The Semi-weekly leader., 1922-11-01
Works Of Poets Of Mississippi.

The publication by Miss Ernestine
G. Deavors of an anthology of the
Mississippi poets calls attention to
the fact that some of the best known
Southern writer's have been natives
of that state. Miss Deayors, who is
the daughter Of Mr.. Stone Deavors.
a well-known attorney of Laurel,
Miss, has been at work on her book
several years. tt has been labor
of love-no less laborious because a
pleasant task, and the result, pref
ty volume from the press of E. H,
Clark and Company of Memphis, rep
resents vast amount of correspond
ence and reading. There are select
ions from seventy-three writer's. Miss
Deavors has been guided by rather
elastic principle of selection, and
includes authors, such as Mrs. Cap
pleman, Marcus T. Carpenter and
Mrs. Bette Keys Chambers, who
were not natives of the state, but
who, on account of residence more
or less prolonged in Mississippi, seem
to deserve place in an anthology
of the local poetic literature.
In looking over the names Of the
authors represented in the collection
one notes several welI-known in New
Orleans. among them Mrs. Eliza J.
Nicholson ("Pearl Rivers"), who
for many years edited the Picayune;
Mrs. Julia X. Wetherell Baker, a fire.
quent contributor to the Times-Pica-
yune; Mrs. Margaret Hunt Brisbane,
Professor j. s. Kendall, and Miss Luz
lah Ragsdale. Mrs. Nicholson is
represented in the collection by three
poems, "only a Heart, ''The Sol
dier's Grave" and Waiting" Mrs.
Baker is represented by her little
poem when All Is Said". One also
notes such names as Irwin Russell,
Walter Malone, S. A. Jonas, ASA
Hartz", Colonel A. X. McClung and
Mrs. Jeanette H. Walworth, all re-
membered in one way or another for
their work in literature. Among the
new writer's for whom Miss Deavors
finds place in the volume probably
the most notable is William Alexan-
der Percy, whose work always COM
mands the respectful attention Of the
critics of current American verse.
The poetic history of Mississippi
has respectable antiquity, to judge
by Miss Deayors' volume. She quo
tes from the work of Mrs. HAMLET.
whose poems were published in 1877 :
Mrs. Eleanor Lee. who was born in
1920 and died in 1S49, and James
Mccarthy Oliver, whose volume ''The
Battle Of Franklin and Other Poems
was published in 1869. Possibly the
Oldest poet in the collection is Ber-
nard Shipp who was born in 1913,
and published volume Of verses in
1843.
1t would be interesting to know
who Mississippi's first poet was. Miss
Deavors, in the brief biographical
notices. which at cost Of great labor
she has been able to insert at the
head of each group of selections,
makes no effort to settle this or any
other historico-Iiterary question.
Some other person, 1t is to be hoped,
will take up the other and import
ant task and give the world history
of the states literature.
Miss Deayors has rescued one poet
from oblivion who deserves to be re-
membered from the fact that he was
a full-blooded Choctaw Indian. Israel
Folsom was minister Of the gospel,
and one Of the few poets. writing in
English, Of his race.
The compiler is to be coRgratula-
ted upon her work, which will have
considerable usefulness especially IN
the Mississippi schools. for which,
probably, it is intended, Miss Dea-
vofs with the city schools OF Laurel
where she doubtless saw the value
of collection Of the sort for young
students. Times Picayune.
Miss Deavors should not have O.
mitted blue Mountain Bards'.