Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1878-10-25
The Troubles of a Poet.
BY MAX ADELER.

| Wnle COloneI Bangs was sitting IN
bis Office one day, a man whose brow
was clothed with thunder entered.
Fiercely seizing a chair, he slammed his
hat on the table, hurled his umbrella on
the floor and sat down.
"Are you the editorP ne asked.
"Yes.b
HCan you read writingY'
"Of course"
"Read that, then" he said, thrusting
at the colonel an envelope with an in
scription on it.
D" said the colonel, trying to
spell it
'That's not B. It's an s." said the
man.
as; o, yes; 1 see! Well the words
look little like Salt for Dinner OF
Souls of Sinners said the colonel.
mo SIR replied the man, nothing
of the kind! That's my name, Sam1
H. Brunner. knew you couldn't read.
l called to see you about that poem Of
mine you printed the other day, on the
Surcease of Sorrow.'n
."I don't remember il" said the colo
mel.
"Of course you don't, because it went
into the paper under the infamous title
of 'Snearcase Tomorrow"
"A stupid blunder of the eompositor, I
aYes, sir; and that's what 1 want to
see you about. The way in which that
poem was mutilated was simply scand-
alous. I haven't slept night since.
1t exposed me to derision. People think
I am an ass. Let me show you:
$50 ahead, said the colonel,
'aThe first line, when wrote it, read
in this way:
Lying by weeping willow, underneath gentle
slope
That is beautiful, poetic, affecting.
Now how did your vile sheet Iresent It
to the public? There it is! Look at
that Made it read this way:
Lying to weeping widow to induce her to eIopeg"
Weeping widow mind you'll Awidowi
o thunder and lightning! This is too
much It's enough to drive & man
crazyi
'Ttn sorry" said the colonel; "but-"
'But look a-here at the fourth verse;"
said the poet. 'That's worse yet. What
said was:
Cast thy pearls before the swine and lose them In
the dirt"
1 wrote that out clearly and dis
tinctly, in a plain, round hand. Nov
what does your compositor do? Does
he catch the sense of that beautiful
sentiment? Does it sink into his soul?
No, Sir! He sets it up in this fashion
Listenl
Cart thy Pulls before the sunrise. and love themK II
they hurt"
"Now isn't that cold-blooded Outrarp
on a mans feelings2 IN leave it to W
if it isn'tT' = s Il.
aIt's hard, that's a fact" said the
colonel.
"And then take the fifth verse. In the
original manuscript, it said, plain as day
light:
Take away the jngiing money; 1t is only gIittsrng
droSsP
Aman with only one eye, and cata-
raet over that, could have read the words
correctly. But your pirate, up stairs
there; do you know what he did? He
made it read:
Take away thy Jsering monkeys on sorsly CLAN
'By George, I felt like Draining him
with q fre-shovel! was never so cut
up in my life"
1t was natural too, said TIE colonel.
There, for instance, was the sixth
ana weary Ct the tossing OF the ocean IS Il heavss'
It is lovely line, too; but imagine
my horror and the anguish of my family
when / opened your paper and saw the
line transformed into:
Tam wearing out my trousers till they're open n
the kneesF"
'"That Is a little too muchl That
seems to me like carrying the thing an
inch or two too far. I think have
constitutional right to murder that COM
positor; don't you?
u think you have"
"Let me read you one more verse.
wrote:
'Iswell the aging echoes as they roam among the
And feel my soul awaken to the ecstacy thns
thrllS'
Now what do you s'pose your miser-
able outeast turned that into. Why into
this: '4
IAmslI the frying shoe. q. they rOass along the
And peel my soul mistaken TO the erctaIy that
whirls.'"
"Gibberish, sir! Awful gibberishl
must slay that man. Where is hep
He Is out Just now" said the colonel.
Come in to-merrow.7
II will" said the poet; "and will
come armed"
Then heput on his hat, shouldered his
umbrella. and drifted off down stairs.