EDITORIAL NOTES.
It does truly give us pleasure to note the fact that Jeffrey W. Potter, of Perrysville, R. I., is seriously proposing to publish at an early day a book of poems upon subjects pertaining to Southern Rhode Island. We believe Mr. Potter to possess poetical genius. We believe the public would so decide could they have the pleasure of perusing his work. We have had the pleasure of reading Mr. P’s MSS., and fear not to put it on record that we have seen many a poem in print from well known poets that do not contain any finer sentiments, or better expressed than Mr. Potter’s. He needs only a hearing to take his place among Rhode Island poets, and we are pleased to learn that he has so far overcome his poetical modesty as to give sufficient courage to rise and speak. May success go with him.
The Late Judge Potter. – We are pained to announce in this our first number the death of Judge Potter. We had builded high hopes on the great assistance, and fatherly counsel of the Judge, and we had his promise to furnish us matter for our work. The Judge has left behind him a great mass of historical notes. He showed us a portion during an interview we had with him, and we left him witli the impression settled in our mind that when the Rhode Island Bench gained Mr. Potter Narragansett lost an able historian, and we regretted (selfishly, perhaps) that The Bench saw fit to choose Mr. Potter. We trust sincerely that Mr. Potter’s family will preserve every piece of his historical notes for indeed they are beyond value. We feel safe in making the statement here that tliese papers will be preserved, and that the labors of this able and painstaking historian Avill not be utterly lost to posterity. We are in hopes of presenting to the readers of this magazine an able article upon Mr. Potter’s life and works at a future day, and trust this paper will do ample justice to his character and memory.
History of East Greenwich. – It affords us great pleasure to announce that Dr. Daniel H. Greene, the able historian of East Greenwich, will at a future day bring out an enlarged edition of his history; and will include the vicinity, and also the more minute in the earlier history. The Doctor had a chapter prepared of this kind for his late edition, but was over persuaded to leave it out. He intends to use this however in his new work and add considerable to it. This will be a grand idea, and he need not fear wearying his readers, for lie has the happy gift of keeping his readers so interested that it will be a matter of regret with the reader only that it was not still longer. We wish the Doctor great success, and we do congratulate the good people of East Greenwich upon having the great good fortune of possessing such a genial and able historian as we know the Doctor to be.
SOURCE: Page(s): 77-78; The Narragansett, Volume 1. July, 1882 Number 1
