Sarah Binks

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57TIME.*My son, the felted down that marks thy chin, Is sign of wisdom, buried deep within, The sprouting oats give promise of the field, And heavy chin denotes a heavy yield; Thy face, as yet, is nothing to adorn, But the face of wisdom is the face unshorn: So learn these things; he on wisdom bent; First learn of time � time is an element; Avoid such complex things as ways, and reasons, But learn of days, learn weeks, the order of the Seasons, Learn years, the leap years, coming once in four, And all the twenty years that make a score;Observe that Summer follows Spring, and Winter, Fall, Yet each in turn precedes the others all, Ponder this fact, impound with creaking mind, What lies before will someday lie behind; The things right now will go, are quickly hence; Future and past are but a change of tense; The felted down may seem a little slow, But wisdom alone can make it grow.It�s Kantian," says Marrowfat, "Neo-Kantian. The idea of wisdom linked up with time as kind of a fifth dimension is Kantian, and the idea of the beard as the tangible evidence of it makes it Keo-Kantian,"This, of course, is admitted. It certainly sounds a bit Kantian to the Authors too. But Marrowfat does not adduce any evidence that Grandfather Thurnow actually wrote the poem. Grandfather Thurnow's influence is obvious. He may have been addressing Jacob Binks, or talking to himself, which he was in the habit of doing and Sarah may have taken it down and put it into vers,* which she was also in the habit of doing. Or Sarah, with her amazing gift for projecting herself in her characters and speaking through them, may have been making a study of her grandfather that afternoon and speaking through him, With that splendid objectivity which distinguishes the real poet, she was able to lose her own personalityand sometimes that of her readers in her characters, animate and* TIME has been described as "A study in exalted futility." Grandfather Thurnowmay have been an even greater philospher, if possible, than we give him credit for.
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inanimate, whose mood she seeks to interpret. In such lines asI am Boreas, the North wind, I'm Violet, the flower, . . . .the reader will not be left in any doubt, and certainly in HORSE, where the same reasoning may be applied as in the case of TIME, even Marrowfat has not yet advanced the idea that Buttercup or any other of the Sinks's horses was the real author* Let us examine the internal evidence of HORSE, said by some* to be the finest delineation of horse psychology ever written.HORSE.Horse, I would conjecture Thoughts that spring in thee; Do, in contemplative hour, Teeming doubts thy soul devour, As in me?Does some yeasty cranial power, Intellectual force,Urge, in kindred doubts that grip us;"I, who once was eohippus,-Now am horse;I have thinking �Therefore being,Therefore smelling,Feeling,Seeing;Therefore horse � Gloriously horse!Horse I am but would be gladder Could I see Evolutionary ladder's Certainty;Horse I am but can I know, With the loss of final toe, What to be?Nought there is to tell me ifPegassua or HippogriffIs destiny �Oh well,Horse's heaven,Horse's hell,Or super-horse,Who can tell �Who denotes �What with knowledge and reflexes, Self-expression and complexes, Inhibitions and the sexes � Give me oats.* Plain horse sense", says the editor of the DETOUR HERALD.
