Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-11-22
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OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES.
The Good Gray Poet and the Famous
Agnostic Talk of the Diety.
From the Philadelphia Press.l
Around the table in the dining-room OF
the Lafayette Hotel, Walt Whitman, the
aged poet, and Colonel Robert Ingerscl
discussed religion and death. 1t was Tues
day night, after Colonel IngersolPs address
in Horticultural Hall for the benefit Of
Whitman.
Whitman's right hand futtered feebly
into his pocket, and he drew forth crum-
pied, well-worn piece of paper.
This poem is translation of mine from
the French of Henri Murger. Pll read il
to you," he said.
The following are the lines he read:
THE MIDNIGHT VISITOR.
"Whose steps are those? Who comes so late ?"
"Let me come in, the door unlock"
"'Tis midnight now; my lonely gate
l open TO no strangers knock.
''Who art thou? Speak"-"Men Call me Fame
To Immortality lead"
pass, idle phantom OF name"
Listen again, and now take heed.
L Ia
Ny poet, R0l0 unpar the door"
cart is dead, Song can not touch my heart,
My once loves name chant no more"
"Open then now, for see stand,
Riches my n tme, with endless gold,
Gold, and your wish in either hand"
Too late-my youth you still withhold"
Then, if it must be since the door
Stands shut, my last true name to know,
Men call me Death. Delay no more;
/ bring the cure OF every woe.
The door flies wide. "Ah, guest so wan,
Forgive the poor place where dwell;
An ice-coid hearth, heart-sick man.
Stand here to welcome thee full WE'LL
When he had finished, Whitman looked
up at Ingersoll, who had never taken his
eyes off the old man, and said in his
trembling voice: "Isn't that funny ?"
Ingersoll shrugged his shoulders, drew
his head down, and said slowly: II don't
think there is anything funny about
death. It's so cold; so white"
Whitman nodded his head slowly
There was pause, as if he was trying to
make a connection between death and
what he was about TO say. At last he
said: 81 believe religion has done more
good to the world than harm"
This unclaimed the dialogue that fol-
lowed Ingersoll, who addressed the
group surrounding him more than the
poet, quickly replied at might have
done so had it but stuck to the good. II
didn't; it taught what was mean and cruel
1t puts me in mind of my visit to church
when l was boy. 1t was Presbyterian
church, and the preacher was in high
box above my head. [ fell asleep and at
last rolled off the seat, which awoke me-
| awoke Just in time to hear the preacher
tell the story of Dives and Lazarus. He
dwelt on every detail with vividness. /
was filled with an awful fear as l heard
him speak"
Ingersolps facial play here was superb
Expressing his fear, his eye gradually
widened, and he halt arose, peering into
the darkness.
II can remember" he went on, chow |
looked up at the pulpit with an ever-grow-
ing fear, as the preacher told of how
Dives suffered the tortures of hell, and
how he was Knocked with the cry that he
had his good things in this world and
must suffer in the next. l hated that God
then, and when l came to be a man and
realized that in the 1000 years God had
never sent Lazarus out of Abraham
bosom to put drop of water on Dives
tongue, could have killed that Jehovah.
If religion had but kept to the good OF
this life, it might have done much less
harm"
Sometimes it is better to
soar"
Ingersoll-"My grandfather was the sort
of man who believed all the world would
be damned except himself. He was sorry
for it, but he couldn't help it. My grand
mother thought all would be saved except
herself, and there Ingersoll half rose from
his chair and extended his hand aloft) she
was as much above the man as the stars
are above the ducks tracks in the mud"
Whitman-"Do you believein all have
written?"
Ingersoll-"No; far from it; much you
have written l do not believe in, but you
have made men and women stronger and
| like you for it. There is only one thing
| have against you, Walt"
Ipgersoll took hold of the old mans
sleeve. Those who had heard Ingersoll
say in the lecture-room that "the most in
decent word in our language is celebacy,"
half expected what followed. q
II have only one thing against you, and
that is that you didn't marry. You ought
to have got girl, Walt. The religion l
bow to" went on Ingersoll. sis the one
that teaches men to love their wives more
tenderly, to hold their young ones on
their knees little tighter. As to wor-
ship and prayer, if saw savage kneel
before stuffed snake, praying that wife
or child might be given back to him,
would kneel and pray with him."