The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1920-02-06
Stevenson IS Years After.


Twenty. five years have passed since
the death Of Robert Louis Stevenson.
A new generation OF poets and essay
lists has ariscn-a generation which
| seems chiefly concerned with ~louting
and seeking the destruction Of the
principles OF art which Stevenson fol-
lowed and championed, On the whole,
the years since 1895 have been anti.
Stevensonian years with a vengeance.
II we take him at his own account OF
himself, S~tevenson's chief ambition, all
his life. was to become a master of
form-and to our literary ~gospellers
all form is a~nathema. A master of
form Stevenson surely became. Like
Poe, he has shown US something Of the
mysteries of his workshop, the tricks
of his trade; he has owned mp TO youth
full nights spent in the limitations Of
models, and his prose aud his verse oft
en- reveal careful elaboration. Was he
then a Journalist, and IS his work a
perishable product Of a~rtifice, instead
Of an illumination from a radiant soul
Some people seemed 10 begin TO think
so. for a while. after Stevenson died
His vogue which had been enormous,
vaned in the early days Of the cen
fury. '~Steyensonia' brought less in
the markeC-for q time. Some Of the
critics began to talk Of "Jekyi and
HYDE and the Treasure Island" a, ii
they really were shilling shockers as
he confessed he had intended "Jekyll
and HYDE 30 be.
But meantime the process by which
the great world appraise, and appro-
PIRATES its masterpieces vas slowly at
work and the world foUnd that it had
wanted and very much needed The
Celestial Surgeon. Requiem. "A Song
OF the Road and virtually all of the
"Child's Garden" These were all plain
w in process Of becoming veritable
classics. And at this very moment they
are tightening their grip on the hu-
man soul. ii there is any poem, writ
ten since Stevenson died, which viii in
the next thirty years, or the next thou
sand, go a. lar as my Wife has gone.
with its passionate breathing Of mar
ried love-
Trusty. dusky, vivid. true,
With eyes Of gold and brsmbie dew
ShelI-true and blade straight,
we can only wonder what it may be.
such lines as
Home is the sailor, home from the sea,
And the hunter home from the hill,
and
One and an 90 night and day
Over the hills and far away
have passed with a Shakespeareau fix
iiv into the vocabulary OF all English
speaking people. Certainly the decline
Of Stevensons reputation a. a poet. if
there indeed was q decline, has passed.
As a prose writcr-and verse. with
him. wa a secondary interest Steven
sons estimation has surely not fallen
of. No author i, 50 easy to re-read as
he. And in re-reading him. we thank !
him at every step for the patient mas
terv Of form. for the wizardry u words
which gives rs constantly such pas
,agc7 as this description Of a southern
night
Il have never seen such a night. The
skv itself was Of a ruddy, powerful.
uameless. changing color. dark and
glossy like = s~erpeui- back. The stars.
hv inWumerable millions. stuck boldly |
forth like lamps. The Milky Way was
bright. like a u%fnonlit cloud; half
heaven seemed Milky WAY. The great
luminaries shone each more clearly than
a winters moon. Their light was
dyed with every sort Of color red, like
fire. blue. like steel; Green. like the
tracks Of sunset. and 80 sharply did
each stand forth n its own lustre that
there was no appearance Of that fat,
star-spangled arch Nc know 50 well in
pictures. but an the hollow Of heaven
ono chance Of c0ntc-tiRg luminar
ies-a hurry Durly Of stars. Against
this the hills and rugged tree-tOPs
stood ont Tedly dark
The world l. beginning to make M
its mind that in Stevenson form goes
hand ~ band with Inspiration. His
poetry. doubtless. will last longer than
his prose. 4, an great poetry does But
there viii s. no question Of forgetting
either. He vas OF the breed Of great !
creative arlists-Bcston Transcript.