JAMES T. FIELDS'S LAST POEM.
The following poem was written by Mr. James T. Fields, of Boston, for Harper's Young People, only a few days before his death, which took place on the 25th of April. It is the last poem that he wrote, and will therefore have an interest for our readers apart from its merit. Mr. Fields was for many years a partner in the publishing house of Ticknor & Fields, afterward, on the death of Mr. Ticknor, changed to that of Fields, Osgood, & Co. On retiring from business, several years ago, Mr. Fields devoted himself to literature, and published several popular books. He was a kind-hearted man, and helped many young men and women, who never went to him in vain for encouragement and assistance. Like the English poet Wordsworth, he believed that men should never mix
"their pleasure or their pride
With suffering to the meanest thing that feels,"
and his last poem shows how strongly he could plead for a poor brute creature in distress.