The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1870-05-19
.SOhn G.. saxc's Response at the
byron Banquet in New York.

The seventh toast was American Poets
and Poetry" and John G. SAKE was called
upon for an acknowledgement. His rising
occasioned great enthusiasm He spoke as
| follows
MIR CHAIRMAN, LADIES AND GENTLE
MEN l could wish that some more nota
bic member Of the quill, of which am
but humble member, could have spoken
to this toast which has been appointed to
me. Thirty or forty years ago, more or
| less, Chevalier, who travelled in our coun-
try,and who made book about us-a very
genial and commendatory book on the
whole, after the manner of Frenchmen
andnot Engllshmen and after commencing
much, had to complain that the American
people as he saw them, were deficient in
poetical sentiment, and think I remen-
Der these words: :" The American mind
tends to drollery and not poetry" Ifhow-
ever, Mr. Chevalier could have deferred
his visit thirty or forty years, he would
have come to" very different opinion re-
specting us. He would have come to an
opinion something like this, that the
average American is one OF the most
matter of-fact and one of the most imap
NATIVE of men In the world. He is also
nimble and mercurial as Frenchman,
enterprising and persistent like an Eng.
lishman, cautious and frugal like Scott,
pretentious and proud like Castilian,and
studious like German. 1t is curious and
well-known fact that the majority of the
English writers find most of their readers
IN the United States. My Lord Byron so
early as his time was accustomed to speak
OF his American readers, and snppose
Mr. Tennyson is aware that he has more
patronage in America than In England
and Ireland put together. We have also a
very large home production of poets.and
Mr.. Griswold,an eminent dry nurse of the
muses., whom you may know laughter
counts over one hundred who are entitled
to the name OF lord" These poets are in
every rank of life and with every degree
OF education. Young men with only down
on their faces, write their Ihapsodies on
sweet scented paper to their lady loves,
who, | very much fear, turn their illusions
to practical shapes in curling paper, re-
mlnding one of the lines of Pope that il
plays around the head but comes not near
the heart laughter and then we have in
teresting young ladies that write to the
moon probably because there is a man in
1t. Laughter. do not, however speak
thus In scorn OF poetry, as It would COM
promise me as well as others. do not for,
get that genius gets her name without
difficulty, and we have an illustrious few
who have scaled the heights of Parnassus
Let me speak of invidiOusness of some,
and first let me refer to him whom we ex-
pected to see with us to-night-Mr. Bryant
loud applause 1.-The first star in the poet
ical galaxy; man who in the green of
his old ag~ has given US rendering of
Homer, which, in the judgment Of many
better than myself, will be the English
Had for years to come. Applause Il
is many years since Mr. Longfelow did
the same thing for us in Italy. So the
two men who have rendered themselves
famous at home and abroad with original
productions. have been placed foremost
among literary men by Transporting into
English two great poems of Greek and
Italian literature. [Applause,] Let us also
remember the name of Halleck,whoh holds
the second place among American poets.
Then comes Holmes, Lloyd, Whittier,
Charles Sprague, Taylor, Stoddard and
Reed and many others of whom the brev-
ity of time allotted will not permit
me to speak. But now what shall /
say of our women singers? Applause.
don't like the word "poetess,' because
genius is of no sex, and the VOID poet"
in the language from which we derive it
is feminine, and 50 we men need word
to signify men poets. Laughter and APP
plause One, perhaps The most excellent
of them ali, is present with us tonight,
and though do not desire to call names,
may say she is very closely related to
learned Judge who sics on my right hand,
of whom 1 will say that if it has happen.
ed to him, as Dr. Holmes has said, that
fate tried to conceal him by the name Of
Smith [great laughter and adplause] gent
Us would have rescued them both from
anything like oblivion. Renewed APP
clause. The speaker closed with some
passing remarks upon the scope and mis-
ion of poetry, and depicted in glowing
,olors the almost boundless themes upon
which it may be exercised.
Cost OF MoNARCHIAL ESTABLISHMENTS
Tine Russian dynasty is the most costly
# any in Europe, while France and Tr-
Key are but little way behind In Rus
no n mn