The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-05-28

IA .-a flowers as the seasons come n
II on They flourish for a few days or
# months, and then they pass into the
# .,vbrokeu silence of the ages. A few
III ,r-uortaIs Of antiquity "a survived
II iii II the mutilations and slaughter
II .rrs Of time. and thousands Of years
u .f-ar death they live in the memory
81 ~ scholars and men of letters and
pr. still read with genuine gusto and
81 arrIause. Writer'S OF gifts
a have had their little day, and then
81 swiftly passed into the limbo of for
81 gotten or neglected authors. How
81 ov..kIy do writer's OF merit even dis
appear in the unceasing maelstrom Of
q letters. | used to read certain au-
81 trors with real interest and pleasure
81 who are referred to now by acquain-
81 -a10es or literary writers Of the pass
Il ing decade. or Of the last quarter of
"a the nineteenth century that was 50
III itch and productive In men and wo-
III men II distinguished merit. | read
iii Still some OF those writer's Of original
& charm n excellence, but they arc
udeed now "caviare to the general
~ iLet me mention here pa~renthetical-
F that this expression is not. as
s5metime5 credited. original with
Il Tharkeray. 1t is Shakespearean as SO
MANY hundreds of modern sayings
q are, and YOU Will find it in Ham
8 JET. the most fascinating play or
production to me in all the worldly
81 wish TO write today of an author
81 Of much merit who died in 1886
NtIiam Morris, an English author Of
q deserVedly high rank in his day, and
8 with hosts of admirers. / do not
9 think that after some eleven years
ne is much sought after, he being
shelTed to some extent. and so soon.
Il When he passed away I regarded it
as really an event of importance in
III +h. stEVli Of 1Gttarc +Unc IVA oloco
of a genuinely literary life. think
Il that when a rarely gifted poet dies.
N il is a distinct loss to the age, and
" particularly to his own country. In
4 that event a creative mind has be-
\ slowed his last legacy to the world.
4 and is forever still in so far as mum
u dane things are concerned. In Will
L liam Morris England was bereft in
deed of one of its truest, most in
4 spired intellects of his age and time.
] Of all of its surviving poets there is
but one who could measure with him
in the wealth and excellence of pro-
d%Uction. in the completeness of form.
in the breadth and poWer of execu-
ton, ~SWinburne only among con-
tempOraries could we'll be named with
Morris. SO it seemed to me at least
when the news of his death came to
me from beyond the seas. / may
have been in error in my estimate
then, and if so I am no better in
formed now. in 1907.
1 regret my inability to do Justice
10 a survey of Mr.. Morris's unique and
attiuent capabilities. NV studies of
MS writings are too limited for such
an excursion or production. i have
read but a small portion of his ex-
tensive production in verse. He prob
ably wrote quite 100000 lines. But
have @ perhaps some few thou
sands in all. How marvelously pro-
q 7 ho,-A -noI @J-@ T.;
a hundred or two pages of his charm
ing, %afiuent, archaic prose,
] must, therefore, not be we'll e~quipnsi
for the work of q real critic. l c4h-
i not give the final estimate of his true
& place among nineteenth century poets.
q and particularly among the Victorian
81 poets. so numerous and SO richly gift
81 81 as many of them are. l have had
Tor years an impression that William
Norris had a very original and fecund
u mlnd-that he had very striking en-
dowments, and a produced very re-
markable poetry. My reading of n
considerable part of his long and mas
Il terly poem "Sigurd, the Volsung."
and additional lines / saw occasional
LI quoted from him in book or maya
zine or literary paper, constitute the
sum of my acquaintance with his poet
lc writings. l have read enough to
Know something of his chosen instru-
ment of expression. his versatility. his
huency, his richness and beauty of de-
scrjptIve imagery. his wide reading in
the literatures of other lands, the
S~lnoOthness. the melody of his verse
so limpid. artistic. Of course.
You may easily discern the "arcnaic
lhahnerism' of most that he has writ
ten. and his productiveness is simply
large. OF all poets, but few are so pic
loTlaI, so romantic, so filled with med
l"eFai flavor and tone, so flowing. So
gorgeous at times, and yet so clear al
ways, so musical, even so magical.
some thirty-ive years or so ago,
me nest living American poetical crit
tGs Mr.. F.. c.. Stedman. who still lives
'Aough passed his seventy-fifth year.
PUoIlShed a paper or Morris. / read
I WIN much pleasure. 1t is very
t,Qthful. elegant criticism. as l found
an Of his discussions of poets 10 be.
'eHeVe his study of Morris is an un-
.eT-estimate. If he were to make a !
ie1h study of the poet he might ar
1--WE at a more sympathetic and APP
..''IatlVe conclusion In some particu-
wars. He is not without admiration,
yr'l5.nIy of Morris. He says many
S-'' appreciative and apt things of
nm, but my recollection is. and it has
queen 2 lonS time since L read all of
paper. that the sum of his opinion
. ms gifts, his productions is too low.
.''IF.S Is a greater poet. | am disposed
10 think. than his American critic
"''I MIN IN 1919, Wnen AOrr1S I
fortE-One years old He died on
IRA o"tober, 1896, aged but ~sixty-two.
4. otHdman calls him IAN artist of the
'o7atlful' Through all his days, from
,a'-E boyhoOd to the close of life. he
@t@ a WOrshipper of the beautiful.
>l''man says his poetry lis full of soft
"ds.r and a familiar old charm" He
1."r"dcs that his descriptions of every
@|""l OF nature are perfect" He
"'.@ n some of his poems powerful
ptions,' and some with grim
matte effects" He succeeded finely
- ballad minstrelsy," it is. admitted,
am. IN some respects Chez is the most
.'hIe ~raCOnteur since the time of
vowed master, Godfrey Chaucer.'
r.iAan says he has "a close knowl-
~ Antiquities" and he eXcmpli-
IN ten thousand lines" how we'll
.- saxon English is adapted for the
mission Of the Homeric spirit
j Mods that the poet lacks variety
-t MIS- voice is in a single key" and
I ,% IN some of his extensive work
1 -o are harsh and careless lines
t-Hee are not defects common to
4 rr-3tS, / What l have read