New-York tribune., 1900-07-16

'tion bill, voting Immediately for it's enact
"ment." Mr. Garrison points out that "he
pleaded eloquently in the Senate against the
seizure and annexation of Hawaii. then
promptly voted to consummate the wrong"
1t is shown also that "he was heartily opposed
ito the war with Spain but when the act was
forced hastened to pronounce it one of human
'1ty and to consent to an appropriation of
''$50,0O0,000 to be placed in the Presidents
hands without COnditiOns-a precedent full of
danger" (Mr Garrison forgets to mention
that the Democrats he wants placed in power
did the same thingD In view of such repeated
apostasy Mr.. Garrison naturally from the first
had no respect for Mr.. Hoar and looked to see
him disgrace himself on the Philippine question
All this is clearly very serious, and nobody
can wonder that Mr. Garrison, believing these
things, as of course he honestly does, should
long have had low opinion of Mr.. H0ars moral
character-his adjective for it is "abjectness" :"
Yet in a book of poems the other day we ran
across a sonnet by William Lloyd Garrison,
dated January II, 1900 addressed ITO George
Frisbie Hoar," and reading as follows:
Amidst the voices of the market place,
Drowning the public conscience with their din
Defying righteousness, eXalting sin.
Thy notes ring clear above the tumult base.
Thine the unfinching courage to OUTAGE
The clamorOus worship of material gods.
Holding to noble aims despite the odds
That menace justice and the human race.
Revived the great traditions of the State!
Otis and Adams reincarnate speak;
Charles Summers strength and Andrews fervid
light
In thee are living and regenerate.
The downcast and oppressed thy counsel seek,
And upward gaze at thee on Freedoms height.
Is the William Lloyd Garrison who knew that
Mr.. Hoar always deserted his professions when
it came time to vote the same William Lloyd
Garrison who recently celebrated Mr.. Hoars
"unfinchng courage to OUTAGE the clamorous
worship of material gods? Is the poet who
compared him with Otis and Adams the prophet
who foresaw that he was lower in the scale
than Lodge hated of anti-imperialists? Does
the same soul which declares that mo virile
meaning inspired your fine words" sing ''thy
notes ring clear above the tumult base" and
while pretending to gaze upward at Hoar on
Freedoms height in heart despise him as the
abject tool of wrong?
We know Mr. Garrison is a great champion of
liberty, but it seems to us that such liberty
with truth goes far toward license. So stern a
moralist as Mr.. Garrison has no right to make
poetry the handmade of idle falsehOod The
poet Is seer, bound to get at the great verities
and scorn the time serving and fattery and
expediency of politicians, and illuminate the
character of men and deeds with the pure white
light of eternal truth The trimmer may say a
bad man is good because he thinks at the
minute he can use him. but the poet of divine
inspiration is above such things. If as Mr.
Garrisons letter intimates, he has known Mr.
Hoar for a quarter Of century as a weak
kneed putty faced old cuss who regularly voted
for what he himself admitted was wrong, then
It is positive infbdelity to the Muse to degrade
Ler to the celebration of such mans 'unfinch-
ing courage" 1t is poisoning the wells Of truth:
it is harnessirg Pegasus to draw a swindler's
wagon; it is stealing the livery of heaven to
serve the devil in. We are panied thus to find
Mr.. Garrison a self-confessed lighter of false
poetic beacons along the worlds highway
False IS the war poet sings; falser the poet
who sings false men true