Irvingiana
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| Versand: | 0.00 EUR Versandkostenfrei innerhalb von Deutschland |
| Partner: | buecher.de |
| Hersteller: | Forgotten Books (Duyckinck, Evert A.) |
| Stand: | 2015-08-04 03:50:33 |
Produktbeschreibung
Excerpt from Irvingiana: A Memorial of Washington Irving Washington Irving was born April 3, 1783, in the city of New York. As there has been gome little discussion as to the particular spot of his birth, it may not be amiss, writing for an historical magazine, to produce the following decisive testimony on the subject. In a letter, the original of which is before us, to Mr. Henry Panton, dated Sunnyside, Feb.15, 1850, Mr. Irving states precisely the place of bis birth. The house in which I was born was No.131 William-street, about half-way between John and Fulton streets. Within a very few weeks after my birth the family moved into a bouse nearly opposite, which my father had recently purchased; it was No.12. and has recently been pulled down anil a large edifice built on its site. It had been occupied by a British commissary during the war; the broad iin- iir was on the street door, and the garden was full of choice fruit-trees, apricots, greengages, nectarine--, C.Il is the first home of which Mr. Irving was the youngest son of a merchant of the city, William Irving, a native of Scotland, of an ancient knightly stock, who bad married Sarah Sanders, an English lady, and been settled in bis new country some twenty years. A newspaper correspondent at.-- years since narrated an anecdote of this early period, of a pleasing character, which, unlike many things of the kind, has we believe, the merit of truth I in its favor. The story, as related, is given from the lips of Mr. Irving at a breakfast-table in i Washington City. -Mr. Irving said that he remembered General Washington perfectly. There was some celebration, some public affair gg on in New York, and the General was there to participate in the ceremony. My nurse, 1 said Mr. Irving, a good old Scotchwoman, was very A portion of this paper is made up from a previous sketch, published in -The Cyclopedia of American Literature. anxious for me to see him, and held me up in her arms as he rode past. This, however, did not satisfy her; so the next day, when walking with me in Broadway, she espied him in a shop, she seized my hand and darting in, exclaimed in her bland Scotch: Please, your Excellency, heres a bairn thats called after ye! General Washington then turned his benevolent face full upon me, smiled, laid his hand upon my head, and gave me his blessing, which. added Mr. Irving earnestly, I have reason to believe, has attended me through life. I was but five years old, yet I can feel that hand upon my head even now. The early direction of the mind of the boy upon whose infant head the hand of Washington had thus been laid, was much influenced by the tastes of his brothers who had occupied themselves with literature. Of these, William, who subsequently became united with him in the joint authorship of Salmagundi, was seventeen years his elder, while Peter, the editor of a later day. was also considerably his senior. With the guidance of these cultivated minds and sound family influences, the youth had the good fortune to fall in with a stock of tiie best old En authors of the Elizabethan as well as of the Augustan period, the study of which generously unfolded iiis happy natural disposition. Chaucer and Spenser were his early favorites; and a better training cannot he imagined tor a youth of genius. His school education was the best the times afforded. Though something may he -aid of the detects of the city academies of those days in comparison with the present, we are for i to remember that however prodigally the opportunities of learning may he increase,, the receptive faculties of a boy are limited. There may he more cramming in these times at the feast of the sciences; hut we question whether the digestion is very materially improved. Few men, at any rate, have ever shown themselves better trained in the pursuit of literature than Washington Irving. The education which bore such early and mature
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