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61Here the Binksian touch is at once apparent. Hot only is there that keen and sympathetic understanding of animal psychology in which Sarah as well as her grandfather excelled, but the reference to the eohippus stamps the poem as peculiarly her own as plainly as the hall mark on silver. It is the geological motif again. But there is more direct evidence than this. When we examine the slightly damaged copy of Warden and Rockbuster'e FIRST STEPS IN GEOLOGY we find that the chapter devoted to evolution and paleontology contains an illustration of the eohippus itself. This picture shows the eohippus mounted on a rock and lost in the contemplation of a struggle to the death which is taxing place at the "base of the rock between a brontosaurus and a seal. But that it was the eohippus and the eohippus alone, which had caught and held Sarah's imagination is shown by the fact that its face has been modified, not altogether to its disadvantage, by the addition of a moustache and a pair of horn-rimmed spectacles. It is indeed fortunate for us that the copy of Warden and Rockbuster which so fortuitously fell into Sarah's hands was one of the first editions of this invaluable book. If it were not for this fact HORSE might never have been written, or written differently. In the second and subsequent editions of Warden and Rockbuster the publishers have omitted the chapter on paleontology together with all references pertaining to the age of rocks in order to bring it in line with the Western School Act of 1931. But Fate definitely played into Sarah's hands here, and the result is HORSE.Professor Marrowfat's thesis becomes even more conjectural when we consider that great work entitled SPACE. Marrowfat maintains that SPACE was originally entitled BEANS, and that Sarah merely changed the name and included it in her works. He maintains
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that when interpreted in this new light the internal evidence of BEANS is st once apparent whereas that o^ SPACE is vague and uncertain. "I don't allow, says Marrowfat, "that Sarah could give advice about BEANS. I have had a lot of experience with women who cook beans and have never yet met one who could cook them properly. You might as well expect them to be able to fry a steak. I have made a study of food, more than that, i have made it a hobby. And this poem was written by a man."There is something to be said for the point which Professor Marrowfat raises that the title of the poem has been changed* Sarah had been eating; rather heartily that day and felt a bit unwell, and it is possible that she originally entitled the poem BEANS. But we also know that she was working on a companion piece to TIME at this period in order to round out the philosophical picture so beautifully begun in TIME and completed in CRISSCROSSERS. Moreover, as to the internal evidence, we know how masculine were the influences that acted upon Sarah, and when it came to beans she was, upon her own confession "a daughter of the Old South"1). Marrowfat's contention that the poem could only be written by a man is therefore not based upon as wide an experience of women as he would have us believe. Beans were often the staple diet of the Binks household, especially during the last six or seven months of the winter, and Sarah was fond of them or starve. And that they produce wisdom, at times even visions, is well known. The fact that she put the words of wisdom into the mouth of Grandfather Thurnow apparently addressing Jacob Binks, or possibly Ole, is really Sarah addressing the world at large.1.) Dakota.
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63SPACE.The youth who satisfies with gruel His carking appetite, Will hunger more within the hour, 'Twill give him no respite; But Wisdom sits in straining jeans Allays his urge on beans and buns; The ribs of he who lives on beans Will never rattle when he runs; The puling chili may live on eggs, But beans appease mature desire � The youth who totters on his legs Must learn this wisdom from his sire.Sarah is here, with that splendid objectivity again which is the true mark of the artist, projecting herself into other personalities than herself and speaking through them. The same may be said of CRISSCROSSERS.CRISSCROSSERS.My son, if you should chance to meet With him who walks with criss-cross feet. Go mark him well, within that brain Are seething thoughts that none can name; Go mark him well, and walk behind, His gait bespeaks the cosmic mind.My son, such man along the street, With glowing orbs and criss-cross feet, Who breathes a great hilarity, (Criss-crossers are a rarity), Has found in that cerebral ball The final meaning of it all.My son, such man with mind aloof. Is worth ten others on the hoof, And he who walks with criss-cross gait Can read the cosmos like a slate; Go mark him well with humble heart � Criss-crossers are a thing apart.Never before had the Saskatchewan philosophy reached suchheights or been so splendidly expressed. Even if Thadeus T. Thurnowhad written this poem, as Professor Marrowfat contends, it wouldstill stand as a monument. "To read the cosmos like a slate", Sarahsets us the philosophical ideal in language which all can understand.
