Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 27, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 July 1893 — HONORING A GREAT POET. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

HONORING A GREAT POET.

The Bast of William Cullen Bryant to Be Mounted in New York, There is no sweeter name in the rnuge of American literature than that of William Cullen Bryant, and in erecting a monument to him in Central Park, New York, the people of the republic’s metropolis are alike paying tribute to genius and doing a work that will call out expressions of admiratio* throughout the land.

Before Mr. Bryant’s death, which occured in 1878, the sculptor-ar-tist, Launt Thompson* executed a bust of the poet which was acceptable to him and his family. Since his

death the bust has occupied a niche in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is now proposed to mount the bust upon a handsome monument in Central Park, New Y'ork. The monument and pedestal have been designed by Architect Ernest Flagg, of New York, and will be erected from the purest Italian marble. The cost of the monument and pedestal will be $30,000. On the monument will be

inscribed the titles of the poet’s greatest works. The name of the poet will be carved on the pedestal, and underneath it will be the word “Thanatopsis,” the title of his greatest poem. The life of Mr. Bryant was exceedingly sweet and pure. He was true to nature, and nature’s simplicity Is reflected In his verse. Between him and the great Milton a not unfavorable comparison could be instituted. While American literature shall endure the name of William Cullen Bryant will shine side by side with those of Washington Irving and James Fenimore Cooper.

Our Mother-Tongue. If we reverence it as we ought we will be on our guard not to insult it by violating its rules. We will not say, “You hadn’t ought to do this,” or “He ain’t a-goin’ to do that.” We avoid that last and worst error of the vulgar, the double negative, says Harper’s Bazar. We will be above misplacing moods and tenses, and putting the nominative case where the objective belongs by right. Many people who ordinarily speak their mother-tongue correctly are at fault when they have to do with pronouns. Pronouns are stumblingblocks beyond all other parts of speech. “A person does not know what to do with their hands,” they say, or, “One does Dot give their be3t things away fer nothing.” If speaking of two persons, you will hear that “ltuby has invited John and I to supper,” or, “Lawrence is going to Chicago with Mildred and I.” The placing of another name before the conjunction blinds them to the awkward ness of Setting I in the objective case.

The word “nice” is frequently misused and taken from its significance of neat, delicate, dainty, to stand for agreeable, charming, or virtuous. Thus a girl was talking to another of that decidedly objectionable member of society, a burglar, and alluding to one in particular, a man undergoing a sentence of imprisonment, said, with emphasis, “I don’t think he was a nice young man. ” A “nice” girl, by the way, often does duty in describing a young woman who, whatever else she may be, Is more than nice if she is gentle, good, winsome, and well bred, and whose niceness ought to be taken for granted. “Lovely, in the same way, is applied equally to a favorite pudding Or a beloved relative. “First-rate” serves as a qualifying adjective when scenery, fine clothes, a pleasant time, or, oh! worst and saddest of misnomers, the “natural” appearance of a corpse are the topics which the speaker has in mind.

An Ignorant Singer. Catalani, a gifted songstress and a lovely woman, was the idol of society and the favorite of fortune. But she had neither knowledge nor culture, and her ignorance sometimes made her stumble into ludicrous mistakes. One of her greatest triumphs in London was the singing of “God Save the King.” The town went mad over her rendering of the national anthem. Two hundred guineas were paid her for singing it once. But she always sang it “God shave the King.” At the court of Saxe-Weimar, she noticed the marked attention paid to a gentleman of majestic appearance. “Who is that?" she asked. “That, madam, is the celebrated Goethe," was the reply. “Goethe—Goethe?” asked the puzzled singer, to whom music was the only profession that brought celebrity. “On what instrument does he play?” “He is the renowned author of the ‘Sorrows of Werther,’ madam.” "Oh, yes, I remember.” Then abruptly addressing the great man, she said with fascinating vivacity: “Oh, sir, what an admirer I am of Werther!”. Goethe, always sensitive to woman’s praise, bowed profoundly. “I Dever,” she continued, “saw anything so laughable in my life. What a capital farce it is?” “ ‘The Sorrows of Werther’ a farce, madam?” exclaimed the poet, coldly, annoyed that the most sentimental of his books should be thus spoken of. “Oh, yes,” added Catalani, laughing loudly, “never was there anything so ridiculous. ” She was referring to a burlesque of }he story, which she had seen* acted. Goethe did not recover himself for the whole evening. Catalani’s husband, a handsome Frenchman, was even more unintellectual than his wife—he was stupid. Once, having found the pitch of the piano too high, she said after the rehearsal to her husband: “The piano

Is too high; will you see that It is made lower, before the concert?” When the evening came Catalani was annoyed to And that the piano had not been altered. Her husband sent for the carpenter, who declared that he had sawed off two inches from each leg, as he had been ordered to da “Surely it can’t be too high now, my dear!” said the stupid hus* band, soothingly.

