By F. J. FURNIVALL, M.A., HON. DR. PHIL. The Browning Society By KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRÜBNER & Co. LONDON. 1892. HARVARD COLLEGE !!!N 6 1893 LIBRARY. Subscription, junt: RICHARD CLAY & SONS, LIMITED, FOREWORDS By F. J. FURNIVALL. THREE times during his life did Browning speak to me about his prose Life of Strafford. The first time he said only—in the course of chat-that very few people had any idea of how much he had helpt John Forster in it. The second time he told me at length that one day he went to see Forster and found him very ill, and anxious about the Life of Strafford, which he had promist to write at once, to complete a volume of Lives of Eminent British Statesmen for Lardner's Cabinet Cyclopædia. Forster had finisht the Life of Eliot-the first in the volume-and had just begun that of Strafford, for which he had made full collections and extracts; but illness had come on, he couldn't work, the book ought to be completed forthwith, as it was due in the serial issue of volumes; what was he to do? 'Oh,' said Browning, 'don't trouble about it. I'll take your papers and do it for you.' Forster thankt his young friend heartily, Browning put the Strafford papers under his arm, walkt off, workt hard, finisht the Life, and it came out to time in 1836, to Forster's |