Just a glimpse of Crane's last days is afforded by a letter written from
England by Robert Barr, his friend--Robert Barr, who collaborated with
Crane in "The 0' Ruddy," a rollicking tale of old Ireland, or, rather,
who completed it at Crane's death, to satisfy his friend's earnest
request. The letter is dated from Hillhead, Woldingham, Surrey, June 8,
1900, and runs as follows:--

"My Dear ----

"I was delighted to hear from you, and was much
interested to see the article on Stephen Crane you
sent me. It seems to me the harsh judgment of an
unappreciative, commonplace person on a man of
genius. Stephen had many qualities which lent
themselves to misapprehension, but at the core he
was the finest of men, generous to a fault, with
something of the old-time recklessness which used
to gather in the ancient literary taverns of London.
I always fancied that Edgar Allan Poe revisited the
earth as Stephen Crane, trying again, succeeding
again, failing again, and dying ten years sooner
than he did on the other occasion of his stay on
earth.

"When your letter came I had just returned from
Dover, where I stayed four days to see Crane off
for the Black Forest. There was a thin thread of
hope that he might recover, but to me he looked like
a man already dead. When he spoke, or, rather,
whispered, there was all the accustomed humor in