Decatur County, Indiana - Chapter 21: Literary Glimpses, 1915

Chapter 21: Literary Glimpses

It may be a surprise to many to know that Decatur county has produced several people who ha\'e courted the muses, but when a request for original verse for a chapter in this volume was made, a hearty response came from all parts of the county. While it is not possible to reproduce all that has been submitted, yet sufficient is given in succeeding pages to convince the most skeptical that the county has some who can at least "lisp in numbers." It may be true that some of the lisping is not up to the Shakespearean standard, but there is satisfaction in knowing that many people in the county have made an effort to emulate the immortal Bard of x\von. The author does not presume to say that all of the verse submitted has real poetic merit ; it is given for what it is worth, without any comment, and the reader may be the judge of its value.

The late Will Cumback is one of the prominent writers the count}^ has had, and some of his verses ha^-e the true poetic gift. As an orator and statesman, he is better known to those familiar with Indiana's famous men than as a poet. But though the number of poems which he wrote was not large, they were all of a character which made them a factor for happiness with all who read them. Mr. Cumback was born in Franklin county, Indiana, March 24, 1829. Being reared on the farm, his early educational advantages were limited. Studying law and beginning its practice, he soon attained considerable reputation as a public speaker. When barely twentyfive he was elected to Congress. Following that he was presidential elector, paymaster of the army, state senator, lieutenant-governor and collector of internal revenues. During all the time that he was serving in public office he wrote many articles for newspapers and spent much time lecturing.

A Sabbath Day

Smiley Fowler, who is now on the editorial staff of the Grccnsbnrg Nen's. has written many poems, stories and feature articles for papers, which have been copied in newspapers throughout the country. He collaborated with George Gary Eggleston in the latters novel, "Jack Shelby," the scene of the story being partly laid in Decatur county. He has published serially a newspaper "Literati of Indiana," in which he reviewed the work of some twenty authors of the state. He now has in preparation a volume entitled "The Quality of Recent American Verse," taking up the period between the death of Whitman and Whittier and the present time. He intends to pubhsh a small collection of his verse within the next few months. Two of his most striking poems are given.

The Sylvan Fane A Son Of Adam

One of the most prolific versifiers of the county was the late Elmer E. Meredith. Born at Sardinia, December 21, 1864, he graduated at DePauw University in 1887, became a lawyer at Muncie, Indiana, but was soon compelled to forsake his profession and go to Colorado in search of health. He married Carrie Wynn in 1894, but lived only three years afterward^ dying at his father's home in Sardinia. He was a young man of much promise and had already made a name for himself in his chosen profession. He wrote a large number of dialect poems for newspapers, and showed a genuine poetic gift. He was a member of the Western Association of Writers. Two of his poems are given.

The dear old cider makin' time is a comin' round agin, An' I feel so awful tickled that it seems almost a sin; Fer onct I heard the preacher say, with face twelve inches long, "When little chaps get tickled they's surely sumthin' wrong;" But I can't help bein' happy, when I see the orchard trees Jist a breakin' down with apples, an' I hear the hummin' bees Gittin' just so drunk on cider, that they gether everywhere, That they stagger in their flyin' an' wobble through the air. No matter what the preacher says, it surely is a crime Fer boys to not be tickled in the cider makin' time.

At last we git the barrel full an' then we have to stop And turn it on its bosom with the bunghole on the top. Then comes the sweetest pleasure that mortal ever saw, Of suckin' hallelujah through the bunghole with a straw. I know you'll all forgive me for borin' you with rhyme, Fer I feel so awful jolly in the cider makin' time.

With 'is cane upon our pants. Though all things else I may forgit One mem'ry sure will linger yit An' kinder make me scringe an' twitch An' make my trousers smart and itch; Though all things else may pass away I'll feel until my dyin' day The lickens that I uster catch In Deacon Jones's melon patch!

A number of poems have been submitted, but no data of the authors being obtained the poems are given without any personal mention of the composer.

A Retrospect Take Heed

The following little piece of humorous verse was published in the Indianapolis Sentinel during the Spanish-American War, and the names of local persons (as history recalls) were analogous to those prominent in the newspaper dispatches at the time. Mr. Stewart was at that time a reporter on a Greensburg paper. For a number of years he has been the Washington correspondent for Eastern papers, occupying a high position.

The Grapevine Swing Good Bye, Old Home, Good Bye

Have you forgotten, dear, the time 'most fifty years ago. When to this house we came to stay. I loved you then, you know. And all the years that we have lived beneath its sheltering eaves Have been filled up with blessings that no pain or sorrow leaves. But now the home is sold and we, although our hearts are sore. Will never have the right again to enter that old door; We'll have to bid farewell to all that every night and day A paradise has been to us, but as we go we'll say -

'Twas in the chimney corner there, beside the mantel tree That held the clock which told the time so long for you and me. But that old clock will never tell for us the passing hours. And your old chair went with it when they sold this home of ours. There's nothing left to keep us here, so we will go away. And as we leave this sacred spot, we'll bow our heads and say -

When you first came to this old home your cheeks were like the rose, Yours eyes were like the violet that in the valley grows. Your face is old and wrinkled now, but looks as young to me. Try as I may, your girlish form is all that I can see; You're worn out with the cares of life, your hair is thin and gray. But love for me looks from your eyes as on our wedding day. If I could bear for you the pain that lines your tear-wet cheek, I'd gladly give my life for you, and say in accents meek -

The Old Black Shawl The Old Water Mill

In fancy I view it - the old water mill That stood tall and grand, at the foot of the hill. The glad happy song of the soft rippling stream, Like a lullaby, comes to me now in my dream; The old mill dam, glistening bright in the sun That scattered its gems on the waves as they run.

