliction was, on the whole, borne with exemplary Christian fortitude. -It has been said that "her loving-kindness in health had known no -bounds, and the sympathy she had ever felt for the sorrows of others was -now rivalled by the patience with which she bore her own." - -When the end at length came it was calm and tolerably painless. Taking -cold early in the year 1855, her condition was aggravated by an attack -of bronchitis, and her spirit left the worn-out frame on the 25th of -January, in her eighty-third year. - -Her remains were deposited in the peaceful churchyard of Grasmere, by -the murmuring waters of a mountain stream, the same sacred spot of earth -which contained those of her beloved brother, overshadowed by the same -yew trees. - -It was from her own choice--a choice decided and happy--that Miss -Wordsworth was never married. De Quincey (who seems, by the way, to have -had a pretty universal knowledge) informs us that she had several offers -of marriage, and amongst them, to his knowledge, one from Hazlitt, all -of which she decisively rejected. Although he speaks so confidently, it -is probable that, with regard to Hazlitt, he was mistaken. With the -exception of a visit to Nether Stowey, and a short stay in the Lake -district some few years later, it does not appear that Hazlitt was -brought into contact with the Wordsworths, or that the relations between -them were at all familiar; and Hazlitt's grandson and biographer does -not attach much importance to the statement. Miss Wordsworth had a far -higher vocation. Her sacrifice, if it can be so called, to her brother -was complete; but her lot was not, therefore, less happy. Doubtless the -duties of marriage and maternity, had the poet's prophecy concerning her -been fulfilled, would have filled her life, in its maturity and decline, -with cares and interests which would have contributed to the keeping of -her mind in a condition of more continuous mental vigour and equipoise. -But the one great object of her life had been accomplished. She had -lived to know all slander and rancour, the effect of all spiteful -reviews, lived down; and--if not able fully to appreciate and rejoice in -the fact--to see her brother, whom she had helped so much to perfect, -universally acknowledged as a master of English song, occupying a -foremost niche in the Temple of Fame--the greatest poet since Milton. - -And, although her old age was somewhat overclouded, it cannot be -considered altogether sad; and it is not with thoughts of sadness that -our reflections on such a beneficent career as hers should be closed. - -If the latter portion of her life was overshadowed with gloom and -sickness; if the brightness of the morning and the serenity of noonday -too early gave place to a long twilight upon which the shadows fell -heavily, her bright and lucid intervals give abundant hope that gleams -of gladness revisited the mind which, for so long, had been a "mansion -for all lovely forms" treasured and garnered in her early years. - -It is more befitting that we should turn away our thoughts from the -intervening period of age and decay; and that Dorothy Wordsworth should -live in our minds as she was in her eager-spirited and ardent youth, -when in company with her beloved companion, she bounded over the -familiar hills and roamed by the mountain streams, or by the household -fire scanned the classic page--a youth of beauty, and buoyancy, and joy, -because so full of love and goodness, of generous sympathy and unselfish -devotion--a youth which she has since renewed, unclouded by any shade, -in the same old society, and with the familiar love re-linked--_in -Paradiso_. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -A QUIET RESTING-PLACE. - - -A few words only are desirable to be added in reference to the surviving -inmate of the home of which Miss Wordsworth was so long a cherished -member. The poet's aged widow survived her husband and sister-in-law for -some years. She was not solitary in her widowhood, but tenderly loved by -devoted friends. Miss Joanna Baillie, writing to Mrs. Fletcher in the -June succeeding the death of Wordsworth, says: "Many thanks to you for -sending to us a copy of these lines" (the lines upon the companionship -of Wordsworth and his sister, before mentioned), "and for letting us -know how his excellent wife, Mrs. Wordsworth, bears up under her severe -affliction. She was a mate worthy of him or any man, and his sister too, -such a devoted noble being as scarcely any other man ever possessed." - -Mrs. Fletcher's diary, under date, Sunday, the 7th May, 1854, contains -the following entry: "Yesterday, Mrs. Davy brought Mrs. Wordsworth to -dinner. It is always a pleasure to see the placid old age of dear Mrs. -Wordsworth. Hers has been a life of duty, and it is now an old age of -repose, while her affections are kept in constant exercise by the tender -interest she takes in her grand-children." - -During the last three years of her life Mrs. Wordsworth was blind; and -it is deeply pathetic to read how, in her last days, when her sightless -eyes could no longer peruse the sacred page, she loved to feel with her -trembling fingers a cross which she kept in her room, and which seemed -to remind her of the Christian's hope. Her life of calm devotion and -disinterested love, succeeded by an old age of resignation and peace, -was brought to a serene close on the 17th of January, 1859. - -Among the quiet resting-places of the dead, few, if