Prose and Verse," 1876; "Vagrom Verse," 1889; and several burlesque plays. Mr. Webb's recent work will be published under the title, "More Vagrom Verse." WEBSTER, Daniel, statesman, b. Salisbury (now Franklin), N. H., 18 Jan. 1782; d. Marshfield, Mass., 24 Oct., 1852. U. S. representative, 1813-17, and 1823-27. U. S. senator from Mass., with the exception of three years as secretary of state, 1827-50. A few poems, including "The Memory of the Heart," published posthumously in his " Private Correspondence," 1856, are the only examples of verse extant from the pen of Daniel Webster. WEEDEN, Howard, b. Huntsville, Ala., 18-, of Virginia and Georgia parentage. Her father and grandfather were prosperous cotton planters; and from her mother's family, of Scottish ancestry, Miss Weeden inherited a taste for letters. Bandanna Ballads," 1899. 66 WEEKS, Robert Kelley, b. New York, N. Y., 1840; d. there, 1876. A graduate of Yale and member of the New York bar, who gave up law for literature, and published Poems," 1866; "Episodes and Lyric Pieces," 1870. WELBY, Amelia B. (Coppuck), b. St. Michael's, Md., 1819; d. Louisville, Ky., 1852. Her family removed to Louisville, where she was married in 1838 to George B. Welby, of that city. "Poems by Amelia was published in 1844. An illustrated edition appeared in 1850. WHARTON, Edith (Jones), b. New York, N. Y., 186. Of Revolutionary ancestry. Daughter of George Frederic Jones, of N. Y., and the wife of Edward Wharton. Author, with Ogden Codman, Jr., of "The Decoration of Houses;" "The Greater Inclination," short stories, 1899; "The Touchstone," 1900. WHICHER, George Meason, educator, b. Muscatine, Iowa, 1860. Educated at Iowa College. Professor of classical languages at the Normal College, city of New York. Editor of Greek and Latin text-books, and a contributor of essays and verse to the periodicals. WHITE, Edward Lucas, b. Bergen, N. J., 1865. A resident of Baltimore, Md., where he is engaged in teaching Latin and Greek. His poems, hitherto uncollected, may soon be published in book-form. WHITING, Lilian, journalist, b. Niagara Falls, N. Y., 185-. She has been successful in editorial work and as a newspaper correspondent, and was literary editor of the Boston "Traveller," 1883-90. Her permanent residence is Boston. Author of "The World Beautiful," 1st, 2d, 3d, series, essays, 1894– 98; After Her Death: the Story of a Summer," 1897; "From Dreamland Sent," poems, 1899; "Kate Field: a Record," 1899. WHITMAN, Sarah Helen (Power), b. Providence, R. I., 1803; d. 1878. Widowed, 1833; betrothed to Poe, 1848. The engagement was broken, but she defended him in her monograph, "Edgar A. Poe and His Critics," 1860. Her published works include Fairy Ballads," written with her sister, Anna M. Power; "Hours of Life and Other Poems," 1853; and "Poems," posthumous, 1878. WHITMAN, Walt (originally Walter), b. West Hills, Huntington township, Suffolk Co., L. I., N. Y., 31 May, 1819; d. Camden, N. J., 26 March, 1892. He was descended from Connecticut, English, and Long Island Dutch forbears. His father left the ancestral farm for Brooklyn, 1823, where Walt lived until 1836, studying in the public schools and learning the printer's trade. He taught school, and edited a paper at Huntington for about a year in 1839. Until 1861 he was occupied as a printer, editor, and miscellaneous writer. Whitman had always devoted as much time as possible to the study of nature on the Long Island beaches, and to observing the throngs of people at the Brooklyn ferries and in the New York streets, when, in 1853, he began to experiment in the direction of the new forms of poetry and philosophy developed in "Leaves of Grass," 1855. His previous work had been altogether conventional. At the same time he assumed the dress of a workingman, and became conspicuous as an associate of the common people. His book created much discussion. Enlarged editions appeared in 1856 and 1861, and Whitman's verse became a 66 cult." It was in 1862 that he began his three years' service as a volunteer army nurse in the hospitals about Washington. This experience is set forth in "Memoranda during the War," 1875. His health failing, he secured a place in the Interior Department, 1865, from which he was dismissed by the secretary, who had read and