Appendix:

Textual Variants in the Montreal Transcript

 



Lines 1052-1087 of The Emigrant appeared in the Montreal Transcript on February 3, 1842, with the following curt headnote: “FROM ’THE EMIGRANT,’ A POEM, BY STANDISH O’GRADY, ESQ., A.B.; T.C.D” Comparison of this excerpt with Lovell’s volume of 1841 reveals a few variants in punctuation and spelling, which are listed below. None of these variants is individually significant. As a whole they demonstrate the carelessness of O’Grady’s compositors, and confirm the duty of a present-day editor of the poem to emend fairly freely where sense requires. The word or phrase before the “]” appears in the Transcript’s excerpt; the word or phrase after the “]” in O’Grady’s volume of 1842; an asterisk indicates that in the present text I have adopted the Transcript’s reading, but on grounds independent of the authority of the newspaper.

1054

flaky ] fleaky*

1059

way, ] way.

1060

darking ] darkling

1060

spreads ] spreads,

1064

thy ] they

1065

blank, ] blank*

1067

Bear; ] Bear,*

1069

expire, ] expire;*

1077

heaven, ] heaven*

1079

rest; ] rest,*

1081

repose. ] repose,*

1082

strength ] strength,*

1083

lingerment ] Lingerment* [page 190]