W* RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
705 
of interest, but they are so simple, so ten¬ 
der, so full of loving kindness and the 
inspiration to meet our lives bravely 
whatever may come, that every time we 
sit down even for five or 10 minutes and 
read a bit in them we feel better and 
happier for it. It is a very great thing to 
live such a life and leave such a work as 
did Mr. Longfellow. That is why it is 
so well worth while for us to take space 
on Our Page to talk about him. and I 
have selected five or six of the best let¬ 
ters sent in for you all to read. Here 
they are: 
The answer to Evelyn Haskell’s poem 
puzzle is “Evangeline.” It was written by 
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The place 
of this poem is Acadia, which is now 
Nova Scotia. The rich farmer’s name 
was Benedict Bellefontaine. and his 
daughter’s name was Evangeline. Her 
friend was Gabriel Lajeunesse. and his 
father’s name was Basil, and he was a 
blacksmith. This poem is a great love 
story. We read it in school and I en¬ 
joyed it very much. lillian kyed. 
Connecticut. 
I think “Evangeline” is one of the pret¬ 
tiest poems Longfellow ever wrote. He 
lived in Cambridge, Mass. All the chil¬ 
dren loved him. and he wrote many poems 
about them. When the streets of Cam¬ 
bridge were widened they said they would 
have to chop down a chestnut tree in 
front of a blacksmith’s shop. Mr. Long¬ 
fellow went and asked the men who were 
going to chop it down if they would not 
let it stand. They said they could not. 
But without his knowing it they asked 
each school child to bring a penny and 
they had a chair made out of the tree. If 
you should go to Cambridge now you 
could go into Longfellow’s home and see 
that chair in his study. You could also 
meet one of his daughters, who is still liv¬ 
ing there. You can only go in on certain 
days. HELEN rarie (10 years). 
Pennsylvania. 
Editor’s Note. —I have taken it for 
granted that Helen is right in what she 
says about Mr. Longfellow’s home, al¬ 
though I have had no time to make sure. 
It would have been fine if w T e could have 
had a letter from someone who lives >n 
Cambridge or who has been there recently 
and actually seen these things. 
The story of the origin of the poem 
“Evangeline” is interesting. Bev. H. L. 
Conolly, a friend of both Longfellow and 
Hawthorne, heard from a French-Ac- 
adian in his congregation, years after, the 
tale of a young couple who were separat- 
i d at the time of the expulsion. The girl 
wandered among the States seeking her 
lover. At last, when she was old, she 
found him on his deathbed. Mr. Conolly 
told this to Hawthorne as a suitable plot 
for a story. Hawthorne was doubtful 
about using it in prose, and Longfellow 
said “Give it to me and promise you will 
not write about it until I have written 
the poem.” grace boutciier 
Pennsylvania. (14 years). 
A bronze statue of Evangeline was un¬ 
veiled on July 29, 1920, at Grand Pre, 
Nova Scotia. It represents her about to 
leave her native land. Her face is turned 
slightly backward in a sorrowful man¬ 
ner. doris marvin (16 years). 
< )hio. 
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was 
born in Portland, Me., Feb. 27, 1S07. 
11 is birthplace was a beautiful and busy 
town, a forest city with miles of seabeach 
and a port where merchant vessels from 
the West Indies exchanged sugar and rum 
for the products of the forests and the 
fisheries of Maine. 
We are told that he was a boy “true, 
high-minded and noble,” “handsome in 
appearance,” “active, eager, often impa¬ 
tient,” and the “sunlight of the home.” 
His conduct at school was “very correct 
and amiable”—he read much and was al¬ 
ways studious and thoughtful. Longfel¬ 
low’s education was obtained in Portland 
and at Bowdoin College. Brunswick, Me. 
After five years’ teaching at Bowdoin, 
Longfellow was invited in 1S34 to the 
chair of modern languages in Harvard 
College. In 1836 he began his active 
work at Harvard and took up his resi¬ 
dence in the historic Craigie House over¬ 
looking the Charles River. For 17 years 
Longfellow filled the professorship at 
Harvard and was one of the best beloved 
instructors. He resigned that he might 
devote himself to writing. He died 
March 24, 1S82, aged 75 years. In 1884 
a bust of him was placed in the poet’s 
corner at Westminster Abbey—this was 
England’s tribute. Longfellow’s poems 
will be read by many children in years to 
come. His poems will not grow old. 
HENRIETTA wei&and, (14 years). 
Ohio. 
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the au¬ 
thor of “Evangeline,” was born in Port¬ 
land, Me. His mother could trace her 
ancestry back to Priscilla and John Al- 
den. the two sturdy Pilgrims mentioned 
in Longfellow’s “The Courtship of Miles 
Standish.” Henry began school when 
only three years old, and was half 
through his Latin grammar at six years 
<>f age. He entered Bowdoin College 
Underneath a big umbrella little Jack and Isabella, 
Just enjoy the April rain—draw them walking in the lane. 
Drawn in Pencil by Frank Matthews 
(7 years), Connecticut 
Drawn in Pencil by Gladys Fenner 
New York 
Drawn by Helen Miller (12 years) 
New York 
Drawn by Vlasta Novak (15 years) 
New York 
Drawn by Imoyene Manning (10 years) 
New York 
Drawn by Esther Herr (15 years) 
Pennsylvania 
Michigan New York 
when he was 14 and met Franklin Pierce 
and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Longfellow 
roomed in a house which was later occu¬ 
pied by Mrs.. Stowe when she wrote 
“Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” He was one of the 
four who were given a place on the com¬ 
mencement program. 
