The herald., 1895-02-23
A Paper on Symbolism by
Mrs. Graham
WAS A LITERARY MEETING
Reading From Five Boston Authors by
Five Modern Women
how the Book Committee Carried Out the
Programme Which It Had Prepared
For the Club

Club yesterday a large membership and
numerous guests assembled to hear the
programme on Five Modern Authors,
which was in charge of the book commit
tee.
Mrs. Margaret Collier Graham is the
chairman of that committee, and she read
short paper on symbolism by way of
preface of what was to follow.
Poetry, said Mrs. Graham, ''is the
conscience of literature. 1t represents the
moral side, and found perfection earlier
than other FORMS The world improves,
not by the discovery of new moral codes,
but by increased intelligence in applica-
tion of those known from the beginning.
1.-THE poets art is above all things,
honest art; poet must be an onest
man, whether he is good man or not;
he must speak directly to the soul of the
people; nd if he touches your heart he is
not to be despised.
with this in mind one need not be
afraid of running after strange gods in
literature today, although we have some
of the strangest gods ever pursued by
mortal man, some writing a language
so strange that he who runs may not
read, tough he who reads must often
run.
Quoting Matthew Arnold, the speaker
said poetry has two kinds of interpreta-
tion, the naturalsic and the moral. Ma
tnre is never morbid, unmoved always,
Immoral never, and the poet of natlre is
n ever pessmistic; the pessimi site poet
ecorates his verse with Expresses. swamps
and slim but if he were to writ If
those same expresses, we must perforce
hear the birds singing in. their boughs
the frogs chirping gaily in the swamps; it
is the introspective poet who is pessim-
istc,
Who trains his Pegasus to draw hearse
Through endless avenues OF dropping verse.
About ten years ago there appeared in
Paris an csthetic cult, writings full of
new-old verbiage, obsolete words side by
side with those newly coined and quaint,
peculiar form. This school of young
writer's contained large proportion of
chaif, but was not entirely without wheat,
ttiler cults sprang up and the general
movement took on the name Decadents,
storward impressionsts or expression
lists then symbolists.
Mrs. Graham then touched upon the
Il lhcuty of discriminating the inscrut-
uble nonsense from inscrutabe sense;
tii objection to classification of writer's,
1ce to every real artist art is dearer
iaH any ism, hence artists resent classi-
il atIon
ilovey says" quoted Mrs. Graham,
al &c are three ways of looking at the
world, the natural way, the eternal and
tif poetic. One views the world as thing,
one as law or abstract intelligence, one as
personality. Now toward one, now toward
lnthcr OF these PHILOSOPHERS the race
'a'rs and art veers with it; if the thing
b, npncrmost, we shall have realism; il
i:,e soul or personality, poetry; if the alb
,ct idea dominates, art turns to SYM
la Ism OF necessity. Symbolism then, is
drift in art, representation of abstract
! !cts by visible things of which the lam
1 Al lfyp NAV bp intipitply vnripI -
hrs Graham then read an example of
Il ia grant type of singularity, in which
symbolism was reduced to absurdity. Its
eli ct upon readers was then spoken of;
u the melodious phrases; and an extract
was read from bright article in the
Cunpbook.
Wi tl several references to the true value
OF symbolism, and giving number of
examples, Mrs. Graham brought her
clever thoughtful and interesting paper
to close by saying, however objection
able Its faults may be, symbolism has
grown out of good and it will grow into
a gain; the truth of the truth, and above
all the truth that is hidden behind COM
mon til ingS, is not to be lightly esteemed;
and III SO far as the new literature is able
to make the least of those among us stand
for humanity; in SO far as small things
may shadow forth great thoughts and
greater deeds; in so far are we all kin, be
we realjsts, romanticists or symbolists
ject was Stanley J. Weyman, whom she
described as an English barrister, about
30 years old; whose literary career was
begun in 1891 by writing short stories.
His first novel was refused by publishers
and he then turned to the historical
novel,.
Mrs. Eastman thinks Mr.. Weyman is
now writing too much and followed bv |
reading brief reviews of some of his
novels. The gentleman of France has too
b,rf lnl; %f,,l
Weyman is master of heroic incident
The inconsistent plot of My Lady |
Rotha was next spoken of and fits un- |
satisfactory ending; his latest books |
are not up to the standards his faculty of |
inventing complicated plots his knowl- |
edge of History were all touched upon, as
fitting him for his vocation as romantic |
. historical novelist.
Mrs. Wing commenced her paper by say |
ing it was hopeless to attempt to label |
Verlaine. He was subtle compound of |
base and noble, and was well worth study |
ing since he is an influence in Paris. He |
has a high reverence for the Good and the |
Beautiful, but fatal weakness of will. |
He sees everything in a personal way, and |
his every production is colored by pecu-
liar temperament.
Reference was then made to his love of |
nature; his disgust with life which is the |
result of safety; he cares nothing for
money or favor, but has the courage of |
MS CONVICTIONS. lie is true friend, but
incapable of faithful love; is like Swim
burne in melody and rhythm, but has a
low conception OF love and of women.
Fills entire lack of reserve was then al
luded to, as in his confessions, which
show him at his worst; but he is incap-
able of the sin of treachery.
His recent volume of poems was next |
spoken of as being largely of sonnets and |
addressed to friends. In these his man
uer desenerates, and his genius is less
fprribe. In his epigrams he is more i'm
personal, and .splays a faithful and deli
ti,r touch; his hospital experiences were
sil'wn in an article which was being read
II N Il number of the Chap Book.
~ has u poetic and bizarre imagina-
"a; his ruth is his charm; he is master
q musical meters, and is intensely real
- {,
,'arnality disgusts him, yet depravity
estimates him, but now and again the
poet makes one feel the horror of it all;
i,'is iull of art, but arid of general wis
ON; not great poet-no world poet
run the exquisite, diseased, morbid poet
q his age.
Mrs. Tohurst spoke of Henley as thor
c,ishly modern in spirit as in form, es-
,eAtally fin de steele; but there is in him
s. much that is good and clever, that
,-r ,cs should restrain their sneers.
Alusion was made to his surprising
filllcy and lively appreciation, which is
,,ni trulv ,,optip and tho reader di scOyers |