Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-06-08
ESPECIAL TELxenAM TO THE D1spArcH.1

ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE DIsPArcH.l
PHILADELPHIA, June 7.-Walt Whit
man is still able to get out on fine after
moons, when he is wheeled to his favorite
spot near the Market street ferry, where he
can see the boat come in and enjoy the sight
of the white sails of the racing yachts. The
poet spoke to-day of his recent birthday
celebration as follows:
'Of course was p leased. The harmonies
of the occasion were very grateful to me.
Bob Ingersoll is a wonderful man, and his
speech of half an hour, Judge Garrison
says, was a revelation Royal Bob, as
Garfield called him, was never In better
feather, and how deep he goes and how he
scars. When do die will chiefly regret
that I cannot attend any more birthday
symposiums like the LAST
A PERSONAL DEFENSE.
The poet continued: "I have been called
a sensualist, taking no thought of the spir-
tual essence and spiritual needs of humani-
ty. lam the poet of the body, and am the
poet of the soul. In that book you will find
the soul is celebrated equally with the body,
the mind equally with the heart, the spirit
equally with the sense. Then, have been
accused of infdelity, though I say, "A
mouse is miracle enough to stagger sex
tillions of infideis.'
"Francis Howard Williams, of German
town, wrote me, the other day, something
that pleased me very much. He writes:
There has been deal of bowling and shud-
dering conventionality about you, dear
Walt, a deal of holding up of hands in
shocked amazement-the dear people all the
while forgetful of the fact that in
reading Whitman they were look
ing into clear mirror which showed
them the reflection of themselves and
which did not make them look
prettier simply because the mirror was not
cracked. And amid all this thunder
shower of vituperation you calmly went on
your way, saying, do not trouble my spirit
TO vindicate itself or be understood. see
that the elementary laws never apologize
To-day there are signs that the vindication
for which you waited 35 or 40 years has
come, and in the right way-from without
to by inexorable truth.
A PROPHET AND BARD.
Said the old poet: "I see good sense in
what was said by John Herbert Clifford, a
young German Unitarian, who called me
prophet and bard, and who quoted Voltaire
as saying, that if God did not exist man
care of God goes with modern prompting to
take care of man. Take care of man and
God will take care of Himself and of mems
substitute for Him."
The old poet paused awhile and then con-
tinued: 81 had a mission, as understood
it, and was true to it. Why waste more
words? But I will merely add that in
Lewis life of Goethe read, on the Both day
of November, 1884, some words which
touched me nearly words evidently
Goethe's own, though Lewis does not credit
them to Goethe. The six sentences may be
a key to those who like me. but say they
don't understand my book. Here are the
words from Goethe set SO much store by:
WHAT CONSTITUTES A POET.
"The laws of poetry are foreign to inno-
cent nature, only the experience of cor
ruption has given origin to them. But as
soon as that corruption has taken place and
natural innocence has vanished from man
ners, the laws of property are sacred and
moral feeling will not offend. They have
the same validity in an artificial world as
the laws of nature have in a world of inno-
cence. But the very thing which consti-
tutes the poet is that he banishes
from himself everything which reminds
him OF an artificial world that he may re-
store nature IN ner prlmluVe simplicity.
And If he has done this he has thereby ab-
solved from all laws by which a perverted
heart seeks security against itself. He is
pure, he is innocent, and whatever is per-
mitted to innocent nature is permitted also
to him. If thou who readest and nearest
him art no longer innocent and if thou
canst not momentarily become so, by his
purifying presence, it is thy misfortune and
not his, thou forsakest. He did not sing for
thee"