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That she received much of this ideal from Grandfather Thrunow, Old Sage, is all the more to her credit. For, that she did receive it, no one will deny. We know that Grandfather Thurnow was himself a criss-crosser on more than one occasion. His deep probings into the theory of the state, and his interest in politics in general tended to heighten this talent* Invariably on election night, in fact generally after a political discussion he practised the crisscross on his way home from town* He was no bigoted partizan, as we have seen, both political parties were able to stimulate his massive mind to the same extent. Even Ole, inspired "by his example, made attempts to achieve the "cosmic mind", "but was never truly successful. His fossil footprints on the alkali flats show that Ole's path tended to cross and re-cross, but the gait itself is wide open, which is far from the perfection of the true criss-cross which Sarah had in mind when she describes her grandfather. Moreover Ole tended towards, mental fatigue on such occasions and Jacob Binks'a "The dam' Swede's paralysed again", seems to indicate that he fatigued easily.Professor Marrowfat, in his discussion of THE PRE-KANTIAN AND THE PRECAMBRIAN suggests various sources from which Grandfather Thurnow may have acquired his philosophy but he adduces no direct evidence that Grandfather Thurnow ever read the books he mentions, in fact, he adduces no direct evidence that Grandfather could read at all. This is a serious weakness in his argument. Moreover, there is very direct and conclusive evidence that even though Grandfather Thurnow was able to read, he was at least unable to write. This is shown by two facts: in one of her letters to Mathilda, Sarah adds ir a printed postscript, "Old Sage sends his love". Now it is exceedly unlikely that he would have sent through a third person a message
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65so intimate if he were able to pen it with his own hand. He himselfstated on more than one occasion his opinion of Mathilda as being"not fit to print". But the final and conclusive proof that ThadeusT. Thurnow could not write has been unearthed by Professor Poof ,with the assistance of the stenographer in the Land Titles Officeat Quagmire, Saskatchewan. Exhaustive researches in the vault stthat Office have shown that ALL THREE mortgages pertaining to theN.E. Carter Section 37, Township 21, Range 9, West, are signed byThadeus T. Thurnow with an X.It is at once obvious that if Grandfather Turnow could notwrite, he could not have written SPACE, and TIME, and in fact, allthose poems on which Professor Marrowfat liases his argument. It isgratifying that the brilliant researches of Professor Poof havevindicated Sarah in the eyes of the Saskatchewan world, and thatthe shadow of the Binks-Thurnow controversy should be erased forall time. The ringing words of Principal Pinhole, "To deny theauthenticity of these poems is to deny Sarah's genius" words whichthat 8evant has offered to repeat, if his expenses are paid, "from any rostrum in the country"will now ring endlessly.
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66CHAPTER VIIThe year 1929 marks the turning point in the hitherto uneventful lire of Sarah Binks. In spite of her growing fame she had remained a simple and unspoiled country girl, but now she was to make her first contact with the great outside world. She took a trip to Regina.Regina marks a definite break in Sarah's career; all her later work was profoundly affected by it. "It is from this trip that we may definitely date the great change which came over all her poems; it is as if from that moment she put aside childish things forever and blossomed forth into the woman she gave promise of being even as early as her birth"*. But the change was not effected without great trial. From Willows to Regina is a big step, in her case it was to prove almost too big a step. She was overwhelmed, and for a while the voice of the Sweet Songstress is stilled. One hesitates to think of Sarah had she been taken as far as Winnipeg, and one shudders to think of her in Toronto. But the Regina which overwhelmed her with its vastness and confused her with its throngs was at the same time the Regina which gave her something which she had never had, and which was to lead her eventually to one of the highest awards which has ever been bestowed upon one of Saskatchewan's daughters, the wheat Pool Medal.Regina was at that time the Athens of Saskatchewan. At once the commercial as well as the literary and cultural centre of the province, it displayed a sophistication utterly alien to the mind of the untried count y girl. Sarah's reactions were inevitable and mighthave been predicted: she felt crushed, inferior, her simple messageRosalind Drool; "Great lives and Great Loves". Tiny-Tot Publ. Co
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67lost in Regina*s glitter � its allure. Fortunate indeed for the course of literature that Henry Welkin stood at her side in this hour, directed her thoughts, and showed her the real Regina "behind its polish, its sophistication and its long rows of box carts.Literature owes much to Henry welkin; it must forever stand to his credit that it was through his influence that Sarah was brought into contact with the great world of commerce and culture* Had it not "been for his generosity in prying all her expenses to Regina, Sarah might never have left Willows, and consequently her poetry might never have reached its maturity. Even though the sudden change from the pastoral simplicity of Willows to the teeming marts of men brought about that crisis in Sarah's life, threatend for a while to extinguish the divine spark and leave her forever dumb, we would not have it otherwise. "The bed on which the poet sleeps", says Sarah in one of her poems 'is not always a bed of roses". What then shall we say for a poetess like Sarah herself?Henry welkin, aesthete, patron of the arts and letters, and travelling salesman, was a man of considerable personal charm. He was tall, and his eyes, which were set closely together, and appeared even more so from his habit of intense mental concentration, gave him an appearance of thoughtfulness and dignity. He was a careful and discriminating dresser. On the occasion of his first meeting with Sarah he wore a suit of brown striped serge, tailored according to the fashion of the day with long sweeping lapels, fancy pockets with buttons, the coat tight at the waist, and the trousers of the style known as "peg" ending in a four inch cuff.