After a visit to France, Spain, Italy 
and Germany to study languages, he took 
up his position as professor of modern 
languages at Bowdoin College. Several 
years later he published an account of his 
travels. He resigned his position for 
that of professor of modern languages in 
Harvard. In preparation he made an¬ 
other trip to Europe, on which his wife 
died in Holland. On his return he lived 
in the Craigie House, formerly the head¬ 
quarters of Washington. While visiting 
Springfield, he saw the arsenal and an 
old-fashioned clock which soon became his 
property. It was these two sights that 
called forth his two poems describing 
them. He also wrote “A Psalm of Life” 
and “The Village Blacksmith” at this 
time. At Harvard his class hours were 
long and he studied until midnight. Worn 
out by his studies and college duties, he 
sailed to Europe again for a rest. It was 
on his return that he composed his anti¬ 
slavery poems. Wishing to devote more 
of his time to poetry, lie resigned his po¬ 
sition at Harvard, which was filled by 
James Russell Lowell. 
Some years later the second Mrs. Long¬ 
fellow was fatally burned. The funeral 
was on their wedding anniversary. The 
poet was unable to be present, having 
been severely burned in his attempt to 
rescue his wife. “Tales of a Wayside 
Inn” appeared previous to his last trip to 
Europe, accompanied by his five children, 
three girls and two boys. The Red Horse 
Inn, the wayside inn of Longfellow’s 
poems, has recently been purchased by 
Henry Ford. “Evangeline” was the first 
of Longfellow’s several poems of consid¬ 
erable length. “Hiawatha” was the sec¬ 
ond. While he was in Europe the great¬ 
est men and women of that time, includ¬ 
ing Queen Victoria, showed him every 
honor. Qn his seventy-second birthday 
the children of Cambridge presented to 
him an armchair made from the wood of 
the chestnut tree mentioned in “The Vil¬ 
lage Blacksmith.” Cambridge and Ox¬ 
ford universities in England conferred 
honorary degrees upon him. Emerson. 
Holmes, Curtis and President Eliot of 
Harvard attended his funeral. He is 
buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery, where 
Lowell and Artemus Ward also rest. 
anna graham, (14 years). 
Illinois. 
What Book Is This? 
This book is about a little girl who lived 
in Kentucky with her mother and colored 
nurse. Her father is out West working. 
The little girl was nicknamed after her 
grandfather. She ran away from home 
with her dog Fritze. She came to a 
strawberry patch which belonged to her 
grandfather, but she did not know it. lie 
lived on a place called “The Locusts,” be¬ 
cause there were a lot. of locust trees 
around it. He forbade the little girl’s 
mother coming into his house because she 
married against his choice a Northern 
man. He was often sorry afterwards, 
though. In the end they made up, and 
mother, father and child lived in the big 
house. ESTHER WRIGHT (10 years). 
Maryland. 
To receive credit in answering this 
book puzzle, send the title and the au¬ 
thor’s name. 
April 
April’s skies are clear and blue, 
April’s clouds are gray, 
April is a watering pot 
For the flowers of May. 
Cowslips budding by the brook, 
Violets white and blue 
Whisper : “May will soon be here, 
Rain, Oh, April, do!” 
Maple trees are red with bloom, 
Grass is green and gay 
Innocents are peeping through 
For the Queen of May. 
April’s showers are light and soft 
As the Summer dew, 
Sun and clouds and birds and flowers— 
April, we love you ! 
—C. W. PARMENTER. 
Sent by Marjory Gyer (13 years). 
New York. 
Our Artists 
April is a great month for umbrellas, 
as you will see when you look at this 
page. Apparently the boys don’t like to 
to carry them, as a rule, because very 
few boys tried this rhyme drawing con¬ 
test. Ont of the 200 or more drawings 
sent in. your editor has chosen 10 to be 
printed, and in addition wishes to give 
an Honorable Mention to the following: 
Gabriel D’Agostino (10) and Margaret 
Kimberly (13) of Connecticut, Rebecca 
Spencer (13) of Maine, Esther Wright 
(10) of Maryland, Eleanor Hart (13) of 
Massachusetts, Olga Kugler (11) and 
Mildred Croshaw of New Jersey, Mary 
Baker (16), Bernard Jones (8), George 
Kratts (9), Pearl Moisio (10), Marie 
Roberts (11), Beatrice Booth (12), 
Dawn Wilson (12), Edith Rethore (12), 
Blanche Vodvarka (13, Anita Crommie 
(14) and Carlotta Baker of New York, 
Kenneth Mayer (13) of Ohio, Virginia 
Smith (10), Catherine Flynn (12), 
Helen Kauffman (14), and Miriam Rach¬ 
el of Pennsylvania, Rowena Wiggins 
(15) of Vermont, and Winona Taylor of 
West Virginia. 
Next month, you remember, we are go¬ 
ing to have Our Page illustrated with 
photographs instead of with drawings. 
iSo if you have a good snapshot of some 
Springtime activity, send it in, inclosing 
return postage in case you must have it 
back. Then in June we will have another 
rhyme drawing contest if you wish. 
(Continued on Page 710) 
