w:Mount Carroll Seminary

“ In the prophets, the Psalms and the Book of Job, nature is regarded as a transparent medium, which is consumed in the search after the divine and rolled away like a mist.
There is another kind of poetry equally purifying in which nature itself is dwelt upon and its glories are made so impressive that the soul is conscious of an unseen presence pervading it. ”

“ We can find nothing whose influence upon the mind is more inspiring and ennobling than nature, and nowhere is its meaning better interpreted than in poetry.
Beside having this power of awakening the soul to an appreciation of nature, poetry serves to quicken patriotism, to increase the mutual sympathies of man to man, and to teach wisdom. ”

“ Thus we see the uplifting power and purifying influence of poetry, but how can we really know and feel it unless we avail ourselves of the grand opportunity to become acquainted with the thoughts of the bard by reading them and reflecting upon them? Of wealth and power there is a sufficiency in our land, but among our people there is a lack of sentiment, idealism. Now more than ever we need the poet's power to make, us see more of the higher. ”

“ No wonder the Bible has been called "the Poem of God," for, as some one has said, "It contains more true sublimity, more exquisite beauty, more pure morality, more important history, and finer strains of poetry and eloquence than can be collected from all other books ever written." In Hebrew poetry nature is regarded as the middle ground between God and Man, as the garment of Deity. ”

“ In the book of Job the sublimest aspects of nature are pictured to the imagination with unparalleled majesty and vividness, yet one is scarcely conscious he is looking into nature, so powerful is the Hebrew poet to make nature only instrumental in arriving at an idea of God. ”

“ It may be that the aesthetic side of our nature has been neglected and we fail to see nature as a manifestation of wisdom, truth, and beauty and cannot understand her whisperings, then we have but to turn to poetry to find an elevating and ennobling interpretation. ”

“ It soothes and calms the wearied brain; it falls upon the ear like the gentle ripple of murmuring waters. The soul is pervaded by an atmosphere of innocence, purity and simplicity, so that for the time, all that is sordid and low is driven into oblivion, making life seem bright and full of cheer. ”

“ The stirring speeches of some of the principal actors in this play would certainly rouse any one's hatred and indignation against a tyrant and swell the spirit of patriotism.
In all ages the poet has been one of the most powerful factors in upholding the laws of his country and silently moulding the minds of the people to stand by right and justice. America has had her Whittier ”