completes "Clay"
distributes typescripts of "Clay" to
friends who are not enthusiastic; submits "Clay"
to William Briggs, who had published his dissertation, but Briggs agrees to publish only
if EJP subsidizes the venture; rejects offer and burns all copies of the poem except for
one which Viola Pratt salvages
publication of
"Blow! Winds, and Roar!"
Acta Victoriana, 44 (January 1920), 170
publication of "On the Shore." Rebel, 4 (March 1920), 232
completes "Clay"
begins to establish lifelong circle of friends: Douglas Bush; John Daniel Robins; Harold Bennett; J.W. Macmillan; and, especially, W.H. (Hubert) Greaves, Professor of Public Speaking at Victoria College, and his wife Cornelia whose summer retreat, Cragmoor, near Kingston he begins to visit (see "In a Beloved Home (To W.H.G.).")
cartoon of John Daniel Robins (1923)
photograph of J.W. Macmillan (1919)
publication of "Carlo." Canadian Forum, 1 (November 1920), 55
moves from Dupont Street to home on Davenport Road of Viola's widowed mother who helps with the baby
publication in Canadian Forum, 1 (June 1921) of
publication of review of Poems, by A.L. Phelps. Canadian Forum, June 1921, 280
publication of review of Memories in Melody, by A.C. Nash. Canadian Forum, June 1921, 280
EJP with 1922 Third-Year Class Executive
R.S. Knox introduces him to golf, a lifelong passion (recalled in "Golfomania")
probably writes "Loss of the Steamship Florizel," "Sea Variations," "The Ice-Floes," "The Toll of the Bells"
publication of "Sea Variations." Canadian Bookman, 4 (January 1922), 50-51
letter to Arthur L. Phelps [publication of "The Ice-Floes"]
publication of "The Ice-Floes." Canadian Forum, 2 (April 1922), 591-593
EJP with 1923 Third-Year
Class Executive
revises earlier poems and writes "The Ground Swell," "The Shark," "The Fog," "The Drowning," "Come Not the Seasons Here," and probably "Magnolia Blossoms" for inclusion in Newfoundland Verse
letter to William Arthur Deacon [invitation to Bobcaygeon]
photograph of William Arthur Deacon (c. 1922)
letter to Arthur Phelps [university gossip; appreciation of Phelps' A Bobcaygeon Chapbook (1922);
drafts of poems for Newfoundland Verse; submission to Canadian Forum]
sends manuscript of Newfoundland Verse to Lorne Pierce at Ryerson Press
publication in Canadian Forum, 3 (January 1923) of:
letter to Lorne Pierce [illustration and presentation of Newfoundland Verse]
publication of "The Ground Swell." Acta Victoriana, 47 (February 1923), 15
publication of Newfoundland Verse. Toronto: Ryerson, 1923:
bedridden by a mild "heart seizure" aggravated by influenza suffered at publication party for Newfoundland Verse
letter to Lorne Pierce [copies of Newfoundland Verse for review]
letter to William Arthur Deacon [Deacon's review of Newfoundland Verse]
letter to Lorne Pierce [revisions to later editions of Newfoundland Verse]
letter to Lorne Pierce [unused corrections to Newfoundland Verse]
letter to Lorne Pierce [explanation for lack of final revision to Newfoundland Verse]
letter to Lorne Pierce [advertising and promotion of Newfoundland Verse]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[E.J. Moore's editorial tampering with Newfoundland Verse]
writes The Witches' Brew to celebrate fifth wedding anniversary; requests product lists from a number of distilleries while composing the epic catalogue
letter to William Arthur Deacon [Pratt to review Deacon's Pens and Pirates for Christian Guardian;
wife and child away, invites Deacon to Bobcaygeon for the week]
revises The Witches' Brew and has a number of typescripts made at the urging of friends
positive response to Newfoundland Verse contributes to appointment as a full-time lectureship in English and beginning of lifelong role as public speaker
joins W.A. Deacon and Beaumont Cornell and Paul Wallace to confront Ryerson Press's Managing Director Dr. Samuel Follis over poor advertising and distribution for their works, and about printers' errors and unauthorized changes to the manuscript of Newfoundland Verse, all of which Pratt blames on Sales and Advertising Manager, E.J. Moore
