New-York tribune., 1896-12-06
/ /

The reason Why dialcc. like Mr. Dunbar's
touches the Imagination is that II has racial
roots Mr. Hcatons is artificial The latest
book of poems 10y Nora Hopper throws further
light on the point. She deals with the themes
Of race. Irish elves and Irish manners
go To make the substance of her work. The
same material has been handled 10y many
another writer II late. but rarely has more
than the surfacr pcturesqueness "f Irish
life been secured. Miss Hopper drcnchcs her
songs In the spirit of her subjects. Were she to
employ the worst Of Celtic dialects she could
hardly help but touch the reader for the
true fires Of poetry burn in her Imagination
Those fires are sadly htful in the mass of minor
verse at present under review. For one book
In which they are 80 persistent and productive
OF such haunting stanzas as abound In Under
Quicken Eoughs' there are three on four where
I'm hardly an cmber glows For such warmth
the gods vouchsafe. however. let us be grateful
There IL something persuasive. for example. in
the New Ballads of MIR John Davidson 1t is
true that he is sometimes "A little too obvious
under the impression that he is writing highly
penetrating verse. The ballad of An Artists
Wife," which opens the book. tells us In mctri-
cal form. that two and two make four. More
over. Mr.. Davidson proves in this ballad and in
others that one can be metrical without being
supple melodous But for the dramatic
touch in "A Woman and Her SON. he can be for
given the fruitless metaphysics of that piece
and for the lt in piper. Play he may be even
gratefully entreated The pity of it is that he is
one of the most uneven balladists OF the day
This failure to sustain worthy note worthy
through many songs Is. as has been indicated
above. fact to he reckoned with among even
the better volumes lately published. Mr. Parr
has written a strong sonnet on "Eothen." which
may he found In his collection entitled In n
Dorian Mood" and In several other pieces he
discloses sympathy for romance and some
aptitude in the exploitation of IT, The bulk OF his
work. however. Is OF slender value. Miss Lizette
Woodwork Reese also has romance. and she
gives "A pretty specimen Of 1t In the first poem Of
"a Quiet Road" This opening set Of verses
called "An English Mssai' Joins a delicate
emotion to n firm. lucid descriptive style and
the proportion OF similarly genuine. artistic
work in the volume Is perhaps larger than in
the other less homogeneous collections among
which it is nevertheless grouped
Mr.. Herbert Bates rivals Miss Reese I'm de-
scriptve art though he has not her refinement
and sweetness Of tone. He has instead a feel
ing for the hard truths Of experience and there
are things In his Songs OF Exile" which go
In a straightforward and energetic way to the
readers heart. "A Song of the Drouth' is one
Of these poems. ''On the Prairie Is another
this second performance touching an unusual
plane OF pictorial excellence 1t may be sug-
gested to Mr. Bates that If he devotes himself
to this kind OF poetry he will perhaps take
permanent place among the minor American
poets He needs to avoid experimenting in such
moods as that typifed by There Is a Music In
the March OF the Stars" 1t takes a master to
capture that music. Writers like Mr. Bates
have ears to listen but not lips wherewith to re-
peat what they hear