Jd Eident

This book contains the letters of one hundred years ago that passed between Dr. James Newton Matthews of Mason, Illinois, and the well-known Hoosier poet James Whitcomb Riley. Also included in this volume are sixteen letters to Dr. Matthews from Paul Laurence Dunbar, an early African American poet who has received much recent attention.

This is the third gathering of rhyming poetic renderings to come from the scribblings of JD Eident. In this volume are several occasional verses honoring our military on Memorial Day. Much of the early portion of the work is a recognition of the contributions of the past as referenced in the title "The Dust of Other Times." Faith in God plays a large role in many of the poems, and there are also a number of verses in memoriam as well as some Christmas related verses. A few prose writings are interspersed in the work, with some of these leading to a poem.

The title manuscript is a letter to grandchildren of what life was like for a small-town boy in the early 1900s. The remainder of the book contains interesting historical notes of the town of Mason, Illinois, which was founded on a gentle mound of prairie at the side of the Illinois Central Railroad in that early day.

"Once More A Mindful Gatherin' is a collection of simple rhyming verses mingled with some inciteful prose. A varied collection of subjects dealing with the common plight of man are addressed in thoughtful rhyme.

Settle back with a cup of coffee and enjoy these simple rhymes of rejoicing and remembrance; celebrating rural life, times past, and a simple faith.