These three poems are reproduced in order that the reader may himself judge of their merit; and because to a certain extent they convey an idea of Jeannette’s mental state at the time.
A Questionnaire.
I.
Why was not room made for thy mother in the inn?
Why wert thou manger-cradled, Lord? Could not heirship
From Israel’s greatest king procure for her
Who bore thee, more than a pallet of straw in a stall;
And for thee a cradle of fine linen and soft down?
Why did not an angel whisper: “Blest inn-keeper,
Give thy best, this is Christ, Son of the Living Lord?
Is the world to know only its own? Thankless man,
Never to practice thy teaching; or see thy star?
Is he waiting for signs and wonders; believing
Battalions of angels will compel him to worship?
Thy birth-night, did not the heavens declare thy glory?
Did not an angel choir sing thy cradle hymn?
Yet to man thou remainest the carpenter’s son;
Though the wise of earth waited—and prophets foretold;
Lauding Bethlehem of Judah as thy birthplace.
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“And thou Bethlehem, Land of Judah,
Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah,
For out of thee shall come forth a ruler,
Who shall be shepherd of thy people Israel.”
II.
Are only common people, pawns of life, shepherds,
Who abide in the fields and keep watch day and night,
To see thy angel herald and hear his evangel:
“Behold I bring to you good tiding of great joy,
For unto you is born a saviour—Jesus the Lord?”
Do only dreamy shepherds like the Maid of France,
See and hear thy choir as it sings: “Glory to God,
Exalted One—on earth peace, good will towards men?”
Do only the old and feeble, living in the past,
Or waiting for the consolation of Israel,
Like Simeon; cling to life until they see the Lord?
Do only the lonely Annas, eighty years widowed,
Know thy face because of their fasting and prayers?
When will we who delve for gold, lift our eyes skyward;
And seeing the star, worshipfully come and give;
Remembering thou didst come and give—as prophets sang:
“And thou Bethlehem, Land of Judah,
Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah,
For out of thee shall come forth a ruler,
Who shall be shepherd of thy people Israel.”
III.
Is thy epiphany known only to wise men,
Living near the morning sun?—Those who saw thy star
And followed as it led, came to worship, saying:
“Israel, where is the One born king of the Jews?”
Are only those who are led by an angel or a star,
To know and worship thee? While we, though thou art here,
In our own town, to be our guest and bear our sins;
Refuse to take thee in; saying: “There is no room.”
Will but the few, the wise and great, coming a long way,
Find thee—having found, worship—having worshipped,
Give treasured gold, frankincense and myrrh; while we,
When thou knockest at the door of our dwelling,
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Tenanted by false gods, say: There is no room here;
We entertain more appropriate guests, old friends;
Go to the public khan; there you will find shelter,
A stall, a manger and a little straw—Yet the prophets sang:
“And thou Bethlehem, Land of Judah,
Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah,
For out of thee shall come forth a ruler,
Who shall be shepherd of thy people Israel.”
IV.
As Herod the King, not loving thy appearing,
Shall we, when Magi tell us thou hast come, decree
A massacre of babes; and in blind and willful
Destruction, mark our mad way with the red blossoms
Of martyrdom; until Rama is a land of tears
And Rachel unconsoled weeps for her children?
Since it was not God’s will that the babe should perish,
The foster-father a dreamer, was angel-warned;
“Hearken! Arise! take the young child and his mother;
Flee to Egypt and remain until I bring word;
At Herod’s death return.” Thus the child escaped.
Not so the man, whose mission was death in my place.
Though he went about doing good, teaching and healing;
I followed to betray; and after his arrest,
Cried: “Give us Barabbas! Crucify him! Crucify!”
He died for his sheep, deserted, though prophets sang:
“And thou Bethlehem, Land of Judah,
Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah,
For out of thee shall come forth a ruler,
Who shall be shepherd of thy people Israel.”
Other Little Boats.
I.
For His chosen of the land of Canaan, God made six seas;
But low-lying Galilee, skirted by oleander trees,
Resting in the bosom—reflecting the emerald hills
Of Gennesareth, Valley of Abundance, was God’s gift
To His son; the place to begin his ministry to men.
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II.
Capernaum, on the western shore, where loved to rest
Desert-dried camel drivers, traveling to Damascus;
Was to the Messiah, nearest home, the place loved best.
These homeless wanderers, by sweet visions were elated,
Charmed by music of the sea, God had consecrated.
III.
The fisher boats of Bethsaida, manned by forceful men,
Pinnaces of Herod, patrols of the Roman nation,
Glided over the limpid sea, or rode at their station;
While near the vine-clad villas, moored to wave-kissed wall,
Cushioned craft rocked sleepily, waiting twilight’s call.
IV.
To Capernaum, one day, came a man whose face was sad;
They should have cried Hosanna! but her people were not glad.
A few thrilled with gladness and asked: Who might be he?
