Excerpt from The Prose Writings of James Clarence Mangan The present volume is an attempt to comply with a request, frequently made to the editor, for a selection from Mangan's prose writings. That such a collection was necessary the volume itself may prove; but when it is remembered that fully four-fifths of the matter here brought together has never before found shelter between the overs of a book, it may at least be assumed that it will be interesting to admirers of the poet. The reader will hardly expect to find anything so distinguished as in the "Poems" - the magical power which enabled Mangan to rise from height to height of poetical achievement is almost altogether absent - but there are purple passages which, when quoted in the present writer's "Life" of the poet, suggested to more than one eminent critic the idea that the collection of some of Mangan's prose was a necessary and important duty. Whatever else the reader may find, however, he is sure to find Mangan. His quaint personality is in everything he wrote, and to the lovers of Mangan - a host gathering strength every day - that in itself is a considerable attraction. To expect a serious work in prose from Mangan would be useless; all he wrote in that medium was intended merely to amuse the reader of the moment. Hence much of it is purely topical, ephemeral in treatment, evanescent in interest; but it is all stamped with his peculiar qualities, such as they are. It is often defaced by mannerisms, and made trivial by an irresistible tendency to punning; but all know who knew Mangan that to look for uniformly lofty thoughts and lofty expression would be counting without their author. Nevertheless, how eminently characteristic much of this prose is! About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.