The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-12-20
SONGS OF
The SOUTH.
Verses Written During the Con-
fcderate War and the Men
Who Wrote Them.
rHE SPIRIT Of POETRY
How It Thrived Amid the Shock
OF Sicges and Battles-Per-
sonal Recollections.
written for The Times. Dlspatch.>


War has a very stimulating effect on the
production OF poetry, especially where the
feelings Of patriotism. arc strongly en-
listed, as was the case In our war; conse-
nliently we had very luxuriant out
cropping OF it. There were Sims. Tim
rod. Hayne, Father Ryan. John r..
Thompson, James Barron Hope and 9TH
crs, who gave us stirring and mpassion-
ed war poems. Tlmrod, in particular.
wrote some of the most impassoned
verses of the war for instance. "a Cry
to Arms" Carolina, "To the Unknown
Dead Carmen Triumphnle," and 9TH
cls OF the martial order. Beneral Buell
pronounced the first named poem. "a bat
lie strain, which deserves a high place
OIL the roll of American poems
Hayne also wrote frequently during the
war. spirited war cries. These were re-
printed in series War Poetry OF the
South"
Then there was Augustus Julius Re-
o,ier. another gifted South Carolina poet,
whose lode to Victory" written early In
1852, has been pronounced by competent
critics to be unsurpassed by any poem
OF the war. His theme was the then new
ne tlonalIty OF the South, her opening
Struggles, baptsms OF blood, several tri-
umphs and high hopes. In pathtlc con-
,ras, to this is his poem ASHES OF Glory"
written after the elimination OF the
struggle.
THE POET-PR1EST.
Father Ryan looms up as one OF our
most prominent war poets, his music be-
ing dedicated altogether to patriotism
and religion. His songs are all In the
warrior key, that key in which simple
nations compose even their dance music,
and which is the quickest To- touch the
feelings. The Lost Cause to which
he was passionately devoted gave him
fun scope for the minor key. and to my
thinking, "rhe Conquered Banner" Is one
Of the most beautiful and pathetic Of all
the poems called forth BY the war.
Ryan wrote many other poems In the
same vein, for instance, Sentinel Songs
'The Sword of Robert Il. Lee" "a
Prayer for the SOUTH" THE Land We
Love-" "Our Day" and others, all breath
ing the same spirit. He was one of those
poets !:
Whose songs. gush from their heart
Like rain from the clouds of summer,
Or tears to the eyelids start"
He never made Il study Of tho art
Of composition. but his one great gift
was to speak from the heart to the heart
and that he succeeded in doing this may
he Judged by the fact that his books have
already run through twenty editions.
THOMPSON AND HOPE.
During the war John II. Thompson, Of
Richmond, produced some poems Of rare
excellence, as "Nhc Battle Rainbow
written Just after the seven days bat
ties before Richmond, and based on the
fact that on the evening preceding this
long week OF glory and agony" mag
niflcant rainbow, after n severe storm
oycrspread the eastern sky, exactly de
hning the position OF tho Confederate
nond.
Thompson's poems, respectively ON Stu
art and Ashby, are also very fine.
But III war poetry consider that Jane
Barron Hope had no superior His vcrs,
shows the influence OF those times boil
In their spirit and choice Of topics an,
10 my thinking no poems called forth i,
the great conflict are finer than his, Ii
las nervous vlgor. brevity and direct
ness Of style peculiarly well adapted L
wnr-likc themes, His poem on "Ou
Heroic Dead" is especially nne. sub
toin the opening gnnzu as n specimen.
* King once said OF a Prince struc
down:
Taller he seems In death
And this speech holds truth, for now, n
then,
'Tis after death tina, we measure men;
And as mists OF the past are rolled ava,
our heroes who Died In their tattered gra
Grow taller and greater in all thej
parts,