The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-12-09

Johnson, Of Boone. You see, ,roa mss the the
afraid OF my own name. ~ IN wbTch /
poem with a little parasl ad writer Of the
senuy eIyed ,b tn9 ph he could produce
poetry. II was in the Hoosler aiaieS.,
and IL took. So wrote o'ne' ,,ms Nov
similar nature from tlnle tohnson. OF
Eoone ana there was great curiosity
as to who the author OF tns cIaImonts
b.. Actually, there were ubiie we
TO the doubtful honor 49, 49, which was
brought out my first volume wnIcn was
made up OF twelve Of these poems over
my own name The book was entltieu
The or Swimmin' HOE, h hnn III al
More Poems No, the wasn't one of
them hut S 9Tbe Frost is on the Punkin'
was.
SOME PERSONAL PABA0HAFhs.
IL have been criticised In certain NJ
erary Quarters for my dialect Wotk'
which some people say - ho' ~ AZ Jia.
They say dialect verse tehun mi This
iect forms of expreSts'Tnmo,e ns containing
the dialect of children. Now, disdetee
with these critics. While l 90 not =, oia he
that any Of my work - hte s a' ~, .The
highest seLse. l canho' oan harm the
speech or anv child. / am fond OF the
dialect of childhood, and think ,hat - tn
child who should be prevehteu i ncv
speaking in the broken p raetaie 81 - one OF
would be unjustly deprlVeai oh would
the sweetest things In tnls ~, "-1
grow up warped in soile oo;s az use
Il use dialect in my DOORS d. he
1t In my platform enter sometimes
cause 1 wish TO please all. l SON, ,'e de-
clared TO be frivolous In certa.lh .qi rat "a
but | wish TO interest tHt ,5 as we'll as
we'll as the lettered, the ci IIIniII,fnass these
the mature reader, anu Hu chem some
Frf,,oIg,fca carry Win lUtul SN'N
thing Of vaiIie The Creator mas per
mitted dialect. and l cannot fail 10 en-
dcrse IT. ,,.,oo+ into nrint.
at is not easy TO put dialect INTO mo PRIZE The
Yankee and the Hoosier dialects looh
much alike spelled out and yet the NIL, MI
'goin'' Is pronounced in an esseII t'arr'
different way by the man III NY " thera
shire and the man In Indians. o,toi' COM
is always trouble with edllorlaa Lii
positors. have more nowadays WIN
the eastern printer than the WestGtnii';;
The lndianian says comm anu 80 he
and generally drop the hnal 3; put nG
also always says morning ana eVenlis,
giving the final e its true and full Vaiue
in these words. Ii is not easy 70 Sc
the eastern composltor to iollo" copy oH
that. u ,,oo,,
MY favorite novelist? Well Black Black,
mores Lorna Doone is my faNorlte SUI
but Dickens pleases me most al rou ad,
He seems to understand every phase OF
humanity in nature. Longfellow Is my
favorite poet. especially in his simpler;
more direct poems, Ike inc b[iu9 iba
subtiest are of the poet IS sh0Wh-so sun,
tie is it indeed that 1t Is not perceived
by the ordinary reader AT an ana tHdI
is the highest triumph Of poetic art
Have / a maxim? No, but here IS
couplet which / always have in mind
And Mr.. Riley wrote the following SLOW
ly, but. as the reader Will see, from the
fac-simile here printed as hshuy do
print:
tHis motto like the lghtnin bugs
Accordin' To His Lightr:'
These words mean this, ne SAID as
should be proud Of his achievements as
due to any personal merit beyond me
fact that he has lived up 10 the gifts
with which he was endowed at birth.
ut was not till / was twenty-five or
thereabouts thatI learned to write so
A small boy my right thumb was
smashed in a closing door and ! lost
one joint. This spoiled my =. hand hand
writing for years a Ana 5 MAKES Iobn
now in Los Angeles, Cal, IN business,
used TO copy my verse for me. He Is a
successful business man, but he mlEhl
have written better poetry than / ever
can had he exercised his gifts In That
direction. He is a good brother lie
found when young that he must give up
all literary aspirations and work along
other lines, and he did 1t without a muir
muir and he also gave up his violin and
his guitar of both OF which he was very
fond. He still versifes, however. for his
own ploasu and that Of his i"timates.
Mr. Riley is a single man. Two OF his
sisters are married and ave in lntianapo-
lis and they, with the two brothers, make
up the family. Their home was originally
in Greenfield, Ind. T. ID. MARSHALL.