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68A collar of the very test quality celluloid, a green do. tie, and a mauve silk shirt worn without a vest the better to display its full richness, and high toed button shoes to match the suit completed the costume. Evidently a man of taste and discernment*In spite of his success as a travelling salesman Henry Welkin was not a man of action. His disposition tended to be retiring, as is shown by the remark of one of his contemporaries in the drug store :"Hank sure hates himself". On the other hand as a travelling salesman, he had acquired from much travel a certain urbanity and carried himself with an air. He was not unpopular � the maids at the Commercial House invariably fluttered upon his arrival, moreover at Charlie Wong*s Snooker Academy his athletic prowess was recognised, and he was able to win from the youth of Willows no less (or more) than their unstinted admiration,Henry Welkin was skilled, perhaps too skilled, in the pen. He was not like Sarah a great artist in that he lacked the articulateness of the artist, but he had made great strides in the struggle for self-expression. His flow of language could be at once picturesque and vigorous, and although he could never be called a poet in his own right, he collected sagas and folk songs and is known to have added verses to some of the older ballads like "Have You Heard of Lil'" .He was therefore quick to discern the possibilities of Sarah's genius, her charm of expression, and the unstudied simplicity of her thought.The meeting of Sarah Binks and Henry Welkin took place in the Willows General store. The elder Binks, always a keen business man, had been holding his eggs for a rise, and had sent
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69Sarah to town to enquire the price. She had, apparently, no other errands or purchases to make unless we except the usual pound of gum-drops for Grandfather Thurnow or the package of snuff for Ole. Her mind,for once free of the long list of groceries, condition powders, and insecticides, was therefore in that receptive condition which marks Sarah at her best. She felt, as she later related to Mathilda, "a poem coming on". And when the figure of Henry Welkin, who had followed her across the street from Charlie Wong's, crossed her vision, she experienced at once that quickening of the spirit and that emotional response whereby the great have always recognised the great. Ho introductions were necessary; Henry Welkin, speaking with a confidence born of some inner feeling,said simply, "Hello Babe". Conventional words! Meaningless, or almost meaningless from a thousand repetitions! But the soul of the poetess leaped into perfect understanding. That some evening Henry Welkin called, at Sarah's home and two days later sold Jacob Binks another There are those who would see in the quick ripening of the friendship between Sarah Binks and Henry Welkin, something more than the spiritual and intellectual coming together of two kindred souls. Miss Rosalind Drool, in particular, has developed this theme in her recent book, Great Lives and Great Loves" in which she dwells at some considerable length on the possibility, and, in fact, probability of a romantic attachment having sprung up between the two. Something may be said for this point of view. Making due allowances for Hiss Drool's tendency towards over-emphasis, and Her natural proclivity to take a vicarious ani Freudian delight in incidents and experiences which she has
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not been privileged to enjoy, one may still admit that it would have "been unnatural if these two, Henry Welkin and Sarah Binks, had not found in each other's; personality some expression of their poetic faith. Sarah was never beautiful as beauty is counted, nevertheless, as Miss Drool repeated!/ points out, she was by no means unattractive, She weighed at this time a hundred thirty four pounds, and her hair had been bleached by the Saskatchewan sun until it could almost be classified as blonde. Both eyes were blue, and her sensitive mouth revealed the winsomeness of her nature as well as the strength of her character. She was something of a hoyden, as who would not be under 0le's companionship, and felt most at ease when clothed in,overalls and sweater, a costume which suited her personality in that here also she revealed the same grace and perfection of line which characterised her poetry.We have seen that Henry Welkin, too, was not without the indefinable something. He may have appeared in Sarah's susceptible eyes a more glamorous figure than he actually was � certainly he shines less in the light of Sarah's effulgence than at Charlie Jong's � but he had youth and poise, and above all he brought to the young poetess something of the outside world. Moreover he knew farm machinery as few know their farm machinery, it would have been odd indeed if these two in their community of interests had failed to find at the same time a warm personal friendship* But it must always be emphasized that their chief interest lay in the world of art.The Author cannot stressthis point too strongly.

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