Our Glory Roll, and Other National Poems. By W. C.
Bennett. (Routledge.)—Mr. Bennett is much below his better standard in this frothy volume. His national poems read like the beginnings of Daily Teegraph leaders collected and put in verse. Our Glory Roll is a string of names, puffed with that undiscriminating praise which is worse than open satire. When we begin with Bing Arthur and come down to Mr. Bright, we are tempted to go a little further back to Brat, and a little further forward to Mr. Beales, MA. Then Mr. Bennett has not done wisely in completing Lord Macaulay's "Fragment on the Armada." We do not speak only of the execution, though that is diffuse and somewhat given to rant. But the abrupt ending of the original was almost the finest part of it, and Macaulay knew that too well to weaken it by repetition.
Previous page