cartoon of EJP reading from Newfoundland Verse
death of Victoria College student William Langford Rowell inspires the short lyric "The Decision"
photograph of William Langford Rowell
publication of "The Decision." Acta Victoriana, 48 (November 1923), 22
letter to Lorne Pierce [frustration with Ryerson Press Advertising and Publicity Department]
after receiving Hardy's Late Lyrics and Earlier from Arthur Phelps, he writes several short Hardyesque poems: "Comrades," "The Alternative," "The Drag-Irons," "The Ritual," "The Lie," "The
Frost Over-Night," "The Last Survivor," "Tokens," "The Balance Sheet," "The Lee Shore"
letter to Lorne Pierce [critics' praise for Newfoundland Verse; request for American and English publishers for The Witches' Brew]
letter to Lorne Pierce [typescripts of The Witches' Brew for distribution to publishers]
publication of "The Decision." Canadian Journal of Religious Thought, 1 (January-February 1924), 83
publication in Canadian Bookman, 6 (April 1924) of:
publication of "Comrades." Canadian Magazine, 62 (April 1924), 381
letter to Lorne Pierce [efforts to place The Witches' Brew and an English edition of Newfoundland Verse]
meets with George H. Locke and views his catalogue for the 1924 Wembley Exhibition of books of the British Empire, including Newfoundland Verse
letter to Lorne Pierce [Wilson MacDonald; appearance of Newfoundland Verse at Wembley Exhibition book exhibit]
pencil sketch of EJP playing cards
letter to Viola Pratt [greetings en route to England]
publication of "The Alternative." Canadian Bookman, 6 (June 1924), 135
publication of "The Last Survivor." Canadian Forum, 4 (June 1924), 274
letter to Viola Pratt [news from Liverpool; plans to visit Durham and Barnard Castle]
postcard to Newton Pincock [Barnard Castle]
postcard to Viola Pratt [Barnard Castle]
photograph of the chapel and cemetery in Gunnerside
postcard to Claire Pratt
[Darlington; promises Claire a doll carriage]
letter to Viola Pratt
[visit to father's childhood home]
postcard to Viola Pratt
[finances]
photograph of Viola Pratt and daughter Claire
postcard to Viola Pratt
[greetings from the highlands]
postcard to William Arthur
Deacon [Killin]
postcard to Claire Pratt [Killin]
letter to Viola Pratt [visit to Burns museum; short-term travel plans]
letter to Viola Pratt [golf; finances]
publication of "The Drag-Irons." Canadian Forum, 4 (July 1924), 301
EJP with 1925 Third-Year Class Executive
postcard to Viola Pratt [Keswick]
letter to Viola Pratt
[travels in the Lake District]
letter to Viola Pratt [visit to Wordsworth's grave; golf]
letter to Viola Pratt
[Long Buckley; plans to visit Oxford]
arrives at Oxford where he spends several days visiting colleges and playing golf;
meets J.R.R. Tolkien and Knox's former tutor and Merton Professor of English George
Gordon; reads The Witches' Brew
at Gordon's; makes deletions at Gordon's suggestion and sends the revised copy of the
poem to J.C. Squire, editor of The London Mercury
letter to Viola Pratt
[events at Oxford; hopes for English edition of
The Witches' Brew]
letter to Viola Pratt
[travels in Warwick and Stratford]
letter to Viola Pratt
[news from England]
visits J.C. Squire who agrees
to publish The Witches' Brew
in The London Mercury (after repeated delays the poem is eventually
dropped by The London Mercury); is introduced to
The Flaming Terrapin by Roy Campbell who is to be an important influence
on his work
in the days following makes
contacts several publishers including Constable's and Jonathan Cape, before Selwyn
and Blount agrees to publish The Witches'
Brew and to act as the English representative for
Newfoundland Verse; sees the sights of London with his sister
letter to Lorne Pierce
[review copies of Newfoundland Verse
for English journals; revisions to
The Witches' Brew]
letter to Viola Pratt
[news from Paris]
letter to Viola Pratt
[visit to Dorsetshire]
publication of
"Tokens."
