The Winner

What Stephen Vincent Benét called the American muse is still alive and remarkably vigorous. When in our April, 1974, issue we solicited poems in the manner of Longfellow celebrating the forgotten exploits of Jonas Cattell, we expected no more than a few entries. Instead dozens of patriot-poets sent in ballads detailing Cattell’s run from Deptford to Fort Mercer to warn Colonel Christopher Greene of the approach of Von Donop’s Hessians. We were heartened to find so many people still capable of working in Longfellow’s verse form, but the number and quality of the entries made choosing a winner difficult. The poems varied greatly in length, and some were extremely scholarly. (Hunter Nicholson of Brandenburg, Kentucky, illuminated his poem with no fewer than thirteen footnotes.) Ron Wilson of Goffstown, New Hampshire, told the story in a majestic progression of thirteen limericks, while Robert Nicklas of Chicago stuck to Long-fellow’s clanging meter. Mr. Nicklas prefaced his submission with the statement, perhaps justified, that ”… you brought it on yourselves and should know better than to encourage the worst in people with a prize of silver.” The prize of silver, along with The American Heritage Book of the Revolution and Hansard’s House of Lords Debates for the year 1955, goes to Mrs. Milburn O. Truitt of Laotto, Indiana. Here is her tribute to Jonas Cattell—we feel that the rhyme “upon us / Kiwanis” alone should place her in the pantheon of the immortals. Our thanks to Mrs. Truitt and all her worthy runners-up.