The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-06-05

words for verbal arrows whose points
have been dipped into some poison that
stings and burns when they reach the
| heart of opponent, then he might read
Swift as his model. But in the mean
time beg to remind the sartirist or lam
poonist who seeks model of two lines
from Horace on the Art of Poetry. as
| translated by Roscommon:
You must not think that a satyric style
Allows of scandalous and british words. -
Swift was never happy. True, he often
experienced a cruel glee at the defeat of
some antagonist, but genuine happiness
never took root in the soil of his heart.
Once when in London, he went to But
toms Coffee House to dine. Seeing a
stranger who had just arrived from the
country the dean approached him and
abruptly asked: pray sir, do you re-
member any good weather in the world?'
The stranger replied: Yes, sir. thank
God that 1 remember a great deal of good
weather in my time" THAT is more than
can say" Swift calculated, adding: II
never remember any weather that was not
too hot, or too cold, too wet or too dry"
Delany, one of Swifts numerous biogra-
piers. relates that once upon his inter-
rupting a conversation between Arch
bishop King and Swift. the latter fled
from the house with a countenance full of
distraction. The archbishop was in tears
and said to Delany: "Sir, you have just
met the unhappiest man on EARTH but on
the subject of his wretchedness you must
never ask a question" On this subject 1
shall quote from Thackeray: THAT last
part of CULVER Is only a consequence OF
what has gone before, and the worthiness
, all mankind, the pettiness, cruelty,
4, pride, imbecility the general vanity. the
oolish pretension, the mock greatness the
pompous dizziness. the mean aims, the
base successes-all these were present to
him; 1t was with the din of these curses
in the world, blasphemies against heaven,
shrieking In his ears that he began to
write his dreadful allegory. of which the
meaning Is that man Is utterly wicked,
desperate and imbecile and his passions
are so monstrous, and his boosted powers
so mean, that he deserves to be made the
slave of brutes and ignorance Is better
than his Wanted reason. What had this
man done7 What secret remorse was
ranking at his hearth What fever was
boiling In him that he should see all the
world bloodshot? A frightful self-con-
seriousness it must have been which looked
on mankind so darlSly through those keen
eyes of Swift. The most unhappy man
on earth. At this time all the great wits
of England had been at his feet. All Ire
land had shouted after him as a liberator
a savior the greatest Irish patriot and
citizen, and at this time writing over to
Bollingbroke: Tt is time for me to have
done with the world, and so / would If
l could get into better before I was
called into the best and not die here in
a rage like a poisoned rat In hole ;"
Surely one might apply the old Latin line
to Swift, ''Miserrimum est timere cum
spores nihil''
There was a mystery in the life of
Swift, and that which was a mystery
when he lived has remained mystery
even to this present day of grace. There
Is no reason to suppose that any light will
be thrown upon the cloud in all the flu
ture. 1t lies buried in the tomb of the
dean In st. PatricS's cathedral where his
once turbulent brain has been resolved by
time into dust. The mystery, whatever it
was, in some way may account for his
treatment of the woman who loved him
with all the strength Of her pure and
lofty soul, Esther Johnson, the stella"
of his poems and his journal.
There were two women q count not the
Warning AFFAIR." who awakened something
of dormant sentimental emotion in the
great dean, or, perhaps, created that emo
ton within him.. am stating the fact in
this wise for the reason that Swift was
never capable of love. One Of these two
women was a Miss Vanhomrigh. She
was cultured and rich, and loved the dean
with something of mania. So wild was
her love that she violated loves canon
as announced by Helena to Demetrius, In
"A Midsummer-Night's Dream; speaking
of her sex she said:
1--WE cannot fight for love, as men may
do;
We should be wood, and were not made
to WOO"
Mss vanhomrixh wooed the dean. She