The Mena weekly star. (Mena, Ark.) 1904-1977, 1920-10-14
The Romance
of Albert Pike
Fred w. Allsopp of the Arkansas
Gazette Brings Life Of Great Ar
kansas Man Into History Of State
He Honored.
lBy Clio Harperl

10Y IAtu 11dIpttj
Little Rock. Oct. 4 lit is we'll that
we should pause in the midst of our
busy lives and In our mad partisan
careers to consider some of our great
historic characters that have enlight-
ened the past
In the history of Arkansas, no one
man stands out more prominently on
with more numerous of brilliant facets
of many sided character, than does
Albert Pike, statesman, soldier, poet,
lawyer and Masonic leader. He was
one of the few international charac-
ters produced by the state of Arkan-
sas.
1t Is befitting therefore that the
story of his life should be presented in
a popular way so that it may appeal
to the emulation of the youth of cur
land and be made an incentive to the
ambition of others Much has been
written of Albert Pike, but it remain
ed for an Arkansas publisher to pre-
sent his work and his life in per-
manent form Fred w. Allsop
business manager of the Arkansas Ca
zetre, brought out Pixies poems in
one volume, Which was soon exhaust
EQs " 0c lOllQWtu ny q lSNlctQ ttf~tQtt
in two volumes, which has also had
wide sale. There is now in press a
new volume about this great man,
'The Life Story of Albert Pike"
written by Mr. Allsop. The hook
has been written from a great mass
of original material, much of which
has never been in print. This book
will be ready for distribution in the
near future and Mr.. Allsop is all
ready receiving many inquiries for it
from prominent Masons and sch liars
turnout the country, indicating that it
will have very large sale. 1t is
said there will not be Masonic IL
brary in the country that will be with
out one or more copies of the book. 1t
is monument Of love erected by an
Arkansa writer to the memory of one
who has left permanent impress up
on the history not only of Arkansas,
but of the union.
In his introduction to the book, Mr..
Allsop says:
sTne of the giants of the early days
in the southwest was General Albert
Pike, who resided in Arkansas from
1882, internationally up to the close of
the civil war.
"He left lasting impress on the
times, because he was man who
played a distinguished part in the
world, OK, rather, fer the reason that
he distinguished himself by acting
many parts well. AS one writer OBJ
serves, che touched all the elements of
romance and adventure that existed
in the southwest. from the wild Indian
tribes, into one of which he had been
adopted. and of which he is said to
have been a chief, to the composition
of verses which had found recognition
and appreciation so far away and
from such high authority as Black
woods (Edinburgh) Magazine"
Indeed, his adventurous liSe reads
like wild romance. and the events in
which he participated furnish an in
contrast between the men
and movements of those pioneer times
and those of today, under the more
favorable conditions which exist.
Whether or not it is due in any
degree to the halo that tradition grad
uaily brings to the memory of great
men, it would seem that those who
the scout ives tern
country fifty to seventy-five years ago
were digger ana 0falnler imam the 4
average man Of today In any event, /
/ was not the faint ted no con-
Iuered the wilds, but strong men, like
Albert Pike.
Two characters that will ever live
n Arkansas song and story are Sandy
Faulkner's Arkansas Traveller" and
Albert Pike, the imaginary character,
las often brought derision to the
tate; the real life Of the other has
dded to it's lustre1