Canadian Forum, 4 (September 1924), 365
letter to Viola Pratt
[erratic mail service]
W.J. Alexander's
Shorter Poems, which includes "
The Ice-Floes," prescribed as a high school text in Ontario; as a result begins
to obtain a substantial number of reading engagements
letter to Lorne Pierce
[English edition of The Witches'
Brew]
publication of
"The Ritual."Canadian Magazine, 63 (October 1924), 347
letter to Lorne Pierce
[proofs of The Witches' Brew]
Pierce declines to publish
The Witches' Brew;
suggests that it be published anonymously because of Prohibition
letter to Lorne Pierce
[Canadian publisher for The Witches' Brew]
portrait of Viola Pratt by Fred Varley
begins
"The Cachalot"
Hugh Eayrs of Macmillan agrees to publish
The Witches' Brew in Canada simultaneously with the British edition;
becomes a lifelong friend of Pratt's
photograph of Hugh Eayrs (c. 1937)
publication of
"To an Enemy."Canadian Journal of Religious Thought, 2 (January 1925), 78
publication of
"The Dear Illusion." Dalhousie Review, 4 (January 1925), 437
letter to Arthur L. Phelps
[offers advice on a job offer from the University of Western Ontario]
sees the movie version of
The Lost World by Conan Doyle, which inspires
"The Great Feud"
reads
"The Cachalot" to Pelham Edgar anda small group of "the boys"; poem is enthusiastically received and D.C. Scott
asks permission to send a copy to John Masefield, which Pratt grants
letter to Literary Editor,
Saturday Night [support for Wilson MacDonald's article "Is Carman Supreme?"]
reads from
Newfoundland Verse, chiefly
"The Ice-Floes," at the Victoria Public
School, South London
letter to William Arthur
Deacon [reading in London, Ontario]
sends to Lorne Pierce list of corrigenda for
Newfoundland Verse
photograph of EJP
with his mother and Claire in St. John's
EJP with 1926 Third-Year
Class Executive
boards the SS Rosalind
at Halifax for St. John's, and converses with celebrated Arctic explorer Captain
"Bob" Bartlett, who may have inspired "
Tatterhead"
St. John's Daily News signals the arrival of the "native-born celebrities" with a full-length editorial entitled "Distinguished Visitors"
visits whaling stations
(where he verifies information for "
The Cachalot") and goes salmon fishing with old friend from Grand Banks, Dr.
Chester Harris, and accompanies him on his rounds of outlying coastal villages;
return to the outports probable inspiration of
"The Doctor in the Boat,"
"Tatterhead,"
"The Way of Cape Race,"
"Erosion,"
"Sea-Gulls," and
"A Lee Shore" and several other lyrics
named with F.P. Grove to a panel on fiction at the Canadian Authors' Association convention in Toronto
postcard to William
Arthur Deacon [St. John's]
postcard to Arthur
L. Phelps [St. John's]
postcard to William
Arthur Deacon [plans for summer]
writes
"Tatterhead" and probably other
lyrics inspired by visit to Newoundland, including
"Sea-Gulls"
probably starts work on
"The Great Feud"
letter to William
Arthur Deacon [invitation to Bobcaygeon]
letter to William
Arthur Deacon [praise for Deacon's essay "Glorious Present"]
takes on overload teaching: an English course for medical students at the University of Toronto, and weekly classes on "Realism in Contemporary Poetry" and "The Poetry of Thomas Hardy" at Victoria College's Extension Department in St. Catherines
adds eight lines to
"The Cachalot," in response to
suggestion by John Masefield that a description of the whale's collision with
the ship would improve the poem
letter to Mrs. Horace
Parsons [apology for switched letters]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[submission of "Tatterhead" and other poems]
letter to Mrs. Horace Parsons
[arrangements for a meeting of the Canadian Authors Association]
publication of
"The Cachalot."
Canadian Forum, 6 (November 1925), 47-51
issue immediately sold out;
Lorne Pierce cool to the poem which he sees, along with
The Witches' Brew,
as a waste of Pratt's talents
publication of
"The Ritual."