disapproved of passages in "Leaves of Grass." This incident called out the pamphlet by W. D. O'Connor, entitled the "Good Gray Poet: A Vindication," from which Whitman's sobriquet originated. He soon obtained another clerkship in the attorney-general's office, which he held until his final breakdown from paralysis in 1873. He resided with his brother at Camden until 1883, when his own resources and the assistance of friends enabled him to secure the home in Mickle Street, Camden. Some of his best verse is contained in "Walt Whitman's Drum-Taps," 1865-66, inspired by the war and by President Lincoln's assassination. A selected edition of his "Poems," edited by W. M. Rossetti, and published in England, 1868, was the beginning of his fame in that country, and brought him letters from Tennyson and others. Enlarged editions of "Leaves of Grass" appeared in 1867, 1871, 1872. His prose volume, "Democratic Vistas," was published, 1871, and in this he took occasion to reply to his critics. In 1876, the "Centennial' edition of his works was issued by the author in two volumes. Whitman lectured in New York, Boston, and other cities, on the anniversary of Lincoln's death. His lecture brought him an offer from a Boston publisher, and a definitive edition of "Leaves of Grass" appeared in 1882. The attorney-general of Massachusetts called upon the publisher to suppress certain passages in the book, and it was withdrawn, and subsequently issued in Philadelphia. "Specimen Days and Collect," 1883, was a collection of his prose works. Volumes supplementary to "Leaves of Grass" are November Boughs," 1888, and "Good Bye, My Fancy," 1891. The final edition, "Leaves of Grass," 1892, includes these. Whitman lies in a massive tomb in Harleigh Cemetery, Camden, which he designed and built shortly before his death. Cp. "Poets of America," chap. x. [A. 8.] WHITNEY, Hattie, b. St. Louis, Mo., 18-. Of New England descent. Her early life was passed in the country. Her present residence is in St. Louis. She has written much verse and fiction for literary publications. WHITNEY, Joseph Ernest, educator, b. Cornwall, Conn., 1858; d. Colorado Springs, Col., 1893. Graduated at Yale, where he was appointed instructor in English, 1884, resigning on account of ill-health, 1888. Joint editor with Henry S. Durand of "Elm Leaves," a collection of Yale verse, 1881. His miscellaneous writings gave evidence of his fine natural qualities, and of the high standard at which he aimed throughout his brief term of service. WHITTIER, John Greenleaf, New England's Quaker Poet, b. East Haverhill, Mass., 17 Dec., 1807; d. Hampton Falls, N. H., 7 Sept. 1892. Having scant schooling and few books, he steeped his mind in the Bible, and in the journals of Friends. A chance knowledge of Burns's poetry had a stimulating effect upon his imagination. The poems of his boyhood were numerous, but the earliest that he saw fit to include in the complete and definitive edition of his writings (7 vols. 1888–89) are dated 1825. One of them, "The Exile's Departure," was sent by his sister Mary to the Newburyport Free Press." Its editor, William Lloyd Garrison, accepted the poem, and gave its young author a home in his own family, enabling him to attend the Haverhill Academy. Here 46 he paid for a winter's schooling with money earned by making slippers. Afterwards he wrote for the press, and successively edited 'The American Manufacturer," Boston; "The Haverhill Gazette; " and "The New England Weekly Review," Hartford, Conn. In 1833 he published at his own expense the pamphlet Justice and Expediency," which identified him with the anti-slavery movement. In 1836, he became a secretary of the American Anti-Slavery Society, and made, with the poem "Mogg Megone," his first appearance in bookform. "Legends of New England in Prose and Verse," pamphlet, had appeared in 1831; "Moll Pitcher," a pamphlet, in 1832. In 1837 the collection, "Poems Written during the Progress of the Abolition Question in the United States was published without his knowledge. Frail health closed his service in the Massachusetts legislature, and also his editorship of the Philadelphia Pennsylvania Freeman," 1837-40. He retired to the home in Amesbury, Mass., whither his mother and sister had removed. Here and in Danvers, in the same county, the rest of his life was quietly passed. He never married, but found happiness in the companionship of his sister Elizabeth, who died in 1864. The complete edition of his works includes a number of her poems. Whittier wrote for Garrison's "Liberator" and for the Washington National Era," where also Mrs. Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" first appeared. To the "Atlantic Monthly," established in 1857, he became a favorite contributor. "Voices of Freedom," 1849, was the first comprehensive collection of his poems. It was followed by Songs of Labor," 1850; "The Chapel of the Hermits," 'A Sabbath Scene," 1853; Panorama,' 1856; "Home Ballads,' "In War Time," 1863; National Lyrics," 1865; "Snow Bound," 1866; The Tent on the Beach," 1867; Among the Hills," 1868; 66 The 1860 The Ballads of New England," 1869; "Miriam and Other Poems," 1870; The Pennsylvania Pilgrim," 1872; Mabel Martin," 1874; "Hazel Blossoms,' 1875; "Centennial Hymn," 1876; "The Vision of Echard," 1878; King's Missive," 1881; "The Bay of Seven Islands,' 1883; "Poems of Nature," 1885; "St. Gregory's Guest, and Recent Poems," 1886; At Sundown," 1890, dedicated to E. C. Stedman, and ending with his last poem, addressed to O. W. Holmes. His prose works are "The Stranger in Lowell," 1845; "Supernaturalism in New England," 1847; Leaves from Margaret Smith's Journal," 1849; "Old Portraits and Modern Sketches," 1850; "Literary Recollections," 1854. He edited * John Woolman's Journal," 1873, and "The Letters of Lydia Maria Child," 1882. He compiled Songs of Three Centuries," 1873; "ChildLife," 1871; and "Child-Life in Prose," 1873. The authoritative Life of Whittier is written by his nephew-in-law and literary executor, Samuel T. Pickard, 1894. His home in Amesbury, Mass., has been purchased by the Whittier Home Association; a club has been formed WILCOX, Ella Wheeler, b. Johnstown Centre, Wis., 185-. She was educated at the University of Wisconsin, and was married, 1884, to Robert M..Wilcox, of Meriden, Conn. Her home is in New York City. Among her writings are Drops of Water," temperance poems, 1872; "Shells," 1873; Maurine, and Other Poems," 1882; Poems of Passion," 1883; "Mal Moulée," story, 1885; "Poems of Pleasure," 1888; Custer, and Other Poems, 1895. WILDE, Richard Henry, lawyer, b. Dublin, Ireland, 1789; d. New Orleans, La., 1847. Reared in poverty, but a natural poet and scholar. Prepared himself for the law and rose by his own effort to a position of eminence in letters and in public life. Lived in Italy from 1835 to 1840. Was afterward until his death a prominent lawyer in New Orleans. Author of fugitive poems, notably "My Life is Like a Summer Rose." Wrote also, as a result of his Italian studies, Conjectures and Researches Concerning the Love, Madness, and Imprisonment of Torquato Tasso," 1842. WILKINS, Mary Eleanor, b. Randolph, Mass., 1862. Miss Wilkins is known by her prose work rather than by her poetry, of which she has written comparatively little. Early in 1893, Giles Corey," a poetic drama, was produced in Boston, under the auspices of The Theatre of Arts and Letters. Her well-known novels are charming realistic tales of New England, delineating the life and manners of its people. WILKINSON, William Cleaver, D. D., b. Westford, Vt., 1833. A Baptist clergyman, formerly professor in the Rochester Theological Seminary, and professor of poetry and criticism at the University of Chicago since 1892. Among his writings are A Free Lance in the Field of Life and Letters," 1874; "Webster, an Ode," 1882; "Poems," 1883; "Edwin Arnold as Poetizer and Paganizer," 1884; "The Epic of Saul," 1891; "A College Greek Course in English," 1893; The Epic of Paul," 1898. WILLIS, Nathaniel Parker, poet and essayist, b. Portland, Me., 1806; à. "Idlewild," near Newburgh, N. Y., 1867. Won at Yale, where he was graduated, 1827, a prize for the best poem. His earliest verses appeared in the "Youth's Companion" and "Boston Recorder," both founded by his father. In 1829, he established the "American Monthly Magazine," afterwards the New York Mirror." In 1831 he visited Europe and the East, contributing letters to the Mirror." A rebuke from Capt. Marryat in the "Metropolitan Magazine," for reporting private interviews, led to a bloodless duel. In 1839 he published the " Corsair,' to which Thackeray contributed. In 1846 he founded, with G. P. Morris, the "Home Journal," remaining associate editor till his death, at the estate on the Hudson which he purchased in 1846 and named 66 Idlewild.' Published "Poetical Scripture Sketches," 1827; Melanie, and Other Poems," "Lady Jane, and Other Poems," 1844; and many volumes of brilliant prose sketches, letters, travels, etc. A complete edition of his poems appeared in 1868. Cp. 