The Poetry of Major Henry Livingston, Jr.

Without distinction, fame, or note
Upon the tide of life I float,
A bubble almost lost to sight
As cobweb frail, as vapor light;
And yet within that bubble lies
A spark of life which never dies.¹

Soft Cover from Amazon Kindle Edition

Soft Cover from Amazon Kindle Edition

PAGE THROUGH WHAT YOU LIKE BEST ILLUSTRATED MINIBOOKS
PAGE LINK	TYPE OF POETRY
	THE CHRISTMAS POEM
	FUNNY POETRY
	LOVE POETRY
	MORAL FABLE POETRY
	RELIGIOUS/INSPIRING POETRY
	FAMILY POETRY
	MUCH OF HIS POETRY

It is highly likely that many Carrier Addresses, that are not on the list below, were also written by Henry.

GUARANTEED TO BE HENRY'S BY BEING IN HIS HANDWRITING *or chisel, for the tombstone)
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
On my little Catherine sleeping	.	YES	7 Sep 1775	"Sweet Innocent lye still & sleep,"
Easter	.	YES	11 Apr 1784	"WHEN JESUS bow'd his awful head"
Job	.	YES	1776	"'TWAS night. And thickest gloom prevail'd around."
Invitation to the Country	.	YES	.	"The winter all surly is flown,"
Nine Sisters Rebus	.	YES	.	"Take the name of nine sisters that romp on Parnassus,"
Habakkuk, 3rd chapter, verses 17 & 18	.	YES	.	"THO frosts destroy, or blasts invade,"
Isaiah, LXV chap. 25th verse	.	YES	.	"In that ecstatic, joyous day,"
Lo From the East	.	YES	.	"Lo from the East the sun appears"
Montgomery Tappan (death of 1st cousin)	.	YES	20 Nov 1784	"The sweetest, gentlest, of the youthful train,"
Sarah Livingston (death of wife)	.	YES	.	"BEYOND where billows roll or tempests vex"
Henry Welles Livingston (death of son)	.	YES	.	"A gentle spirit now above"
Queen of Love Rebus	.	YES	.	"FAIRER than the queen of love,"
Deity Rebus	Anonymous AM	YES	.	"Take the name of the Deity lovers obey"
Joanna's 33rd Birthday	.	YES	16 May 1787	"On this thy natal day permit a friend - A brother -"
On ... Fragment	.	YES	.	"Thy lips surpass the Ruby's glow"
Sally Livingston (death of a wren)	.	YES	.	"Hasty pilgrim stop thy pace"
Settlement Invitation	.	YES	.	"YES, yes my swain, thy faithful wife's prepar'd"
Apollo Rebus	.	YES	1785	"The mount where old Homer has station'd Apollo"
Timmy (son of Yale Pres. Dwight)	R CJPA	YES	7 Dec 1785	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "Master Timmy brisk and airy"
The Dance (Nancy Crooke)	.	YES	1786	"Take the name of the swain, a forlorn witless elf"
A Valentine	.	YES	14 Feb 1786	"WELLCOME, wellcome, happy day,"
Gentleman Leaving Pakepsy	.	YES	1786	"In summer the aerial musicians around"
Hero Rebus	.	YES	1786	"That hero whose great and magnanimous mind"
Beekman	.	YES	1786	"To my dear brother Beekman I sit down to write"
Vine and Oak	NYMLR	YES	~1786	"A vine from noblest lineage sprung" Banks of the Hudson, Feb. 8, 1791
Spadille	.	YES	~1786	"Thou little four-leg'd paltry varlet,"
War Rebus	.	YES	1786	"Take the name of that hero who dreadful in war"
Sages Rebus	.	YES	1786	"Take the name of that planet which sages declare"
Carrier Address 1787	Richard and George PJ	YES	Dec 1786	"BEFORE the friends of Mr. Power"
Anne	.	YES	1787	"To his charming black-ey'd niece"
Acknowledgment	Anonymous CJPA	YES	1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "With the ladies' permission most humbly I'd mention"
Mistress Van Kleeck	.	YES	9 Jan 1787	"My very good landlady, Mistress Van Kleeck,"
Parody on the "Death of Wolfe"	R CJPA	YES	bef 30 May 1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "In a mouldering cave where the wretched retreat"
The Fly	R CJPA	YES	.	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "As on a summer's fervid day"
Careless Philosopher's Soliloquy	R CJPA	YES	5 Sep 1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "I rise when I please, when I please I lie down"