Acta Victoriana, 50 (December 1925), 52
publication of
"Tatterhead." Acta Victoriana, 50 (January 1926), 13-14
letter to Arthur L. Phelps
[success of "The Cachalot" in
Canadian Forum; Claire's illness]
fascinated by newspaper reports
of the three day search and rescue of the British freighter Antinoe by the
American liner President Roosevelt in the North Atlantic; begins to make
notes for The Roosevelt and the
Antinoe
publication of
The Witches'
Brew. London: Selwyn and Blount, 1925; Toronto: Macmillan, 1926
well received in Canada; reviewers in Britain puzzled
letter to Austin Bothwell
[note of thanks (review of The
Witches' Brew)]
completes
"The Great Feud"; included along with
shorter poems in The Cachalot and Other Poems, a volume assembled by
Macmillan but finally not published
letter to Arthur L. Phelps
[progress of "The Great Feud"]
EJP with 1927 Third-Year
Class Executive
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[invitation to use cottage]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[lost cheque]
spends the day at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History, examining animals
depicted in "The Great Feud"
postcard to William Arthur
Deacon [Chicago]
letter to William Arthur
Deacon [landscaping at cottage]
letter to William Arthur
Deacon [birth of Deacon's second daughter]
orders New York and London
newspapers that carried the story of the Roosevelt and the Antinoe;
begins "sea epic" (The Roosevelt
and the Antinoe) at Bobcaygeon, but works on several short poems,
probably including "
The Sea-Cathedral" after work on the longer poem falters
invests money with financier Jack Neville, who absconds shortly thereafter
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[progress of Deacon's Poteen; invitation to use cottage]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[Pratt's review of Flora Jewell Williams's New Furrows for Saturday
Night]
introduced by Lorne Pierce to Raymond Knister with whom he maintains a friendship until Knister's untimely death in 1932
commissioned by the newly created United Church of Canada to write hymns, with tunes by Dr. Ernest Macmillan, and verses for a pageant marking both its creation and the Diamond Jubilee of Canadian Confederation; contributes five hymns largely out of respect for his ailing mother
publication in Great Britain
and the United States of The
Titans. Toronto: Macmillan, 1926 (publication in Canada delayed until
early December):
reviews in Canada excellent, with the exception of review by William Arthur Deacon, who sees Pratt as a challenge to his protégé, Wilson Macdonald; reviews in the United States and Britain less favourable
meets English poet and
Orientalist Laurence Binyon, who is lecturing in Toronto on "T'ang Art";
at Binyon's suggestion, revises "The
Great Feud," deleting two long sections of "gruesome" description
letter to Arthur Phelps [nomination of Phelps to newly formed Canadian chapter of P.E.N. (Poets, Essayists, Novelists)]
publication of
"The Sea-Cathedral."
Acta Victoriana, 51 (December 1926), 17
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[autographed copy of The
Titans]
photograph of EJP
undertakes series of discussions with Lorne Pierce concerning religious doubt
and the quest for certainty; influenced by Pierce's suggestions in the composition
of The Iron Door
letter to Lorne Pierce
[death of Pratt's mother; hurtful review of
The Titans by Deacon in Saturday Night]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[payment for book review]
reads
"The Ice-Floes" and parts of
"The Great Feud," and Hubert Greaves
reads "The Cachalot," to a large audience
at Victoria College
letter to Arthur L. Phelps
[report on recommendation given for the University of Western Ontario position]
Lorne Pierce writes very positive
critical assessment of "The Great Feud"
in The New Outlook
letter to Lorne Pierce
[note of thanks (review of The Titans)]
letter to Austin Bothwell
[note of thanks (review of
Titans)]
letter to Mrs. H.Y. Russel
[lecture topic for Women's Canadian Club in Montreal]
attends performance at Massey Hall of the United Church of Canada pageant
publication of
"Tatterhead."
Queen's Quarterly, 34 (April 1927), 442
begins
The Iron Door
prompted by a dream involving his mother
publication of
"The Sea-Cathedral."
Canadian Forum, 7 (May 1927), 237
letter to Lorne Pierce
[advertisement for recital tour]
submits typescript of
The Iron Door to
Hugh Eayrs at Macmillan of Canada
reads
The Iron Door at his home
letter to Lorne Pierce
[enthusiastic response to
The Iron Door]
prepares readings and commentary for two August lectures at the Canadian Authors' Association "School for Authors" Muskoka Assembly
sends Lorne Pierce a list of biographical details for promotional statements, reducing age of entry at Victoria College from twenty-five to "early twenties," exaggerating the number of visits to ailing mother in Newfoundland, and omitting all reference to theological studies and to ministerial career
letter to Lorne Pierce
[plans for summer]
letter to Lorne Pierce
[biographical notes for publicity]
photograph of EJP and Wilson MacDonald at the Muskoka Assembly
letter to Lorne Pierce
[lecture schedule]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[explication of The Iron Door;
tour schedule]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[payment for publication of "Cherries"]
leaflet for Association of
Canadian Clubs western reading tour
makes a number of new friends and acquaintances: E.K. Broadus, A.M. Stephen, Austin Bothwell, Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung
abandons attempts to start
the poem based on the Roosevelt-Antinoe rescue
(The Roosevelt and theAntinoe)
agrees to edit a poetry magazine for the Canadian Authors' Association, which is later printed but never distributed because the printer was not paid
teaches Thursday night courses in St. Catherines for the Extension Department of Victoria College
impressive sunset inspires
"A Prairie Sunset"
publication of
The Iron
Door. Toronto: Macmillan, 1927
reviews mixed; critics uncomfortable with departure from comic themes
accused by Wilson MacDonald of plagiarising his "The Flashing Door"
letter to Lorne Pierce
[reception of The Iron Door
and 'The Cachalot' at readings]
publication of
"A Lee Shore."
