|
Journals of Dorothy
Wordsworth
Edited by William Knight in two volumes (1897)
PREFATORY NOTE
The Journals written by
Dorothy Wordsworth, and her reminiscences of Tours made with her brother,
are more interesting to posterity than her letters.
A few fragments from her Grasmere Journal were included by the late Bishop
of Lincoln in the Memoirs of his uncle, published in 1850. The Recollections
of a Tour made in Scotland in 1803, were edited in full by the late
Principal Shairp in the year 1874 (third edition 1894). In 1889, I included
in my Life of William Wordsworth most of the Journal written at Alfoxden,
much of that referring to Hamburg, and the greater part of the longer
Grasmere Journal. Some extracts from the Journal of a Tour on the Continent
made in 1820 (and of a similar one written by Mrs. Wordsworth), as well as
short records of subsequent visits to Scotland and to the Isle of Man, were
printed in the same volume. None of these, however, were given in their
entirety ; nor is it desirable now to print them in extenso^ except in the
case of the Recollections of a Tour made in Scotland in 1803. All the
Journals contain numerous trivial details, which bear ample witness to the “
plain living and high thinking ” of the Wordsworth household—and, in this
edition, samples of these details are given—but there is no need to record
all the cases in which the sister wrote, “ To-day I mended William’s
shirts,” or “ William gathered sticks,” or “ I went in search of eggs,” etc.
etc. In all cases, however, in which a sentence or paragraph, or several
sentences and paragraphs, in the Journals are left out, the omission is
indicated by means of asterisks. Nothing is omitted of any literary or
biographical value. Some persons may think that too much has been recorded,
others that everything should have been printed. As to this, posterity must
judge. I think that many, in future years, will value these Journals, not
only as a record of the relations existing between Wordsworth and his
sister, his wife her family and his friends, but also as an illustration of
the remarkable literary brotherhood and sisterhood of the period.
Coming now to details.
I
I do not know of any Journal written at Racedown, and I do not think that
Dorothy kept one while she and her brother lived in Dorsetshire. In July
1797 they took up their residence at Alfoxden ; but, so far as is known, it
was not till the 20th of January 1798 that Dorothy began to write a Journal
of her own and her brother’s life at that place. It was continued
uninterruptedly till Thursday, 22nd May 1798. It gives numerous details as
to the visits of Coleridere to Alfoxden, and the Wordsworths’ visits to him
at Nether-Stowey, as well as of the circumstances under which several of
their poems were composed. Many sentences in the Journal present a curious
resemblance to words and phrases which occur in the poems ' and there is no
doubt that, as brother and sister made use of the same note-book—some of
Wordsworth’s own verses having been written by him in his sister’s
journal—the copartnery may have extended to more than the common use of the
same MS.
The archaic spellings which occur in this Journal are retained; but
inaccuracies—such as Bartelmy for Bartholemew, Cre wkshank for
Cruikshank—are corrected. In the edition of 1889 the words were printed as
written in MS. ; but it is one thing to reproduce the bona fide text of a
journal, or the ifisissima verba of a poet, and quite another to reproduce
the incorrect spellings of his sister.
II
From the Journal of the days spent at Flamburg in 1798—when the Wordsworths
were on their way to Goslar, and Coleridge to Ratzeburg—only a few extracts
are given, dating from 14th September to 3rd October of that year. These
explain themselves.
III.-VI
Of the Grasmere Journals much more is given, and a great deal that was
omitted from the first volume of the Life of Wordsworth in 1889, is now
printed. To many readers this will be by far the most interesting section of
all Dorothy Wordsworth’s writings. It not only contains exquisite
descriptions of Grasmere and its district—a most felicitous record of the
changes of the seasons and the progress of the year, details as to flower
and tree, bird and beast, mountain and lake—but it casts a flood of light on
the circumstances undei- which her brother’s poems were composed. It also
discloses much as to the doings of the Wordsworth household, of the visits
of Coleridge and others, while it vividly illustrates the peasant life of
Westmoreland at the beginning of this century. What I have seen of this
Journal extends from 14th May to 21st December 1800, and from 10th October
1801 to 16th January 1803. It is here printed in four sections.
VII
When the late Principal Shairp edited the Recollections of a Tour made in
Scotland in 1803, he inserted an elaborate and valuable introduction, with a
few explanatory and topographical notes. With the consent of Mrs. Shairp,
and of the Principal’s son, Sheriff J. C. Shairp, many of them are now
reproduced, with the initials J. C. S. appended. As some notes were needed
at these places, and I could only have slightly varied the statements of
fact, it seemed better for the reader, and more respectful to the memory of
such a Wordsworthian as the late Principal was, to record them as his. I
cordially thank Mrs. Shairp, and her son, for their kindness in this matter.
