Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-05-04
EMERSON As A POET.

EMERSON As A POET.
Following the excellent monograph OF MIR
Joel Benton on this subject, DIR. Oliver Wen
del lIolmes-lhe Doctor johnson Of Ameri
can observation-disclosures an address on "Tht
Poetry of Emerson" before the Nineteenth
Century Club OF New York, last Tuesday
evening" Whatever DR.. Holmes says of a
writer stays said" lie is An oracle whom
nobody undertakes to dispute. 1t Is
gratifying, then, to hear this gray
haired censor of American letter:
passing kindly judgment on one
after another OF our literary heroes, Him
self one OF the latest lingering Of Americas
galaxy of stars in the realm Of thought,
grows IN re beautiful and pure, us it falls
with reverence. and tenderness upon the
memory OF tn jse who are with us no more.
A nature less NOBLE aud genuine than that OF
the ,nial autocrat, would be sadly turned,
Sc fear, by the almost worship of the peo-
pie, 10 somewhat of consciousness and ego
ism. But Dr. II illness criticisms are as lit
lie subjective and us modest as the first ven-
ture of tn. ,rue-hearted tYro, when he tlcshss
his pen in the fresh creation of ripper mind.
How gentle he is aud considerable -withil,
how true and sympa,hctic-in his best vein
of criticism, appears in his talk of Emerson
before the Century Club. He leaves til;
man, aud goes straight to the soul of his poe
try-for, let moralsts say what they will,
Il mans writings. as general thing, are vast
ly above the level Of himself In judging Of
All authors literary worth, the critic has
no right, we believe ito know anything
much less to say ausht-of the mans prva-
cy. That is hi. own; his writings are the
worlds.
According to Dr. Holmes definition, poet
ny is imprisoned or inspiring thought, ex-
pressed in musical commonly in me,rical
language. 1T need not necessarily be i'm
pa ,sioned, but il no: inspiring, however
agreeable verse might be, we are disp posed to
deny it the name of poetry. 1t is the natu-
raj flowing out of eloquence." The
way to Parnassus of our great prose-
poet. We thank him for it. In our
INN st hearts we arc assured that our Con-
cord sage is something more than a philoso-
pber and teacher We read between the
lines his burning and mounting soul,-and
vet in the lines we are sorely tried to call
him poet! We knew that Emerson be-
strobe Pegasus, but we were doubtful il he
mounted without Il slirrup. Here Is the
mystery solvcd-hc climbed upon his prose
to be poet His poetry was the natural
flowing out of his eloquence.
Enlarging upon this thought. Dr. Holmes
says 1.-THE reader OF Emerson's early essay,
Nature will see by what process he
passed from prose to poetry. He does not
make his poet (who was himself, doubtless)
sing in verse, but he puts intohis mouth that
which he meant as the most complete exposure
of his inner thought" This is a delightful
bit of sensitive criticism, and leads us quick
ly to the heart of the matter. The autocrat
has touched for us the hidden spring of this
wonderful poet nature, and behold quick as
thought it opens wide before our eyes, and
We see all the sources of that beautiful light
al song which before had shincd out to us
only through the chinks of rugged prose.
Emerson is not au imprisoned poet, nor
a melodious poet, but ho is inspired,
and his inspiration is all the grander
by its mighty struggle for express IA. From
this grand reaching and aspiring after truth
comes the spiritual depth and all-prvadipg
symbolism of his poems. They are like
stars, rather than suus-coals, rather than
flames they are thoughts father than ex-
prtssions.
The poetry of Emerson will endure. 1t
floats in that won lerfuy pres ,rvative me-
dium-soul. Perhaps it will never be the
poetry of the people-unti! lime develops a
race Of thinkers-but it will always be the
poetry of aspiring aud thoughtful men and
women. 1t takes deep hold upon the great
problems Of nature and life and its roots go
down to the bedrock below. Like precious
treasure, it may be had by delving.