The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Tales of a Wayside Inn
TALES OF A WAYSIDE INN. The
‘Tales of a Wayside Inn,’ by Henry
Wadsworth Longfellow, was published in three
parts, in 1863, 1872 and 1873, respectively. The
poet followed the old plan of presenting a
series of stories as told by different persons —
in this case by friends of the author who,
though they were not named, were so plainly
characterized as to be easily recognizable.
Among those of wider fame are Ole Bull, the
violinist, and Thomas William Parsons, the
poet and translator of Dante. The “Wayside
Inn” was the old Red Horse Inn at Sudbury,
20 miles from Cambridge — a favorite resort
for parties from Harvard College. Each of
the three parts has a prelude and a finale, and
there are interludes which link together the
tales and introduce the narrators. Most of
the stories were derived by Longfellow from
his wide reading — many of them from the
legends of continental Europe, a few from
American sources. The ‘Birds of Killingworth’
was developed from no slight a hint
that it may fairly be said to be of the poet's
own invention. Longfellow, while not a poor
story-teller, was hardly at his best in narrative,
particularly in narrative with vigorous action,
and the ‘Tales of a Wayside Inn,’ taken as a
whole, is not to be listed among his most
distinguished works. A few of the Tales have,
however, won a place for themselves. Among
these are ‘Paul Revere's Ride,’ told by the
Landlord, and ‘King Robert of Sicily,’ which
is ascribed to the Sicilian.