Page:Men of Letters, Scott, 1916.djvu/203

177 THE REAL STANLEY HOUGHTON 177 romantically shy, with — deepest of all perhaps — a beautiful humility. In spite of his cleft chin and Csesarean nose, there was always about his physical appearance something a little fugitive and imploring ; an expression of entreaty always lurked in his eyes. Chin and nose and Hindle Wakes together all deceived even Max — his caricature, it will be remembered, represents Houghton stalking impassively, with a cold Roman assurance, into a ring of reduced Cockney dramatists, all looking very under-nourished in his presence. But this idea of the cocksure provincial is just as wrong in his case as it is in Mr. Arnold Bennett's. What distinguishes them both is the pro- vincial's precious gift of wonder, his way of approach- ing life in a spirit of worship and credulity. That is why they take it by storm. For this belief in some- thing better than they have ever known themselves — something to be found, perhaps, in London or in Paris — constantly stimulates them on the one hand to put all their strength into their work so as to make up for any native disadvantages, and on the other hand it keeps their glances bright with that eager- ness and faith without which the essential truth of no single mortal thing can be perceived. Manchester certainly cramped Houghton at the outset by leaving him, unsophisticated, at the mercy of chance ambitions and ideals ; but the unsophistication was worth any price. It gave him the poet's faith and faculty, the aspirant's eagerness and humility ; it would have carried him — one cannot say how far. It has been complained of him that he "threw in no poetry" — and if by poetry is meant something pastoral and lyrical we may agree that he hadn't the knack of it. But if by a sense of poetry we mean a recognition of the astonishing sweetness and wildness of existence, its incessant fantasy and "beautiful strangeness," we must insist that it was Houghton's main gift. It was Men of Letters. J^3