'Neath thy green domes, where the lianas cling, Show tropic flowers with wide-opened eyes, With arteries afire till morn-birds sing; More than old Werthier, in new love's surprise, Stand on the threshold of thy Paradise.
Son of the North, I, of the realm of snows,-- Vision afar, but always still a power,-- In these soft nights and in the days of rose, Dreaming I feel, e'en in the saddest hour, Within my heart unclose a golden flower.
Paraphrased from 'Les Feuilles Volantes,' by Maurice Francis Egan
At twenty years, a poet lone, I, when the rosy season came, Walked in the woodland, to make moan For some fair dame;
And when the breezes brought to me The lilac spent in fragrant stream, I wove her infidelity In love's young dream.
A lover of illusions, I! Soon other dreams quite filled my heart, And other loves as suddenly Took old love's part.
One Glory, a deceitful fay, Who flies before a man can stir, Surprised my poor heart many a day,-- I dreamed of her!
But now that I have grown so old, At lying things I grasp no more. My poor, deceived heart takes hold Of other lore.
Another life before us glows, Casts on all faithful souls its gleam: Late, late, my heart its glory knows,-- Of it I dream!
Mr. Frederic was born in Utica, New York, August 19th, 1856. He spent his boyhood in that neighborhood, and was educated in its schools. The rural Central New York of a half-century ago was a region of rich farms, of conservative ideas, and of strong indigenous types of character. These undoubtedly offered unconscious studies to the future novelist.
Like many of his guild he began writing on a newspaper, rising by degrees from the position of reporter to that of editor. The drill and discipline taught him to make the most of time and opportunity, and he contrived leisure enough to write two or three long stories. Working at journalism in Utica, Albany, and New York, in 1884 he became chief foreign correspondent of the New York Times, making his headquarters in London, where he has since lived.
Mr. Frederic's reputation rests on journalistic correspondence of the higher class, and on his novels, of which he has published six. His stories are distinctively American. He has caught up contrasting elements of local life in the eastern part of the United States, and grouped them with ingenuity and power. His first important story was 'Seth's Brother's Wife,' originally appearing as a serial in Scribner's Magazine. Following this came 'The Lawton Girl,' a study of rustic life; 'In the Valley,' a semi-historical novel, turning on aspects of colonial times along the Mohawk River; 'The Copperhead,' a tale of the Civil War; 'Mukena and Other Stories,' graphic character sketches, displaying humor and insight; 'The Damnation of Theron Ware,' the most serious and carefully studied of his books; and 'March Hares,' a sketch of contemporary society.