any, are of deeper -interest than the peaceful churchyard of Grasmere. Under the shadow of -the everlasting hills "girded with joy," and by the banks of the -murmuring stream singing in its onward course of hopes beyond the grave, -it is a spot which affection would choose for its most tenderly loved. -As "the Churchyard among the mountains," many of the annals of which are -recorded in that grand philosophic poem, "The Excursion," it could not -fail to draw thither the footsteps of the thoughtful. But there is one -corner on approaching which we seem to feel more solemnised, to breathe -more gently--where the footstep falls lighter and lingers longer. To us -it is as sacred a nook as the shadowy corner of the famous Abbey where -are laid England's greatest sons. The group of graves gathered there are -not glorified by the "religious light" of storied windows, but they are -warmed by summer suns, and covered with a garment of purity by winter -snows, and over-shadowed by aged yews, which gently shower around them -their peaceful and slumberous undersong. - -In the south-east corner of this quiet God's Acre is to be found this -cluster of graves, surrounded by an iron palisade, to each of which a -history of more than common interest is attached. Behind the principal -group are three short graves, two of which, being the first formed of -the group, attract attention. These are the graves of little Catherine -and Thomas Wordsworth, the children of the poet, whose early and sudden -deaths have been mentioned. The stone indicating the resting-place of -the "loving, and tractable, though wild," Catherine bears the -inscription, "Suffer little children to come unto Me." That of her -brother contains a few memorial lines recording at once his age and -loving disposition:-- - - "Six months to six years added he remained - Upon this sinful earth, by sin unstained: - O blessed Lord! Whose mercy then removed - A Child whom every eye that looked on loved; - Support us, teach us calmly to resign - What we possessed, and now is wholly Thine!" - -The next green mound, in point of date, is that which covers the remains -of the first Mrs. Quillinan, who died on the 25th May, 1822, at the -early age of twenty-seven years, six months after the birth of her -second daughter. She was a daughter of the late Sir Egerton Brydges, -Bart., of Denton Court, near Dover. There is in Grasmere Church a -monument to her designed by Sir F. Chantrey. - -Miss Sarah Hutchinson, the younger sister of Mrs. Wordsworth, who has -been before mentioned, comes next in this remarkable group. Spending, -as she did, much of her time with the Wordsworths at Grasmere and Rydal -Mount, she was devoted to all the members of the family. Being herself -of poetic mould, the poet's home was most congenial to her. It was she, -who, during a sickness, the year before her death, wrote the following -lines to the Redbreast:-- - - "Stay, cheerful little Robin! stay, - And at my casement sing, - Though it should prove a farewell lay - And this our parting spring. - - "Though I, alas! may ne'er enjoy - The promise in thy song; - A charm, _that_ thought can not destroy, - Doth to thy strain belong. - - "Methinks that in my dying hour - Thy song would still be dear, - And with a more than earthly power - My passing Spirit cheer. - - "Then, little Bird, this boon confer, - Come, and my requiem sing, - Nor fail to be the harbinger - Of everlasting Spring." - -She died as before-mentioned in 1835. Her memorial stone states that she -was the beloved sister and faithful friend of mourners, who had caused -the stone to be erected, with the earnest wish that their remains might -be laid by her side, and a humble hope that through Christ they might -together be made partakers of the same blessed resurrection. Twelve -years afterwards the sod was again cut, to receive, not yet the aged -poet or his wife, but their idolised daughter Dora, the devoted wife of -Mr. Quillinan, who, in her forty-third year, after a brief period of -wedded happiness, died on the 9th July, 1847. Upon the stone at the head -of her grave is chiselled a lamb bearing a cross, and the consolatory -words: "Him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out." - -The poet himself was the next to be added to the group, and the slab, -with the simple inscription "WILLIAM WORDSWORTH, 1850," has been gazed -upon by as many moistened eyes as the elaborate tombs of any of -England's greatest heroes. - -Mr. Edward Quillinan, who died in July, 1851, rests near the two beloved -companions of his life. - -The subject of this brief memoir--the most perfect sister the world hath -known--after her sunny youth, her strong maturity, and her afflicted -age, now sleeps in peace on the right side of the poet, to whom her -self-denying life was devoted, her resting-place, to all who have heard -her name being sufficiently indicated by the words - - "DOROTHY WORDSWORTH, - 1855." - -In a few years more the poet's grave received to its shelter the tried -and honoured partner of his long life, and the words were added: "Mary -Wordsworth, 1859." - -From this time there is a break of many years, when the enclosure -received another member of the younger generation. Miss Rotha -Quillinan, named after the murmuring river, by the banks of which her -life was spent, died on the 1st February, 1876. She was the younger -daughter of Mr. Quillinan, and, apart from the subsequent relationship, -had been an object of especial