The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-08-26
A TALK ON
WALT. WHITMAN
w. D. Henderson Lectures
on Famous Man.
he WAS A REAL POET
Teachers Hear Him With
Interest.
The Lecture This Evening ut Epworth
Church by George Il. Vincent of
Chicago University Promises 10 be
q Rare Treat.
THURSDAY MORNING.

AT the opening of the fourth day
of the Marion County teachers insti-
tute at the High school building.
Thursday morning, the main room
In which the sessions are being held
was filled to its full seating capacity.
Interest Is daily increasing and the
sessions of the institute are shown to
be of very much profit to the teachers.
1t is stated by those in charge that
the institute is proving to be one of
the most successful held for some
time.
At 0 o'clock, A. 3. Jones, president
of the association, introduced Rev. ].
p. Currin. pastor of the First Bap-
list church, who conducted the morn
ing exercises. The minister spoke OF
the admonition of Paul to act as men
and recited verses In harmony with
this sentiment. aW"
President Jones stated following
morning exercises that Mr.. Snyder,
the Inspector in the Office of the state
commissioner of schools would be pres
ent and that during the day he would
, look after his work here. Mr.. Jones
| further stated that the day would be
! one of the most important of the
week and that much was to be ac-
| complished.
| After singing by the teachers un-
der the direction of Miss Leora
Wizard, w. ID. Henderson was intro
duced and gave n magnificent lecture
upon "Walt Whitman, Poet of the
Soil" He was heard with remark
able interest as he related the life
story of this most wonderful OF Amer
ican poets and In truth, the only
real American poet
Mr.. Henderson stated that he was
especially pleased to speak upon Mr..
| Whitman on the occasion, by virtue
of the fact that he was coatless poet
and here he invited the male teach
| ers In attendance to remove their
coats as the temperature became quite
unbearable. Henderson said that II
was pleasure to speak of this or.
dinary poet who was criticized above
all other poets and of whom there
were very many different opinions.
He was a poet who came up out of
the crowd.
| Mr.. Henderson related of the po,
etryr of his subject. Jumbled, discon-
neeted and far from metrlcal. his
verse Is unusual. On his first reading
of Whitman he was ,disgusted for
there was nothing of merit seemingly
to be found. The low, the vile and
indeed the lascivious are brought in
| to the writings of this man. who
seemingly cares for nothing. He was
| an American poet and he cared not
| for what the world thought Of him.
| There Is the great difference be-
tween the American and the Scotch
man. The former Is ever asking
| what the word thinks of him, while
the latter never cares what the world
thinks but goes forward, doing his
work In the most able manner of
which he is capable. Whitman loved
nature and the outside world and he
longed for this dearly. The result Is
that he became so intimate with ma
ture that he wrote his own sentiments
and expressed his own thoughts in
his own rude manner, which Is often
displeasing on the first reading, bur
which is found to bear many good
things upon the subsequent readings.
Whitman was a poet of the soil in
that he made himself part of the
soil and showed how that the soil
claims everything. TO his readers
he shows the world of nature in an
unusual way and soon has his student
carefully reading nature and study
ing her with a love which cannot be
brought about only with careful
study. -
Whitman had an unusual life. He
was very peculiar and in his boy
hood days he was known as the most
idle in the classes In school. His
father, when the lad was twelve
years of age. placed him in the Of
flee of a lawyer. Rather than sweep
out the office or study law he looked
out the window and studied nature.
He was failure at the law and was
equally negligent In the Office of
physician. He became a teacher and
failed here because ne dismissed his
pupils often at midday and strolled
about the fields. He worked in
printing Office and here he gained
much that had to do with his future
career. However. he was negligent
here, and he later became a journal
list and here also he failed to be
prompt and often would leave the
office TO be seen no more for some
weeks. He was an unusual person
and a genius. During all of this
time, Whitman wrote his poetry as
It might have been called at that