Letter
Sir – I am very distressed by what can only
be described as the lamentable state of poetry
in this country today. In the past we have enjoyed
a fine tradition of inspired, well-crafted
verse from the likes of Hubert Whitford. These days,
however, we are treated to flimsy and shallow crazes
of people deaf to the nuances of scansion and metre.
Your magazine is a prime offender,
why do you persist in giving space to such incompetent
scribblers? I rather suspect it is the malevolent
influence of Mr Manhire and his cosy coterie.
The Wellington School has dominated the literary
scene for far too long and it’s about time that
the rest of the country got poetry back on track.
We have many excellent poets here in Lowridge.
Why isn’t anybody publishing them? [Abridged]
Ernest M Bluespire
James Brown