It should be added that Dorothy Wordsworth’s archaic spelling of many of the
names of places, such as — Lanerk, Ulswater, Strath Eyer, Loch Ketterine,
Inversneyde, etc., are retained.
These Recollections of the Tour made in Scotland were not all written down
at the time during the journey. Many of them were “ afterthoughts.” The
Alfoxden and Grasmere Journals were “diaries,” in the sense that— except
when the contrary is stated—they were written down day by day ; but certain
portions of the Scottish Journal suggest either that they were entirely
written after the return to Grasmere, or were then considerably expanded. I
have not seen the original MS. Dorothy transcribed it in full for her friend
Mrs. Clarkson, commencing the work in 1803, and finishing it on 31st May
1805 (see vol. ii. p. 78). This transcript I have seen. It is the only one
now traceable.
It should be mentioned that Dorothy Wordsworth was often quite incorrect in
her dates, both as to the day of the week and the month. Minute accuracy on
these points did not count for much at that time ; and very often a mistake
in the date of one entry in her Journal brought with it a long series of
future errors. The same remark applies to the Grasmere Journal, and to the
record of the Continental Tour of 1820.
Many friends and students of Wordsworth regretted the long delay in the
publication of the Tour made in Scotland in 1803. In the Recollections of
the Table-Talk of Samuel Rogers (1856), p. 208, we find the following: “I do
indeed regret that Wordsworth has printed only fragments of his sister’s
journal; it is most excellent, and ought to have been published entire.” It
will always hold a place of honour in itinerary literature. It possesses a
singular charm, and has abiding interest, not only as a record of travel,
but also as a mirror of Scottish life and character nearly a hundred years
ago.
VIII
The Journal of a Mountain Ramble, by William and Dorothy Wordsworth in
November 1805, calls for no special remark. The ramble was from Grasmere by
Rydal and Kirkstone Pass to Patterdale and Ullswater, thence to the top of
Place Fell, at the foot of which Wordsworth thought of buying—and did
afterwards buy —a small property near the Lake, thence to Yanworth,
returning to Grasmere by Kirkstone again. The story of this “ramble,”
written by Dorothy, was afterwards incorporated in part by William
Wordsworth in his prose Description of the Scenery of the Lakes—another
curious instance of their literary copartnery.
IX
In 1820 the poet, his wife, and sister, along with Mr. and Mrs. Monkhouse,
and Miss Horrocks (a sister of Mrs. Monkhouse), spent more than three months
on the Continent. They left Lambeth on the 10th of July, and returned to
London in November. Starting from Dover on 11 th July, they went by Brussels
to Cologne, up the Rhine to Switzerland, were joined by Henry Crabb Robinson
at Lucerne, crossed over to the Italian Lakes, visited Milan, came back to
Switzerland, and passed through France to Paris, where they spent a month.
Dorothy Wordsworth wrote a minute and very careful Journal of this tour,
taking notes at the tijne, and extending them on her return to Westmoreland.
Mrs. Wordsworth kept a shorter record of the same journey. Crabb Robinson
also wrote a diary of it. Wordsworth recorded and idealised his tour in a
series of poems, named by him “ Memorials of a Tour on the Continent, 1820,”
very few of which were written on the spot ; and when, in the after-leisure
of Rydal Mount, he set to work upon them, it is evident that he consulted,
and made frequent use of, the two family Journals, particularly the one
written by his sister. In a letter to Mrs. Clarkson from Coblentz, dated
22nd July, Dorothy said : “Journals we shall have in abundance; for all,
except my brother and Mrs. Monkhouse, keep a journal. Mine is nothing but
notes, unintelligible to any one but myself. I look forward, however, to
many a pleasant hour’s employment at Rydal Mount in filling up the chasms.”
The originals of these two Journals still exist, and it is hard to say
whether the jottings taken at the time by the wife, or the extended Journal
afterwards written by the sister, is the more admirable, both as a record of
travel and as a commentary on the poet’s work. Dorothy’s MS. is nearly as
long as her Recollections of the Scottish Tour of 1803. Extracts from both
Journals were published in the library edition of the Poems in 1884, and in
the Life of William Wordsworth in 1889 ; but these were limited to passages
illustrative of the Poems.
It is not expedient to print either Journal in full. There are, however, so
many passages of interest and beauty in each—presenting a vivid picture of
the towns and countries through which the Wordsworths passed, and of the
style of continental travelling in those days— that it seems desirable to
insert more numerous extracts from them than those which have been already
printed. They will be found to illustrate much of the state of things in
Germany, Switzerland, Italy and France in the first quarter of the present
century ; while they afford an interesting contrast to that which meets the
eye of the traveller, and ministers to his wants, at the present day. In the
80 pages extracted from Dorothy’s Journal alone, it is such passages that
have, in the main, been selected.
