Memoirs of Anne C.L. Botta,: written by her friends. With selections from her correspondence and from her writings in prose and poetry.

:nne c. X. 3otta
The scheme of life which, whether by instinct or de liberation, she seems thus early to have marked out
for herself, was to make herself useful in some way to
every one with whom she was brought into relation ship. This radiance of usefulness, which helped to
make her so singularly and uniformly agreeable,
shone around her through life. Fortune, which is
said to always favor the brave, smiled upon her. Her
house soon became the favorite resort of the literary
and artistic classes of our city, including not only
those who had won their laurel crowns, but more
especially the younger aspirants of both sexes, who
were in the planting rather than in the harvesting
season of their careers, and who nowhere else had
such an advantageous opportunity of becoming acquainted and listening to the golden words of the
masters. Many of those who in their turn have since
risen to eminence, cherished through life a grateful
affection for Mrs. Botta, through whose thoughtful
attentions they thus received countenance and encouragement at this critical period of their lives. Her
efforts to make herself useful to the world, as the
surest and wisest method of making the world useful
to her, flavored everything she did and said, and much
of what she avoided doing and saying: surrounded
her with devoted friends; made her not only a favorite,
but ultimately a patroness, in our best society; caused
her name to be one of the first to be sought in furtherance of any charitable, literary, or social movement; even disarmed criticism, and sent envy and
jealousy away, empty and ashamed. This singleness
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