Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-02-28
II would be q lyric
Ever on the lip
Rather than an epic
Memory let's Slip"

Who cannot recall scores Of such lyrics
Of Longfellow often on the lip" THE
Village Blacksmith" Is equal in human
interest to THE Cottcr's Saturday
Night
What young man has not felt a glow
of ambition and seen visions of persc nal
achievement as he has repeated the story
of
"A youth who bore mid snow and ice
"A banner with ms strange device
Commander Peary must have been IA
miliar with thar poem.
And the, children, We owe Longfe low
an eternal gratitude for his poems OF
childhood. What voice sncc that Of Him
who said 'Sufft- little children to come
unto cle." has 50 endeared and ennobled
childh cd ~ that Of Ls,ngfel.ow:
Gone L. me o yc children
And whisper iE my ear
What the birds and the windS are 81 yin
In ypur sun y atmosphere.
s.. are better than all the ballads
That ever were sung or said
For yc ar, the living poems
And al the rest arc dead"
He wrought for the slave and did
Mighty service for the Union in its ex-
trcmity. He warned the statesmen of
sixty and sixty-one that
There is poor. blind Sampson in this
land
shorn q his strength and bound with
Who may In some grim revel raise his
hand
And shake the pillars of the common
veal"
Thanks to Northern freemen and Abra-
ham Lincoln that particular national
horror was averted.
Tho poems Of Whittier and Lowell did
great service for this Union but who
shall estimate the vast influence upon
public sentiment--upon popular feeling of
that magnificently optimistic and hope
ful invocation to the Union at the clos.
OF 1ongfellow's poem, THE building of
the Ship 1t was indeed an inspiration
az the poet himself confessed How it
went the rounds of the school platforms
Of the North. inspiring hope, courage
and patriotism in the boys at a time
when approaching war cast its baIeful
shadows beforer Who of you of middle
age cannot recall the lines so filed with
meaning to us of that fateful time,
when breakers were all about us:
Thou too. sail on o ship of state
That rcem, it is related, reached and
encouraged the great heart of Lincoln
Then newly polished 1t was shown to
him. He read it with trembling Lip and,
at Its close. with fearful eyes remarked:
Thank God for that poem. it will go far
to save the country" Yes, there can ba
little doubt. that among the poets of this
country the impress of the lyrics and
songs of Longfellow will longest last in
the hearts of the people. It was that he
most desired.
II shot an arrow into the air,
1t fell to earth, ! knew not where,
For: so swiftly it flew. the sight
Could not follow 1t in its flight.
I breathed a song into the air.
1t fell to earth. l know not where
For who has sight so keen and strong
That 1t can follow the flight of song.
Long. long afterward in an oak
! found the arrow still unbroke,
And the song. from beginning to end
! found again in the heart of a friend.'
And there are found the songs which
make Longfellow our truly national poet.
Following Judge Hall. Miss Maude
Andrews of this city was introduced
and read "Hiawatha's Wooing" with
incidental music arranged by Rosetta
G. Cole of Brooklyn. Miss Andrews was
accompanied by Mrs. Brickett. and her
beautiful Interpretation of the Indian
warriors courtship was a most impress
sive feature Of the evening THE VII
lage Blacksmith was then sung by a
ao,,h1o n,,o crpcicfin~ Maecre