47
Jones, after death, in the presence of the Almighty.
One is ordered to Stand forth, John Jones and they
cast glances of deadly hate at each other, with a world
more of horrible bosh and unconscious burlesque. This
Banks declares the finest piece in the book.) Not-
withstanding this state of things he s going to get another
book if his writing stereotyped after the same way,
immolating all his $ thus. Happily, by so doing
he will be incapacitated for carrying out a project of
his that of paying a visit to England for the pur-
pose of kidnapping an illegitimate little girl, a daughter
of his whose Grandmother wouldn t let him have her
at any price. This, he declares, he will do, and
vaguely expects his new book will bring him fame and
fortune. Walking out at coming
I met Watson the engraver. A long, thin, black-
haired, evil faced, vulturous looking scoundrel. He
as wont, talked of his projects and of Allie Vernon.
Going into Wolf s Lager Bier cellar we sat at a
table adjacent to where were Sol Eytinge and Wood.
Presently Watson produced a doze or more letters,
which he had received in consequence of his having re-
plied to one of the un-equivocal Herald advertisements
wherein young widow ladies want $50. He had had
assignations with these correspondents and talked for
half an hour or more of them. The man is married,
but, I believe, spends two thirds of his time in hunting
carrion flesh. Sol hates him, and declares
| Page |
| Title: | Thomas Butler Gunn Diaries, Volume Eight: page fifty-four |
| Description: | Regarding the books A. F. Banks is trying to get published and a talk with engraver John Watson. |
| Date: | 1856-08-31 |
| Subject: | Banks, A.F.; Eytinge, Solomon; Gunn, Thomas Butler; Vernon, Allie (Margaret Eytinge); Watson, John; Watson, John, Mrs.; Wood, John A. |
| Coverage (City/State): | [New York, New York] |
| Scan Date: | 2011-02-02 |
| Volume |
| Title: | Thomas Butler Gunn Diaries, Volume Eight |
| Description: | Includes descriptions of the process of publishing his book, ''The Physiology of New-York Boarding Houses;'' his poor mental state upon returning to New York from England; meeting Walt Whitman; visits with Fanny Fern, James Parton, and Harriet Jacobs' daughter Louisa who is living with them; a visit to the Catskill Mountains with the Edwards family; moving into the boarding house at 132 Bleecker Street; working on the publication ''European'' with Colonel Hugh Forbes; the death of publisher William Levison and his daughter Ellen in his boarding house; visiting the scene of the murder of a dentist to get a sketch of the suspect; visiting Newport, Rhode Island, on assignment to sketch for Frank Leslie; and the death of his brother-in-law, Joseph Greatbatch. |
| Subject: | Boardinghouses; Bohemians; Gunn, Thomas Butler; Journalism; Medical care; Mental illness; Publishers and publishing; Travel; Women |
| Coverage (City/State): | New York, New York; Newport, Rhode Island |
| Note: | Thomas Butler Gunn was born February 15, 1826, in Banbury, England, and came to New York in 1849. During the Civil War he worked as a correspondent for the New York Tribune and the New York Evening Post. He returned to England in 1863, and died in Birmingham in April 1903. The collection includes twenty-one volumes of his diaries, including newspaper clippings, letters, photographs, sketches, and various other items inserted by Gunn. Diary entries date from July 7, 1849, to April 7, 1863, and include his experiences with the New York publishing and literary world, his descriptions of boarding houses, his travels throughout the United States, and his experiences traveling with the Federal army as a Civil War correspondent. |
| Publisher: | Missouri History Museum |
| Rights: | Copyright 2011 Missouri History Museum. |
| Source: | Page images, transcriptions, and metadata of the Thomas Butler Gunn diaries have been provided by the Missouri History Museum. |