Wise blind, among them, answered: “Why, a carpenter, he;”
And their evil spirits trembled, while gladness lit the sea.
V.
With eyes of gladness, He beheld shepherds guarding the flocks;
Husbandmen hedging tender vines about with walls of rocks;
And workmen toiling mightily to harvest the ripe grain.
With eyes of sadness, He saw man, whom God had made master,
Unprotected; straying, shepherdless, courting disaster.
VI.
The father whispered: “The hour is here, shepherd my sheep;
The wage for atonement.” So He gave the call: “Do not weep;
I come to offer the bread of life to the hungry soul;
To open the eyes of the blind; to make the broken whole.”
Did his own receive Him? They crowded Him into a boat.
VII.
From this floating altar, He spoke to them of the sower:
“Behold, there went out a sower to sow; it came to pass;”
And other parables; until twilight, dispersed the mass.
Then His message delivered and the day’s work done at last,
Said to His disciples: “Let us pass to the other side.”
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VIII.
Following after, “there were with Him other little boats;”
Bearing those minded to receive him, having heard His call.
The Master slept, cradled on the bosom of His own sea.
His deep serenity was not troubled. Why should it be?
He had spent the day healing; and tendering life to all.
IX.
Mid-way a storm arose and whipped the sea to anger.
His disciples watching the wild, wind-lashed waves pile high,
Were frightened. Thinking the boat sinking, began to cry:
“Master, carest thou not that we perish? The boat will fill!”
And he arose, rebuked the wind, saying: “Peace be still.”
X.
They wondered at the calm. The wind knew the voice of God.
They had not said: “O Master! save the other little boats!
The men following us are in distress! We are with Thee.
There is no one with them who can still tempest and sea!”
And the Master wept, knowing His own received Him not.
A Genealogy.
Fancy, fairest of the fairies,
Wedded Light, first of creation.
Unto them was born a daughter,
Hope, most graceful of earth’s creatures.
Vision, traveling from earth to heaven,
Saw her flitting in high places;
Charmed by her face and figure,
Boldly made her his prisoner.
When he found all dreams were of her,
And his thoughts clung close about her,
Fearful now that he might lose her,
To increase the ties that bound her,
Gave her Love and thus he held her.
Thus was born earth’s fairest daughter;
Eldest child, and the most tender;
Who brought with her of God’s treasure,
Service in unending measure.
This was given unto Adam,
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As he slept in peaceful Eden.
To them came a second daughter,
Of mystic, immobile figure,
Who never strayed from her way,
Nor wavered in her purpose.
’Twas Faith, invisible virgin;
Pure priestess of Immortality.
The incense from her altar fires,
Bears man’s prayers to infinity.
Next unto them was born Reason,
Skeptical chemist, who would test.
All pearls in mind’s muddy acid;
And if found unsoluble bury them,
Wrapped in the shroud of denial.
Reason wandering in the dark,
Met Caution, a sombre maiden;
To them was given a son, Doubt;
Dark visaged and night loving;
Shadow to himself and others;
Blind leader of the nearly blind.
Hope saddened by a first shadow,
Sought relief in fair Tomorrow,
Land of Sunshine, Realm of Gladness;
And there found Truth, dwelling sublime,
In isolation, on a mountain.
“Come unto man’s world, brightest jewel;
Cure earth’s sadness, dispel darkness;
Bring light to Vision, end Doubt’s mission,
Demonstrate Reason, cure sick Faith.”
Truth, unarrayed, unafraid, came;
First beseeching from Infinity
A kindly monitor for man.
“Give to man’s soul to know the right.”
“Thou goest, and thou art the right.”
“But Darkness, Doubt and Reason,
Hedge him about. What shall be done,
To keep his soul from strangulation?”
“I have given Vision, Hope and Faith;
And Truth when found will make him free.”
“He needs more; Darkness and the Devil,
Have entered thy fair garden.”
“Take then, and bear to him, O Truth,
The flame-like, still, small voice, Conscience.”
[pg 48] The first month Jeannette resumed teaching was the stormiest; the children tried her out; she came through victorious, her supremacy established. By the end of the third month all the children loved her; and then things ran along so smoothly that she described her life to Mrs. Allen as: “so contemplative and uneventful as to make the social dissipations you promise an inducement; a year’s shopping, of clothing, stationery, a typewriter and books, makes the visit almost necessary; and then I shall see you and Judge Allen, that makes it most attractive.”
During the year her school had slowly grown until it ranked as the best country school in the county. The children had been transformed in appearance and disposition, until the neighborhood noticed the change, and people would say, “there goes one of Jeannette’s children.”
In the spring of 1922 one of the young men who had graduated in Jeannette’s class came to Hyden. He made inquiry and found out that she was earning fifty dollars a month teaching a small school on Big Creek. He then called upon the county superintendent and the county judge and informed them that a year or so before she had refused a position in the State University that paid more than three times the salary she was receiving; giving as the reason, that her duty was to her own people.