The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-03-20
The Crtttc Criticised.

| InOu&n ldI0, l. udN6 SlduC0u over
a short criticism in the HERALD AMI
MAIL of the Both of January last on a
Poem which found place in your very
excellent paper of the 10th of the same
month. The author of this criticism is
| unusually severe on the devoted Bard
and denies him the benefit of "poetiC
license" as well as the "benefit of the
| Clergy" He attacks the grammar Of
the Bard with vim not usually dis
played by any critic, either ancient OF
modern. The critic says: sin the first
verse he the Bard) intimates that the
object to which these lines are addressed,
is a beautiful flower; in the second
verse he wants the pathway of this
flower to be strewn with flowers; in
the Sd verse he describes this flower as
| haYing heart, and the power of dream
ing; and even possessed with fairy feet;
in the 4th verse this flower becomes a
lovely spirit, to whose spotless soul, are
compared white lilies and white viOlets,
/ DC" Now to the text: Did not every
reader of the HERALD AND MAIL, if we
| except the critic, understand the object
| of the verse to be as the poet described
| it "the most beautiful of human flow
ers," and not an imaginary being as the
| critic would have it? How common it is
| for writers to say of a beautiful young
lady, that shells the most beautiful flower
that blooms on the bank of such or
| such a stream. Much of our prose is
! fgurative, and so of course, poetry
| may well be expected, to abound in
| allegOry, and extravaganza comparisons.
Then to ''strew the pathway of this
most beautiful of human flowers" Ia
| very pretty and accomplished girl
| would only be what nigh: be consider
| ed reasonable service by one who had
not only courted the MUSES., but had
| in his great soul all the poetry of love
Xy hinh iG so a.alanlafn6 inSnIra a
soul attuned to verse. But it is objected
that the Bard gives to his beau-ideal of
beautiful lady mo doubt fairy feet?
Why not? Say Mr.. Critic, say. No, sir,
you can't say. 1t is needless to say any
thing about our Poet ascribing to her
the power of dreaming, tor who
ever saw lady, either young or old
that did not dream? Yes, even critics
dream, and DR.. Young dreamed OF
critics when he said:
''Hot, noisy, envious, proud the scribbling
fry,
Burn, hiss. and bounce, waste paper, ink,
and die"
But so much for dreaming. "May all
thy life be days of sunny hours" To
this our critic objects, as not applying to
the Inhabitants of these mundane
spheres. Now, does not every reader of
your most excellent paper understand
that the poet desired most ardently
the object of his lines should enjoy a
life of unalloyed happiness, and figura~
lively employs "sunny hours" for pros
porous and happy hours? But our critic
says our Poet, or fledgeling, as he is
pleased to style him, makes the object
of his verse, "first a flower, then a
dreamer, next a spirit, and finally a
PLeiGd in Heaven, and perhaps lost
one at that" Is there anything wrong
in styling a beautiful and an accomplish
al la6U q hOWnr 6rn3In9r
spirit, or star, or indeed anything else
that is beautiful or attractive, wheth-
or it be 'rOsy dawn rolling up the cur
tains of the night?"
1t is in the 3rd line and not the second
of the first verse that the critic says
"him isused in the objective case" sand
leaves The verb may protect, to pro-
tect itself as best it can without SUBJ
iect." You mistake again, Mr.. Critic;
him is used in the nominative case,
though in the objective form, and not
very elegantly, [ confess, and it. often
occurs in poetry" methinks," "me-
thought, )" sc. Why may not our fiedg- |
ten employ ths objective form "me,"
using it as a no ninative; and as to the |
verbs, "bringr and "strew," the merest |
tyro in English Grammar, knows that |
these verbs have nominatives under |
stood. Then:
Let Such teach others who themselves excel
And censure freely, who have written well"
So says Pope and 50 say L. Aud hear |
Pope again
For not to know some trtfles is praise,
And men of breeding, and sometimes men |
of wit,
To avoid great errors, must the less COM |
nit"
This was doubtless the case of our |
young Poet, and so if he had needed any |
help to eXtricate himself from the dis |
lemma into which our critic supposes he |
has placed him, Pope comes to his re- |
lief most appropriately. But our critics |
apology for clipping the wings and
bunting the spurs of this fledgeling, as |
he is p'eased to style him, comes too |
soon. Does it not, Mr.. Editor? And SO |
does his sympathy for the painting Pc
els deep in sides, while the young Poet |
strides him molly. At any rate our
young poet may console himself with |
the lines of D3an Swift, as they so hap |
PLY apply to the case in hand. Hear |
him:
''On me when ounces are satiric,
take for panegyric,
Hated by fools, and fools 1 hate.
BE that my motto and my fate
But | am not disposed to style our /
critic Ounce or fool. No sir. By no |
means. But then IN those days when the /
Bard is not allowed "Poetic License" 1
shall certainly not be allowed to change /
the phraseOlogy of poem that has been
extant so long and yet, remains entire.
But the remarkable silence OF the
Bard is my apology for attempting his
defence from the attacks OF a most illib
eral critic. But shall, however, insist on
the Claims of our youthful poet to "a
bright future in the Galaxy of Poets,'
anything to the contrary notwitstand-
ing.
But Messrs. Editors, would ask what
are the cases OF pronouns to young
poet when his young heart Is swelling
with the very poetry OF love? What
care our young poet about Subjects or
he was after poetry, and
well after it too. But let Shakespeare
define 'FWhat manner of man" poet
really is. Hear his graphic description:
''The poets eye in fine frenzy rolling
Doth glance from Heaven TO earth, from
Earth to Heaven"
"And as Imagination bodies forth
The forms of things unknown, the poet
Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy
nothing,
A local habitation and a name"
Now l submit, Messrs. Editors, if our
g Fledgeling" is not a real poet, and
from your decision and that of your
readers, there is no appeal. TYRO.
Cathey's Creek.