Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-12-05

NtlllDS bA LtuClEh ant how small band of Spartans at | narrow pass on the Pennsylvania road | hal withstood n whole army. I listened till at last my mother kiss ed my throbhing temples and bade me go to rest, to soak my head and think no more of those old tales and savage | wars.
 That very night the Norwegians land ed on our coast. I saw the bread that should have nuurished me fed to a hol- low NorSeman with n rcd cowlick on his briskct and nine pairs of pantscs on at one and the same time.
 O Christiania. thou hast been tender nurse to me. Thou hast given to that tender shepherd lad ideas on politics of which he had not dreamed Thou hast taught him to ask Norwegian bless ing at his table during tho campaign and to swap his vulcanized conscience for the Scandinavian vote. Thou hast taught him to love the rich | nut brown flavor of a Morse convcn- ton and to look into the glaring eye balls of n Pop Svcnske men even as a smooth checked boy might look upon q laughing girl.
 Recently have been raking autumn leaves off the lawn.
 Dear scdcntary reader with tho lack lustcr eye. didst ever rake the autumn | leaf in order to promote n healthful | glow: IL Is about the most attractive task for one who looks on and about as | 1OylcSS for the One who Is doing 1t as anything of which know. You begin with bounding heart and n sharp toOthcd iron rake. and tho sun | comes down warm and welcome on you- | corrugated back. but ere long you find | that most of the time you arc pulling autumn leaves of the sharp teeth of the rake. and the wind Is blowing them back over the little patch which you have raked.
 One can rake autumn leaves of the lawn until the lst of April in some eli | mates, and then some moro leaves will grow and get ready for him to rake by September.
 | A hidcbound Republican here who bought mo hat on tho New York state majority said that with little more combined Manchester and West Virgin ia tariff legislation he allowed that by a year from next fall raking autumn leaves would ho tho principal industry.
 Politics here i> carried to excess. think. am able. though. to take poli tics or let it alone.
 Last week q poet sent me long poem for publication and criticism. and had written the Critique already for this let. ter, but casually looking down the left hand side nf tho thing discovered that it was an aCru>tic reading Bill Nyc iS | 1nf,, ,1. ,.I throat. and I'd rather have his money than his promisSury note" Therefore I have suppressed the poem and will boil down my criticism tn a few tCrsc, keen and searching sentences.
 Mir. BalHaac Peterson, tho author ut the poem. is arising young poet of South Saltwater, Minn. Hc writes broad verse on tho lumber piles and unprotected buildings oS BaytC wn and hauls saw dust over tO the pcnitcntiary by means of q blue dray and white mule which needs to bo rinSed off in the lake.
 Far be it from me to criticise or speak lightly nf the humble employment of any poet or his Scanty equilibrium at the bank, hut I do decry and dcplore the sad environments which seer to force Mir Peterson to contribute his verse tn the shingl" pile and the desert ed building instead of the leading mag azines and periodicals.
 MT. Peterson Is a native of Norway and wears a heavy yarn afghan around his throat winter and summer to protect his voice. which Is a rich shingle mill baritone. and chords well on summer evening with the South Saltwater trol- ley car.
 His verso need hardly be referred tc here, as there is nothing in it (eSpccial. ly for mel It Is feeble imitation of Thomas Brewer Peacock of Kansas. with sort of cod liver oil flavor and the un graceful meter of q raZorback hog pass. ing hurriedly over an acre of glass GOV cred hotbeds on the Harlem on n sprini evening.
 To Mir. Balzaac Peterson l would sa. as a friend: Do not sacrifice so much G your motif to tho building of your acros tics in the future, and do not allow tn Saltwater police to catch you writin any of your sonnets on dead walls an