Cider Vinegar. Good cider vinegar can be made only from good cider. Cider made from ripe apples is stronger than that made earlier, when the apples are yet greep. Put the barrel on its side, and All it with good cider to the bung, that the pomace may be thrown out as the cider ferments. Fill up the barrel twice a day when fermentation is in progress. At the close of fermentation the cider should be racked off carefully and put into another clean barrel, or the same one aft-r it has been well washed out. If there are enough barrels, it is better to All them only half full after fermentation is Anished, as this exposes a greater surface to the air. The more air the better the vinegar will make; hence, a darkehed airy outhouse is better than a close cellar for tbe storage of the barrels. Cider vinegar is not weakened by exposure to the air or injured by freezing; and if the barrels are only half full there will be no overAow from freezing. It is not necessary to add anything to the cider; nor is it desirable to add anything, except some old vinegar, after the cider has fermented. The cider will be converted into vinegar in about twelve months, but will steadily increase in strength. The tightness required of a cider vinegar barrel has become proverbial. Leakage is what haunts the nights of the vinegar maker The staves of the vinegar barrel must be free of sapwood, and twice the usual thickness. Wooden hoops are better than iron ones, as the cider will cut through the iron hoops in short order when once it gets to them. Worms, the larvae of a Ay which usually deposits her eggs in the chime, make much bother, and must be carefully guarded against. Naturally enough they prefer sapwood; and on this account as well as the cider soaking through sapwood, it should be avoided. It is said that occasionally painting the barrel with coal oil will kill the larvae. But it is best to prevent the deposit of the eggs, which may be done by keeping the barrel in a dark place from March to October.

A Merry Clergyman. The Rev. Joseph Haven, who preached in Rochester, N. H., during the last quarter of the last century, has been always remembered for his genial spirit and his inexhaustible humor. One story told of him has many parallels, but it is quite as likely to be true in his case as in any. A boy had been guilty of some gjia.vp ope rise, and yet would not confess it. “I cam tell who did it,” said the parson, and accordingly he called together all the boys suspected, and explained to them that he had conAned a rooster under a kettle in a darkened room. One after another, they must pass in and touch the kettle; when the guilty boy touched it, he might expect to hear the rooster crow. The lads Aled in, and out again, and were made to display their Angers. All but those of one lad were sooty; he, the guilty one, had not ventured to touch the telltale kettle. One day the old minister was measuring some land, carrying one end of the chain while a young man carried the other. Just as they were drawing It tight, the young man quoted the adage: “Satan can only go the length of his chain.” “Pull, pull,” instantly replied Mr. Haven. “We will see.” Walking in his garden with a friend, they came to a tree laden with very fair, inviting apples. “There,” said Mr. Haven, picking one of the Anest and presenting it to his friend, “I recommend you to try that apple.” His expectations excited, and his mouth watering, the gentleman took a generous bite, and found only astringent bitterness. Mr. Haven looked merrily into his puckered face. “They need recommending, don’t they?” said he.—Youth’s Companion.

Garner has a Talking Monkey. Professor Garner, who went to Africa to study monkey-language, has written to his brother in Sydney a letter published in the Sydney Evening News, in which he says: “I have succeeded beyond my wildest anticipations—and here I am safe on the coast, just reeking with quinine, the proud possessor of a chimpanzee that can say ‘TenakoePakeha,’ which is, you know, the Maori for ‘Good day, stranger;’ a gorilla that knows about twenty words of Fijian; and a female orang-outang that has picked up ‘Tonner and blitzen’ from my German valet, and has, judging from her actions, quite fallen in love with. I have also got written down, which is more important, nearly 200 monkey words.”

Roads of Ireland. The best roads in the world are those to be found in Ireland. They are far superior to those in England or in Germany. Tourists from every country pronounce them unrivalled. This splendid road system is directly in the hands of the government, with a government inspector for each county, who examines the roads and gives a certificate for the excellency of the work done before the road contractors are paid by the government. And this government inspection of the roads takes place every three months, and the contractors are thus always made to attend to the repairs of the road.

He Hadn’t Changed. Dr. Berrian, a former rector ol Trinity Parish, in New York City, was an indifferent preacher, but a fine executive officer and a manol great personal kindliness. Withal he was very simple-hearted. A country clergyman, half starved on a salary ol five hundred dollars a year, came to Dr. Berrian asking his influence to get him a better charge. “Dear me!" answered the good old man; “1 don’t see why you young clergymen want to change so often. Why, I have been here in Trinity Church for forty yean, fad neter bav* thought of leaving.*

WM. CULLEN BRYANT.

PROPOSED BRYANT MONUMENT.