Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1916-09-08


be his soul by certain shifting and staring of his
eyes he is pitied as one whose mental gearing
has sand in it.
Bliss Carman former editor Of the Independent
and a poet Of note, was one Of James Whitcomb
Riley's closest friends. After the Indiana
songsters death July %, Carman told much
about Riley to Mr. Joyce Kilner Of the New York
Times Magazine ana Mr. Kilmer in turn told it
to the public.
Some 30 years ago Carman was introduced to
the already famous Hoosier. Riley's keen bird
like eyes surveyed the tall frame of the new and
young acquaintance: "Gosh, you're stalWart
amt YEP he remarked, grinnng. IT guess your
parents must have trained you trellis"
Then, as reported by Mr.. Kilmer, Carman went
on to say:
1.-THE next time saw Riley was in Philadelphia.
I went to read before the Browning society, and
I don't mind telling you that I was scared to
death. When got out all alone on the stage and
thousand people staring up at me felt
more like running away than doing anything ese
But when saw Riley down in the audience
looking at in his quaint friendly way, then
/ felt all right. wasn't afraid to read my
poetry to Riley.
"After the reading was over Riley tucked me
under his arm and said: Now let's get around
TO the hotel and we'I take off shoes and
get a chew of tobacco and be comfortable
"You know such remarks this were all the
more piquant because Riley very pune
tilious and scrupulous in all his personal habits.
He always Immediately dressed. never
knew him to make so much of a conces-
sion to comfort as to put on smoking jacket
or a lounge coat. But he liked to go to his room
and stretch himself on his bed and talk. And
he never talked about anything but literature,
chiefly poetry.
"Riley had a great fund OF knowledge of
poetry and knew lots of out-of-the-way homely
verse. He delighted particularly in ridculously
bad newspaper verse.
'Riley liked to read poetry aloud When went
to his house of an evening, he generally wait
ing for with some favOrite book, ready to
read aloud"
"What sort of poetry did he preferY
"His tastes covered a wide range. Two poets
to whom he especially devoted were Long
fellow and Swinburne
"Rey liked Longfellow's drectness and SIM
plicity. The things that pleased him in SWIM
burne's work the music and the deft crafts
manShip.
"After Riley had received his degrees from
some of the colleges, he seemed to feel that he
ought to be known a poet, rather than as a
humorist and writer of dialect verse. He tried
hard to live up to the name of poet and wanted
his nonsense rhymes Of his vagabondage forgot
ten. Yet his vernacular verse; or as he called it,
his dialect verse; was his chief contribution to
literature
"Riey was just poet. That was all he ever
cared 20 be. He was not interested IN anything
but poetry. He knew nothing of politics-he had
not voted for 80 years. And for philosophy,
he had nothing but contempt for the modern
thinkers
There was something very pathetic and charm
ing about Riley's tenacity in holding the serious
poet pose. His nonsense was just one of his ways
of writing which happened to prove popular;
when he got chance to write in another way
how eagerly he seized it, and how persstently he
hung to it
'cHis last years were the happiest of his life,
{ think. He had his own car and rode around
indianapolis and it's suburbs every day, generally
taking with him some friend. He was honored
and loved, and think he felt that life had been
good to him.
"Riley's father lawyer. His grandfather
came to Indiana from Pennsylvania. His grand
mother on his mothers side was Pennsylvania
Dutch. His father was Irish.
"Riey had many prejudices. He dsliked Poe
very much. He disliked Poes character so much
chat he could hardly read his poetry. OF course
he must have liked Poes music and splendid
metrica effects.
-"Of course, you know the story of Riley's fa-
nous imitation of Poe? He had taken a position
On the staff of Anderson, Ind. paper, and the
EDITOR of rival paper kept ridiculing him. Riley