Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1897-09-11

A Word to "Word-Painters."

All wrong.
What the JOURNAL does not "enjoy"
is that which has been imposed upon
ARABIAN hospitality' in cold, unfeel-
ing print as 'sunset picture"-a
"chinook' setting, pronounced by one
of Frostburg's impetuous divlnes as
lone of the finest examples of word
painting | have ever SEEN"
And now. since "a paper that is
paper" has recalled the subject, the
JOURNAL proposes to become instruct
i've, if it can, by dissenting from the
divine's opinion and that of all others
who have been misled into indiscrim-
mate applause of a most unsatisfactory
performance. 1t will do this in no
spirit of unfriendliness to Mr.. Fair
child, but offer it as lesson to those
who, loving pure literature, should
not in haste lose sight of the quality
which ennobles the divinity of letters.
From a number of passages whose
perfection may be questioned the
JOURNAL selects two:
l, Back of and above these (mountain-
peaks heaven had thrown up the frownng
breastworks of a gathering storm.
The employment of the term.
"heaven," as having thrown up"
any sort of "breastworks" Is hardly in
accord with the finest" usage, even
in "word-painting." In any other
sort of picture the idea would be in
conceivable.
In secondary sense, the use of the
plural-''heavens," would be allow
able, but barely 50, inasmuch as there
are better terms.
THE frowning breastworks" were
doubtless clouds. If so, either the
wrong force threw them up, or the
"breastwork' has ceased to become a
stationary defensive structure. Gath
ering storms" too. are aggressive
rather than defensive, and, unhamper-
ed by such impedimenta as "breast-
works, generally move to their mission
in the open.
Something like this would have been
better, because more literal:
Back of and above them the elements had
thrown up the portents of gathering storm.
Again:
2, In a few moments the sun was gone and
there in sky of gold a silver nugget gleam-
ed | ljnpprpI there in wonder b0und till |
saw drawn across the dark waste of crashing
waves the white sword Of the rising moon.
1t was evidently the full moon. But
is a "silver nugget" rounde Does it
"gleam - And by what incandescent
process is "a silver nugget trans
formed in one sentence to ga white
sword" in the next ?
This is the first time, too, in all its
reading the JOURNAL has seen the
moon symbolized as weapon of war.
True, she might be so reckoned during
the crescent era, bat she is then in the
wrong part of the armament to be
caught rising"
The moon is an emblem of peace.
1t stands to her credit that even in the
ineXact scheme of astrology her office
is nearly always that of moderatng
force in the fiery houses and temper
ing influence in contentious conjunc
tlons. She is the peace maker of the
planetary household.
Not only so. The poets, too, in
melodious words and metred lines
have embalmed her among the pacific
powers. They have eternalized her
name as the enemy of crime, the
friend of love and the patroness of
virtue. Dante makes Beatrice name
her as the habitation of "peace di-
vine;' Mickle speaks of her as the
"sweet regent" Shakespeare as "the
pale empress of the night" and Heady,
more eloquently than all, refers to
The lesser light,
Bright as the evangels shield of faith,
In that, on her responsive disk is seen
The reflex glory of the ruling orb.
1t was she who, yelling the face of
the benign sun from the tragedy of the
crucifxion, compelled the heather
centurion to become the first witness to
the divinity of the Prince of Peace.
The JOURNAL might question the
accuracy and symmetry of other
Innings of the 'word- picture" but it
does not wish to incur even the sus-
picion Of captiousuess. AS intimated,
1t entertains but one purpose-the one
named by Edgar Allan Poe concern
ing the poetry of Rufus Dawes, and
later by Macaulay of Robert Mont
gomery's verse-"E English literature
must be kept pure"
In this case, therefore, the JOURNAL
owesa duty-not so much to the misrep-
resented clouds and slandered moon,
as to those who are studying the struc-
ture of language and acquiring the art
OF arts, "word-painting" To these,
young and old, it would insist-never
have "heaven," the abode of the blest.
the place Of the eternal year, "where
flames refined in breasts seraphc
glow"-never have "heavenn make a
'breastwork' of the changeful cloud
the cloud, whose mystery of vaporous
evaneScence RnSkin o.,,c 81. lI.o