Arts & Culture | April 15, 2013

A correspondence corner for not-so-famous lost words

Correspondence on not-so-famous lost words

From The May-June 2013 Issue

Leslie Gillis requests title and author for a book that ends, “I don’t know. I’m just a city boy myself”—in response to a question about whether flowers popping up through the snow are crocuses.

“iron filings” (March-April). Alison Harris recalled this fable about steel filings and a magnet from Extraordinary Tales by Jorge Luis Borges and Adolfo Bioy Casares (1971, edited and translated by Anthony Kerrigan; page 96). Their source, Hesketh Pearson’s The Life of Oscar Wilde (1946; page 212), credits Richard Le Gallienne’s The Romantic ’90s (1926; pages 254ff).

“thoughts of great men” (March-April). Mary Ann Brewin found no citation for this alleged Mark Twain remark, but recommended www.twainquotes.com for many other sourced comments.

Send inquiries and answers to “Chapter and Verse,” Harvard Magazine, 7 Ware Street, Cambridge 02138, or via e-mail tochapterandverse@harvardmag.com.

Published in the May-June 2013 print issue under the headline “Chapter & Verse,” in the Montage section.

You might also like

Portrait of a man in a denim shirt beside a blue book cover for "Gretal and the Great War" featuring an illustration of a leg holding an army helmet..

The Gretel and the Great War author on how the Lampoon derailed his science career—and set him on a literary path.

A woman with curly blonde hair sits casually against a stone wall, wearing a black top and jeans.

Chloe Chapin trains her Broadway costume designer’s eye on the history of men’s fashion.

A vase of yellow flowers on a table next to an orange and a glass.

Harvard Art Museums restores a rare glimpse of an American master.

Most popular

A woman with long hair stands confidently with crossed arms next to a pickup truck.

All That’s Unseen charts the Harvard graduate’s uneasy journey from Appalachia to Cambridge and back.

Red brick building with large windows and greenery, set against a bright blue sky.

After a final round of layoffs, University leaders say 165 staff jobs were eliminated across the division.

Caricature of a young man in front of red doors, wearing a green striped sweater.

In 1954, Gregory Corso moved into Eliot House. How he stayed there is a literary legend.

Explore More From Current Issue

Harvard History

In 1954, Gregory Corso moved into Eliot House. How he stayed there is a literary legend.

Runners compete on a track, with a Harvard athlete in the foreground and others behind.

Athletics

After a historic 2025-26 season, athletes eye NCAA championships.

Football

Despite personnel losses, Crimson captain Xaviah Bascon is upbeat about the 2026 season.