The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1897-01-28

who was yet born OF woman. How often
have We not asked ourselves with the
poet, SIS there no bright reversion in the
sky, for those who greatly think, or
bravely die" And our heart responds ito
forgive is all divine-the bruised reed he
will not break, nor quench the smoking
fis> :" Our beloved poet was honest with
himself as well as with his fellows. Let
us be honest to his memory. Honestly
and fearlessly he fought his headlong
passions; and while in the nature of
things we have heard of his defeats, we
do not hear of his victories, and
these were doubtless as many as they
were hard fought. To the last, like the
true man that he was, he strove against
what he himself has called 1.-THE thought
less folly that stained his name" And
thouphtess folly is the worst charge that
can be brought against Burns. There
WAS nothing false, or mean or cruel or
avaricious in that noble nature. Ii at
times he loved not wisely, consider the
greater freedom OF the conditions IN which
he lived, and that opportunity which is
"the mightiest master of the works of
man." Remember the cleaning trysts,
the moonlit wanderings by brk and
shaw. freely INDUCED in by the lads and
lassies full OF glorious health, and ting
ring to their finger tips with the electrci-
ty Of sex. Remember that wondrous
eye through which the feeling of his
glowing soul flashed and poured resist.
lessly, and let the hypocrite cast stone.
Or take the social gathering where his ar
dent Imagination and his wonderful
power of expression were excited to the
highest degree by the inspiration of the
barley bree and the keen delight of his
cronies.
Consider our poets strongly social dis
position remember that he was filed to
the very lips with the ardour of youth,
the gift Of poetry, the fire of genius.
Weigh well the compelling necessity for
utterance felt by a born and most bril-
liant talker; recall his circumscribed sur
roundings, and say what other stage was
there for the display of his powers, for
the relief of his surcharged intellect, than
the gathering in which the feast Of fancy
was, after all, the main, and the flow of
the bowl the subordinate feature. Let
us hope and trust that somehow that
divnely inspired, intrinsically noble,
and most lovable, if wayward, spirit s
working out its high salvation. That it
the analogy of nature where nothing is
lost forbids us to suppose-the thing is
unthnkable. We have referred to
Shakespeare as the greatest master of the
human heart in the sense that he had
plumbed its depths and known it's work
ings. In this sense Burns was, perhaps,
second to Shakespeare; but in that high
er sense of commanding the hearts
homage, our Rob is a greater than even
Shakespeare. We admire Shakespeare ;
we both admire and love Burns. No
land has ever given birth to poet so
beloved as he, and not in his own land
alone; he touched with sure and powerful
hand those chords which make the uni
versal heart melt in love and pity, or
thrill with the fierce high patriotism that
nerves man to dare and do the impossi-
BILE.
We admire Burns for his unfailing
sense OF justice, for his absolute honesty
and truth, for his sturdy independence,
for the fearless manhood that was in
him, for his wit, his wisdom, and his
supreme command of the the fittest and
most expressive language.
We love him for his ready sympathy,
for his great, flowing, al-embracing heart,
for his glorious irrepressible fun, for his
intense love of country-aye, for the
weakness that was so human.
All the world loves lover, and what a
lover Burns was The love of the flesh
and only the hypocrite aud the mpotent
effect to despise it, it never occurred to
Rob to be ashamed of. That dream OF
every young mans heart since time be-
gan, blooming Nelly" how exquistely
Burns has rendered it:
"Tumultuous tides his pulses roll,
A faltering ardent kiss he stole,
He gazed he wished, he feared, he blushed,
And sighed his very soul
Now Tam o Tam Had they been queens
A. plump an strappin T. their teens
Thir breeks o. mine my only pair
wad hae glen them af my hurdles
For ae blink o the bonny hurdles
Yestreen had pint o wine
place where body saw ma
Yestreen lay on this breast o mine
The gowden locks o Anna.
The hungry Jew in wilderness
Rejoicing DER his mama
Was nsthing to my Kinney bliss
Upon the lips Anna,
And what son OF song has left such
delicate love thoughts, clad in such ex-
quisite words, as our Robin?
GA the ARTS the wind can blaw
dearly lOe the west
For there the bonuy lassie lives
The lassie loe best.
There wild woods grow aud rivers row
Wi mony a hin between
But day and night. my fancys fight
Is ever vi my JeaH"
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever,
Ae farewell, and then forever,
Deep in heart wruug tears IN pledge thee
Warning signs and groans III wage thee.