Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1881-09-12
ALBERT PIKE.
His Early Promise az a Poet ana
RasRumOr Of POsthumOus Pub
locations.
Journal Correspondent

Courier-Journa Correspondent
Speaking of American poetry and
the rise and progress Of American lit
erature, | am reminded Of what is
said to have happened away back in
"the thirties," some forty or forty-ive
years ago, when a young lawyer, re-
siding in Little Rock. Arkansaw, sent
to Blackwood's, Magazine, Edinburg,
Scotland, a lengthy poetical produc.
ton, entitled, Hymns to the Gods. ="
The story goes that the editor of"'Old
Maya gave it a hearty welcome, and
prefaced, or accompanied its insertion,
with remarks somewhat to the follow
ing effect:
ut is often sneeripgly, not to say
insultingly affirmed in this country
that America with all her boastful-
ness, all her Fourth Of July Drag
the greatest and most glorious coun-
try on %earth-has no literature Of her
own; nor does she need to have any
as long as she can continue to steal all
she needs from the mother country.
But these insOlent s%cotfers will now
have to stop their sneering. The
flynn to the Gods" by Albert Pike,
printed in this number, proves that
America has, at least begun to have,
a literature Of her own. 1t proves,
also, that she is likely soon, if Mr..
Pike continues his court the muses."
to %rsjoice in the possession and renown
Of a true poet. And, wonderful to
relate, this successful American
wooer of the tuneful Nine, tunes his
harp in the depths of the backwoods
of America, on the very confines Of
civilization-that is at the capital of
the Territory OF Arkansaw, or Rack
ensack.'"
Unfortunately General Pike did not
continue to play the courtier to the
MUSES., nor TO cultivate letters-his
peculiar condition would not permit
at least not to any considerable ex-
tent, so far as the world has been in
formed, though it is whispered among
his friends that he has quite a library
of MSS. prose and verse of his own
production ready for the press, but
which is not to be published until
after his death. Truly, he is a won
derful old man, being far advanced in
life and of a most striking and veneer
able appearance, with his long snow
white hair and beard and his tall, erect
and stately figure. A great lawyer,
"the greatest Free Mason in the
world" a poet, journalist, historian
and soldier-having commanded q
brigade of Indians in the Confederate
army during the first years of the war.
His life has been so checkered and
eventful, so full of incident, adventure
and versatile achievement, that his
biography, when properly written, will
read more like some oriental romance,
some "Wondrous Tale of Araby" OF
story Of the Admiral Orichton,
grown old in wonderful successes, than
the actual biography of an American
backwoodsman-a fine old Arkansaw
gentleman all Of the modern time
to parody the title Of ono Of his cele
brated conviyial songs.
Among his many titles TO fame was
that of Nimrod-a mighty hunter OF
the Southwest-and it was hereby
that he became a great hero among
the1Indians west of Arkansaw, who
voted him the freedom of their splen-
did hunting grounds, always giving
him a rousing tribal or national
welcome on annual autunnal visits,
and finally making him a Great
Chief over them. They called him
big Thunder" or something of that
sort, because in his royal hunting
expeditions he always carried along a
four or six pound howitzer, regularly
mounted, with which he moved down
the %gregarious prairie game Of all
kinds by the hundreds and thousands.
Although a native of Puritan New
England, General Pike has ever been,
like Sargent Prentiss and other
Northern men who came South before
the war, more of q "Southron. 2
apparently, in feeling, tastes, habits
and opinions, han JEFF. Davis or Alex
S~tephens-as much so, in fact, as that
royal roysterer, that miraculous ptra-
dox, Bob Toombs, himself. Nor is
this characteristic transformation of
Northern emigrants to the South to be
wondered at. Born and reared among
abolitionists, and accustomed to hear
the South aud her peculiar institu-
tons villifed daily from their youth
up, when they came among us and saw
the true state Of afairs-saw how
much our people had been slandered,
and the gross injustice they had been
led by false teaching to do one half
their oOuntrymCn-they, as just and
generous meo, was driven to the other
extreme, and some Of them, like Gen.
QuitmaD, for example, became more
ultra in,their Southern and pro slavery
view than even the average native
Southerners themselves. &
The Complexion Of Criminals.
New York SUM-
In qnaakinV nf q nrisonar who hod