The Washington herald., 1916-08-21
JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY,
POET OF THE PEOPLE


James Whiteomb Riley who recently died at
M ms nome in the capital Of the State. had long
oeen NOT only citizen of great prominence and
,apottanee. but an object Of intense pride and
it Tor many years he has been public figure of
nee tne foremost prominence. His birthday was cele-
orS,Gd n"b last October by public exercises and with
the celebration, and the poet received a recog-
nsion such as has been accorded to few Amer
lsan writer's OF verse. His death, which was unex-
eVokea an expression of regret and regard which
IN volume and evident sincerity shows how deep
iy Riley had touched the heart of his people.
Suriously enough, although he had been so
nuch talked about in the columns of the news
papers NIey escaped the biographer, says the
outlook He was both shy and modest. His dis
nke for ANYTHING like publicity was instructive
and grew upon him; and there was considerable
uncertainty IN regard to some OF the leading facts
OF his life 1t is doubtful, for instance, whether
any one knew exactly the year OF his birth He
tween newspaper publicity and fame; and while
he could not have been Indifferent to the latter,
ne was eminenty successful in evading the
former; If he had been asked the name Of his
sehooi and college, he would undoubtedly have
answered Indiana" for he had no early oppor-
tgnties, as opportunities are commonly reckoned
| he was born IN Greenfield, Ind. When his
biography was written, he greatly disturbed
and. dld his utmost to suppress it. After much
urging, he revised the. proofs which were placed
in his hands, but took out every specific state
ment and every date. In this fashion he gave il
to the public; but after its publication he bought
| up the rights in the book and had it destroyed.
In recent years, when he has been pressed to
write his autobiography his reply has been:
NO, no; 1t seems too conceited" In this respect
| he stands IN striking contrast to some OF the
| lesser writers, both men and women whose
biographies, names faces, habits OF life, lie re-
corded for all the world to read the pages of
the Sunday newspapers. 1t is only just to re-
member, however, that in many cases the sub
|Jects OF these sketches, Impressions, and more
or less apocryphal accounts victims of jour
nalstic enterprise rather than voluntary narrators
| OF their own greatness.
| Riley had little schooling, and set out early
| IN lite to earn his own living. Various stories
OF his ear ly occupations have obtained crcdencc.
He is said to have peddled patent medicines, to
have amused himself and interested others a
verslher at county fairs, to have been sign
and house painter; and he has even been charged
with being the discoverer of the idea of painting
signs on fences and barns. One day he dropped
into the office Of weekly newspaper, and. failing
to secure regular position turned his attention
to contributing verses to the local journals. One
OF his carly poems widely accepted as an
unpublished work Of Poe. Afterwards Riley him
self declared that the poem was the work of "a
sign painter named Riley" To the habit of writ
ing occasional poems he added the occupation Of
travelling actor, for which he had very decided
talents His readings, which became very popu-
characterization, for his effective facial express
sionn, and for the .pathos and sympathy which he
could put into his voice Sir Henry Irving is
reported to have said that the American stags
lost great actor when Riley refused to make
acting his lifc-work Those who were fortunate
enough to attend dinner given to Mr.. Aldrich
in New York club at which Riley, Eugene Field,
and Bill Nye recited characteristic poems gained
very good idea OF respective varieties of Amer
can humor.
In character and habit of life James Whitcomb
Riley was the simplest OF human beings. He
never thought OF himself, apparently, a poet
he simply fell into the habit OF writing verses
because it natural for him to use that form
of expression. He was not IN any sense the poet
OF democracy. He had no theories about his art
no consciousness, apparently Of any ambition to
practice 1t in any particular way or for any special
purpose. He never proclaimed himself the poet
of the democratic vista did Whitman, who
regarded himself as the prophet Of democracy,
wonderful poems but whose books
in the hands OF working people, and whose poems
arc rarely, il ever, recitcd by school children.
Riley in the only genuine a poet Of
the people. He not only wrote about them, but
he wrote to them and for them; and American
poet, with the exception of Longfcllow, has come
much loved and honored by children. He
simple singer of familiar things; but familiar
things with the poets vision and described
with the poets feeling cease to be common
things; and Riley able to make things OF
the farm and of the village significant of human
destiny. He never bothered himself with the
philosophy of life; he never travelled for local
color; he apparently entirely uninterested
in affairs OF art; but he sang Of childhood, of
the flowers in the garden, of the secrets of the
woods, all with that unconscious simplicity which
is the ultimate aim of art.
1t is idle to attempt to assign him to any par
tcular place in the history Of Amer can poetry,
to exactly define or describe his genius to pre-
dict his position in the future; but in poetic
period of secondary inspiration, OF devotion to
the technical minutae Of versihcation, or of law
less disregard of its traditions, Riley sang as
the birds sang because it was his nature to sing:
He understood the poets art; he understood and
loved children because he stood in intimate per-
sonal relations to nature not in the rough nor
in the large, but as it uniolded the domestic
life of the farm and the village. He had that
far from pathos, and he made himself the COM
panion and neighbor of host of people to whom
poetry ia its elaborate forms made appeal.
The author Of Knee Deep in June" will stand in
no need Of formal commemoration.
There is a close likeness between what the