The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-05-16

burst of friendly but perverted criticism
-. he made in the Wave the remarkable state
ment that:
Cheney has written the finest sonnet 10
the English language, and it is no detrac-
tion from Shakespeare or Wordsworth to
say. So"
Now next to the owl Bohemia reserves
g solitary niche for the Bard of Avon, and
10 mention any name in the same breath
with his is considered tie rankest of rank
sacrilege. 1t is not that John Vance
Cheney is loved the less, but Shakespeare
more. and in saying that the former has
written the finest sonnet in the language
Colonel Irish has awakened the laughter
of some, the indign alton Of others and the
curiosity of all The curiosity has come
from the difficulty Of locating the par
tcuiar sonnet to which the writer had
reference. Mr.. Cheney protested ignor-
aHce,. Mr.. Cheney's friends prnfessed
ignorance, and it was only after careful
search that it was discovered to be one Of
the sonnets In the volume OF poems en-
titled ''Thistledrift' which Colonel Irish
had in mind. This is entitled Tine Skill
full Listener" and runs as follows:
The skilful listener methinks may hear
The grass-blsdes clashin sunny fields together,
The roses kissing, and the lily, whether
II laugh or'sigh low in the summers ear.
The Jewel dewbells of the mead ring clear,
When mornings nearing in the sweet June
weather,
The focked hours winging, feather unto feather,
The last leaf wall at waning OF the year.
Methinks from these catch a passing sound
(The best of yerities, perhaps, but seem)
Hearing forsooth shy nature on her round
When least she imagines it; birds, wood and
stream
Not only. but her silences profound,
Surprised by softer football of our dream.
When this sonnet add its criticism was
shown yesterday to one whose bones have
ratified over the stones of the literary high
way for 10! these many years. be sent the
Mercury Of the. red room for forum of
something stronger than water, the where
with to brace himself up for the labor of
love in defending the fair fame of Shake
speare and the other masters
''ln the first place." said be, "Mr. Che
ney's Is really pretty poem. beoctave-
that is, the first eight lines-are .undoubt-
edy very good. The metaphors are well
chosen and pretty. There is no gainsay-
ing that There is, however, one trans.
gressiOn of the law of sonnets In those
first eight lines, and that is In rbymtne
whether and weather. which fault is
not relieved by the use Of female rhymes
or rhymes of two syllables.
"Of course. in regardsto female rhyme,
the great masters have sometimes brushed
aside this restriction. for great minds re-
fuse to be bound by rules of any kind a,
times. l do not recall at this moment any
freuu ant use as rhymes of words phoneti
cally alike though of different meaning
as in this case of whether and
weather But these faults might be-
overlooked in the general excellence OF
the major part of the sonnet, which, as
said before. has some singulary pretty
lines. With the period. however, the CO.
herence is lost, there is an extreme vague
ness and there is absolutely no excuse fol
the faulty meter Of the twelfth line:
When least she imagines 1t; bros. wood ant
stream.
"a sonnet must be written in iambit