If, by chance, dear reader, you’ve been following along, then you know I’ve been publishing short briefs on my Dickinson-related trip to New York, Boston, and Amherst. And if, by chance, you have been following along, then you know that while in New York City (my whereabouts in posts up to this point) I indulged in a fancy candy bar (called a “Tea Cake”) for breakfast at Charlotte Patisserie; that I attended an intime soirée with Earth Wind & Fire and Lionel Richie at Madison Square Garden; and that I visited the Rare Books and Manuscripts archive in the North Hall of the Stephen A. Schwarzman building of the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue.
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’Twas there, dear reader, that you know (if you’ve been following along) that I examined a copy of The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson, published in 1924 and one owned by Genevieve Taggard; additionally, you know that I was quite agreeably surprised when I discovered that Ms. Taggard had glossed the pages with personal comments and shrewd insights within the tome’s margins, an unexpected and welcome revelation that threw me into a state of most pleasing astonishment. My heart, as one says, was all a-flutter.
This divulgement came to light in the dim shadows of the archive when first I flipped to the opening poem of the collection, “Success is counted sweetest.” There, upon and ’neath the stanzas, in Taggard’s own hand, were numerous emendations and sagacities. To crown it all, I recognized immediately that Taggard knew her stuff. Her remarks on said page and throughout the text were not platitudes and trifles. Her augmentations made it sound as though she knew the parties involved – Dickinson, Higginson, Hunt Jackson.
Ereyesterday, in my post “Date with Destiny” (HERE), I acknowledged, “what I thought would be a quick glance through the pages of the 1924 The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson was anything but – and my decelerated scrutiny of the pages began with the opening poem of the book on page 3.” As a result, I snapped close to fifty pics of pages peppered with jottings and insightful comments, and eventually, I will write about and share most if not all of them. However, for now, here’s the plan: I will move forward with posts on further particulars and proceedings of my trip, and then, at some future date, I will return to The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson and Taggard’s annotations and discuss individual poems.
This divulgement came to light in the dim shadows of the archive when first I flipped to the opening poem of the collection, “Success is counted sweetest.” There, upon and ’neath the stanzas, in Taggard’s own hand, were numerous emendations and sagacities. To crown it all, I recognized immediately that Taggard knew her stuff. Her remarks on said page and throughout the text were not platitudes and trifles. Her augmentations made it sound as though she knew the parties involved – Dickinson, Higginson, Hunt Jackson.
Ereyesterday, in my post “Date with Destiny” (HERE), I acknowledged, “what I thought would be a quick glance through the pages of the 1924 The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson was anything but – and my decelerated scrutiny of the pages began with the opening poem of the book on page 3.” As a result, I snapped close to fifty pics of pages peppered with jottings and insightful comments, and eventually, I will write about and share most if not all of them. However, for now, here’s the plan: I will move forward with posts on further particulars and proceedings of my trip, and then, at some future date, I will return to The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson and Taggard’s annotations and discuss individual poems.
 | Consequently, dear reader, I shall – in this post – bring to a close my time in New York and move the action forward to Boston and Amherst. In this way, delights will emerge posthaste like a double dose of dessert afore dinner! Hmm…except speaking of dinner, let me extol the deliciousness of our pre-Earth Wind & Fire Concert feast at the Empire Diner which began with the “Green Day” cocktail, described on the menu as “tanteo jalapeño tequila, green juice, cucumber spear, herb rim.” A few more pics appear on my travelogue, “Dial ‘Em’ for Emily,” HERE.
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Before I bid adieu, though, allow me to tie in a bit of Dickinson with this post. Having dined at the Empire Diner, I wondered if Dickinson ever used the word "Empire" in any of posts, and yes she did.
The Johnson edition of Dickinson's poetry includes one poem with the word "empire": "The Court is far away."
The Franklin edition includes two poems the word "empire": "The Court is far away" and "My Reward for Being -- was this." NOTE: The Johnson edition includes a different version of "My reward for Being -- was this," and it does not use the word "empire."
The Miller edition contains the one poem with "empire," "The Court is far away" -- AND -- it includes both versions of "My Reward for Being -- was this," the one with the word "empire" (from fascicle 24, sheet 4), and the one without (from fascicle 18, sheet 5).
The Johnson edition of Dickinson's poetry includes one poem with the word "empire": "The Court is far away."
The Franklin edition includes two poems the word "empire": "The Court is far away" and "My Reward for Being -- was this." NOTE: The Johnson edition includes a different version of "My reward for Being -- was this," and it does not use the word "empire."
The Miller edition contains the one poem with "empire," "The Court is far away" -- AND -- it includes both versions of "My Reward for Being -- was this," the one with the word "empire" (from fascicle 24, sheet 4), and the one without (from fascicle 18, sheet 5).
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More pics of our dinner from the Empire Diner are on my travelogue, "Dial 'Em' for Emily," HERE. There's also a bit of info on Clement Clarke Moore!
More posts from my trip are here:
07.24.2026: HOW SWEETEST IT IS, CLICK HERE.
07.23.2026: A DATE WITH DESTINY, CLICK HERE.
07.22.2026: THIS – IS THE BLOG POST – THE SUNSET WASHES, CLICK HERE.
07.21.2026: DOUBLE ETERNITY, CLICK HERE.
07.20.2026: THE ORACLE WORE A WHITE DRESS -- PART DEUX, CLICK HERE.
07.19.2026: ALL THINGS MATTER, CLICK HERE.
07.18.2026: INTRODUCTORY PLOG POST ABOUT "DIAL 'EM' FOR EMILY," CLICK HERE.
More posts from my trip are here:
07.24.2026: HOW SWEETEST IT IS, CLICK HERE.
07.23.2026: A DATE WITH DESTINY, CLICK HERE.
07.22.2026: THIS – IS THE BLOG POST – THE SUNSET WASHES, CLICK HERE.
07.21.2026: DOUBLE ETERNITY, CLICK HERE.
07.20.2026: THE ORACLE WORE A WHITE DRESS -- PART DEUX, CLICK HERE.
07.19.2026: ALL THINGS MATTER, CLICK HERE.
07.18.2026: INTRODUCTORY PLOG POST ABOUT "DIAL 'EM' FOR EMILY," CLICK HERE.
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