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THE

POETICAL WORKS

OF

H. W. LONGFELLOW.

ILLUSTRATED BY F. GILBERT.

BODL

INUS

BILLUINEA

LONDON:

JOHN DICKS, 313, STRAND; AND ALL BOOKSELLERS.

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SKETCH

OF THE

LIFE OF LONGFELLOW.

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW was born on the 27th of February, 1807, at the city of Portland, in Maine, and entered, when fourteen years of age, at Bowdoin College, Brunswick, where, at the end of four years, he took his degree, with high honours. While yet an undergraduate, he had written many tasteful and carefully finished poems for the United States Literary Gazette:" yet, notwithstanding his evident predilection for an author's career, Longfellow was destined to the legal profession. For some months during the year 1825, he was occupied as a student of law in his father's office. The embryo poet, however, appears to have found the study of law uncongenial to his taste and aspirations; and having been offered the Professorship of Modern Languages at Bowdoin College, he prepared for the discharge of his new duties by a long visit to Europe.

Before returning to America, Longfellow visited France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Holland, and England, studying with the utmost zeal the language and literature of each country. After an absence of nearly four years, he wended his way back to Bowdoin College, and took possession of his professorship. This was in the year 1829, being then but a young man of twenty-two.

While occupying his position of Professor at the college, he continued to follow his literary career with indefatigable vigilance. Besides contributing some valuable criticisms for the "North American Review," he published, in 1833, his translation from the Spanish of the celebrated poem of "Don Jorge Maurique on the Death of his Father," together with an introductory essay on "Spanish Poetry;" and, in 1835, his Outre Mer; or, Sketches from Beyond Sea," a series of prose descriptions and reflections, somewhat in the style of Washington Irving.

In the same year of his publishing the latter work, having already, at the age of twentyeight, been recognised as a man of mark, he was appointed to the Professorship of modern languages and belles-lettres in Harvard College, Cambridge. Mr. Longfellow again left his native land, and sailed for Northern Europe, in order to make himself thoroughly acquainted with the languages and literature of Denmark and Sweden. He also visited Germany and Turkey, and was absent from America upwards of twelve months.

Pursuing his success, Longfellow published, in 1889,"Hyperion," a romance, the scenes of which are supposed to have been drawn from

some passages in his own life; and this work, which found high favour with refined and intelligent readers, was followed by "Voices of the Night," the earliest collection of his poems. In 1841, appeared "Ballads and other Poems;" in 1842, "Poems on Slavery;" in 1843, the play entitled, "The Spanish Student ;" and in 1845, "The Poets and Poetry of Europe," and the "Belfry of Bruges." Prior to this, in 1842, he had again visited Europe.

Having for years cultivated his natural poetic power, and made himself one of the most skilful vesifiers of the time, Mr. Longfellow, in 1847, published his "Evangeline,"-ainelancholy story written in hexametiers-an experiment which, though it was, in the opinion of critics, somewhat hazardous for a poet of reputation to venture upon, he tried with no slight success. In 1848, appeared "Kavanagh, a Tale;" in 1849,

The Seaside," and "The Fireside:" 'followed, in 1851, by "The Golden Legend,"-a work whose exquisite passages fully maintain its author's reputation for genius, and elicited no small measure of praise.

Although continuing to send forth small poems, and other literary works, it was not until 1855 that his "Song of Hiawatha" was published-a poem worthy of his fine taste and talent, in which is displayed the delicacy of sentiment, the literary art, the elegance of style, and the exquisite simplicity of expression which had characterised his other works, and which made his name widely known as one of the great poets of the age. Of this poem, the Spectator observed, that for playful and tender interpretations of the way in which child-like tribes, living in the midst of Nature's mightiest life and marvels, allegorize the transformations they see, and measure themselves against the powers and the creatures by whom they are surrounded-there is not, nor, as far as we know, has there ever been-anything like it in any language."

Another collection of poems, called "Birds of Passage," appeared in 1858: followed by "Miles Standish," in 1859. In 1861, a heavy bereavement fell upon Longfellow. In that year, his wife was unfortunately burnt to death. "Tales of a Wayside Inn" appeared in 1863; and, in 1867, "The Translation of Dante."

On the 27th of May, 1868, Mr. Longfellow took his departure from America, on another visit to England and the South of England. Prior to leaving, a farewell dinner was given to him at New York, on which occasion, a poetic tribute by Dr. Oliver Wendell, was read. On his arrival

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