Belle	.	YES	.	"If ever 'twas proper and lawful and decent"
Frontier Song	Anonymous NYMLR R CJPA	YES	Feb 1791	For the Poughkeepsie Journal "Let statesmen tread their giddy round"
Alcmena Rebus	NYWM	YES	19 Feb 1794	"The son of Alcmena, the champion of fable," Pub note might go with next poem
Rispah	NYWM	YES	19 Jul 1794	"FROM morn to eve from eve to rosy morn"
To Miss	.	YES	1789	"Hail! pride of each lass & the wish of each swain"
Procession Need pub	CJPA	YES	10 Mar 1789	"The legislators pass along"
To Miss	R NYMLR	YES	Sep 1791	"Sweet as op'ning roses are,"
Epithalamium (marriage of sister Helena)	Anonymous NYMLR	YES	June 1790	"'Twas summer, when softly the breezes were blowing,"
Monarchs Rebus	.	YES	.	"The wisest of monarchs yet weakest of men,"
Catharine Breese Livingston	Tombstone	YES	13 Sep 1814	"We fondly nursed an opening rose,"
Frog King	R Back of envelope	YES	Aft Sep 1825	"The frogs of calm & quiet tir'd"
Original Poems	R Back of envelope	YES	Aft Sep 1825	"A cool reflecting northern sage"
A Fable [Bats]	.	YES	Apr 1827	"When time was young the story goes"
Scots Wha Hae Wie Wallace Bled	.	YES	1827	"In arts and arms Escotia stands"
Crane and Fox	.	YES	19 Feb 1827	"In long gone years a fox and crane"
Midas	.	YES	1827	"The miser Midas to his store"
God is Love	.	YES	1827	"I love my feeble voice to raise"
Dialogue	.	YES	aft 1800	"Pray dearest mother if you please"
Without Distinction	.	YES	.	"Without distinction, fame, or note"
ATTRIBUTED TO HENRY BY DESCENDANTS' STATEMENTS OR BY OWNERSHIP
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
Carriers' Address, 1803	Anonymous PB	NO	aft 1800	"All hail to the season so jovial and gay" Attributed by Henry's granddaughter, Gertrude Thomas
Catharine Livingston Breese	CJPA	NO	31 Aug 1808	"Her little bark on Life's wide Ocean tossed," Compare his daughter's obituary with that of Gilbert Cortlandt's
Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas	Anonymous TS	NO	Abt 1807-1808	"'Twas the Night Before Christmas" By descendant attribution and style.
Carriers' Address, 1819	Frederick T. Parsons PJ	NO	1 Jan 1819	"TIME, with his pinions broad and strong" In the Thomas Collection
Poems in Henry's handwriting were published under the pseudonym "R" in: The Poughkeepsie Journal, and the "New-York Magazine; or, Literary Repository." A manuscript poem also appeared anonymously in the New-York Weekly Museum. ASSUMED TO BE HENRY'S BY PSEUDONYM "R" IN THOSE PUBLICATIONS
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
Gilbert Cortlandt (death of 1st cousin)	R CJPA	NO	6 Dec 1786	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "BEYOND where billows roll or tempests vex"
Marriage Tax	R CJPA	NO	pub 4 Apr 1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "With tears in my eyes I the other day saw"
The Writing of Hezekiah	R CJPA	NO	15 Apr 1788	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "WHEN blooming health and chearful days"
Song. - Tune, German Spa	R NYMLR	NO	bef Mar 1791	"Shrew'd remarkers often say"
Arabella	R NYMLR	NO	bef Feb 1793	"Blooming as the youthful May,"
Past is the Hour	R NYWM	NO	6 Aug 1794	For the Weekly Museum "PAST is the hour, forever flown,"
ACROSTIC On Eliza Hughes	R CJPA	NO	12 Sep 1798	For the Poughkeepsie Journal "E v'ry grace in her combine," September 12, '98.
ACROSTIC	R NYWM	NO	9 Oct 1794	For the Weekly Museum "M UCH I admire, thou loveliest of the fair,"
Adventures of an American Eagle	R CJPA	NO	Mar 20 1822	For the Journal "A Capac rose, a Capac fell"
Carrier Addresses (the poem given by newsboys at New Year in exchange for a tip), are found in Henry's MSS and identified by descendants. CARRIER ADDRESSES HIGHLY PROBABLY HENRY'S BY STYLE
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
