Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-12-28
SKEPTICISM In POETRY.

The fatal narrowing tendency which
attends the intellectual processes of
skepticism is nowhere seen in more
startling light than in its action upon
poetry. The freshness and spontaneity
of song is lost. the lyrical cry becomes
lyrical wall, simplicity and fullness of
emotion become unknown, and the
imagination, having lost courage for
anything like co ossal effort, is fritz
tered away. and wastes itself in s2as-
modic and often morbid creation.
There is no clearer lessen taught us by
the history of human thought and action
than that the greatest deed and utterance
are impossible without the serenity and
courage which spring from living faith
with God. The great poet must, like
Milton, ever live in his great task
masters eye, and then he will not fail
to make his own life true poem.
There is no compensation for the loss of
faith in poetry. Doubt may sometimes
lift its cup full of the Wine of misery to
the poets lips, and he shall drink and
find certain bitter exhilarations in the
drauGht which fires the mind with brief
poetic fcrC0r, but that throb of short
and daring eaort is all too dearly pur-
chased. Tie world asks that its poets
shall be prophets; that its singers shall
be believers: that their inspiration shall
be drawn from above, else it were bet
ter that their gift died in them, and
their song were never sung.
The keystone in the arch of l;fe is
God. If once the poet pluck that down,
Whit wonder is it that all his life falls
straightway into ilimitable despair and
ruin? What wond r that the stars fade
one by one above Linn. until at las. he
stir in cities of dreadful night, and bows
his head. and only asks 10 lie? In
poetry, as in phio ;ophy. it IS needful TO
insist upon the abiding power and
presence of the religious instinct. All
outrage done to that is outrage upon
that which is noblest in huma ity. 1t
brings its revenges with it, ard the
Nemesis which follows skepticisn in
poetry is confusion an paralysis of
power and effort. Nor is it possible, as
Tennyson Mas shown u.s. for any man TO
be even Indifferent to the relig Gus in
stinct. and yet be a great poet. 1t is
not given to the mightiest genius TO
Sit as god; holding no form OF creed.
But contemplating all
III W tlC LuOSt
solemn problems of the universe, and
work out for himself a perfect intel
lectual culture, such poet simply
builds palace of art, whose splendid
corridors ring at last with his despair,
and all whose glory he is glad to barter
for &, cottage in the vale where he may
mourn and pray. The religious in
stincts of the race ave always been
the Secret springs which have fe the
great poetry OF the world and the
iconoclast who would propo TO HIM
self the daring programme of elimi-
mating ia. tn in God from the poetic liter
ature of England would speedily dis
cover that his proposit on meant the
destructione of everything which the
common consent of four centurie, has
vo. ed best worth preserving.
From Robert Browning we may take
one line which shoald lie the first article
in any poets creed: Earth changes,
but thy soul and God stand sure"
From the verse of him "who uttered
nothing base" we may quote what
seems TO us rs beaut full conception of
the poet as poet ever uttered, and one
which our generation were wise in lay
ing to heart. The trde poet is
One in whom persuas on and belief
Have rpened into faith, and faith become
A passionate intuition.
-Rec W. j. DGDsOn