POETRY. —Hine Moe, the Maori Maiden, by Joseph Earle 011ivant (A.
R. Mowbray.)—Mr. 011ivant has adopted the metre of "Hiawatha," perhaps a more perilous adventure than even the octosyllabic verse of Scott. He is fairly successful. More we cannot say. His chief fault is dividing the adjective from the substantive, a licence which - should be very sparingly employed. On the whole, the verse has a pleasant and harmonious sound. The scenery of the country has been very carefully studied. In fact, Hine Moa is a very creditable effort, which we cannot help wishing had had a more promising theme. Here is a specimen of Mr. 011ivant's verse :— " Then no more did Hine Moe
Carol as a lark at early Morn, or frolic with her comrades In the waves of Rotuma, Dowsed no looser as the sunset Bathed afar the purple mountain ; Bat her face was wan as wintry Landscape when the snowflake falleth ; And from lips athirst, as country When the scorching blast in Spring-time Hope of early blossom withers, Fell the bitter wail of sadness."
—The Daughter of Jephthah, and other Poems, by W. St. Clair. Baddeley. (Pickering.)—Mr. Baddeley has some thought and some power of expression, but we cannot say that this expression always finds a suitable vehicle in his verse. Is this metre P- " All through my life, 0 God ! host thou heard my voice, Even as an alien in my father's house. Ere the sun rose in the morning, and at eve, Thou, 0 Jehovah, hest bow'd down thine ear."
The rhymed verse is better. "Evelyn Esmond" is inferior to the first piece. It is an indifferent story and ill-told .—.,Emilia; a Drama of the Fourth Century. By "J. W." (Wyman.)—The verse is correct, but feeble, and the drama has but little dramatic power. There is not a " situation " in it from beginning to end. The writer, however, has studied his subject carefully ; avoided mistakes and anachronisms, and produced a book which has, at least, the merit of being a creditable academical exercise.
Previous page
