The Cecil Whig., 1885-12-19

ing the unconventional, therefore his
success. Were he to attempt, however,
a composition by the sweetest rules of
art and convention, be would beyond
doubt or question astonish the world.
His creed is too sacred to him to depart
for the sake of caprice flom the founda-
tion philosophy of "Leaves of Grass"
1t indicates a sOrrowful condition in
the intellect of the nation when Leaves
of Grass" is passed by uncomprehend
the sweetest kernel. The ambition to
crack such a nut must be ardent, and it
must bring success. The pores of the
soul do not repulse Walt Whitman; they
rather absorb him with cheerfulness.
Intensely natural, intensely human and
intensely democratic, he is in entirity
consumation devoutly wished for. He
has sung an indisputable religion, he has
taught an unquestionable philosophy.
and he lives today the undoubted embo-
diment of man. science and poetry.
Pervading the Walt Whitman of today,
falling in ebulant stream about him, as the
sunshine through the branches Of the
maple that guards his door, is the atmos-
phere of a divine spirituality. My friend
considered his conversation "aS hard to
compre heno as his poems."7 My friend,
l am afraid, desires too much detail and
not enough substance. Whitman's con-
versation was upon the dividity of Shak-
speare in relative comparison with the
prohibitory demon of Socrates. The
simplest sentence upon such subject
whether uttered or written by Whitman
or Emerson, would be enough to aston
ish my friend and l out of all compre-
hensibilty as to its details. In fact such
subjects are not relative to Details they
stance. We do not know in detail what
infinite substance it is pervading the at
mosphere of an ancient forest, yet we
admit the presence of such thing. and
revel in the sensations born to us. The
voice of Whitman must ever be Just as
the voice in the atmosphere OF the an
cent forest. Who is not satisfied to
know no more? Do we desire to break
the airy bubble of dew that falls upon
the rose that we may see its formation
in detail9 1t is only in its substance
that all tie rare prismatic hues, the rain
bow lovlinesses, are reflected, touch it
and it vanishes. There are no conven-
tional forces in tho doctrine of Walt
Whitman. He has written poetry before,
and he writes poetry today more from
the heart and soul than from the mind I
He is only the poet of ints" ::Lct, in tn
Light. hiii.- W. u. js-' common in nature, il
life, and in events, is intellectual. II
, has not striven to elevate the intellectu
ality of mankind in the light of publ
instructor; but as the lofty exponent O
righteous democracy among men an,
nations he las sought to elevate bot
body and mid in unconventional rela
tionship. Did hear some one say dis
respectfully of his genius that he i
horny handed, grizzled, passionate, i'm
moral, profane? The ignorance of thi
world is astonishing. Gentle as a wo
man, with flesh OF healthy softness ant
sweetness, kingly in face and form, bi,
with compassion and sympathy and love
the Wat Whitman of today, the "poe
par excellence of the future" the Home
of the centuries to come, the delightful
kosmos of America, is living out his lif,
nobly and faithfully to himself and man
kind, while the drifted sunshine through
the maple and the more radiant sunshiu,
of the gods mingle in transcendent ray.
about lis snowy hiar f. NJ.