The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-05-31
DOCTOR KINGSBURY ON RALEIGH
'TruIy Great Many-Sided Man." The Disadvan-
tages of Education Considered.

ndAuC VI tHc SFedIeSI genius OF all inc
world is not definitely fixed either in as
much as there are some ten or twelve
ways of spelling Shakespeare all of them
used IN the past. Some scholars and
writers in our time prefer Shakspere,
and so 1t appears in editions of the works
of this marvellous man. Shakespeare was
the common style about 1S40'50. Now the
preferred name by most of the best
Shakespearians is as first written above.
For forty years / have always written
1t. In England among critical and learned
authors you will find Raleigh's name, as
1T is written in North Carolina, spelled
without the Raleigh / notice that the
capital writer and man of letters, Dean
Church, of ST. PauFs. London, writes
1t always in his very instructive Life OF
Edmund Spenser." BY the way, that
very original and richly endowed poetic
genius was greatly indebted to the illus
trious Sir Walter for recognition and most
timely aid in day of stress and obscurity.
Spenser spent a long time in Ireland. / do
not know precisely how long, but some
twelve or fifteen years. He saw great
deal of misery and desolation and many
murders committed by the savage Eng
lish Sir Walter had himself aided in the
butcheries, we may well suppose, as it is
a fact that he had served through much
of what is known as the Munster War. 30
He behaved like most of the English in
the Elizabethan wars upon Ireland. Dean
Church, high authority, says of him that
'he had shown in ireland some of the
characteristic points of his nature which
made him at once the glory and shame of
English manhood Profuse eulogists of
Raleigh would be wise to write with care
in view of historic facts and records Here
is another Illuminating passage from Dean
Church (see his Spenser page 1879: HE
had shown his audacity, his self-relianee,
mis- resource, and some signs of that
boundless but prudent ambition which
marked his career" He had shown that
freedom of tongue, that restless and high
reaching adventurousness, and that tenaci-
ty of opinion which made him a difficult
person for others to work with" OF his
connection with the devilish Munster out
RACES and butcheries, the Dean writes:
Raleigh had been at Snurwiek he had
been in command OF one of the bands put
in by Lord Grey to do the execution.
/. He had secured for himself
large share of the Desmond lands" He
and his assistants and tenants secured 49,
900 acres apiece In the three counties
of Munster, Waterford and Cork. A very
good share that of the "spoils of war"
The kindness he did to Spenser was to
first discover the extraordinary work of
genius" (the Faerie Queen'') (which was
growing up amid the turbulence and mis-
cry and despair of Ireland and then to
bring sits author into the centre of Eng
lish life" This was the noblest act OF
Raleigh-to be the first to recognize the
splendor, the richness, the originality and
lofty genius manifested in one of the
greatest of poems in all time. After Raj
eigh had enriched himself in ireland. and
exploited abroad IN so much of adventure,
daring, ambition and partial success, Dean
Church tells that the hero appeared be
fore Spenser in all the glory of brilliant
favorite-the soldier, the explorer, the
daring sea-captain, the founder of planta-
tions across the ocean, and withal the
poet, the ready and eloquent discourser,
the true Judge and measurer of what was
great and beautiful Truly a great,
many-sided man, however much of alloy
there may have been mixed with the gold
of his character Raleigh's fortunes suf-
fered reverses, and after his return from
his Portugal voyage his court fortunes
underwent change" Elizabeth was cold
and offended and Earl of Essex referred
to him as that knave Raleigh" Church
says ''he bent before the storm" He
says of all the distinguished officers who
were doing so much for England and
Englands mistress Raleigh was one of
the most active and distinguished. 1
make one more extract from Dean
Church's very interesting review of the
friendship of the two great men-Raleigh
and Spenser. The latter expected more
help from Raleigh than he received-159O-
91-but the latter had embarked on
tempestuous sea, and was very busy with
his own affairs. Here is the extract:
Raleigh, from whom Spenser might hope
most, was just beginning to plunge into
that extraordinary career, in the thread
of which glory and disgrace, far-sighted
and princely public spirit and insatiate
private greed, were to be so strangely in
tertwined.' In 1892, he was imprisoned
under disgrace because of a secret mar
riage, and he affected ''the most ridiculous
despair" because the Queen was absent
from the neighborhood of the Tower of
London, pouring forth his batteries on
this old woman of sixty as if he had no
bride of his own to love" It is worth
while to copy his fulsome alteration and
adulation of the homely, red haired old
Queen: ~ that was wont to behold her
riding like Alexandr hunting like Diana,
walking like Venus; the gentle wind
blowing her fair hair about her pure
cheeks like nymph; some times sitting
in the shade like a goddess; sometimes, |
playing like Orpheus-behold the sorrow
OF this world-once amiss, hath bereaved |
me of all 1t is not surprising that one |
of the very greatest of all modern poets |
fell into neglect because his fortunes lam /
guished. Raleigh was absorbed in his own
affairs and gains and worship of decayed |
woman Farther on in his life of Spenser /
Dean Church turns again to Raleigh and |
pays him high tribute while not con-
cealing his blemishes and weaknesses.
Spenser referred his magnificent poem to
Raleigh, and found the appreciation he
sought Church writes of Raleigh: He /
had not Sidney's fine enthusiasm and /
=. x.aR 9th &c