In October 1821, Mr. Robinson was a visitor at Rydal Mount; and after
reading over the Journals of Mrs. and Dorothy Wordsworth, he wrote thus in
his Diary:—
“ 2nd Oct. ’21.—I read to-day part of Miss, and also Mrs., W.’s Journal in
Switzerland. They put mine to shame.1 They had adopted a plan of
journalising which could not fail to render the account amusing and
informing. Mrs. W., in particular, frequently described, as in a panorama,
the objects around her; and these were written on the spot : and I recollect
her often sitting on the grass, not aware of what kind of employment she
had. Now it is evident that a succession of such pictures must represent the
face of the country. Their Journals were alike abundant in observation (in
which the writers showed an enviable faculty), and were sparing of
reflections, which ought rather to be excited by than obtruded in a book of
travels. I think I shall profit on some future occasion by the hint I have
taken.”
Again, in November 1823, Robinson wrote :—
1
“Finished Mrs. Wordsworth’s Journal. I do not know when I have felt more
humble than in reading it. It is so superior to my own. She saw so much more
than I did, though we were side by side during a great part of the time.”
Robinson advised Dorothy Wordsworth to publish her Journal of this
Continental Tour, and she replied to him, 23rd May 1824 :—
. Your advice respecting my Continental Journal is, I am sure, very good,
provided it were worth while to make a book of it, i.e. provided I could do
so, and provided it were my wish ; but it is not. ‘ Far better,’ I say, c
make another tour, and write the Journal on a different plan !’ In recopying
it, 1 should, as you advise, omit considerable portions of the description.
. . . But, observe, my object is not to make a book, but to leave to my
niece a neatly-penned memorial of those few interesting months of our lives.
. . .”
X
In 1822, Dorothy Wordsworth went with Joanna Hutchinson to Scotland, for
change of air and scene. She wrote of this journey:—
“ I had for years promised Joanna to go with her to Edinburgh—that was her
object; but we planned a little tour, up the Forth to Stirling, thence by
track-boat to Glasgow ; from Dumbarton to Rob Roy’s cave by steam : stopping
at Tarbet ; thence in a cart to Inverary ; back again to Glasgow, down Loch
Fyne, and up the Clyde ; thence on the coach to Lanark ; and from Lanark to
Moffat in a cart. There we stopped two days, my companion being an invalid ;
and she fancied the waters might cure her, but a bathing-place which nobody
frequents is never in order ; and we were glad to leave Moffat, crossing the
wild country again in a cart, to the banks of the river Esk. We returned to
Edinburgh for the sake of warm baths. We were three weeks in lodgings at
Edinburgh. Joanna had much of that sort of pleasure which one has in first
seeing a foreign country ; and in our travels, whether on the outside of a
coach, on the deck of a steamboat, or in whatever way we got forward, she
was always cheerful, never complaining of bad fare, bad inns, or anything
else. ...”
It was a short excursion, but was memorialised in the usual way by Dorothy’s
ever ready pen.
XI
In the following year, 1823, Wordsworth and his wife left Lee Priory, “for a
little tour in Flanders and Holland,” as he phrased it in a letter to John
Kenyon. He wrote 16th May :—
“We shall go to Dover, with a view to embark for Ostend to-morrow, unless
detained by similar obstacles. From Ostend we mean to go to Ghent, to
Antwerp, Breda, Utrecht, Amsterdam—to Rotterdam by Haarlem, the Hague, and
Leyden— thence to Antwerp by another route, and perhaps shall return by
Mechlin, Brussels, Lille, and Ypres to Calais—or direct to Ostend as we
came. We hope to be landed in England within a month. We shall hurry through
London homewards, where we are naturally anxious already to be, having left
Rydal Mount so far back as February. . .
The extracts taken from Mary Wordsworth’s Journal show how far they
conformed to, and how far they departed from, their original plan of travel.
In them will be found the same directness and simplicity, the same vividness
of touch, as are seen in her Journal of the longer tour taken in 1820.
XII
In 1828, Dorothy Wordsworth went to the Isle of Man, accompanied by Mrs.
Wordsworth’s sister Joanna, to visit her brother Henry Hutchinson. This was
a visit, earlier by five years than that which the poet took with his sister
to the Isle of Man, before proceeding to Scotland, a tour which gave rise to
so many sonnets. Of the later tour she kept no Journal, but of the earlier
one some records survive, from which a few extracts have been made.
In conclusion, I must mention the special kindness of the late Mrs.
Wordsworth, the daughter-in-law of the poet, and of Mr. Gordon Wordsworth
his grandson, in granting free access to all the Journals and MSS. they
possessed, and now possess. Without their aid the publication of these
volumes would have been impossible.
William Knight.
Volume 1 | Volume 2
Wordsworth
By Andrew Lang (1897) (pdf) |
