the poet, then in Florence, for confirmation, stating at the same time
that his admiration for "Pauline" had led him to transcribe the whole of
it.

Concerning this episode, Robert Browning wrote to me, some seven years
ago, as follows:--

"St. Pierre de Chartreuse, Isère, France.

* * * * *

"Rossetti's 'Pauline' letter was addressed to me at Florence more
than thirty years ago. I have preserved it, but, even were I at
home, should be unable to find it without troublesome searching. It
was to the effect that the writer, personally and altogether unknown
to me, had come upon a poem in the British Museum, which he copied
the whole of, from its being not otherwise procurable--that he
judged it to be mine, but could not be sure, and wished me to
pronounce in the matter--which I did. A year or two after, I had a
visit in London from Mr. (William) Allingham and a friend--who
proved to be Rossetti. When I heard he was a painter I insisted on
calling on him, though he declared he had nothing to show me--which
was far enough from the case. Subsequently, on another of my returns
to London, he painted my portrait, not, I fancy, in oils, but
water-colours, and finished it in Paris shortly after. This must
have been in the year when Tennyson published 'Maud,' for I remember
Tennyson reading the poem one evening while Rossetti made a rapid
pen-and-ink sketch of him, very good, from one obscure corner of
vantage, which I still possess, and duly value. This was before
Rossetti's marriage."[8]