interest to the poet as his god-daughter. -He wrote the following lines in her album:-- - - "Rotha, my Spiritual Child! this head was grey - When at the sacred font for thee I stood: - Pledged till thou reach the verge of womanhood, - And shalt become thy own sufficient stay; - Too late, I feel, sweet Orphan! was the day - For stedfast hope the contract to fulfil; - Yet shall my blessing hover o'er thee still, - Embodied in the music of this Lay, - Breathed forth beside the peaceful mountain Stream, - Whose murmur soothed thy languid Mother's ear - After her throes, this Stream of name more dear - Since thou dost bear it--a memorial theme - For others; for thy future self, a spell - To summon fancies out of Time's dark cell." - -Her surviving sister still resides in the charming retreat at the foot -of Loughrigg Fell, overlooking the vale of Ambleside, which had so long -been the home of both. - -The latest addition to the group was made so lately as the year 1883, -when Mr. William Wordsworth, the last surviving son of the poet, was -added to the number. - -There is, however, one more grave, which, though not within the -enclosure, lies close behind it, and claims our notice. Hartley -Coleridge, the eldest son of his more distinguished father, was for many -years a familiar figure in the neighbourhood where he now rests. As a -child, quiet, intelligent, and promising; as a youth, encouraging the -hope that he was gifted with a genius which would lead to a career of no -ordinary character; as a collegian, fulfilling the bright hopes of his -friends, and attaining signal distinction;--his subsequent history -affords one more instance of the fact that the greatest genius may by -one failing be crippled, and the brightest promise be never followed by -its full fruition. But this is not the place to recount his story. His -published poems show that he inherited no small portion of his father's -poetic ability. In his subsequently rather aimless life, he endeared -himself not a little to the sympathetic inhabitants of the vale by his -gentle, warm-hearted, and loving disposition. He was passionately fond -of children, and would hardly pass through the village without taking a -little one into his arms. For his father's sake, as well as his own, he -was a favourite with the Wordsworths. It was by Mrs. Wordsworth, the -friend of his infancy, that in his fifty-third year his relatives were -summoned to his dying bed; and by Wordsworth himself (a year before his -own death) his last resting-place was chosen. "Let him lie by us," said -the aged poet, "he would have wished it;" adding to the sexton, "keep -the ground for us--we are old people, and it cannot be for long." - -The following sonnet may be given as a specimen of Hartley Coleridge's -poetry, the closing line not inaptly expressing the prayerful attitude -with which he approached the eternal future. - - "SHE LOVED MUCH. - - "She sat and wept beside His feet. The weight - Of sin oppressed her heart; for all the blame, - And the poor malice of the worldly shame, - To her was past, extinct, and out of date; - Only the _sin_ remained--the leprous state. - She would be melted by the heat of love, - By fires far fiercer than are blown to prove - And purge the silver ore adulterate. - She sat and wept, and with her untressed hair - Still wiped the feet she was so blest to touch; - And He wiped off the soiling of despair - From her sweet soul, because she loved so much. - I am a sinner, full of doubts and fears, - Make me a humble thing of love and tears." - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -POEMS. - - -Miss Wordsworth did not write much poetry. The few pieces she has left -behind, though not of the highest order, are sufficient to show that had -she devoted herself to it, she might have attained distinction. She was -so devoted to her brother that she did not attempt for herself an -independent position. She preferred to find subjects for the more -skilful pen of her brother, and to act as his amanuensis. The poems that -she did write, and which have been published with those of her brother, -are worthy of a place here. The first of these, written in 1805, is-- - - "THE COTTAGER TO HER INFANT. - -(_Suggested to Miss Wordsworth when watching one of the Poet's -Children._) - - "The days are cold, the nights are long, - The north wind sings a doleful song; - Then hush again upon my breast; - All merry things are now at rest, - Save thee, my pretty Love! - - "The kitten sleeps upon the hearth, - The crickets long have ceased their mirth; - There's nothing stirring in the house - Save one _wee_, hungry, nibbling mouse, - Then why so busy thou? - - "Nay! start not at that sparkling light; - 'Tis but the moon that shines so bright - On the window pane, bedropped with rain: - Then, little Darling! sleep again, - And wake when it is day." - -The following (written in 1806) has been described by Charles Lamb as -masterly:-- - - "ADDRESS TO A CHILD (DURING A BOISTEROUS WINTER EVENING). - - "What way does the Wind come? What way does he go? - He rides over the water, and over the snow; - Through wood and through vale; and o'er rocky height - Which the goat cannot climb, takes his sounding flight; - He tosses about in every bare tree, - As, if you look up, you plainly may see; - But how he will come, and whither he goes, - There's never a scholar in England knows. - He will suddenly stop in a cunning nook, - And ring a sharp 'larum;--but, if you