The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-08-14

prosperity Of the country as whole
or Of the'seotion in which he mainly
State,Poems.
We don't know whether the Hon.
THEODORE F. ALLEN Of Cincinnati Is a
producertor merely an amateur and a col
lector Of American versesmiths' work.
whichever he be, it Is good to behold
him as ,careless OF these canicular dis
comforts, careless OF that boiling Buck
eve world Of Cox and HBRRICK and
PArrrsoN and sthe Anti-Saloon League,
he takes\his PEN in hand:
ITO rBntEnrron OF THE suN-Str: Permit me
to rt.s and ask what's tho matter with the Ansri-
can poets that they have not Furnished us with
State poems, encIoso herewith four State poems.
representing Virginia. Illinois. Keatucky aud
Ohio. but this leaves forty other States with
out state. poems. ! am aware OF the fact that tho
dog days arc notHhs most conducive 10 energetic
action on tho pare of tho poets but am hoping
tina, tho publication Of these four State poems In
TIE SUN will induce the sssss posts 70 wake up
We appreciate the honor and conf
dencewhich Mr.. ALLEN shows us. Stead
ily and kindly has THESUN shone on the
native. bards and 30 it will continue to
ne so longas they have foot to stand
on. But it would be against public
policy to ,publish four State poems In one
day, and especially In a day like this.
Too much heat would be disengaged by
the motion and, clash OF those serried
lines. The bestiwe dare do is to put
Jew chunks OF State verse on the ice.
First let Illinois ope her!ponderous and
marble jaws:
Prom . wilderness of prainss. Illinois. Illinois.
Straight thy way and never varies, Illinois. I'LL
nois,
Till upon thy inland sea. stands the great COM
mercisl tree,
Turning, all the world 70 thee, Illinois. Illinois,
Turning all tho world 70 thee. Illinois,"
In,its unimproved and best estate the
Chicago River, Tiber Of the West, was
never half 80 fluent and liquid as this
chant. And now peak to peak answers.
Ohio takes up hewondrous tale:
-our homes are alight with halo Of Iowa
Ohio, oonssnsed Ohio.
We bask In tho smiles OF the heavens above.
No clouds ever darken Ohio
Our grain waves - pillows of gold In the sun,
The fruits Of our orchards are souaiod b. none.
And our pumpkins, some Of them. weigh most ton
We challenge the world In Ohio
Unpublished variants OF the seventh
and eighth lines read: "Our politicians
walk off with the bun; all they want is
tho earth, in Ohio And now Virginia
chimes in:
There Ia nowhere . land % fair
A. In Virginia:
So full of song and tres from care
As In Virginia;
And believe that happy land
The Lord prepared for mortal man
Is built exactly on the plan
OF Old Virginia"
Nothing hero or hereafter can be too
good for her. Consequently it Is not
faint praise to say that this song isn't.
As to Kentucky, the case Is different.
For her heaven born poet. in moment
OF supreme e1altation, burst into the
immortal song whose penultmate and
final stansas are here afectionately set
down:
the dove notes arc the saddest
In Kentucky;
The streams dance on the gisddsst.
In Kentucky;
Hip pockets the thickess,
Pistol hands ere the quickest
Cylinders turn the quickest
In Kentucky.
Song birds arc the sweetest
In Kentucky:
Thoroughbreds arc the hoesest
In Kentucky;
The mountains tower proudost,
Thunder peals the loudest
Tho landscape 10 the grandest,
And politics she damndest,
In Kentucky"
The murmur of dove and brook, the
song Of the birds, the quadrupedant
sound Of hoofs the barking Of the thun-
der and tho guns are heard in this
grand diapason. The Blue Grass rustles
in it. The dew on tho grandest land
soape is the genuine old stuff, worthy Of
the most glorious golden days Of tho
Phoenix Hotel
Kentucky has a masterpiece. 1t is
useless to hope that forty-four State
poems fit to be mentioned in the same
day with it can be built in forty-four
thousand years. For the present, the
several States might be content to prac-
tise on State -yells.'
Crab Tree Cows.
Some time ago In our explorations
through the unbounded continents Of
sociology We came across the Crab Tree
Dairy. established by lady Of the
fashionable East Side Of Lake Forest.
III. Tho lady was and u an author
and . leading society woman, but the
Crab Tree Dairy was to be moro useful
than authorship and at least a. clean
and beautiful a. society. Mn. SCOTT