The Little Review, January-February 1916 (Vol. 2, No. 10)Various
General
The Little Review, January-February 1916 (Vol. 2, No. 10)
Various
Literature, Modern -- 20th century -- Periodicals
And so again I thank your critic whose charity has made me feel that I
am on the road which leads to “Somewhere.” Even though at the end of my
journey I may not yet have reached the first mile stone.
_Virginia York, Washington, D. C._:
It is published in windy Chicago, THE LITTLE REVIEW. Claimed by
management, editors and its readers to be the very, very last, last word
in prose and poetry; it is sold at fifteen cents a copy. Normal-minded,
healthy folk will find it cheap at that price, because normal-minded,
healthy folk will find in it fifteen laughs for fifteen cents, despite
the fact that it is entirely a serious publication.
Years ago an editor sent me to the government hospital for the insane
just outside Washington, to interview a certain man. As I passed into
the building an elderly gentleman of profoundly respectful manner
presented me with a neatly-bound pamphlet which he said he had written,
edited and illustrated entirely by himself. Examining it later, the
cover-page proved to be a mass of meaningless, whirling lines labeled in
carefully printed letters, “The Croucher At The Door.” The reading
matter was wholly unintelligible.
A poet-friend has given me the October number of THE LITTLE REVIEW. The
vers libre poetry in the small magazine might easily be called “The
Croucher At The Door” for all the sense to be made of it. In fear and
trembling that my own unworthy brain might finally have addled,
relatives and friends were invited to peruse the contents of the volume.
I thank heaven they could make nothing of it.
One contribution entitled _Cafe Sketches_, by Arthur Davison Ficke, is
herewith reprinted for the benefit of readers of this page who are
denied access, and accompanying the laugh, to THE LITTLE REVIEW. Mr.
Ficke, after telling in the first verse that he is in a cafe, surrounded
by a “cortege of seven waiters,” mourning for a “boundlessly curious
lady,” recites in mournful meanderings:
Presently persons will come out
And shake legs.
I do not want legs shaken.
I want immortal souls shaken unreasonably.
I want to see dawn spilled across the blackness
Like a scrambled egg on the skillet;
I want miracles, wonders.
Tidings out of deeps I do not know ...
But I have a horrible suspicion
That neither you
Nor your esteemed consort
Nor I myself
Can ever provide these simple things
For which I am so patiently waiting.
Base people!
How I dislike you!
Maybe you think this is funny, but certainly it is not intended to be.
Seriousness, thick, black, dense seriousness is the keynote of THE
LITTLE REVIEW. This is vers libre with a vengeance. “Persons will come
out and shake legs. I do not want legs shaken.” Here we have the spirit
of the dance! It is quite evident Mr. Ficke does not wish joy to be
unconfined.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account