should look, - There's nothing to see but a cushion of snow - Round as a pillow, and whiter than milk, - And softer than if it were covered with silk. - Sometimes he'll hide in the cave of a rock, - Then whistle as shrill as the buzzard cock; - --Yet seek him,--and what shall you find in the place? - Nothing but silence and empty space; - Save, in a corner, a heap of dry leaves, - That he's left, for a bed, to beggars or thieves! - As soon as 'tis daylight to-morrow, with me, - You shall go to the orchard, and then you will see - That he has been there, and made such a rout, - And cracked the branches, and strewn them about; - Heaven grant that he spare but that one upright twig - That looked up at the sky so proud and big - All last summer, as well you know, - Studded with apples, a beautiful show! - Hark! over the roof he makes a pause, - And growls as if he would fix his claws - Right in the slates, and with a huge rattle, - Drive them down, like men in a battle: - --But let him range round; he does us no harm, - We build up the fire, we're snug and warm; - Untouched by his breath, see the candle shines bright, - And burns with a clear and steady light; - Books have we to read,--but that half-stifled knell, - Alas! 'tis the sound of the eight o'clock bell. - --Come now, we'll to bed! and when we are there, - He may work his own will, and what shall we care? - He may knock at the door,--we'll not let him in; - May drive at the windows,--we'll laugh at his din; - Let him seek his own home, wherever it be; - Here's a _cozie_ warm house for Edward and me." - -The next (also a child's poem), written in 1807, was composed on the eve -of the return of Mrs. Wordsworth, after a month's absence in London. -Miss Wordsworth and the children were then staying at Coleorton:-- - - "THE MOTHER'S RETURN. - - "A month, sweet little-ones, is past - Since your dear Mother went away,-- - And she to-morrow will return; - To-morrow is the happy day. - - "O blessed tidings! thought of joy! - The eldest heard with steady glee; - Silent he stood; then laughed amain,-- - And shouted, 'Mother, come to me!' - - "Louder and louder did he shout, - With witless hope to bring her near; - 'Nay, patience! patience, little boy! - Your tender mother cannot hear.' - - "I told of hills, and far-off towns, - And long, long vales to travel through,-- - He listens, puzzled, sore perplexed, - But he submits; what can he do? - - "No strife disturbs his sister's breast; - She wars not with the mystery - Of time and distance, night and day; - The bonds of our humanity. - - "Her joy is like an instinct--joy - Of kitten, bird, or summer fly; - She dances, runs without an aim; - She chatters in her ecstacy. - - "Her brother now takes up the note, - And echoes back his sister's glee; - They hug the infant in my arms, - As if to force his sympathy. - - "Then, settling into fond discourse, - We rested in the garden bower; - While sweetly shone the evening sun, - In his departing hour. - - "We told o'er all that we had done,-- - Our rambles by the swift brook's side, - Far as the willow-skirted pool, - Where two fair swans together glide. - - "We talked of change, of winter gone, - Of green leaves on the hawthorn spray, - Of birds that build their nests and sing, - And all 'since Mother went away!' - - "To her these tales they will repeat, - To her our new-born tribes will show, - The goslings green, the ass's colt, - The lambs that in the meadow go. - - "--But see, the evening star comes forth! - To bed the children must depart; - A moment's heaviness they feel, - A sadness at the heart: - - "'Tis gone--and in a merry fit - They run upstairs in gamesome race; - I, too, infected by their mood, - I could have joined the wanton chase. - - "Five minutes past--and, O the change! - Asleep upon their beds they lie; - Their busy limbs in perfect rest, - And closed the sparkling eye." - -The following poem was written at Rydal Mount in 1832. Wordsworth has -said he believed it arose out of a casual expression of one of Mr. -Swinburne's children:-- - -LOVING AND LIKING: IRREGULAR VERSES, ADDRESSED TO A CHILD. - - "There's more in words than I can teach; - Yet listen, Child!--I would not preach; - But only give some plain directions - To guide your speech and your affections. - Say not you _love_ a roasted fowl, - But you may love a screaming owl, - And, if you can, the unwieldy toad - That crawls from his secure abode - Within the mossy garden wall - When evening dews begin to fall. - Oh mark the beauty of his eye: - What wonders in that circle lie! - So clear, so bright, our fathers said - He wears a jewel in his head! - - "And when upon some showery day, - Into a path or public way - A frog leaps out from bordering grass, - Startling the timid as they pass, - Do you observe him, and endeavour - To take the intruder into favour; - Learning from him to find a reason - For a light heart in a dull season. - And you may love him in the pool, - That is for him a happy school, - In which he swims as taught by nature, - Fit pattern for a human creature, - Glancing amid the water bright, - And sending upward sparkling light. - - "Nor blush if o'er your heart be stealing - A love for things that have no feeling: - The spring's first rose by you espied - May fill your breast with joyful pride; - And you may love the strawberry-flower, - And love the strawberry in its bower; - But when the fruit, so often praised - For beauty, to your lip is raised, - Say not you _love_ the delicate treat, - But _like_ it, enjoy it, and thankfully eat. - - "Long may you love your pensioner mouse, - Though one of a tribe that torment the house: - Nor dislike for her cruel sport the cat, - Deadly foe both of mouse and rat; - Remember she follows the law of her kind, - And Instinct is neither wayward nor blind. - Then think of her beautiful gliding form, - Her tread that would scarcely crush a worm, - And her soothing song by the winter fire, - Soft as the dying throb of the lyre. - - "I would not circumscribe your love: - It may soar with the eagle and brood with the dove, - May pierce the earth with the patient mole, - Or track the hedgehog to his hole. - Loving and liking are the solace of life, - Rock the cradle of joy, smooth the death-bed of strife. - - "You love your father and your mother, - Your grown-up and your baby brother; - You love your sister, and your friends, - And countless blessings which God sends: - And while these right affections play, - You _live_ each moment of your day; - They lead you on to full content, - And likings fresh and innocent, - That store the mind, the memory feed, - And prompt to many a gentle deed: - But _likings_ come, and pass away; - 'Tis _love_ that remains till our latest day: - Our heavenward guide is holy love, - And will be our bliss with saints above." - -The poem suggested by an island on Derwent-water, which is said to have -been composed so late as the year 1842, shows that, if the date be -correct, which is somewhat doubtful, Miss Wordsworth was at that time in -full possession of her faculties. These lines, we are informed, she used -to take pleasure in repeating during her last illness. - - "FLOATING ISLAND. - - "Harmonious Powers with Nature work - On sky, earth, river, lake, and sea; - Sunshine and cloud, whirlwind and breeze, - All in one duteous task agree. - - "Once did I see a slip of earth - (By throbbing waves long undermined) - Loosed from its hold; how, no one knew, - But all might see it float, obedient to the wind; - - "Might see it, from the mossy shore - Dissevered, float upon the Lake, - Float with its crest of trees adorned - On which the warbling birds their pastime take. - - "Food, shelter, safety, there they find; - There berries ripen, flowerets bloom; - There insects live their lives, and die; - A peopled world it is; in size a tiny room. - - "And thus through many seasons' space - This little Island may survive; - But Nature, though we mark her not, - Will take away, may cease to give. - - "Perchance when you are wandering forth - Upon some vacant sunny day, - Without an object, hope, or fear, - Thither your eyes may turn--the Isle is passed away; - - "Buried beneath the glittering Lake, - Its place no longer to be found; - Yet the lost fragments shall remain - To fertilize some other ground." - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -JOURNAL OF A TOUR AT ULLSWATER - -_A.D. 1805._ - - -On the 7th of November, on a damp and gloomy morning, we left Grasmere -Vale, intending to pass a few days on the banks of Ullswater. A mild and -dry autumn had been unusually favourable to the preservation and beauty -of foliage; and, far advanced as the season was, the trees on the larger -island of Rydal Mere retained a splendour which did not need the -heightening of sunshine. We noticed as we passed that the line of the -grey rocky shore of that island, shaggy with variegated bushes and -shrubs, and spotted and striped with purplish brown heath, -indistinguishably blending with its image reflected in the still water, -produced a curious resemblance, both in form and colour, to a -richly-coated caterpillar, as it might appear through a magnifying glass -of extraordinary power. The mists gathered as we went along: but when we -reached the top of Kirkstone, we were glad we had not been discouraged -by the apprehension of bad weather. Though not able to see a hundred -yards before us, we were more than contented. At such a time, and in -such a place, every scattered stone the size of one's head becomes a -companion. - -Near the top of the Pass is the remnant of an old wall, which -(magnified, though obscured, by the vapour) might have been taken for a -fragment of some monument of ancient grandeur--yet that same pile of -stones we had never before even observed. This situation, it must be -allowed, is not favourable to gaiety; but a pleasing hurry of spirits -accompanies the surprise occasioned by objects transformed, dilated or -distorted, as they are when seen through such a medium. Many of the -fragments of rock on the top and slopes of Kirkstone, and of similar -places, are fantastic enough in themselves; but the full effect of such -impressions can only be had in a state of weather when they are not -likely to be sought for. It was not till we had descended considerably -that the fields of Hartshop were seen, like a lake tinged by the -reflection of sunny clouds. I mistook them for Brother's water, but soon -after we saw that lake gleaming faintly with a steely brightness,--then -as we continued to descend, appeared the brown oaks, and the birches of -lively yellow, and the cottages, and the lowly Hall of Hartshop, with -its long roof and ancient chimneys. During great part of our way to -Patterdale we had rain, or rather drizzling vapour; for there was never -a drop upon our hair or clothes larger than the smallest pearl upon a -lady's ring. - -The following morning incessant rain till eleven o'clock, when the sky -began to clear, and we walked along the eastern shore of Ullswater -towards the farm of Blowick. The wind blew strong, and drove the clouds -forwards on the side of the mountain above our heads:--two -storm-stiffened, black yew-trees fixed our notice, seen through, or -under the edge of, the flying mists, four or five goats were bounding -among the rocks;--the sheep moved about more quietly, or cowered beneath -their sheltering places. This is the only part of the country where -goats are now found;[3] but this morning, before we had seen these, I -was reminded of that picturesque animal by two rams of mountain breed, -both with Ammonian horns, and with beards majestic as that which Michael -Angelo has given to his study of Moses.