George Heath page 3c
There are some poems in a different hand, apparently re-written with a commentary by one of Heath's friends. This page contains the first section of one of Heath's better-known poems, "The Pauper Child". Some of the comments were incorporated into another version of the poem.
The commentator has written: "Of the poems you sent me, this is decidedly the best & I have read it with a deep interest. The narrative in the poem is pleasantly varied by some graphic descriptions, & the reader cannot help sympathising deeply with the poor, lonely, sick child. All through the poem there is expressed a tenderness of feeling, which gives to it a peculiar charm. The subject is well chosen & well treated, especially with regard to fiction."
His critic was clearly keen to continue Heath's education, pointing out errors in grammar and use of words. "How can a whisper pierce the gloom? Gloom means obscurity, partial darkness, which in consequence can only be pierced by a ray of light."
© Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Archive Service, 2010
Staffordshire Record Office, 6857/2/2
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