We have a great issue of this Delphi, Indiana newspaper in hand and especially of interest to us at www.jameswhitcombriley.com is the following article. The mystery of James Whitcomb Riley grows. Did he, in the very year of his death and with paralysis crippling his "good side," produce the great artwork that we duplicate? Sorry about the "grainy scan job." See what you think:
WHAT RILEY SAW IN DEER CREEK
BY JENNIFER ARCHIBALD, Staff Writer, Carroll County Comet
Deer Creek was more than just a source of
inspiration for poet James Whitcomb Riley. In its clear waters he found
the reflection of his youth, a soothing for his soul, and the promise of things
to come.
Walking along the banks of Deer Creek, he returned to
his childhood. The current took him back to the days of simple joys and
wonderment. Along Deer Creek he saw the sun dancing on the water, dragon
flies darting in and out of sight, bull frogs bounding on the bank and "lightnin'
bugs at night."
No one can live in a dream world all the time.
When those friendly shadows in life turned into menacing creatures. Riley
escaped to Deer Creek, where his fears were washed away. In its cool
waters, he found peace and contentment.
He also came to the water for refreshment and awakening
of his senses. At Deer Creek, his thoughts could flow and he could find
some of the answers to the mysteries of life.
Riley once told a reporter that God gave him the
thoughts for his poems; he just put them into words What better place to be
receptive to the voice of God, than an idyllic spot of His creation.
Riley inherited his concept of Heaven from his
mother. She believed "growing old in Heaven is growing young"
(from Minnie Belle Mitchell's book, James Whitcomb Riley as I Knew Him).
To Riley, Heaven was a perpetuation of childhood and
all it represents - wonderment, happiness, faith, and trust. In the Deer
Creek current, he saw the continuum of childhood. He became immersed in
the seen and the unseen. He could look ahead and know that Heaven was just
around the bend.
Just as Deer Creek has varying depths, some of Riley's
poems also have multiple levels.
Delphi historian and literary explorer Charles Gerard
says Riley did not just write dialectic poems about common people, crippled
children, and nature. Certain poems, according to Gerard, have deeper
themes beneath the surface. some of these relate to the blending of
childhood and eternity, and others depict underlying spiritual symbols.
sometimes Riley hides the true meaning in the shadows and sometimes he brings it
to the light.
Gerard plans to write an essay on Riley's poem,
"On the Banks o' Deer Crick." He said Riley was not just writing
about the creek and its banks, but also about his concept of Heaven. To
help him see the meaning more clearly, Gerard translated the first stanza into
Russian. He said that just as Riley had translated God's thoughts into
human words, Gerard used a translation process to help analyze the poem.
A ;local story concerning Riley is a summation of
his thoughts and feelings about Deer Creek and everlasting childhood.
Delphi resident Ray Orr was the "Huckleberry Finn
of Deer Creek." He and his friends had adventures there. They
fished and swam in Deer Creek and ran barefoot along the banks.
In 1916, when Orr was 10 years old, he was sitting on
the bank fishing. He had on a straw hat, and his trouser legs were rolled
up so he could dangle his feet in the water.
As Orr told the story on a video tape in 1996, an
artist was painting along the banks and came up to Orr and said, "I'll give
you a quarter if you'll sit there and let me paint your picture."
"So of course I took it," Orr said.
He sat there for what seemed like a long time, and then
a water spider came crawling up his leg.
"I was afraid to move; I was afraid I would spoil
the picture," Orr said.
When the oil painting was completed and Orr had his
quarter, he ran home and told his dad. He told him that Mr. Riley had
painted the picture. He recognized James Whitcomb Riley because he had
seen him at the Milroy place, about a mile from Orr's home. The creek runs
behind the old Milroy farm.
As Orr told the story, his dad said they had to go back
and see if they could get the paining. They came back home with the prized
possession. Orr said Riley signed the painting, but not with his real
name. He used a pseudonym, as he often did with his early poetry.
"He didn't want to be known as an artist; he
wanted to be known as a writer," Orr said. Not many even knew
that Riley took art lessons from Harry Milroy.
In paining Orr's picture on the banks of Deer Creek,
Riley did more than capture a moment in time. He preserved on canvas, his
memory of childhood and vision of Heaven. At that given moment, Ray Orr
was the embodiment of what Riley wrote about.
Orr kept the painting all his life and at his death in
1997, it was passed on to his children.
When Riley died in 1916, an editorial entitled
"Gone to His Dream Children" was published in the Chicago Post.
The first paragraph is reprinted below.
"The man who had the key to the kingdom of
childhood has entered its portals, and the gates have closed behind him.
Little Orphant Annie and the barefoot boy bade him welcome. By either hand
they took him and led him through its fields, where the cool greenness never
fades and the starry wild flowers bloom year in and year out."
OTHER PICS FROM CARROLL COUNTY ARE IN THIS WONDERFUL ISSUE AND WE REPRODUCE THEM FOR RILEY SURFERS:
Click each thumbnail to see the full-size picture, then use your web browser's back button or arrow to return to this page.
