Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-12-01

- Father of American Poetry" This
child was william Cullen Bryant. AT the time
this Republic of ours was not quite 10 years
old and boosted OF anly. is States. The Father
Of Our Country, George Washington, was serV- :
ing his second term as President.
To this frontier farm, set among the hills OF
Massachusetts,, the father, Peter Bryant, ply
stefan and surgeon. had come from the Old
Colony to take up his life work. Here he mar
ried Susannah Smell a descendant Of that IA
nous pair John Alden and Priscilla, william
Cullen was the second Of seven children.
Both of Bryant's parents were of Puritan
stock While the Puritans were very estimabie
people, the love OF art was not one OF their
virtues. But DR.. Bryant did encourage the love
of the beautiful in his children He himself
was lover of music and poetry and wrote
both humorous and Satirical verse. He also
played the violin. -
When young Bryant first began to write
verse he read his work to his father, who never
failed to give him the encouragement he needed.
But as he grew older he became more reticent
and instead of seeking out his family to read
them his gems, he concealed his verse, some
times in the most unlikely places.
On one of his trips to Boston to represent
his district in the Legislature, DR.. Bryant
bought the Lyrical Ballads of Wordsworth and
Coleridge and took the book home with him.
William Cullen was much impressed with
Wordsworth's style and his deep love Of nature.
It was his habit, he strolled through the
woods, to memorize these poems.
In those days boy on a farm found little
or no excitement, no stimulation for creative
work. But the primal forests were there, the
birds, the flowers and the ripping streams; and
into the heart of this child born with sensi-
tive soul and an eye for beauty crept the won
der of it all and the desire to put into verse
what he felt and saw.
"I was always" Bryant said, "from my earliest
years, delighted observer of external nature
the splendors Of q Winter daybreak over the
wide wastes of snow seen from our windows.
the glories of the Autumnal woods the gloomy
approaches Of the thunderstorm and its de-
parture amid sunshine and rainbows, the return
of the Spring with its flowers, and the first
snowfall Of Winter The poets fostered this
taste in me, and though at that time rarely
heard such things spoken of, 1t was none the
less cherished In my secret mind"
At the age of 10 Bryant had written verse Of
merit and had turned the Book Of Job into
rhymes. In 1908 he wrote poem Of 500 lines,
entitled 1.-THE Embargo, or Sketches of the
Times, by Youth of 49," which was published
in pamphlet form. So popular was the poem
that second edition was printed. This poem,
written during President JefferSon's admins
tration, caused much favorable comment
throughout the New England States. The en-
barge laid upon all the ports by the President
proved disastrous to many private interests
in New England and caused the party then In
power to become very unpopular. William
Cullens father was Stanch FederaliSt, and
there is but little doubt that daily discussions
were held in the Bryant household condemning
the Presidents policy. Young Bryant did his
= part In showing his displeasure by setting