--But to return; when our path -had brought us to that part of the naked common which overlooks the -woods and bush-besprinkled fields of Blowick, the lake, clouds, and -mists were all in motion to the sound of sweeping winds;--the church and -cottages of Patterdale scarcely visible, or seen only by fits between -the shifting vapours. To the northward the scene was less -visionary;--Place Fell steady and bold;--the whole lake driving onward -like a great river--waves dancing round the small islands. The house at -Blowick was the boundary of our walk; and we returned, lamenting to see -a decaying and uncomfortable dwelling in a place where sublimity and -beauty seemed to contend with each other. But these regrets were -dispelled by a glance on the woods that clothe the opposite steeps of -the lake. How exquisite was the mixture of sober and splendid hues! The -general colouring of the trees was brown--rather that of ripe -hazel-nuts; but towards the water there were yet bays of green, and in -the higher parts of the wood was abundance of yellow foliage, which, -gleaming through a vapoury lustre, reminded us of masses of clouds, as -you see them gathered together in the west, and touched with the golden -light of the setting sun. After dinner we walked up the vale; I had -never had an idea of its extent and width in passing along the public -road on the other side. We followed the path that leads from house to -house; two or three times it took us through some of those copses or -groves that cover the little hillocks in the middle of the vale, making -an intricate and pleasant intermixture of lawn and wood. Our fancies -could not resist the temptation, and we fixed upon a spot for a cottage, -which we began to build, and finished as easily as castles are raised in -the air. Visited the same spot in the evening. I shall say nothing of -the moonlight aspect of the situation which had charmed us so much in -the afternoon; but I wish you had been with us when, in returning to our -friend's house, we espied his lady's large white dog lying in the -moonshine upon a round knoll under the old yew tree in the garden, a -romantic image--and the elegant creature, as fair as a spirit! The -torrents murmured softly: the mountains down which they were falling did -not, to my _sight_, furnish a background for this Ossianic picture; but -I had a consciousness of the depth of the seclusion, and that mountains -were embracing us on all sides; "I saw not, but I _felt_ that they were -there." - - * * * * * - -_Friday, November 9._--Rain, as yesterday, till ten o'clock, when we -took a boat to row down the lake. The day improved; clouds and sunny -gleams on the mountains. In the large bay under Place Fell three -fishermen were dragging a net--picturesque group beneath the high and -large crags. A raven was seen aloft; not hovering like the kite, for -that is not the habit of the bird, but passing on with a straightforward -perseverance, and timing the motion of its wings to its own croaking. -The waters were agitated, and the iron tone of the raven's voice, which -strikes upon the ear at all times as the more dolorous from its -regularity, was in fine keeping with the wild scene before our eyes. -This carnivorous bird is a great enemy to the lambs of these solitudes. -The fishermen drew their net ashore, and hundreds of fish were leaping -in their prison. They were all of the kind called skellies, a sort of -fresh water herring, shoals of which may sometimes be seen dimpling or -rippling the surface of the lake in calm weather. This species is not -found, I believe, in any other of these lakes; nor, as far as I know, is -the chevin, that _spiritless_ fish (though I am loth to call it so, for -it was a prime favourite with Izaac Walton), which must frequent -Ullswater, as I have seen a large shoal passing into the lake from the -river Eamont. Here are no pike, and the char are smaller than those of -the other lakes, and of inferior quality; but the grey trout attains a -very large size, sometimes weighing above twenty pounds. This lordly -creature seems to know that "retiredness is a piece of majesty," for it -is scarcely ever caught, or even seen, except when it quits the depths -of the lake in the spawning season, and runs up into the streams, where -it is too often destroyed in disregard of the law of the land and of -nature. - -Quitted the boat in the bay of Sandwyke, and pursued our way towards -Martindale, along a pleasant path--at first through a coppice bordering -the lake, then through green fields--and came to the village (if village -it may be called, for the houses are few, and separated from each -other), a scattered spot, shut out from the view of the lake. Crossed -the