PREFACE.
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n placing before the public this collection of Edgar Poe's poeticalworks, it is requisite to point out in what respects it differs from,and is superior to, the numerous collections which have preceded it.Until recently, all editions, whether American or English, of Poe'spoems have been 'verbatim' reprints of the first posthumous collection,published at New York in 1850. In 1874 I began drawing attention to the fact that unknown andunreprinted poetry by Edgar Poe was in existence. Most, if not all, ofthe specimens issued in my articles have since been reprinted bydifferent editors and publishers, but the present is the first occasionon which all the pieces referred to have been garnered into one sheaf.Besides the poems thus alluded to, this volume will be found to containmany additional pieces and extra stanzas, nowhere else published orincluded in Poe's works. Such verses have been gathered from printed ormanuscript sources during a research extending over many years. In addition to the new poetical matter included in this volume,attention should, also, be solicited on behalf of the notes, which willbe found to contain much matter, interesting both from biographical andbibliographical points of view.
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