'Poets of America," pp. 41, 42. WILSON, Alexander, ornithologist, b. Paisley, Scotland, 1766; d. Philadelphia, Penn., 1813. Emigrated to America, 1794. Followed his trades, weaving and peddling, - taught school, and was editor of an edition of "Rees's AmeriCyclopædia." In 1804 he began his can Ornithology;" published seven volumes, 1808-13; the other two volumes being edited after his death by a friend. Author of "Poems, 1790 and 1791; Watty and Meg," 1792; "The Foresters," 1805; "Poems and Literary Prose," 1876. WILSON, Robert Burns, b. Washington Co., Penn., 1850. Early in life he became a resident of Frankfort, Ky. He studied painting, and his pictures were exhibited with success. His verse has gained him a prominent position among Western poets. Besides many uncollected poems in the magazines, he is the author of "Life and Love," 1887, and " The Shadows of the Trees," 1898. 66 22 66 WINTER, William, b. Gloucester, Mass., 15 July, 1836. He graduated at the Harvard Law School, and for a time studied law under Rufus Choate. In 1859 he removed to New York, and soon won respect by the standard of Vanity his work for the "Saturday Press,' Fair,' Albion," etc. With an instinct for comradeship, he was the attached friend of George Arnold, O'Brien, and others among whom his lot was cast in the struggling days of authorship, and he survived to become their loyal editor and memorialist. Since 1865 he has been the dramatic critic of the N. Y. "Tribune," and in that capacity has gained distinction for both his journal and himself, ranking with his most eminent contemporaries here and abroad, and held in intimacy and honor by the foremost actors of his time. He has indulged to the full his passion for the scenes and traditions of old England, and on many sentimental journeys thither, and his resultant books have become "little classics on both sides of the Atlantic. Mr. Winter's home is on Staten Island, where he has associated his name with the Staten Island Academy, by founding its Arthur Winter library, in memory of a gifted and favorite child. In New York he long has held the primacy as poet and orator of festive or memorial occasions, having the stops of humor and pathos at full command in classical speech as well as in his song. Author of "The Convent, and "The Queen's Domain," My Witness," poems, 1871; Poems," comThistledown," poems, 1878; 1881; plete to date, 1880; Henry Irving," Other Poems," 1854; poems, 1858; 66 44 The Jeffersons,' 1885; The Stage-Life of Mary Anderson," 1886; "Shakespeare's EngWanderers," poems, 1888; land," 1886; Old Shrines "Gray Days and Gold," 1891; and Ivy," 1892; "The Life and Art of Edwin Brown Heath and Blue Bells," Booth," 1894; 1895. He has edited "Life, Stories, and the Poems of John Brougham," 1881; the poems of G. Arnold and O'Brien, and various other works of this class, besides the "Shakespearan and Miscellaneous Plays of Edwin Booth," 1899. Cp. "Poets of America," p. 440. WINTHROP, Theodore, b. New Haven, Conn., 1828; fell at Great Bethel, Va., 1861. An early and distinguished writer of the Civil War. He was graduated at Yale, and after spending two years in Europe and several in Panama, removed to New York City, where he was admitted to the bar. In 1861 he became General Butler's secretary, and planned with him the campaign that cost him his own life. Though he published a notable article, "The March of the Seventh," in the Monthly," the writings which were to preserve his name and fame appeared after the close of his sorrowfully brief career, and comprise the "Cecil Dreeme," 1861; following volumes: John Brent," 1862; "Edwin Brothertoft, 1862; "The Canoe and the Saddle,' Atlantic 1862; Life in the Open Air, and Other Papers," 1863. His novels were in some degree the forerunners WOODBERRY, George