Canadian Forum, 8 (October 1927), 406
publication of "Cherries."
Saturday Night (1 October 1927), 1
letter to Lorne Pierce
[success of reading tour]
letter to Newton and Jenny
Pincock [decision to teach weekly class in St. Catherines]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[Pratt's review of F.M. Gos's Rambles in High Savoy; note of thanks
(review of The Iron Door)]
letter to Lorne Pierce
[praise for Pierce's article "William Blake"]
letter to C.G.D. Roberts
[praise for Roberts' The Vagrant of Time]
letter to Lorne Pierce
[greetings]
works on short poems inspired by the death of Fanny Pratt and conversations with
the Pincocks on spiritualism, including "
An Awakening," "Old Age,"
"A Legacy,"
"Blind," perhaps also
"Doors," and
"Dreams"
publication of
"The Decision."
London Mercury, 17 (January 1928), 244
embarks on a two-week reading tour through Sudbury, North Bay, Ottawa, Montreal, and
Kingston, reading selected passages from "The
Cachalot" as well as shorter poems; is well received in spite of being preceded
on the circuit, and defamed, by Wilson MacDonald
entertained in Montreal by Sam Morgan-Powell of the Montreal Daily Star, fiction writer Leslie Barnard, and poet Leo Cox
letter to Harriet Monroe
[submission to Poetry (Chicago)]
letter to Newton Pincock
[tour schedule]
letter to Lorne Pierce
[praise for Pierce's Outline of Canadian Literature]
publication of
"An Awakening."
New Outlook, 4 (4 April 1928), 12
letter to Lorne Pierce
[typescripts of "The Decision" and
"Blind"]
letter to Lorne Pierce
[submission of poems for an "Empire anthology" edited by Pierce and Hector Bolitho]
postcard to Lorne Pierce
[success of Maritime recital tour]
writes to the manager of the United States Steamship Line in New York to arrange
a visit to the SS Roosevelt in its home port at New York City in preparation
for writing The Roosevelt and the
Antinoe
letter to Raymond Knister
[praise for Knister's article "The Poetic Muse in Canada"]
publication of
"Old Age."
Canadian Journal of Religious Thought, 5 (November-December 1928), 463
letter to Lorne Pierce
[campaign for election to the Royal Society of Canada]
sends several groups of short poems to various international journals, without much success, in an attempt to attract a wider readership
departs by train from Toronto
to New York City to visit the SS Roosevelt in preparation for writing
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe
publication of introduction to In Caribou Land, by P. Florence Miller. Toronto: Ryerson, 1929, 5
spends three days exploring
the SS Roosevelt, interviewing crew members, and examining the ship's log
in preparation for writing The
Roosevelt and the Antinoe
letter to Florence Miller
[Pratt's forward to Miller's In Caribou Land]
postpones editorial work on
Shakespeare to resume work on The
Roosevelt and the Antinoe at the urging of Hugh Eayrs
publication of
"A Prairie Sunset."
The Canadian Nation, 2 (May-June 1929), 19
completes
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe,
except for the opening and concluding sections, at Bobcaygeon
sends copies of
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe
(except for the opening and concluding sections), to editors at
Harper's magazine and Macmillan U.S.A, at their request
letter to Lorne Pierce
[invitation to Bobcaygeon]
receives offers from
Harper's and Macmillan U.S.A. to publish
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe
letter to Pelham Edgar
[progress on The Roosevelt and the
Antinoe and editing of Shakespeare plays]
gives fair copy of the
manuscript of The Roosevelt and
the Antinoe to typist
letter to Lorne Pierce
[note on lines 544-633 of The
Roosevelt and the Antinoe]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[complimentary tickets to reading of The
Roosevelt and the Antinoe]
reads
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe
at a recital at Hart House
letter to E.A. Hardy
[accepts invitation to speak despite busy schedule]
letter to William Arthur Deacon
[note of thanks (review of Pratt's reading)]
reads sections from
The Roosevelt and the Antinoe
and discusses the poem's origin and evolution at University of Toronto's Convocation
Hall during the Canadian Authors' Association's annual "Book Week"; reading broadcast
over local radio station CFRB
letter to Lorne Pierce
[praise for Pierce's Toward the bonne entente]