Text: John Grier Varner, “Acknowledgements,” Sarah Helen Whitman, Seeress of Providence, dissertation, 1940, p. ii (This material is protected by copyright)

[page ii:]

It is obvious that in a work of this length, I am indebted to many persons and institutions for assistance. I wish therefore to address first a general note of appreciation to all those persons who have aided so kindly in my biography of Sarah Whitman. Above all, I am indebted to Dr. James Southall Wilson, Dean of the Graduate School of the: University of Virginia, for his guidance, encouragement, and scholarly advice. To Mr. Harry Clemons, Librarian, to Mr. John C. Willie, Director of Rare Books and Manuscripts, and to the staff of the Alderman Library, of the University of Virginia, I owe a debt of appreciation for making available to me the manuscripts and materials of that institution. For permission to study correspondence and papers left in the estate of Mrs. Whitman, and for many additional suggestions, I pay my respects to D. H. B. Van Hoesen, Librarian, to Professor S. Foster Damon, Curator of the Harris Collection of American poetry, to Miss Dorothy Spofford, Assistant Librarian, and to the staff of the John Hay Library of Brown University. For his willingness and generosity in contributing typescripts of his valuable Poe collection, I am greatly indebted to Mr. J. K. Lilly of Indianapolis.

Among those who rendered invaluable assistance in the composition of my work are my father, Dr. J. G. Varner, and my sister, Miss Cornelia Varner, both of Mt. Pleasant, Texas; Mrs. J. K. Symmers of Charlottesville, Virginia; and my wife, Dr. Jeanette Johnson Varner, whose scholarly interpretation of French manuscripts has clarified my understanding of Mrs. Whitman's relations with the French poet, Mallarmé.

In conclusion, I should like to express my sincerest gratitude to two gentlemen who have been instrumental in forming my literary tastes, and in making it possible for me to continue my study of Mrs. Whitman: Dr. J. C. Metcalf, Professor of English and Dean Emeritus of the Graduate School, and Dr. W. A. Montgomery, Professor of Classic Languages at the University of Virginia.

J. G. V.

University of Virginia

August 31, 1940