The national forum., 1910-07-16

JOHnSLOu, ElS WIS DUEu near LOWel-
ton, Ga, and the Dukesborough Of
his famous stories Is Powelton; but
you will look in vain at Mercer, Ath-
ems or Powelton for recognition OF
these facts.
Strangers Recognize His Merit.
Maryland is another Southern State
that has too often allowed the mem
ory Of her poets to suffer. Francis
Scott Key was born in Frederick
County in that State, wrote the Star
Spangled Banner" near Fort Nc
Henry, and died at Baltimore; and
yet the only worthy symbol Of public
appreciation is not in Maryland, but
in far-away San Francisco, where in;
Golden Gate Park monument exc
cuted by William Story stands to his
memory At Baltimore there lived
and died Edward Coate Pinkney au-
thor of many a graceful line of
poetry
II fill this cup to one made up
# loveliness alone,
A woman of her gentle sex
The seeming paragon;
To whom the better elements
And kindly stars have given
A form so fair, that, like the air,
',ris less of earth than Heaven"
He yet awaits token of memory.
And John Pendleton Kennedy, of Bal
timore-how much he did for writer's
of the South If that man had not
recognized the ability Of Poe, had not
encouraged him, had not found for
him congenial work, America prob
ably would not have heard of its
truest literary genius Yet what
bronze words declare the fact? And
for that matter, what appreciation
has Baltimore ever shown for the
honor of possessing Poe's dust? He
lies in neglected grave in old West
minister graveyard, and doubtless not
one person in thousand of those
who daily pass the cemetery knows
that the most artistic of all American
poets sleeps nearby.
The bitterest shame of all, how
ever, is the fact that Georgia has done
practically nothing for the memory of
the greatest genius she ever produced
Sidney Lanier. To-day the Geor-
gia city best known to the intellectual
circles of Great Britain is not the
capital, but Macon, the birthplace of
the most musical Of American poets.
There stands in hall of Johns Hop
kins an impressive bust of Lanier;
but where has Macon a shrine to his
| memory? A few years ago Geor-
gia Governor and famous Georgia
preacher stood on the capitol grounds
at Atlanta. Said the Governor: 81
want to see over in that corner
statue of Congressman So and So,
and a statue here to Governor This,
and a statue there to Governor That.
Then we shall have our honored
dead" "And where will you nut
Sidney Lanier's?" quietly asked the
preacher. "Ah," said the Governor,
somewhat abashed, 81 had forgotten
him" Perhaps that is the only trou-
BILE with all Georgians; not neglect
full, simply forgetful. There stands
on an Atlanta street a strong, brave
statue of Henry Grady; would it not
be eminently fitting to place within
sight of the great orators eyes the
| figure of Sidney Lanier, and farther
on another of Joel Chandler Harrisf
Look where you will throughout
the Southland, we find sad neglect of
our dead singers. William Gilmore
Simms, author of more than one hun
dred volumes, and genial inspirer of
Timrod Hayne and other literary
lights, made his home, Woodlands,
near Charleston, true literary centre
in ante-bellum days; and Charleston
has forgotten to honor either him or
that famous home. Davy Crockett
and Sam Houston, the most famous
pioneers in Southwestern life-the
one born at Limestone, Greene Coun-
ty, Tenn, and the other in Rock
bridge County, Va.--have received
no token of respect from their
mother-States. Alexander Beaufort
Meek wrote a poem, "Balaklava, -
which Queen Victoria deemed SC
worthy that she had it published al
her Kingdoms expense and spread far
and wide over her country, and this
man, turning aside from his poetry
created by untiring efforts the school
system of his native State, Alabama
And what has Alabama done to give
him honor before posterity? Moth
ing.
Father Abram Ryan lived at Nor.
folk, Knoxville, Clarksville and Mo
bile, and died near Louisville; but
you will search long for signs of ap'
probation. Clarksville has lately dis
covered that he wrote the Conquered
Banner" there---the old lady in whose
home he resided at the time still
lives-and small club Is honoring
itself and the city by erecting a
bronze tablet proclaiming this fact to
the world.
Margaret Preston, of Lexington
KY, was undoubtedly the best woman
poet of America. Lexington evidently
is not aware of this. John Reuben
Thompson, born at Richmond and
educated at the University of Vir'
ginia, the author of our most famous
brief verse narrative of war, Music
in Camp" is Just as much neglected
Mississippi's poet, Irwin Russell, in his
Christmas Night in the Quarters,
as truly wrote the epic Of Southern
, life as Whittier, in his "Snow-Bound,
wrote the epic Of New England life
Both poems grow more famous a'
the years pass; but what Indifference
in the honors to their ailthorsl Por