Evening journal., 1913-12-26
NEW MEMS OF YESTERDAY
The Story Of an Almost
Forgotten Poet
By Holland.

In recent conversation Francis VIII
liam Rolt-Wheeler asserted without any
qualification that in his opinion James
G. Percival was the greatest poet of his
time. Mr. Wheeler himself is an author
Of considerable repute, and is at che
present time one Of the chaplains Of st.
Lukes Hospital, New York.
But if so good an authority as DR.
Rolt-Wheeler at this late day discovers
the great merit in the poetry of Percival
his carly friends and associates in the
town Of Berlin, Conn, were accustomed
TO regard Dr. Percival as the greatest
geologist Of his time.
have often heard my father speak
of Percival, for in Lis boyhood days he
remembered him well and the curious
caps which he wore and the queer far
away look that was in his eyes as he
went about almost hermitlike on the
highways and the byways of the little
town Of Berlin.
Percival. my father said, was under
stood by the people Of Berlin to have
gone to Charleston, s. c., when he was
about ~ years of age upon the sugges
tion OF John c. Calhoun.
MY recollection is" my father told
me, that Calhoun, who was a graduate
of Yale College, met Percival shortly
after the latter's graduation and per
suadcd the young man, who was just to
take his degree as a doctor, to settle in
Charleston
'SVhile he was in Charleston. Percival
wrote some Of his poems But he had
the feeling that the kind of poetry
which he wrote did not appeal to the
- h.. h.. aI,u
loned Charleston and decided that he
would practice medicine in his native
town OF Berlin. lie didn't get much
practice. in fact. there wasn't enough
sickness in that town to support doc
tor He used TO spend all his spare mo-
menets, at least when he wasn't writing
poetry, in studying geology.
"When he became master of &C.
ology, ! remember very well what ex-
citcment and interest were occasioned
in that town when we heard that Perci-
val had been appointed state geologist
and that he crossed the State back and
forth dozen times or more on foot
making his geological studies of the
characteristic rocks of the State.
"But one day there came a report
which seemed to us young people Of
Berlin far more astonishing than the
reputation he had gained as a poet. They
said that Percval had. discovered the
meaning of that curious conjunction OF
rock near Hartford. which had for years
puzzled the authorities of Yale College
as it had many men OF science who had
visited VI.
"Sone twelve miles below Hartford
there stands out conspcuously a con-
junction Of traprock and of red sand
stone. the very kind of red sandstone
which was afterward 50 extensively used
IN building the homes in which people
OF wenlth in New York lived.
"WGl, Percival solved the problem.
lie spent many weeks in studying this
peculiar meeting of traprock and Of red
sandstone. He at last demonstrated to
the state authorities that It was oeca-
stoned bv some prehistoric convulsion OF
nature. That of course, was interesting
10 scientific mon, but what especially IN
| tere.ted MS was Percivais statement
that this convulsion Of nature had
thrown IN the red sandstone and joined
! IL TO the traprock. and in that way a
rerfect dam WIS bnlt by nature against
| the Connecticut river. Percival demon
strntod that the Connecticut in prehis-
toric times turned Just at that time and
flowed southerlv along the lowlands and
/ through the passes at Meridian. and at
last emptied into Long Island sound ex-
actlv where the city of New Haven now
stands. All that is left of this prehis-
torie Connecticut are two small streams
Mill river and Quinipisc river. As the
| Connecticut river WAS damned by TINS
iuncture of red sandstone and traproek,
IL sought another course and found its
way to Long Island sound. practically
along the meadows and valleys when Al
now traverses.
This demonstration Of Percival was
| afterward confirmed hy Professor James
q Dams. of Yale College.
"It seemed to us wonderful that o
man could be both a poet and doctor
of medicine and at the same time be
allie To solve the riddle Of the traprock
and red sandstone formation. and te
teach ns that in the years long gone by
The Connecticut flowed to Long Island
sound over the site OF the present city
of New Haven.
apercival taught us also that what
is now New Haven bay was, in ages
gone by. the month Of the Conneeticu'
river"
t.su IIsrarIa All