Page:The Southern Literary Messenger - Minor.djvu/189

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Literary Messenger
167

Lee and Edgar A. Poe. The editor notices each. In that of Mr. Poe he quotes a letter from Longfellow and copies "The Bells" and "Annabel Lee." Of the latter he says: "The day before he left Richmond, he placed in our hands, for publication in the Messenger, the MS. of his last poem, which has since found its way (through a correspondent of a Northern newspaper with whom Mr. Poe had left a copy), into the newspaper press and been extensively circulated. As it was designed for this magazine, we publish it, though our readers may have seen it before." This was in November, 1849. Poe is gone, but Thompson and the Messenger live on. He tries to get out his December number in time for it to be a Christmas memento to his readers, to one and all of whom he heartily says, "Benedicite."

Charles Lanman has come again; Ik Marvel holds on; Lucian Minor remains faithful; Yalla-busha puts forth Junius E. Leigh as her poet and other localities have their fledglings. But G. W. Thompson has a poem, "God's Minstrelsy;" Sininis has a longer one, "Metacom of Montaup;" Mrs. Evans, Mrs. Dinnies, Mrs. Osgood and Mrs. Eames, J. M. Legaré", R. H. Stoddard and P. H. Hayne all contribute. Hon. B. F. Porter, of South Carolina, debuts. J. M. C. (Mrs. Dr. Cabell and sister of Mrs. Gen. Scott) continues. "The Chevalier Merlin" and "The Seldens of