Notes 2531 2. I n a n a r t i c l e f r o m 1 9 3 0 , E a r l L e s l i e G r i g g s w r i t e s f a v o r a b l y o f R o b i n s o n
and extensively of her and Coleridge’s work on the Morning Post,
but makes no mention of Robinson holding an editorial position.
Robert Woof describes Southey and Robinson as being “employed as
principal contributors of poetry,” making no mention of any edito-
rial work (152). Neither does Carol Landon in her well- researched
essay on Wordsworth’s “Solitude of Binnorie,” which appeared in
the Morning Post during Robinson’s tenure, with a headnote not by
Robinson but by Coleridge paying tribute to Robinson’s metrical
skill and acknowledging the inf luence of her poem “The Haunted
Beach” on Wordsworth’s poem. Other experts in this area (Landon,
Woof, and Werkmeister) never refer to Robinson as anything other
than a regular or contracted contributor.- Although the original letters are not known to exist, Setzer con-
vincingly argues that the reprinted letters appearing in the Lady’s
Magazine in 1822 are authentic (307–8). - See Erdman, “Lost Poem Found,” which describes the search for and
recovery of Coleridge’s first poem to Robinson; as Erdman explains,
Lucyle Werkmeister discovered the reprinting of Coleridge’s poem in
this other paper. - Coleridge later revised this poem as “The Destiny of Nations, A
Vision.” - For more on Coleridge’s first poem to Robinson, see Luther (400–3)
and Cross (“Harping” 45–8). - In her biography of Robinson, Paula Byrne makes the remarkable
claim that Coleridge and Robinson met as early as February 1796
(321). Adam Sisman and Pamela Clemit in letters to the TLS have
proven that this is highly unlikely; Clemit, moreover, identifies the
“C.” in Godwin’s diary entries for this time as Thomas Abthorpe
Cooper. Coleridge would not become friends with Godwin until
around the same time he becomes friendly with Robinson. Slightly
expanded versions of Sisman’s and Clemit’s corrections are available
on the Friends of Coleridge website. It is possible, of course, that
Coleridge had read Robinson’s work long before the two met in
person. - Although the Morning Post announced on 6 September 1797 that
Robinson had completed an epic poem, I can only assume that
Robinson’s series of “Poetical Pictures” are extracted from that
work. My textual notes to these poems show that Robinson probably
reconstituted them with additions and other revisions. No manu-
script of the original poem is known to exist. The Progress of Liberty
first appears in print in its entirety in the 1801 Memoirs and the
1806 Poetical Works. The “Poetical Pictures” series concludes on
18 May 1798. Other poems that would make up parts of “The
Progress of Liberty” appeared over the next two years: these include
“The African,” by “Mrs. Robinson,” Morning Post and Gazetteer (2
9780230100251_08_not.indd 2539780230100251_08_not.indd 253 12/28/2010 12:31:43 PM12/28/2010 12:31:43 PM
10.1057/9780230118034 - The Poetry of Mary Robinson, Daniel RobinsonCopyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket iTr
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