The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1903-01-17

otioNei 10 20 Win MIN ana nurse him.
On the mex. night the sick man grew
worse. and was told chat he must pres
emily die. Soon aftergard he called -
his cousin % land hhn his bundle from
under lis cot umbImg in i. he drew
out FEife which he had secreted there.
and, while lis cousin was tsnderiy lean
ing over him, he suddenly plunged the
open blade :Etc his cousins breast The
fcebleness Of death was upon MIN, ana
the wound vas slight; but PRESENT..
when the connotiOu over this singular
act had subsidized, the hospital people
asked the dyine Indian what conceivabis
reason he could have for desiring 10
murder his best friend in such a man
per. He replied 7 am going to tbs
Happy Hundng Grounds I wished to
XIII him. that he might go with ne:
love Fin so that I cannot part with
him
NO undiscovered country here; and
this rude whole faith is a good foil 10
set on aamIet's cultivated half-faith.
In short. the attitude of man toward the
supernatural in Hamlet is that OF prac-
teal doubt U1-eFlying a belief that he
believes the most wretched and per<
picking of ali conditions. Even when
the Ghost comes from the undiscovered
country to give him light. he never quite
knows whether 10 doubt the Ghost or
not. in the midst of all his plots based
on the Ghosts information
Lanier embodied the same thought
concerning this present age in his poem
Acknowledged, = Of which the opening
lines are SIS follows:
o age. that half believ'st thou half belisy'st.
Half doubt 81 the substance Of thy owE bait
And half pefceiying that tl,ou half perceiv'st.
Stand'st at thy temple tiooF. heart in. head
outt
This phrasing has itself something OF
the cunning play on words so common 70
the Elizabethan writer's. OF which La
nier in another place says.
Note particularly how the thought
skips Gainuiy from one idea 10 another
Tin the twenty-frst Of the Sonnets) Just
Touching each with a sort Of salutatEon-
You will see that ever and anon. By US
ing a term in double sense, he causes
two Specifications 10 meet in the same
word. like two lips at the same point.
and there 10 kiss ont new hint OF
meaning. Nothing can be more agile
and dainty than this movement. where
one hint turns the thought of a q pretty
angle toward another. like a tiny
stream in meadow. whose current flow
| ing against a blade of grass is detected
by the mere kiss Of It toward the daisy
/ AZ the other side and thence again de
/ fected toward the water-liIy a the other
/ side. and so Oh. in . hundred gracious
/ zigzags. all between flowers.
! There Is Chinese term which ad-
mirably expresses this playful use or
words so common among the poets OF
Shakespeare time. 50 rare among those
of ours Fer a style which is full OF
delicate illusions they have an express
sion which means a dragonfy slipping
water; such a style they call the dragon
1 7y-sipping- water style. II ever. when
/ idIrg out a hot day IN August, you
have lain TRANQUILITY on a shady bank
/ by some little stream. where the water
rounds to in a broad and shallow pool
which lies out full IL the royal light
/ OF the sun, ard there watched q bur
nished blue dragonfy come sailing down
upon wings so iImy that they seem like
mere summer dreams of wings. Gatil he
( just delieateIy touches The still surface
of the water makes believe 10 take
mere dream of a drink, and airily fut-
tiers away-you viii realize how wildly
! the Oriental expression hits off this
charming old process Of sixteenth cen
fury thought. in which Shakespeare vas
/ so adroit 4"
/ But one might multiply quotations
( indefinitely and not cover half the
ground which is covered by these two
volumes suffice it 10 say. that. unlike
many other books of comment. this ear
not fail to lead 30 a fuller knowledge
and more complete appreciation of the
monarch of Enalish literature, 10 a GER
/ tain understanding OF the Influences
/ which made MIN and the way In which
I he did his work. and to that complete
admiration which should be the object
! of all students of the best thought OF
the world. tNew York: Doubleday.
! Page & Col