The New York herald., 1921-04-24
Our Own Book Review.

Our Own Book Review.
THE DESERTED VILLAGE, by Oliver Gold
smith, f72S-1774 Archibald Symmes CO.
Ltd. Brighton.
THIs rather diyerting poem is an
account Of how young Oliver Gold
smith totally depopulated the town
of Auburn in England by attempting to
read to them his manuscripts before he
sent them to the printer. He had also 1t
seems. done considerable travelling, and he
wanted to gather the villagers around him
and tell them about himself. They simply
would not stand for either the reading Of his
copy or the telling of his stories and abso-
lutey left their homes and beat 1t for the
city in order to protect themselves.
Young Goldsmith got awfuly sore about
what he considered to be lack of apprccia-
ton of him and his works, and his poem
which he called "The Deserted Village" was
the result 1t is a melancholy affair from
beginning to end. The incident evidently
weighed on his mind, and he mentions il
right at the beginning of his poem. He says
he "stll had hopes"
Around my fire evening group to draw
And tell of all felt and all saw"
You see, he was a clergyman's son. and
himself had set out to gain some experiences
which he found ii impossible TO have around
the fireside of his fathers home. He thought
everybody in the place would be interested
upon his return TO hear what he had done.
but he was soon undeceived. AS the viii
layers left their homes and fed up the big
road Mr.. Goldsmith began to criticse them.
He sneeringly spoke of the village preacher
and the pay he received for exhorting the
people, saying Of him:
"A man he was to all the country dear
And passing rich with forty pounds year
We have always felt that Mr.. Goldsmith
should have left that line unwritten. No
one likes TO hear his pastor sneered at.
He was particularly severe upon the viii
lage schoolmaster. 1t seems that the schooi
teacher was an argumentative kind of fel-
low and of this phase of his character young
Oliver writes:
For cen though vanquished he could argue
still"
1t must be admitted however. that he
engages in some delicious sarcasm when
he writes of the schoolmaster (maybe this
appeals TO us because we personally have
never liked them):
And still they gazed and still the wonder
grew
That one small head could carry all he
knew"
Mr.. Goldsmith makes some very bitter
marks about those who saw him coming and
left the town OF Auburn. Particularly ugly
is what he says about the girls lie clearly
indicates that they made a big mistake In
leaving the village and going to the city.
The most interesting thing in the entire
poem is found in his rather cryptic verse in
which he described the fight Of the VII
layers. II Is verse that has been thun-
dered by many spebnders from many plat
forms, and 1t is always useful. because II
can be used in any campaign from bailif t.
President and by any speaker Of any party
The joke about II is. however. that 1t was
intended as piece of rare humor by Mr
Goldsmith and il was not written for Sc
tious political purposes at All.
He wrote:
"Ill fares the land 10 fastening Ills prey,
Where wealth accumulates. and men decay
Princes or lords may flourish. or may fade.
breath can make them. as breath has
made:
But a bold peasantry. their country's pride.
When once destroyed. can never be sup
Piled"
Now analyze that for a minute lie writes
that they hasten" they are "a prey" In
the third lfrc princes and lords may fade"
Don't you see he is clearly indicating that
the villagers are rapidly leaving Auburn
Then he speaks of wealth accumuatine
lie means they have street car fare. Fur
ther on he says they are a bold peasantr-y."
meaning that they have been rude and i'm
polite "a him.
An interesting reference In the poem i
10 the war between England and ireland
which was in its hcyday about seventeen
hundred and something Mr. Goldsmith
speaks of this in a noble stanza which be.
gins
"a time there was ere Englaiti's grief
began"
Young Goldsmith evidently had such 4
bad attack ~ blues az the time be wrote
this poem that il is not good for general
reading. but some day when you are over
exuberant. when you feel like pushing over
the Woolworth building or jerking a pier
out from under The Brooklyn Bridge SD
down and read III IL win calm vor down