PJ Carrier Address, 1788	CJPA	NO	1 Jan 1788	"And now our good patrons pray melt into pity" Compare this with Carrier's Address of 1787
PB Carrier Address, 1807	PB	NO	1 Jan 1807	"To the regions of Pluto, and banks of the Styx,"
PJ Carrier Address, 1811	CJPA	NO	1 Jan 1811	"Young Misses have their Valentine,"
PJ Carrier Address, 1815	CJPA	NO	1 Jan 1815	"REPLETE with much event - important - vast!"
PJ Carrier Address, 1816	CJPA	NO	1 Jan 1816	"FAREWELL, FIFTEEN, farewell forever!"
PJ Carrier Address, 1823	CJPA	NO	1 Jan 1823	"An ancient sage was once requir'd"
When a poem is consistent with Henry's style, whether it is signed "R" or not (since not all R's are Henry, (e.g., The Portfolio)), then the poem is PROBABLY HENRY'S BY PSEUDONYM AND/OR STYLE
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
A Fair Bargain	unsigned PJ	NO	21 Jul 1791	"AS Satan was taking an airing one day"
Tipple and Smoke	unsigned PJ	NO	15 Jan 1799	"WITH a pipe of Virginia, how happy am I,"
New-York Rebus and Solution	A.B.; New York NYMLR	NO	1791	"TAKE a city once founded on Victory's field," New-York, April 16, 1791.
For the Poughkeepsie Journal Owner	.	NO	30 Sep 1795	"To carry NEWS in bales or casks,"
Fair Adaline	unsigned PB	NO	24 Aug 1802	For the Barometer "FAIR Adaline sigh'd on her brave warrior's breast,"
Hope Need pub	R LM	NO	13 Dec. 1817	For the Ladies Museum "Amid the varying scenes of life,"
Rose and Snail	CJPA	NO	4 Sep 1822	"A Snail thus once addressed a Rose:"
Filly and Wolf	CJPA	NO	13 Nov 1822	For the Journal "'Twas on a May morn's earliest dawn,"
COULD BE HENRY'S
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
On a ROBIN's being taken	AM p.815	NO	Oct 1788	"On sportive pinions once I flew," New-York, Oct. 20, 1788
A Receipt for Writing Novels	WKMU 2, 94, p.336	NO	19 Apr 1797	For the New-York Weekly Magazine "TAKE a heroine, free from the tincture of vice,"
Christmas Hymn	Henry PJ	NO	25 Dec 1801	"HARK! what glad sounds the dreary desart cheer," Poughkeepsie, Dec. 25, 1801.
Hannibal Rebus	Climax WkMu	NO	9 May 1795	"THE name of a general famed of old," May 7. Climax.
On the New-Year	unsigned NYWM	NO	2 Jan 1802	For the New-York Weekly Museum "LO from the east the sun appears"
Affectation	Esop NYWM	NO	8 Mar 1806 15 Mar 1806	For the New-York Weekly Museum "I ONCE was told a damsel fair,"
Tears of Science	.	NO	undated	"At the seat of Instruction where once she was blest,"
OTHER PEOPLE'S WORK SUBMITTED BY R in New-York Magazine or Poughkeepsie Journal
SHORT TITLE	PUBLISHED	MSS	DATE	FIRST LINE
Shepherd's Address to Milk Maid	R CJPA	NO	6 Dec 1786	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "COME live with me, and be my love,"
Milk Maid's Response	R CJPA	NO	24 Jan 1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "IF all the world and love were young,"
The IX ode of Horace	R CJPA	NO	17 Oct 1787	For the Poughkeepsie Advertiser "WHILE I was pleasing in your arms,"
The Hiding-Place	R NYWM	NO	bef 8 Oct 1791	"Hail sov'reign love that first began" This poem was written by Rev. Jehoida Brewer (1752-1817), and published in the Gospel Magazine in October of 1776. The small differences might imply that Henry knew the poem from hearing it, rather than from reading it.

AM	American Magazine
CJPA	Country Journal and Poughkeepsie Advertiser [Poughkeepsie Journal]
NYMLR	New-York Magazine; or, Literary Repository
NYWM	New-York Weekly Museum
PB	Political Barometer
TS	Troy Sentinel

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Illustrated 1823 Night Before Christmas

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Arguments, Smoking Gun?, Reindeer Names, First Publication, Early Variants
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