The San Francisco call., 1895-11-24

DeduGlIui III llGeIdGuIc. ne udS dSkeU Cle
world to so accept him. Alasl alas! base
suspicion has performed its deadly office
and the alabaster god has become mere
plaster of paris.
That the idol should prove to be only
common clay, not even fire-burned, is
enough, but that he should undertake the
duties of pedagogue, forgetting those
proper to the critic, shocks all sensitive
natures.
The province of the critic is large-the
method, governed by well-established
rules, is limited. and Mr.. Bierce knows but
ignores the limitation.
The wit of the satirist is never forced.
1t is sharp, incisive, fatal. If l am to suf-
fer literary death let me perish by the
thrust of the raper in the hands of an ex-
pert who remembers to be a gentleman,
and not by the blow of bludgeon han
died by a yokel. A gentleman will kill
you with two-edged epigram: the novice
will arm himself with archaic brickbats
and obsolete phrases and pelt you with
them.
Ambrose Bierce is nothing if not a
critic. He is not critic.
In his latest "Prattle'' Mr.. Bierce at
tempts to criticize "The Celtic Prince, I"
basing his so-called criticism on imperfec-
tions in the construction of the lines.
Had he been satisfied to confine his
''Prattle" to the construction of the lines
he would have been within the limits of
the art critical, but an innate depravity of
taste compelled him to drop the delicate
foil and take up the broadsword and
hack and hew the air. He objects to
the titles of the characters in ''The Celtic
Prince; says they are bizarre $50 is the
use of that word). Here Mr.. Bierce illus
trates his magnificent ignorance of Celtic
literature. All the names used are legiti-
mateIy used. How inconsistent Mr.. Bierce
isl He sets all rules aside and coins words
to suit his humor. "Celticated to the
Queens taste" How slangy Mr.. Bierce is
and how offensive to the Prince, who had
no desire to please the Queen! That is the
last thing any self-respectlng Celt desires
to do. How funny Mr.. Bierce is!
Mr.. Bierce objects to the opening of a
blank-verse passage with a couplet. How
surprised Shakespeare must have been
when he read Mr.. Bierce's objection to an
opening couplet. Poor Shakespeare! Now
that Mr.. Bierce has condemned his very
frequent method of using opening COUP
lets and triplets. he must of necessity disap-
pear from the memory of scholars. Mr.
Bierce must pardon me if 1 prefer to sin
with Shakespeare rather than to be virtu-
Gus with Mr.. Bierce.
Mr.. Bierce admits that only five persons
living to-day can write acceptable English
blank. OF course he is one of the fortunate
FIVE, but with characteristic modesty he
withholds all evidence of the fact.
Mr.. Bierce objects to the lack of varia-
ton in the ''pause casural" (modern,
cesuraD. Permit me to remind him that
variation in the cesural pause is obsolete.
Mr.. Bierce works himself up to high
pitch of fury and unable to restrain his
native vulgarity bursts into the argot of
the ring and hurls sponges and things at
the unfortunate Celtic Prince. These
failing, he gathers up amphibrachs, iam-
b uses and anapests and filings them at the
Prince, who good-naturedly laughs at the
performance.
Mr.. Bierce expresses wish that he were
fool-poet. He is.
What wonderful mastery of curious
words Mr.. Bierce possessesl In the single
dainty, chaste and classical curiosIties:
"Quitter," "road pump" "horse trough"
"hodge-podge," bloody sweat" ''threw
up the SPONGE" "brute bIundering," etc.
The use of these words is unworthy of
so distinguished scholar as Mr.. Bierce
and indicates that his wit is In irons and
that he is content to play the part of q
literary beadle. What will Haseltine,
Carlyle, Macaulay, Paine, De Stael, Swift,
Addison or Steele think of their degenerate
brother?
Mr.. Bierce will doubtless be gratifed by
learning that am the happy possessor of
all his works and that l have read them
with great interest. Since he did me the
honor to criticize my bantling, the Celtic
Prince" must return the com pliment and
present him with Roland for his Oliver.
1 am not to be outdone in courtesy by Mr..
Bierce.
His Soldiers and Civilians pre-
sents an initiative quality suggestive OF
Poe, Prentice, Bret Harte and Mark Twain.
There are many charming lines In the
book much delightful phrasing, but the
work is cruelty marred by MIR. Bierces
trick OF adjusting laugh to every dramatic
crisis.
His connection with the "Hangman's
Daughter" is apocryphal. What he did to
the unfortunate girl do not know, but the
work, while well written by some one, is
too gruesome, too su,5 gestive of the abat-
toir to deserve long life.
His two books of humor, catalogued as
'"comic," were failures, and Esop having
written fables, Mr.. Bierce seems unneces-
sary. His most pretentious work in verse
is his "Black Beetles in Amber" The title
is very pretty and suggests the poetry
which should follow, but which is missing.
Mr.. Bierce has no right to object to
criticism of this volume. He has published
his thoughts in the meter most convenient
to his mood, but he has had small regard
Tor syntax and less for prosody.
Mr.. Bierce esteems names as important
in versification. Imay be permitted, there
fore, to ask him why "BIack Beetles in
Amber" ?-why not in ambergris? Why
not "Blue Breeches in Pawn? or "Biack
Beans in Batter? These titles would ex-
press the sentiments in Mr.. Bierces poems
equally with black beetles, etc. 1t would
be silly, however, to quarrel about the