[Footnote 1: His fondness for books was absolutely insatiable; he was
supplied with all the new publications as fast as they appeared; and he
would devote the last money in his purse to this purpose. His
extravagance in this article of expense he excused by comparing himself
to the glazier, whose trade renders it necessary for him to purchase a
diamond, an article which a rich man will frequently abstain from
buying.]
[Footnote 2: The last hours of Pushkin have been minutely and eloquently
described by the most distinguished of his friends and brother poets,
Jukovskii, in a letter addressed to Pushkin's father. As this letter
contains one of the most touching and beautiful pictures of a great
man's death-bed, and as it does equal honour to the author and its
subject, we append a translation of it. It is undoubtedly one of the
most singular documents in the whole range of literature.--T. B. S.]