The year 1880 has been said to mark the Canadian Renaissance, because in that year ap peared the first volume of poetry of one of a group of singers destined to put Canadian lit erature on a higher plane than it had hitherto reached. In this group are, included Charles Roberts and his cousin Bliss Carman, Archi bald Lampman, William Wilfred Campbell, and on or two others. Roberts' versatile genius has found expression in history, fiction and essays, but he is pre-eminently a poet. His verse, always scholarly and polished, gained steadily in power with the years. At first limited to classical themes, and more or less imitative, Roberts' more mature work gives expression to the atmosphere and color of Canadian woods and hillsides, the salt sea air of the Tantramar perhaps, and the prob lems of man's physical and moral contact with nature. The development of his genius may be readily traced from his earliest work in 'Orion) (1880), through (In Divers
(1886) and 'Songs of the Common Day' (1893), until it reached its highest point in 'The Book of the
(1897). Equally striking in their lyrical interpretation of Cana dian scenes are the poems of Carman, con tained in such of his books as
Tide on Grand Pre) (1893), 'Behind the Arras' (1895), 'Ballads of Lost Haven) (1897) and 'Pipes of
(1905). Carman's verse, like that of Roberts, reveals the influence of Shel ley and Keats, and perhaps Tennyson; but each of these Canadian singers has a voice that is essentially his own. Each sat at the feet of the masters as humble student, but with the growth of knowledge and experience put his own distinctive personality into the interpreta tion of themes old and new. Campbell's miter work, in 'Lake
(1889) reveals many of the qualities that mark the verse of Rob erts and Carman. What they had done to inter pret the spirit of the Fundy shore, he achieved for the great inland seas. In his later books, 'The Dread Voyage) (1893) and 'Beyond the Hills of Dream' (1899), he strikes a more def initely human note, and touches with an assured hand many of the great problems of life. His two dramas,
and (Hildebrand> (1895) are powerful in conception, though somewhat unequal in treatment. Of all this group of modern Canadian poets, Lampman (1861-99) probably stood first as an inter preter of Canadian scenery. He was a poet first and always. Most of his short life was spent in and about Ottawa, and he knew in timately every beautiful nook and corner of the countryside. His gentle personality breathes through every line of the almost flaw less lyrics he left behind. As William Dean Howells said of him: °His pure spirit was electrical in every line; he made no picture of the Nature he loved in which he did not sup ply the spectator with the human interest of bis own genial presence, and light up the scene with the lamp of his keen and beautiful intelli gence.* Only, two slim volumes of verse were published during his lifetime,
Two other Canadian poets must be men tioned here. Each stands in a class by himself. Robert Service has put into his three books of verse, (Songs of a Sourdough,' (Ballads of a Chechako,> and
As one finds in the poetry of English-Cana dian writers evidence of the influence of Shel ley, Keats and Tennyson, so the work of French Canadian poets reveals their indebtedness to Victor Hugo, Lamartine and Musset. Octave Cremazie (18.27-79) is justly regarded as the
father of French-Canadian poetry. He has only one volume of verse to his credit, and that was published by his friends after his death, but the sincerity and lyrical quality of his poems, no less than the spirit of patriotism with which they are instinct, have made them an inspiration to his fellow-countrymen. Louis Fritchette (1839-1908), more versatile and pol ished than Cremazie, left behind him a larger body of credible verse than any of his contem poraries. His first volume of poetry, (Mes Loisirs' appeared in 1863, and this was followed by d'un Exile' (1869), (Pele-Mele> (1877), 'Fleurs boreales) and 'Oiseaux de Neige> (1879) ; 'La Legende d'un Peuple> (1887 and (Feuilles volantes' (1891). Before his dtath he prepared a collected edition of all his verse that he wished to be preserved. He was essentially a lyrical poet, but, like Cremazie, avoided the passion of human love, making in this sense the sharp line of cleavage between the romantic school of France and the poets-of French ,Canada, who in other respects looked to them for inspiration. Frechette was beyond question the greatest poet that French Canada has yet produced. A contemporary , of his, Pamphile Le May, with less fine craftsmanship and versatility than Frechette, but a more vivid imagination, has won for himself a secure place in the hearts of Canadians. He sings the songs of the people, he is a poet of the soil. In 1865 he published his (Essais poetiques.' This was followed by a fine translation of 'Evangeline' (1870) ; Vengeances' (1875) ; Canadiennes) (1881) ; Poemes) (1883), and 'Gouttelettes' (1904), the last a remark able collection of sonnets. Another member of the same group was William Chapman — a true French-Canadian despite his English name. Chapman (1850-1917) put much very creditable verse info is four books, (Les Quebecquoises) (1876); (Feuilles d'Erable' (1890) ; (Aspira tions' (1904), and (Les Rayons du Nord> (1910). In 1895 a new school of French-Cana dian literature had its birth in Montreal, of which Emile Nelligan and Albert Lozeau are the most notable exponents. These modern Canadian poets have attempted to transplant the spirit of Verlaine and Beaudelaire in the not altogether congenial atmosphere of Que bec. Yet they have produced some work of much more than passing interest.
It is impracticable here to do more than indicate very briefly the work in fiction thus far achieved by Canadians. James de Mille (1836-80) found leisure amid the preoccupa tions of his life as a college professor to write a number of romances and tales, the best of which were (Helena's Household' and
Dodge Club.' William Kirby (1817-1906) was the first Canadian novelist to make use of the rich mine of romantic material offered by the early history of his country. His one romance,
Golden
.still remains in many re spects the best thing of its kind produced in Canada. Sir Gilbert Parker stands easily first among Canadian novelists. Since the publica tion of
and His People> in 1892, he has written a succession of novels, romances and short stories, all good of their kind, and most of them dealing with some phase of Canadian life or history. Charles W. Gordon (Ralph Connor) has given us in
Rock)
Sky
and his later novels, admirable pictures of life in the backwoods, lumber camps and mining camps of Canada. Norman Duncan in