The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1916-09-08

s95@SSs4GA, the soulful expression. Nowadays
sSsSaariyS<sSafslssT when man wears his hair like
- Spanish moss II Florida oak he
fesssgsss.as.. is suspected of being hard up. And
If he exhibits what is supposed to
be his soul by certain shifting and staring of his
eyes he is ptied whose mental gearing
has sand in il.
Bliss Carman former editor of the Independent
and poet Of note of James Whitcomb
Riley's closest friends. After the Indiana
songsters death July %, Carman told much
about Riley to Mr.. Joyce Kimer of the New York
Times Magazine and Mr.. Kilmer in turn told it
to the public.
Some 80 years ago Carman introduced to
the already famous Hooser. Riley's keen bird
like eyes surveyed the tall frame of the and
young acquaintance Gosh you're a stalwart,
amt yep he remarked grinning. II guess your
parents must have trained you a trellis.'
Then, as reported by Mr. Kilmer, Carman went
on to say:
THE next time Riley was in Philadelphia.
/ went to read before the Browning society, and
don't mind telling you that ! scared to
death. When got out all alone the stage and
saw thousand people staring up at me | felt
more like running away than doing anything else.
But when / Riley down in the audience.
looking at me in bis 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 ms arm ana said: Now, let's get around
to the hotel and We'll take off our shoes and
get chew of tobacco and be comfortable
"You know. such remarks this were all the
more piquant because Riley very pune
tilious and scrupuous IN all his personal habits.
He always was Immediately dressed | never
knew him TO make much of
sion to comfort as TO put on a smoking jacket
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 great fund of knowledge of
poetry and knew lots Of out-of-t he-way homely
He delighted particularly in ridculously
bad newspaper verse
"Riley liked to read poetry aloud When went
to his house of an evening. he generally walt
ing for with favorIte book. ready to
read aloud"
"What sort of poetry did he prefer?"
His tastes covered wide range. Two poets
to whom he especially devoted Long
fellow and Swinburne.
RILEY liked Longfellow's directness and sim
pcity. The things that pleased him in Swim
burne's work were the music and the deft crafts
manshp.
after Riley had received his degrees from
some of the colleges he seemed TO feel that he
ought to be known poet, rather than as a
humorist and writer of dialect He tried
hard to live up to the name of poet, and wanted
his nonsense rhymes of his vagabondage forgot
Ten. let MS verse, or, as ne called IT,
his dialect verse, his chief contribution to
literature.
"Rlley just poet. That all he ever
cared 20 be. He was not interested in anything
but poetry. He knew nothing Of potics-he had
not voted for 80 years. And as 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 of his ways
of writing which happened TO prove popular;
when he got chance TO write In another way
how eagerly he seized 1t, and how persistenty he
chung to 1t
His last years the happiest Of his fe
I think. He had his car and rode around
indianapolis and its 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.
"Rey's father lawyer His grandfather
came to Indiana from Pennsylvania His grand
mother his mothers side was Pennsylvania
Dutch. His father Irish
"Rley had many preiudices He disked Poe
very much. He disiked Poe's character so much
that he could hardly read his poetry OF course,
he must have liked Poe's music and splendid
metrica effects.
"Of course, you know the story of Riley's IA
NOUS imitation of Poe? He had taken n position
on the staff of Anderson Ind, paper. and the
editor Of rival paper kept ridicuIing him. Riley