‘My dear Sir,—I yesterday received the copy of your poems, which you did me the honor to send me, for which I heartily thank you. They have been my study and delight, some of them, I may truly say, from boyhood, and to possess a copy of them from the author, in any form, would have been highly gratifying to me. How much more so is it in this magnificent edition, in which the text seems to derive additional beauty from that of the illustrations. It is a further pleasure for me to regard it—I hope not presumptuously—as an expression of your approbation of my own humble efforts in the field of letters.
‘Believe me, my dear Sir, with sentiments of the highest respect, your much obliged and obedient servant,