Edward, poet, critic, and educator, b. Beverly, Mass., 12 May, 1855. Was fitted for college at Phillips Academy, Exeter, N. H., and graduated at Harvard, He was acting professor of rhetoric, 1877. English literature, and history, at the State University of Nebraska, 1877-78, and professor of Anglo-Saxon and rhetoric, and instructor in composition, at the same university, 1880-82. From 1878 to 1879 he was engaged on the staff of "The Nation." He resided at Beverly, occupied with literary work until his appointment, in 1891, to a professorship of English literature at Columbia. Author of "HisThe North tory of Wood Engraving," 1883; Shore Watch: a Threnody," privately printed, 1883; Edgar Allan Poe," in "American Men of Letters," 1885; "The North Shore Watch, and Other Poems," 1890; "Studies in Letters Heart of Man,' and Life," essays, 1890; Wild Eden," verse, 1899; essays, 1899; Makers of Literature," essays, 1900. ProfesSelected Poems" sor Woodberry has edited of Aubrey de Vere, 1895; "The Complete Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley," 4 The Works of Edgar Allan vols., 1892; Poe," with Edmund C. Stedman, 10 vols., 1894. Is editor of the "National Studies in series, to which he conAmerican Letters " tributes"Flowers of Essex," 1900. 66 WOODWORTH, Samuel, journalist and writer, b. Scituate, Mass., 13 Jan., 1785; d. New York, N. Y., 9 Dec., 1842. Connected with several papers, notably with the N. Y. "Mirror," of which he was one of the founders. Author of The Champions of Freedom," 1816, and several operettas and dramatic pieces. A collection of his poems was made in 1826 under the patronage of De Witt Clinton, but only "The Old Oaken Bucket" is now remembered. WOOLSEY, Sarah Chauncey, "Susan Coolidge," b. Cleveland, O., about 184-. Niece of President Woolsey of Yale College. Her home is in Newport, R. I. She has published "Old Convent School in Paris; " "The New Year's Bargain," 1871; the series beginWhat Katy Did," 1872; and many ning with other books for young girls; "Verses," 1880; "Ballads of Romance and History," with She others, 1887; "A Few More Verses.' has edited The Autobiography and Corre1879; "The spondence of Mrs. Delaney, Diary and Letters of Frances Burney," 1880, and has made translations from the French. WOOLSEY, Theodore Dwight, scholar, b. New York, N. Y., 1801; d. New Haven, Conn., 1889. Graduated at Yale, and studied for the ministry at Princeton. He was appointed professor of Greek at Yale in 1831, and was president of the same institution from 1846 to 1871. Author of numerous classical text 66 books and works on political and social science. Eros, and Other Poems " was privately printed in 1880. WOOLSON, Constance Fenimore, novelist, b. Claremont, N. H., 1840; d. Venice, Italy, 1894. A grand-niece of James Fenimore Cooper; educated at Cleveland, O., and at a French school in New York City. From 1873 to 1879 she lived chiefly in Florida. The last years of her life were passed in Italy. In 1870 Harper's she began to contribute stories to Monthly," and most of her prose and verse appeared in that magazine. Author of "The Old Stone House," 1873; "Castle Nowhere," "Lake-Country Sketches," 1875; Anne, 1882; "East Angels," 1886; "Jupiter Lights," 1889; "The Front Yard, and Other Italian Stories; Horace Chase," 1894. No woman of rarer personal qualities, or with more decided gifts as a novelist, figured in her own generation of American writers. 99 66 WRIGHT, William Bull, physician and teacher, b. New York, N. Y., 1840; d. Atlanta, Ga., 1880. His home was in Buffalo, N. Y. Dr. Wright served in the Civil War, and was professor of ancient languages in the Buffalo normal school, 1871-78. Author of "Highland gon, verse, YOUNG, William, b. Monmouth, Ill., 1847. He took a course in law, but wishing to become a dramatist, for a while went on the stage. He also made a study of the drama while living in London. His plays, "Jonquil," 1871; "The Rogue's March," 1872; "Pendra1881; "The Rajah," 1883; "Ganelon," verse, 1889,- -were produced in Chicago and New York City. His "Wishmaker's Town," 1885 (new ed. 1898, with a preface by T. B. Aldrich), is a series of quaint and imaginative poems on one theme. His dramatic setting of Wallace's "Ben Hur was placed on the New York stage, 1899-1900. |