Show TALES OF THE DAY Reminiscences Browning Dean Farrar continuing In the Independent Inde-pendent his reminiscences of Browning relates the following I once asked him about The Steed Which Brought Good News From Ghent How They Brought the Good News From Ghent to Aix and whether the Incident had any historic basis for I told him that a friend of mine had taken very considerable trouble to search various vari-ous histories and discover whether It was true or not No he said the whole poem was purely imaginary I had had a long voyage In a sailing vessel I think it was from Messina to Naples and being be-ing rather tired of the monotony thought of a good horse of mine and how much I should enjoy a quick ride As I could not ride in reality I thought that I would enjoy a ride In imagination and he then and there wrote that most popular of his lyrics He told me that during the same voyage voy-age he had asked the skipper to awake him when the sighted the Island of Capri If they should hapuen to pass It very early In the morning before he awoke Why should you care to be awaked to see Capri asked the skipper In reply Browning sketched to him some of the facts and legends of the long residence of the Emperor Tiberius In the Island to which his auditor listened 1 In silent aston ta fo ishment As they were passing Capri he came and awoke Mr Browning and pointing to the island said laconically to the poets great amusement Theres where that Great Mogul used to live Another Browning story Is told by a gentleman who had it from the poet himself him-self in Italy Browning once went early to bed In an English hotel but could not sleep on account of strange noises In the next room There were curious meanings and sighs and subdued mutterings Ringing Ring-Ing to find out what the cause of the disturbance dis-turbance might be and whether It might not be stilled Browning was Informed that his sufferings were due to a meeting in the adjoining room of the local BrownIng Brown-Ing society < l i 1 |