one-arched bridge, below the chapel, with its bare ring of mossy -wall and single yew tree. At the last house in the dale we were greeted -by the master, who was sitting at his door, with a flock of sheep -collected round him, for the purpose of smearing them with tar -(according to the custom of the season) for protection against the -winter's cold. He invited us to enter and view a room, built by Mr. -Hasell, for the accommodation of his friends at the annual chase of red -deer in his forests, at the head of these dales. The room is fitted up -in the sportsman's style, with a cupboard for bottles and glasses, -strong chairs, and a dining-table; and ornamented with the horns of the -stags caught at these hunts for a succession of years--the length of the -last race each had run being recorded under his spreading antlers. The -good woman treated us with oaten cake, new and crisp; and after this -welcome refreshment and rest, we proceeded on our return to Patterdale -by a short cut over the mountains. On leaving the fields of Sandwyke, -while ascending up a gentle slope along the valley of Martindale, we had -occasion to observe that in thinly-peopled glens of this character the -general want of wood gives a peculiar interest to the scattered cottages -embowered in sycamore. Towards its head this valley splits into two -parts; and in one of these (that to the left) there is no house nor any -building to be seen but a cattle-shed on the side of a hill, which is -sprinkled over with trees, evidently the remains of an extensive forest. -Near the entrance of the other division stands the house where we were -entertained, and beyond the enclosures of that farm there are no other. -A few old trees remain--relics of the forest; a little stream hastens, -though with serpentine windings, through the uncultivated hollow where -many cattle were pasturing. The cattle of this country are generally -white, or light-coloured; but these were dark brown or black, which -heightened the resemblance this scene bears to many parts of the -Highlands of Scotland. - -While we paused to rest on the hill-side, though well contented with the -quiet every-day sounds--the lowing of cattle, bleating of sheep, and the -very gentle murmuring of the valley stream--we could not but think what -a grand effect the music of the bugle-horn would have among these -mountains. It is still heard once every year at the chase I have spoken -of--a day of festivity for the inhabitants of this district, except the -poor deer, the most ancient of them all. Our ascent even to the top was -very easy. When it was accomplished we had exceedingly fine views, some -of the lofty fells being resplendent with sunshine, and others partly -shrouded by clouds. Ullswater, bordered by black steeps, was of dazzling -brightness; the plain beyond Penrith smooth and bright, or rather -gleamy, as the sea or sea-sands. Looked down into Boardale, which, like -Skybarrow, has been named from the wild swine that formerly abounded -here; but it has now no sylvan covert, being smooth and bare, a long, -narrow, deep, cradle-shaped glen lying so sheltered, that one would be -pleased to see it planted by human hand, there being a sufficiency of -soil; and the trees would be sheltered, almost like shrubs in a -green-house. After having walked some way along the top of the hill, -came in view of Glenridding, and the mountains at the head of -Grisedale.--Before we began to descend, we turned aside to a small ruin, -called at this day the chapel, where it is said the inhabitants of -Martindale and Patterdale were accustomed to assemble for worship. There -are now no traces from which you could infer for what use the building -had been erected; the loose stones, and the few that yet continued piled -up, resemble those which lie elsewhere on the mountain; but the shape of -the building having been oblong, its remains differ from those of the -common sheep-fold; and it has stood east and west. Scarcely did the -Druids, when they fled to these fastnesses, perform their rights in any -situation more exposed to disturbance from the elements. One cannot pass -by without being reminded that the rustic psalmody must have had the -accompaniment of many a wildly-whistling blast; and what dismal storms -must have often drowned the voice of the preacher! - -As we descend, Patterdale opens upon the eye in grand simplicity, -screened by mountains, and proceeding from two heads--Deepdale and -Hartshop--where lies the little lake of Brothers Water, named in old -maps Broader Water, and probably rightly so; for Bassenthwaite Mere at -this side is familiarly called Broad Water; but the change in the -appelation of this small lake or pool (if it be a corruption) may have -been assisted by some melancholy incident, similar to what happened -about twenty years ago, when two brothers were drowned there, having -gone out to take their holiday-pleasure upon the ice on a New Year's -Day. - -A rough and precipitous peat-track brought us down to our friends house. -Another fine moonlight night; but a thick fog rising from the -neighbouring river enveloped the rocky and wood-crested knoll on which -our fancy cottage had been erected; and, under the damp cast upon my -feelings, I consoled myself with moralising on the folly of hasty -decisions in matters of importance, and the necessity of having at least -one's knowledge of a place before you realise airy suggestions in solid -stone. - - * * * * * - -_Saturday, November 