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appreciated the great genius of his friend; but his admiration for Shelley the man was unbounded, - "the best and least selfish man I ever knew," he calls him. upon Byron as

The Pilgrim of Eternity, whose fame

Shelley looked

Over his living head like heaven was bent,

but could scarcely sympathize with some of Byron's traits of character or habits of life. Nevertheless, the friendship between the two poets, whose names are so often linked together, continued until the end.

"The Prisoner
of Chillon; "
"Childe

Harold" again

In September Byron journeyed through Switzerland, incidentally gathering material for his lyrical drama, Manfred, and for the later cantos of Childe Harold, in which the grandeur of the Alpine scenery plays so large a part. Already, in June, while detained by bad weather at a little village named Ouchy, near Lausanne, he had written The Prisoner of Chillon, a tribute to moral and political liberty, and a tremendous advance over his earlier romances in verse. About this time, too, he completed the third canto of Childe Harold. Switzerland had taught him her mighty lessons, and in October he crossed over into Italy, accompanied by his friend Hobhouse, the companion of his earlier wanderings. They journeyed first to Verona, then to Ferrara (which inspired The Lament of Tasso), to Florence, to Rome ("the Niobe of nations," where he sat for his bust to the great Danish sculptor, Thorwaldsen), and finally to his Mecca, Venice, the "sea Cybele, fresh from ocean." All through this tour the poet had been collecting material Tour through Italy; "Man- for some of his noblest productions; but for us fred " the fairest flower of the Italian wandering is the fourth canto of Childe Harold, a glorification of Italy, which was finished in Venice in the early spring of 1818, about

the same time with Manfred, a strange, mystical, dramatic poem bearing some general resemblance to Goethe's Faust.

"Don Juan

The period of Byron's Venetian residence — extending through the greater part of two years is one over which any lover of his fame would gladly draw a veil. Such a life of excesses of every kind was unworthy of a true man, much more so of a great poet. He wallowed in the mire, with results disastrous to his health, character, and reputation. But, strangely enough, the period was one of Byron's life in Venice; intense literary activity. One elaborate poem "Mazeppa"; after another was turned out, with seemingly inexhaustible fertility, showing in the main a steady growth in art and in power. To this period belong Beppo, Mazeppa, and the earliest cantos of his masterpiece, Don Juan. In August, 1818, he was visited by Shelley, who records their walks and talks in his Julian and Maddalo. Tom Moore also came to see him while he was living in Venice, and in his famous biography gives many interesting details about his visit. As at Newstead, Byron had filled his house with animals, and "Keep clear of the dog," "Take care, or the monkey will fly at you," were among his reassuring cautions to Moore as the two felt their way up the stairs in the dark.

At this time, too, there came into Byron's life an influence which, though springing from an illegal relationship, brightened his existence and inspired his poetic genius. The Countess Guiccioli was the young and beautiful wife of an old Italian count. She was, furthermore, highly educated and attractive, with considerable depth of character and capacity for feeling. Byron and the countess met by chance; the attachment Countess between the two was immediate and enduring. Henceforth she played a large part in the poet's life. They were together now and again at Venice, Bologna,

Guiccioli

Ravenna, Pisa, and Genoa, in fact, until Byron left Italy for Greece. Whatever we of the present day may think of the character of the relationship, and certainly that is beyond approbation, it is admitted that the Countess Guiccioli was a refining influence in Byron's life. She was a faithful friend, and we must remember, in estimating her character, that Italian society at this period was somewhat too tolerant of such relationships. Any biography of Byron, however brief, which should omit some mention of so important a factor, would be essentially incomplete.

