Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-07-15
AMERICA BREAKS THE RECORD AGAIN
She Has Led the World in Steel and Cotton Production Tall
Buildings and Fair Women, and Now Her Handmade
Poetry Has Made Europe Sit Up and Take Notice
By BURTON LITTLE

IJERE is an easy way to earn $40. Get
IL any obliglng friend who thinks 1t worth
while to offer you that sum for guessing the
last thing he has in his mind at the moment
no! not that-the last thing he would ever
think of thinking of. And then say:
Poetry.
And collect the money. If you would make
doubly sure of the $40, be distinct and say:
American poetry.
The annoyance of your friend will be easy
to assuage. Tell him. on the authority of
one of our foremost critics. that America is
just now writing the best poetry in the
world, and he will be reconcied at once to
American poetry. You will have titillated
his patriotism If not his taste. He may go
home to his wife or to his friends at the
club with a new paradox to spring.
A Jewel of Absurdity
"By George, this is a great country" he
will say. do you happen to know that we
are just now turning out the best-just guess
what The last thing you would ever think
of. The best poetry in the world! What do
you know about that! BY heavens you can't
beat this little old land. Just to show that
there's nothing we can't do. we turn to poetry
and say, Hello Here's something we'd
nearly forgotten. Let's see what we can do
with this darned thing And there you
are"
In short your friend is immensely amused
with this jewel of absurdity. He has long
been proud of our tallest buildings our
biggest bridges. our smartest women and the
like. He may know that one of our sculptors
and at least two of our artists are sure of
Immortality. But who besides a few high
brows-the kind that wear these rubber
tired spectacles-would ever have thought
that little old America would be leading the
van in-poetry?
Well it's true. Not many years ago,
when William Dean Howells had ceased to
write poetry. and when Edmund Clarence
Stedman, Sidney Lanier and Paul Laurence
Dunbar had Joined Whitman in the great
silences, there virtually ceased to be, for a
time, such a thing as American poetry,
There were, indeed, in all the magazines GER
tain faithful spaces decorated with symmet-
rical printed lines. But whenever you wished
to damn anything in a thorough and work.
manlike manner you pronounced 1t about as
funny, about as serious, about as poor or
as good as magazine poetry" And maga-
zine poets were about as careless of their
identity as seeond-story men.
Now, in 10 short years. the American mag
%
best poetry written today.
While we are about II, let us pile Pelion
upon ossa and add TO the paradox AS IL
this improvement were not startling enough
in itself, It is. one may truthfulIy say. largely
the work OF one mana young American
critic.
Real Poetry Once More
About 10 years ago the daring thought
came to William Stanley Braithwaite 10
brave a reading OF the magazines, md out
how many yards Of poetry they had printed
during single year and how many feet OF
II We're true poetical feet To his vast sur
prise, he discovered that some Of this Joke
OF magazine verse was no Joke at all. but
very good poetry indeed. He published his
discovery In a newspaper and shocked the
country. America, our America, was print.
Ing some real poetry He cited chapter ana
verse, and called the whole country 10 Wit
ness the prodigy. And. To- II was true.
Every year since then Mr.. Braithwaite has
annually reviewed the output OF magazine
poetry, and every year he has found mora
genuine poetry more new and genuine poets
and-what is more remarkable OF all-mora
American people reading these poets n isnot
toomueh to say In years AIr. Braithwaite has
gently but firmly accustomed this country 10
poets and 70 poetry. He has emholdened timid
young men to venture into verse Ne has
called attention 10 oldar poets who had gone
unread and has stimulated them 10 stronger
sndeaYor- And together they have an 81
them licked up a. increasing public for