THE PRICE OF POETRY.

Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3221, 16 June 1879, Page 1

THE PRICE OF POETRY.

It ii related that a gentleman 'recently took to Mf Bryant a! copy bf an early edition of hi« poems, • with the request that the poet would put bis autograph in it. He incidentally njentioried that he had paid fiire dolWri' for it.' "Why," said Mr Bryant, "Ithtt'i more than I got for )%*opyirri«lrt." Bu^ " .Templeton," writing to the Hartford CourAnt, notes sereral mitanc*! pf better compensation to ppetfi, ; He ■ i*yi,, Longfellow did not get four, thousand dollar*; (twenty dollara per line)-for "The Hanging of the Crane." He got 1000 dollars. Jt was originally offered to the Atlantic Monthly, and accepted, at a compensation of 260 dollars. Then Bonner made the, author.an offer, of 1Q(X) dollara for a poem of this length for the Ledger; the publifliers pf.trhe, Atlantic, appreciating the circumstances, released it to the author. ; He received 300 dollarß in addition for the use of it for public reading purposes before it appeared in print. The CornbillMagaeine's compensation for Tennysonli lVTithonu«,\':w»B>7.6o)doliars per line, and the Nineteenth Century paid him 12.50 dollar* per line for " The £erenge." ; Some of the best of Longfellow's earlier poems were sold to Graham's MgjrSuine for small sums;! Except tho £mckerbbcker, Which did not pay much, and for which Longfellow did not write, there were then rid other periodicals that paid for poetry. The Boston, Miscellany whjchiLowell edited had the disposition to do this; but it did not live long, and Had little means while in ■ existence. From fifty to a hundred dollarsiisod to be paid men of eatablished' reputation for pooms for anniversary occasion when societies had the means.' ' of' Hoi nibs' lobpeftt poem. " OraDia—a Bhymed Leaioir/'wisgiren before thrMerchantilo Literary Associatibn of Boitop. He was at first oot inclined to write it. but was startled by the magnificent offer of 200 dollari, and felt that be could not afford to neglect such *n opportunity. It occupied nearly an hour in its delivery. Longfellow and Wbittier, hare realised considerable sums from their poems in book form, making probably more than W Itieir' publisjhers. ;Lpngfelldw's"most profitable book was "Hiawatha," which a contrbTersy between publisher and critics gave an extraordinary sale on its first appearance. "Snow Bound also isold jartely, as did,'Long> fellow's The Harjg^'of^the'iJrane,'' especially in a holiday 'iedition^ | 'Tennyson receited a rery handsome sutn from his Boston publishers, for hjs UJlnoch , Arden," and.his books sell Ijest of #11 in America, while it is said that Lonßfellpw's ,haye the largest popularity in England. The sal* of Holmes'spbemsis ponsiderably larger tlutn thafrof Lowell's but falls below th* Sale of LoDßfdllow and WLittieh— 'ifew^ork'ETeiiftirPos'^ iihi!iv/&i»i.m