The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1898-10-21
The First English Poet.


In Whiiby, England, last month
was unveiled monument to the MEM
ory of Csadmon, in whose pious genius
was the beginning of that magnificent
literature which, it is not too much TO
assert, stands in the van of the worlds
great literatures, ancient or modern.
The monument was a stone cross, as be-
fitted the gifted monk of Whitby, who
sang as many years before Chaucer as
Chaucer sang before Tennyson and
Lonefellow. In the words Of the Ven
cradle Bede, CRdmon "sang the crea-
tion Of the world, the origin Of man and
all the history OF Genesis and made
many verses ON the departure Of the
children of Israel out Of Egypt and
their entering into the land OF promise,
with many other histories from Holy
Writ; the incarnation, passion and res
direction Of our Lord and his ascension
into heaven; the coming Of the Holy
Ghost and the preaching of the apostles;
also the terror of future Judgment, the
horror Of the pains of hell, and the de-
lights of heaven.
According to the monkish tradition
the pious cowherd in his sleep had an
angel say to him, "Sing me something. "
II can sing naught, said he, Never
theless must thou sing Sing of the be-
ginning of created things" So Chdmon
sang verses, and wheI. he awoke rer1em
bered and added to them He became
monk of st. Hilda's monastery and is
the first example of English literature
which comes down to us recorded by
the authors own land, or which did
not arise in the form of legendary song
traIsmi tied by memory. This early
Scriptural paraphrast was true singer,
his poetic dicticn full of variety, force
and colcr. His imagination scared high
into the empyreen, and the first in time
of the English poets showed the mint
mark Of genius as clearly as Gny one
of his followers in the royal line. Some
of CRdmCn's bright glowing phrases
Milton himself did not disdain to use in
Paradise Lost, and in the very words
Of the old Saxon singer. when the be-
ginnings of the English language were
being forged and hammered into shape
Indeed Caedmon himself played high
ly important part in this process The
monk OF Whitby was the first important
influence to crystalline and formulate
the methods ard usages of the tongue
which had only recently passed from a
barbarous low German dialect into
what may be called distinctive English,
uninteIligible as that wonld be now ex-
Cept to the student.
Until within the last so years critical
study of the early Anglo-Saxon liter
ature had been neglected. This explains
in part why recognition of this pious
and gifted old English singer should
have been SO belated 1t was time that
some memorial should be made public
to nerretuatehis name. Oneeeuld have
wished that the task of matching the
occasion of the unveiling with winged
words should have been the privilege Of
tne p1eoeGing laureate, whose genius
vcs c.s great as his delight in the early
wellsprings OF English song was peren-
NAL. Yet Mr., Alfred Austin S tribute to
his faraway predecessor was excellent
in intention and capable in treatment.
The official English poet who could not
rise for such an occasion to genuine po-
etic fire should be reduced summarily
to the ranks of rhymesters.