Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-07-17
DanIeI wepster-s roetry.

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Webster was certainly one Of our
greatest Americans intellectually. That
no man can dispute. But suppose "God-
like Dan" were alive today and should
send to leading magazine for publica-
ton verses like the following, which the
great statesman sent to a friend who
was apparently in love, and having the
attack bad:
Since, friend Habijah, you are thus distrest,
bince Loves fierce fortunes thus infame your
breast,
! Since IS charms forever haunt your dreams
! And her fair form before you always seems,
A little poetry perhaps might roll
Loves boiling torrent from your troubled
soul.
| l. too, with MUSES. strayins through the grove,
May soothe my pains, though not the pains of
love.
For those blessed fields, where Loves gay
Graces reign,
once have tried, and tried, alas! in vain.
No longer ON those verdant banks tread,
No longer wander DER the aowery mead;
Those fragrant lawns of Love, which you ex-
plore,
l once perhaps have known, but know no
more.
This is not quite so bad as George
Washington's poetry, butstill-what bad
language it would force from the lips
of the managing editor of a great mod
ern daily. The poem is part of one
quoted by Horatio King in The Maya
zine of American History. We learn
from it that Daniel himself had been in
love and got over it, and the continual
ton Of the poem shows that he thought
he had now turned for consolation to
art and science. But in truth this was
considered very good poetry in Web
steris time.
We learn also from Mr.. Kings paper
that Webster twas accustomed to keepa
stock of good things, as well in prose as
poetry, constantly in memory, to be
used whenever occasion offered" Hard
work this must have been, and if, as
Mr.. King tells us, some of the poetry
was from "his own rich mine," one
feels rather sorry for the audiences that
admired it so. Tastes change in poetry.
Below, however, are some verses
which even our age can appreciate:
Come, then. tobacco, new found friend,
Come, and thy suppliant attend
In each dull, lonely hour
Then, while the coxcomb pert and proud,
The politician learned and loud,
Keep one eternal olack
I'll tread where silent nature smileA.
Where solitude my woe beguiles,
And chew thee, dear tobac.
Think of Daniel Webster making
rhyme out of ''tobac." It does not add
either to our exalted admiration for the
great man to find that he chewed, actu-
ally chewed, the ''tobac." But here is
some prose from the last speech Web.
ster ever made in the senate, July II,
1850 that makes us forgive him for all
his poetry:
mean to stand on the constitution. 1 need
no other platform. shall know but one coun-
try. The ends ] aim at shall be my couatry's,
my Gods and truths. was born an Ameri-
can, and intend TO perform the duties incum-
bent upon me in that character to the end of
my career. | mean to do this, with absolute
disregard Of personal consequences. What are
personal consequence What is the individ-
befall great country in a crisis like this, and
in the midst Of great transactions which con-
Germ that country's fate? Let the consequences
be what they will. am careless No man can
suffer too much and no man can fall too soon.
II he suffer or IL he fall In defense of the lib
critics and constitution of his country.