10._--At the breakfast-table, tidings reached us of -the death of Lord Nelson, and of the victory of Trafalgar. Sequestered -as we were from the sympathy of a crowd, we were shocked to hear that -the bells had been ringing joyously at Penrith, to celebrate the -triumph. In the rebellion of the year 1745, people fled with their -valuables from the open country of Patterdale, as a place of refuge, -secure from the incursions of strangers. At that time news such as we -had heard might have been long in penetrating so far into the recesses -of the mountains; but now, as you know, the approach is easy, and the -communication in summer time almost hourly; nor is this strange, for -travellers after pleasure are become not less active, and more numerous -than those who formerly left their homes for the purposes of gain. The -priest on the banks of the remotest stream of Lapland will talk -familiarly of Bonaparte's last conquests, and discuss the progress of -the French Revolution, having acquired much of his information from -adventurers impelled by curiosity alone. - -The morning was clear and cheerful, after a night of sharp frost. At ten -o'clock we took our way on foot towards Pooley Bridge, on the same side -of the lake we had coasted in a boat the day before. Looked backwards to -the south from our favourite station above Blowick. The dazzling -sunbeams striking upon the church and village, while the earth was -steaming with exhalations, not traceable in other quarters, rendered -their forms even more indistinct than the partial and flitting veil of -unillumined vapour had done two days before. The grass on which we trod, -and the trees in every thicket, were dripping with melted hoar frost. We -observed the lemon-coloured leaves of the birches, as the breeze turned -them to the sun, sparkle, or rather _flash_, like diamonds, and the -leafless purple twigs were tipped with globes of shining crystal. - -The day continued delightful and unclouded to the end. I will not -describe the country which we slowly travelled through, nor relate our -adventures; and will only add that on the afternoon of the 13th we -returned along the banks of Ullswater by the usual road. The lake lay in -deep repose, after the agitations of a wet and stormy morning. The trees -in Gowbarrow Park were in that state when what is gained by the -disclosure of their bark and branches compensates, almost, for the loss -of foliage, exhibiting the variety which characterises the point of time -between autumn and winter. The hawthorns were leafless; their round -heads covered with rich green berries, and adorned with arches of green -brambles, and eglantines hung with glossy hips; and the grey trunks of -some of the ancient oaks, which, in the summer season, might have been -regarded only for their venerable majesty, now attracted notice by a -pretty embellishment of green mosses and fern, intermixed with russet -leaves, retained by those slender outstarting twigs, which the veteran -tree would not have tolerated in his strength. The smooth silver -branches of the ashes were bare; most of the alders as green as the -Devonshire cottage-myrtle that weathers the snows of Christmas.--Will -you accept it as some apology for my having dwelt so long on the -woodland ornaments of these scenes, that artists speak of the trees on -the banks of Ullswater, and especially along the bays of Stybarrow -crags, as having a peculiar character of picturesque intricacy in their -stems and branches, which their rocky stations and the mountain winds -have combined to give them? At the end of Gowbarrow Park a large herd of -deer were either moving slowly or standing still among the fern. I was -sorry when a chance companion, who had joined us by the way, startled -them with a whistle, disturbing an image of grave simplicity and -thoughtful enjoyment; for I could have fancied that those natives of -this wild and beautiful region were partaking with us a sensation of the -solemnity of the closing day. - -The sun had been set some time, and we could perceive that the light was -fading away from the coves of Helvellyn; but the lake under the luminous -sky was more brilliant than before. - -After tea at Patterdale set out again;--a fine evening; the seven stars -close to the mountain top; all the stars seemed brighter than usual. The -steeps were reflected in Brothers Water, and, above the lake, appeared -like enormous black, perpendicular walls. The Kirkstone torrents had -been swollen by the rains, and now filled the mountain pass with their -roaring, which added greatly to the solemnity of our walk. Behind us, -when we had climbed to a great height, we saw one light, very distinct, -in the vale, like a large red star--a solitary one in the gloomy region. -The cheerfulness of the scene was in the sky above us. - -Reached home a little before midnight. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[3] They have since disappeared. - - * * * * * - - LONDON: - W. SPEAIGHT AND SONS, PRINTERS, - FETTER LANE. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Dorothy Wordsworth, by Edmund Lee - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOROTHY WORDSWORTH *** - -***** This file should be named 41506-8.txt or 41506-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/5/0/41506/ - -Produced by sp1nd, Richard J. Shiffer, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net for -Project Gutenberg. 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