Arizona republican., 1898-06-19
WARTIME VERSE.

The number of persons who fancy that they can write tolerable verse is well- nigh incalculable, and in times of crisis they let themselves loose with deadly ef- feet. Such an event as the disaster to the Maine is welcome grist to their mill welcome, of course, only in literary sense; they are too patriotic to rejoice as citizens. If one endeavored to com pile complete anthology of, those poeti- al tributes to our dead sailors one would have a volume of remarkable interest It is true that what too fastidious critics call the laws of poetry are smashed to atoms by the strong current of emotion But should we hamper genius by our petty restrictions? Much is said about the war spirit which the loss of the Maine aroused, and the responsibility for 1t is variously attributed to congress, 10 the newspapers. to jingo orators; but why should the poets be deprived of credit for their share? Surely the public could not have heard unmoved the lyric appeals Tor vengeance. Fletcher of Sal- toun.s misunderstood observation ia too familiar to quote, though it is worth re. caihng. If the poet cannot make the na- tional heart throb with a fierce iov- what can he do? or what ie he good fors 1et 1t must be regarded as a misfor- tune. tune. on the whole, that the literary merit or most of our wartime verge is sS, lnconsiderable. For literature has claims as well as patriotism; and there would pc ample cause for rejoicing if the con nuce with Spain gave us only one poem Shroud." or even as "Barbara Frit.,,a tne :: some respectable efforts, far removed rom mere doggerel. have been made aI- hauy. But in none Of them that we nave seen Is the true lyric touch much 4 u Sviuehce. One or two are distinguish ca oy grave moral purpose one or tyz. are correct, If not inspiring. But a not uniavoraDie example of the general r,1n VI, vI patr1ot1c verse may be found in such
 They buried the soldier far from home
 wits was was one of more than a few),
 win only the stem of a ruined rose
 f1nned on to his coat of blue''
 wherein the sentiment is almost puralv oomestic, and obvious to banaiitv as we'll If a more distinctly martial note place.
 Fierce flock of sea gulls, with huge
 wings of white
 Ioesed on the treacherous blue.
 Foising your pinions fin majestic flight,
 cur hearts take voyage with you,
 this Is the sort of thing which almost any nteiilgent person can write by the yard For our own part we do not besiS tate to avow our preference for tha Muse that boldly disregards the csnons or criticism and "gives it to lem hof'' When the poet writes
 Strike for the Maine. Blood
 For the Maine, in the Spanish mud,
 biood, like Nfagara's food
 Bloodi Bloodw z-s we know that he means business.
 AS matter of fact, the great war poems are comparatively few; and many or these, like Lowelrs "Commemorafio1- ode, deal only indirectly with the tu- mutt and carnage of the battlefield. War may stimulate painters and noyelIstsi and orators, but it fails to exercise tie same charm over poets. It might be said that Scott's poems are full of fight: but Scott as poet is at best of second ary value. The Crimean War was re sponsible to a certain extent for Tenny- sons Maud" one of the greatest poems Of the century; and some of the same poets ballads. like 'The Revenge" have a fine martial swing in them Further more it would be easy enough to find in pages of many poets, from Shakespeare down. ample evidence on the imagina- ton. But this would not disprove the assumption that war has seldom borne q direct inspiration to poetry of the high est kind. Why this should be so, we ldo not pretend to say; we simply note the fact Certainly there seems to be no prospect that any of our wartime yer sifiers will make exceptions to the rule