Up the long stairs was the railroad. That carried the grain from the wagon's load. At the old mill door, on the horse's back. The freckled faced boy, with corn in a sack. That was shelled by hand the night before, By the dear home folks on the kitchen floor.

Then we hunted for pennies the miller so sly Had dropped just to see the glad light in our eye As onward we scampered, still searching for more, And wondering how ever they got on the floor Then we waded knee deep in the old tail race, Or fished with long poles, and tan on our face.

But gone with the past, as new scenes come in view, Is the water mill, and joys that we knew. With the dear ones that loved us, and lived with us then Who will walk this world with us, ah! never again, But the sweetest memories of life linger still Around happy days in the old water mill.

The Tree On The Tower

Some extracts of Lewis A. Harding, the editor of this volume, have been included at the request of the publishers and his many personal friends in the county. They are taken from his volume, "The Call of the Hour," and printed with the permission of the Sunflower Publishing Company, Wichita, Kansas.

The Great Foundation

The scene is awful now! Those sheets of flame Envelope roof and dome and spire, while clouds Of smoke ascend. - Oh, what could drown or tame

Those deadly flames that rage beneath the shrouds Of bursting smoke! Behold! that splendid tower. Like some great martyr's sacred head, is bent Amid the withering flames; and all the power

I wonder who it is that knows just who or where old Santa is; and after Christmas where he goes with those reindeer of his. If I could see an Esquimau who livesup North where it is cold, I surely think that he would know, for Santa lives up there I'm told.

He doesn't make a bit of stir, but always comes when I'm in bed ; my mamma says he's dressed in fur, and papa says his nose is red. I thought I heard him at our door, or coming down our kitchen flue; and mamma saw him at the store, - I wonder who he is, don't you? If I'd sit up I might find out, but papa talks so much of him, and mamma's seen him too, no doubt, and so I think I'll just ask them.

But all of the efforts of Decatur county writers have not been directed toward poetic composition. Some have turned to prose and their product has attained more than a local circulation. One of the most notable prose works produced in the county is a volume on "The Reproach of Capital Punishment," by Hamilton Mercer, the editor of the Greensburg Democrat. This was issued first in 1914 and received very favorable comment from newspapers and magazines generally. This volume is a very effective weapon against all the arguments advanced in favor of capital punishment. Mr. Mercer has made a careful study of his subject, and his wide experience as an ' editor has enabled him to see the subject from every side.

Mr. Mercer begins his book by the discussion of the subject of vested authority, and from the very first sentence to the close he shows that he is a logician. He maintains that "governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, and proceeds to show that if magistrates put men to death they are doing no better than an individual who murders." This is true because the power of the magistrates comes from the individual. In this first chapter Mr. Mercer shows his familiarity with Blackstone and other authorities in jurisprudence.

In the discussion of "Moses and the Death Penalty," the author shows his splendid knowledge of the Bible. He proves that that law requiring death penalty originated when the recognized rule was "blood for blood."' But if this be now carried out, "man is nearly two thousand years behind his Creator, who permitted the last blood offering to his name to be sacrificed on Calvary." If we hold the old Jewish law concerning the death penalty for murder, then we must hold it for the other crimes that were punishable by death under the law of Moses.

Mr. Mercer shows very clearly that capital punishment is administered' not' for the reform of the criminal, or would-be criminals, but out of the

Other writers of prose include Will Cumback, Lewis A. Harding, Smiley Fowler, Orville Thomson and the various newspaper men of the county, all of whom have written some excellent articles on a wide variety of subjects. The Standard in 1910 had a resume of interesting historical facts gleaned from the early files of that paper. The News has a special correspondent, Noah Rogers, who has written many local historical articles for his paper. The Democrat and Review have also had special historical articles from time to time. Lewis A. Harding has issued one volume, "The Call of the Hour," which has elicited much favorable comment. The volume contains a variety of prose and poetry and shows the author in his best mood. Favorable reviews have l:)een made of this work by such critics as the Indianapolis News, the Kansas City Garjcttc Globe, the Pittsburg Ga:octtc, the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Topcka Daily Capital, the Boston Globe, Portland Orcgonian, etc. Another work of Mr. Harding's is entitled "The Preliminary Diplomacy of the Spanish-American War," with an introduction by Dr. Amos S. Heiskey, instructor in political science and international law in Lidiana University. In 19 15 was published Mr. Harding's "A Few Spoken Words," with an introduction by Prof. John M. Clapp, head of the department of English of Lake Forest College. He has written many articles for newspapers and magazines. The late Orville Thomson published a history of the Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteers, setting up the type and doing his own press work. This is remarkable in view of the fact that he was more than eighty years of age at the time. Smiley Fowler is a versatile writer, turning his hand with equal facility to either prose or poetry. Some of his short articles have been widely copied in the newspapers of the country. The addresses and lectures of the late Will Cumback have been gathered in a volume and have found a place in many of the best libraries of the nation.