A CHANCE FOR POETS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 461, 20 March 1909, Page 9

A CHANCE FOR POETS.

Has it ever struck living poets and their, publishers that they do not take full advantage of the opportunities 10, advertise by irteans of ainthologies? The question is suggested by Mr. Adam L. Gowans, whk has Sublished with Messrs. Gowans and Gray a ttle book called "Lyric Masterpieces by Living Authors.'" Masterpieces, is a big name to apply to some'of'the'verses, perhaps, but the quality generally is good enough; it is in.quantity and variety that the selection ;is Mfking. Mr.. Gowans' says that he would be glad to have his attention drawn to any poems of real merit which he has overlooked, but how are., we to //know jvhich ho has overlooked aiid which he could not get? Hardly more than a dozen poets are represented, and there is nothing at all of some of the best; men; anyone familiar with modern verse.'could draw his • attention to scores of pieces of high merit that he has not..used. .And.Mr. Gowans himself indicates what wo take to be the cause of these omissions; it.is that he cannot generally obtain permission to reprint' copyright' matter unless he pays for it, and this is possiblo in . the case of a sixpenny anthology. It seems- that here again'.- .we have something to learn from' German business methods. _ Mr. Gowans says that in Germany permission to rcjirint selections, is freely given, and ho.mentions a.cheap volume of modern lyrics .of ' five hundred pages in which every. German contemporary poet ol note, is represented. ' This generous policy, he believos, is one of -the causes that make German poets so> much better knofrn in their country than ours are' here. Tho poet who believes in his own stuff finds it'as hard to push himself forward as does'a briefless bar-' rister.' Somo' years ago one boldly advertised himself by, means of sandwichmen in the, Strand, but we, shall not easily be reconciled to ."Trj > " Swinburne's Roundels" '.or "Austin's Lyrics are the Best." .Representation in an'anthology is a different matter; and though it seems unreasonable that profitable publications , should \be mado up-of free copyright matter, we should suppose that in the present state of demand, for.pootry a trifling fee should cover a' good deal. We think .we are; not mistaken in saying that not a, single volume of (versa was published during 1903., by the from whom Mr. Gowans selects, and even in poetry there is some relation between demand and supply. Clearly it is desirable that they should be better known.—"Manchester Guardian."