The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-06-13
THE A%FRO-AMERICAN LYRE
tendency TO TIE HUMOROUS SIDE
nTLIYE GRADUALLY DETELOPING.

IN. race Appears - Ne GettinE On Ets
rect since the Appearance or Paul
laurence Dunbar - Samples Of the re-
cent Products or Afre-Anerican Peets.
For A great many years Paul Laurence Dun
hnr WAS " an elevator boy" At Dayton, o., where
\. was born and educated In the public schools.
u,s opportunities were limited, az no was com
,oI,ed 10 rely upon his daily bread out Of the
,voat OF his face, but he possessed the gift of
sonq. and sang, even when the doing Of IL cost
him every penny that ho could earn. for tho
noet. DO he black or white, has 70 buy his way
into the affections Of the people. Publishers
will not take any chances with raw poets. Dun
bar published. at his own expense. two or three
distinct collections of his verse, but the sales
ana not reimburse him, and no rot to be
ouite a bohemian In Chicago before his
sMajors and Minors" fell under the notice
Of Mr.. William Dean Howells. who recognized
Mr.. Dunbar's peculiar merits and wrote . re-
view OF tho collection, which at onoo gave the
young author q national audience and q greater
market for his wares than he could supply, for
Mr.. Dunbar Is not o facile writer. Indeed. ho
has as much labor In composition a. Alexander
Pope had. when Mr.. Howells brought him into
public notice Mr.. Dunbar was abort on marketa-
bic verse. and he has been short ever since. only
here and there q fugitive contribution Of his
having appeared in the public prints.
In the preface to Mr.. Dunbar's verso Mr.. How
ellis makes the following analysis: I'm my
criticism of his book T. Majors and Minors1 I
had alleged Dumas in France, and I had forget
fully failed to allege the far greater Pushkin in
Russia; but these were both mulattoes. who
might have been supposed to derive their quail
ties from white blood vastly moro artistic than
ours, and who were the creatures OF an environ
ment more favorable to their literary develop
ment. So far as I could remember Paul Dunbar
was the only man Of pure African blood and Of
American civilization to feel the negro life
esthetically and express 1t lyrically. II
neemed to me hat this had como to its
most modern consciousness In him, and
that his brilliant and unique achievement
was to have studied the American negro
obtectively, and to have represented him as he
found him to be. with humor. with sympathy.
and yet with what the reader must i~nstinctively
feel to be entire truthfulness. Yet 10
appeared to me then, and 1t appears to me now.
that there Is q precious difference OF tempera-
uent between tho races which 1t would DO Q
treat pity ever to lose. and that this Ii best pro
served and most charmingly suggested by Mr..
Dunbar in those pieces of his where no studies
the moods and traits Of his race in Its own accent
Of our English. We call such pieces dialect
pieces for want Of some closer phrase"
A peculiar tnlng ABOUT IL II tnRt MI. LUMBAR .
race Intentions are entirely natural, Is he did
not visit inc soutn mil no "asa man, ana eoo
his IDEA OF uiaiect anu fsee numor anu pnuoso-
ply from the very re" men OF NE race NO came
tn contact with In the market place ana the nigh
ways Of Dayton
The coming Of Dunbar appears 10 have aroused
the humor Of other singers Of his race, who, as I
have stated here before, have perststently be-
neo In 10, frns ~ ,epu'et "
tnem IN TINS reepect, WHICH, naturally they
undoubtedly possess IN very lerge measure. a
close OBSERVATION OF tnese tyric olros OF passage,
% they appear from time to time IN Afro-Ameri-
can newspaper, shows q distinct gain In the
saving quality of humor over the selections
published in THE SUN two years ago. Then my
conclusion was Inae al INC seouiAteo
mass l nave NOT olsco'efeo ono fAyo i poete
genius, OF poetry. Inis can no longer Do truth
fuuy SAID for instance. IN the Otttook ior may
Mr.. Dunbar has tho Following pen picture OF q
rainy day on Q Southern farm. which 10 ALSO
lutely true to nature, with q subtle humor which
appeals to any one familiar with the subject:
summahs nice. wifi sun ashtnin'.
Spring is good VIII green and rass.
An deyss omethins nice bout wfnfah.
Dough horinsS DC freesin nist
But DE ume dat Is 90 nnes'
"ne'hAh neisu sreen '0"n"
pon,
DEN you men'a dc mules OIL hasnen.
s..S...h.
Hummin' all de time youS wukfn'.
Some oil, common kind O. air.
Evan no" m 'neh you iooS ou@
rrytn' mighty had to frowD.
But vou can't. you,se slnd his,s rnfnin,.
An oeys ume uhAer FVun'
Evah time It So't o. stops;
w., hit 1o.a n m Az, xou r..kor
Dat de "etu nep oe cropS-
But hit Amt de crops you'a aftah;
Won L,o-, -, a. r.tr .oun
Dat hits too wet out fu' wuktn'.
An, dsv.a TINA 70 t,nker ,round,.
Oh dey's FUN inside do con crib.
An ue'siAmn ~n'
An dey's allus some one toktn'.
Er some one 70 tell n van.
--,-
DAnss Puirt 70 oAUns