Life at Ra

"Cain"

After some two years at Venice, Byron removed to Bologna, and later to Ravenna. These changes of residence were dictated by the movements of the countess, whose venna; liter- family, the Gambas, were ardent workers in the ary activity; cause of Italian liberty. When one locality grew uncomfortable for them by reason of the suspicions of the dominant Austrian government, they went elsewhere and continued their operations afresh. At Ravenna Byron's literary activity continued unabated. Here he wrote his brilliant satire, The Vision of Judgment, and entered the lists as a dramatist with the Venetian plays, Marino Faliero and The Two Foscari, as well as with the more successful Sardanapalus. None of these, however, compares in power of imagination or in splendor of expression with the great dramatic poem, Cain, written at about the same time.

Byron had always been an ardent and probably sincere, though rather too declamatory, lover of liberty, both moral and political, and he had long been known to all Europe as "the poet of revolt." "I have simplified my politics into an utter detestation of all existing governments," he once said. His sympathy with the oppressed masses was rather condescending, but he was nevertheless quite ready to act upon his very positive convictions. Italy was secretly struggling for

Byron's attitude toward

Italian freedom

independence of the galling Austrian yoke. The conspirators were working largely through a society known as the Carbonari. Of this organization Byron's friends, the Gambas, were enthusiastic members. The author of the fourth canto of Childe Harold and of The Prophecy of Dante, which was intended for the Italians as a vision of their independence, was naturally an object of suspicion to the Austrians. For this Byron did not care a straw, and he delighted to flaunt his revolutionary principles in the very faces of his foes. He moved about with the Gambas, however, and after consulting with Shelley, left Ravenna for Pisa in October, 1821. At this place Shelley had secured for his use the Lanfranchi palace, in which Byron lived and worked industriously for ten months, riding and shooting, Life at Pisa for amusement, and entertaining his friends.

Shelley was near by, at Lerici, on the Gulf of Spezia.

Long before this time Byron had become a great figure in the world's regard. The publication of one of his poems was an important literary event. From his work he derived a large income and could now afford to be independent. The tone of some of his later productions was such that his old London publisher, Murray, was unwilling to give them to the public. In order to control a medium for the circulation of his ideas and the publication of his poems, he conceived the notion of founding a periodical of his own. Largely at Shelley's instigation, Leigh Hunt, the London radical and poet, was asked over to take charge of the new venture, which was to be named The Liberal. In July, 1822, the Hunts for the editor was accompanied by his wife and six children appeared on the scene. Four numbers of The Liberal were published, the last in July, 1823. But the venture was a failure, mainly owing to the fact that, in the very nature of things, two such men as Hunt and Byron could

Leigh Hunt and "The Liberal"

not agree. The Hunts were impecunious and improvident, and relied on Byron's bounty. Of this attitude the poet soon tired. The result was disruption and the financial failure of the paper.

Before The Liberal had ceased publication, however, and while Leigh Hunt was still at Byron's house, occurred a tragedy that plunged both men into mourning. In July, 1822, Shelley was drowned while sailing on the Gulf of Spezia. Byron was present at the cremation of the body, that weird and tragic event which has impressed itself so powerfully upon the imagination of mankind.

Death of

Shelley

In the following September Byron removed to Genoa, his final place of residence in Italy. Here he finished the sixteenth canto of Don Juan, still leaving the poem incomplete. This was his last work of any note. He now stood on the very pinnacle of poetic fame. He had proved his power as a lyrist, written one of the greatest of descriptive poems, accomplished Genoa; "Don something in the drama, and as narrative poet

Juan"

and satirist reigned supreme. Nothing, apparently, remained to be achieved in the realm of poetry. He was growing tired of it all, even of the applause and adulation that once were as music in his ears. Pleasure palled on him; dissipation had left its inevitable and ugly mark upon his health and his noble personal beauty. He wanted new worlds to conquer, and soon came the opportunity. Greece was in the midst of a desperate struggle for independence of Turkey. Beset with foes without and within, she was in dire straits for want of money and competent leadership. In erty: a new England a England a "Greek Committee" of prominent men had been formed to promote the cause of Grecian independence. This committee felt the need of adding to their number some great name of powerful influence among the Greeks themselves. In April, 1823, Byron was elected to membership. After a creditable hesitation he

Grecian lib

interest

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