San Francisco Call, Volume 74, Number 14, 14 June 1893 — POET CY WARMAN. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

POET CY WARMAN.

A Railroad Engineer Who Writes Verses. THE POET OF THE ROCKIES. Typical of the Wild and Woolly West, and Started the First Newspaper at Creede.

Cy Warman, "the popt of the Rockies," Is at the Lick House. He is accompanied by his wife and is making his first visit to California. They left their home in Denver a month ago and have been "doing" the region of the Columbia River.

Cy is a tall, handsome fellow, with black hair, black mustache and red cheeks. Belure he bpcame a poet he was a railroad engineer. The venerable Charles A. Dana

of the New York Sun brought Mr. Warman into prominence last year by publishing a column of his poems in the Sunday Sun, and the next day gave the newly discovered poet a half-column editorial notice. Every poem written by Mr. Warman since that time is purchased and published by the Sun. "I was raised on a farm in Illinois, not far from East St. Louis," said Mr. Warman to a Call reporter last evening. "From a farmer's boy I became a wheat speculator and then a bankrupt. I struck Denver thirteen years ago without a dollar and began railroading. I was an engineer un the Denver and Rio Grande road, and the first time I whistled for down brakes In the famous Marshall Pass I felt the poetry in my soul bubbling out of me. I couldn't help writing poetry after running an engine through the gorge and up and Jowu the mountain slopes of Colorado." When the Creetle mining excitement was at its height some year's ago Mr. Warman went to the famous mining camp find started the first newspaper there — the Creede Daily Chronicle. While there he wrote one of the poem s that attracted attpution all over the E;ist. Like Bret Harte's ''Heathen Chinee," the verses on Creede by Cy Warman went around the world, liis description of Creede was unique, for, as he said, Here the meek and mild-eyed burros On mineral mountains feed— It's day all day in the daytime. And tnere Is no night in Creede. Last year during the great gold mining excitement in the San Juan district Cy Warman was sent at the head of nn expedition by the New York Sun, and made the journey of over 500 miles on horseback. In ttie San Juan district he secured material fift many short stone?. Some of those have been printed in the Eastern magazines, but the most of them are to appear in a volume entitled "Mining Camps by Candle-light." Mr. Warman writes in the wild abandon of the West. and the audacity of his wildnpss has occasioned much comment by Eastern critics. His poem "Agnes iLove You" was pronounced by a Boston critic as "ferociously Western." In conjunction with Colonel Pat Donau be wrote a large volume on Utah. Mr. Warman will find a secluded spot near Monterey where he will devote a month or longer to preparing two volumes, one of verses and one ol short stories, for early publication by a New York firm. The material for both hooks has been irady for .some time, but the poet desires to polish up his verses in California atmosphere before sending them to New York.

After sojourning for a week in San Francisco Mr. and Iklrs. Warman will leave for Monterey.

Cy Warman, the Poet of the Rockies.