blication. "By the Waters of the Brook," by Rev.
Eugene B. Kuntz, D. D., is one of the noblest amateur poems of the year.
While the casual reader may find in the long heptameter lines a want of
sing-song facility; the true lover of the Nine pauses in admiration at
the deep flowing nobility of the rhyme. The quick rippling of the brook
is duplicated within each line, rather than from line to line. The
imagery and phraseology are of the sort which only Dr. Kuntz can
fashion, and are rich in that exalted pantheism of fancy which comes to
him who knows Nature in her wilder and more rugged moods and aspects.
"The Pool," by Winifred Virginia Jordan, contains an elusive hint of the
terrible and the supernatural which gives it high rank as poetry. Mrs.
Jordan has two distinct, yet related, styles in verse. One of these
mirrors all the joy and buoyant happiness of life, whilst the other
reflects that undertone of grimness which is sometimes felt through the
exterior of things. The kinship betwixt these styles lies in their
essentially fanciful character, as distinguished from the tiresomely
commonplace realism of the average modern rhymester. Another bit of
sinister psychology in verse is "The Unknown," by Elizabeth Berkeley.
Mrs. Berkeley's style is less restrained than that of Mrs. Jordan, and
presents a picture of stark, meaningless horror, the like of which is
not often seen in the amateur press. It is difficult to pass upon the
actual merit of so peculiar a production, but we will venture the
opinion that the use of italics, or heavy-faced type, is not desirable.
The author should be able to bring out all needed emphasis by words, not
printer's devices. The issue concludes with "Inspiration," a poem by
Lewis Theobald, Jun. The form and rhythm of this piece are quite
satisfactory, but the insipidity of the sentiment leaves much to be
desired. The whole poem savours too much of the current magazine style.
* * * * *
=The Coyote= for October is made notable by Editor Harrington's
thoughtful and well compiled article on "Worldwide Prohibition," wherein
an extremely important step in the world's progress is truthfully
chronicled. That legislation against alcohol is spreading rapidly
throughout civilization, is something which not even the densest
champions of "personal liberty" can deny. The utter emptiness of all
arguments in behalf of strong drink is made doubly apparent by the swift
prohibitor
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