Intermountain Jewish news., 1926-10-07
First American-JeWish Poet
The Sublime Boy. Poems Of Walter Ie Cassercs Seven
Arts Publishing CO..

Not very long n story appeared In the New York
HcradTrbun telling of the discovery of pnckct old
laundry bills, bits of white paper, and
less scraps of mpcr--on which written whnt pur
ported to he commendable poetry Great Poetry Found
on Old Bills" was the glaring headline
We were somewhat wary, therefore, when began
reading Tlr Sublime Boy the collected poems Walter
De Cnsscrcs Perhaps somewhat adversely preudced
against the descendant Benedict spinczp great Dutch
Jewish Philosopher But despite the advance pub
licity which this volume Of poetry received found 1t
to be of the yrc collections of sim
pcy we have read
Another Clmtterton
Walter DE Casseres brother Benjamin DE Casscrps
critics cssayists committed
philosophic suicide the of eighteen, in 1900 1t
cannot he denied that the is extraordinary for
Of that We doubt whether the publishers would wish
to label their author of the worlds greatest poets
but their claim that Walter DE Casseres may
the American Thomas Chatteron is justified
Fortunately the introduction the poems by Ben
amn De Casseres does not attempt evauac his brother
merely giving history of his life and background of
which these poems necessarily emerged Though this
pseudobograply is mostly factunl, 1t
jamn DE Casseres' most facc flaming, Overwhelming
style II is short piece of writing but it easily ranks
with of the best that Benjamin has written during
his long, cventful
Only Handful
These who interested in the specific Jewish angle
in the rescovcry Of the of Walter DE Caseres will
find him noteworthy addition to the rather limited
field. Considering the field of American Jewish poets
finds surprisingly few. Louis untermyer James Open
helm Alter Brody, Joseph Aus,ander, Bnbcttc Deutsch.
and Maxwell I'odenhem the only that suggest
themselves mt the moment OF there innumcr
able Jews writing innumeabc poems but the value of
poems may liz measured in inverse ratio to their number
Simplicity Unique
If Walter De Cassercs be accepted as one of
the great poets Jewish origin thsfcountry would
surely stand unique. There is in his poetry sim
picity which other American attained, per
haps to attain complexity intricacy have
been the models in the main by Jewish poets
This standard been forced upon them by pace
life
De CasSercs in fact is perhaps the first native Ameri
poet of He is of the D0s that fabulous period
when Jews in the mass had yet attained the luxury
necessary for the upbringing poets The Emma
will undoubtedly he mentioned the first worthy
American Jewish poet but despite the fact that bit Of
her appears of Liberty hcsi
fancy in SAYING that the poetry Dc CascrcS is infinitely
superior to hers
Strange Phenomenon
Considering in the background Of his time. Walter Du
Casseres strange phenomenon While Europe stood
eighteen trnnsnting Nctzschcansm poetry,
although he heard of the author of Also Sprach
Znratlusru" the day of his suicide While the United
states squirmng through its 'mauvc decade Phia-
delphia dreamer preaching devastating nihsm. II
is unfortunate that the facts Of his life and his poetry
mained undiSclosed during these twcnty-sx years.