,,the    ,,atlantic ,,monthly4    ,a    
,magazine of ,literature1 ,art1 and     
,politics4    ,,vol4 ,,xv4--,,february1 
#ahfe4--,,no4 ,,lxxxviii4    ,entered   
according to ,act of ,congress1 in the  
year #ahfe1 by ,,ticknor ,,and          
,,fields1 in the ,clerk's ,office of the
 ,district ,court of the ,district of   
,massachusetts4          ,,our ,,first  
,,great ,,painter1 ,,and ,,his ,,works4 
,on the #hth of ,july1 #ahdc1           
,washington ,allston died4 ,twenty-one  
years have  since gone by2 and already  
his name has a fine flavor of the past  
added  to its own proper aroma4    ,in  
twenty-one years ,art has made large    
advances1 but not in the  direction of  
imagination4 ,in that rare and precious 
quality the works of  ,allston remain   
preminent as before4    ,it is now so   
long ago as #ahbg that the first        
exhibition of pictures at  the ,boston  
,athenum took place2 and then and there 
did ,allston first  become known to his 
,american public4 ,returned from ,europe

 after a long  absence1 he had for some 
years been living a retired1 even a     
recluse  life1 was personally known to a
 few friends1 and by name only to the   
public4 ,the exhibition of some of his  
pictures on this occasion made  known   
his genius to his fellow-citizens2 and  
who1 having once felt the  strange charm
 of that genius1 but recalls with joyful
 interest the happy  hour when he was   
first brought under its influence8 ,i   
well remember1  even at this distance in
 time1 the mystic1 charmed presence that
 hung  about the ,jeremiah dictating his
 ,prophecy to ,baruch the ,scribe1      
,beatrice1 ,the ,flight of ,florimel1   
,the ,triumphal ,song of ,miriam on  the
 ,destruction of ,pharaoh and his ,host 
in the ,red ,sea1 and ,the  ,valentine4 
,i was then young1 and had yet to learn 
that the quality that  so attracted me  
in these pictures is1 indeed1 the rarest
 virtue in any  work of ,art1--that1    
although pictures without imagination   
are without  savor1 yet that the larger 

number of those that are painted are    
destitute of that grace1--and that1     
when1 in later years1 ,i should visit   
the principal galleries of ,europe1 and 
see the masterpieces of each  master1 ,i
 still should return to the memory of   
,allston's works as to  something most  
precious and unique in ,art4 ,i have    
also1 since that time1  come to believe1
 that1 while every sensitive beholder   
must feel the  charm of ,allston's      
style1 its intellectual ripeness can be 
fully  appreciated only by the aid of a 
foreign culture4    ,passing through    
,europe with this impression of         
,allston's genius1 in the  ,venetians ,i
 first recognized his kindred2 in       
,venice ,i found the school  in which he
 had studied1 and in which ,nature had  
fitted him to study3  for his eye for   
color was like his management of        
it1--,venetian4 ,his  treatment of heads
 has a round1 ripe1 sweet fulness which 
reminds one  of the heads in the        
,paradiso of ,tintoretto1--that work    

which deserves  a place in the foremost 
rank of the world's masterpieces4 ,the  
great  praise implied in this comparison
 is justly due to ,allston4 ,the texture
  and handling of his work are          
inimitable4 ,without any appearance of  
labor1 all crudeness is absorbed2 the   
outlines of objects are not so  much    
softened as emptied of their color and  
substance1 so that the light  appears to
 pass them4 ,the finishing is so        
judicious that the spectator  believes  
he could see more on approaching nearer4
 ,the eye searches the  shade1 and sees 
and defines the objects at first        
concealed by it4 ,the  eye is not       
satiated1 but by the most artful means  
excited to greater  appetite4 ,the      
coloring is not so much harmonious as   
harmony itself1 out  of which melodies  
of color play through the picture in a  
way that is  found in no other master   
but ,paul ,veronese4 ,as ,allston       
himself expressed  it1 he liked to echo 
his colors2 and as an echo is best heard

 where all  else is silence1 so the pure
 repose of these compositions gives     
extraordinary value to such delicate    
repetitions of color4 ,the effect  is1  
one might say1 more musical than        
pictorial4 ,this peculiar and  musical  
effect is most noticeable in the        
landscapes4 ,they are like odes1        
anthems1 and symphonies4 ,they run up   
the scale1 beginning with the  low-toned
 ,moonlight1 through the great twilight 
piece called ,after  ,sunset1 the       
,forest ,scene1 where it seems always   
afternoon1 the gray  ,mountain          
,landscape1 a world composed of stern   
materials1 the cool  ,sunrise on the    
,mediterranean1 up to the broad1 pure1  
,elysian daylight  of the ,italian      
,landscape1 with atmosphere full of     
music1 color1 and  perfume1 cooled and  
shaded by the breezy pines1 open far    
away to the  sea1 and the sky peopled   
with opalescent clouds1 trooping wide on
 their  celestial errands4    ,of this  
last landscape the poetic merit is as   

great as the artistic  excellence is    
unrivalled4 ,whoever has made pictures  
and handled colors  knows well that a   
subject pitched on a high key of light  
is vastly more  difficult to manage than
 one of which the highest light is not  
above the  middle tint4 ,to keep on that
 high key which belongs to broad        
daylight1  and yet preserve harmony1    
repose1 and atmosphere1 is in the       
highest  degree difficult2 but here it  
is successfully done1 and again reminds 
us  of the ,paul ,veronese treatment4   
,though a quiet picture1 it is full of  
brilliancy4 ,it represents a broad and  
partly shaded expanse1 full1 also1  of  
light and sweet sunshine1 through which 
the eye travels till it rests  on the   
distant mountain1 rising majestically in
 grand volcanic forms  from the horizon 
plains4 ,the sky is filled with cloudy  
veils1 floating1  prismatic2 some quiet 
water1 crossed by a bridge which rests  
on round  arches1 is in the middle      
distance2 and a few trees near the      

foreground  form the group from which   
rises the stone-pine1 which is the      
principal  feature in the picture1 and  
gives it its character4 ,as ,i write    
this1 ,i  fear that any reader who has  
not seen the picture to which ,i refer  
will  immediately think of ,turner's    
,italian landscapes1 so familiar to all 
the  world through engravings1 where a  
stone-pine is lifted against the sky  as
 a mass of dark to contrast with the    
mass of light necessarily in the  same  
region of the picture4 ,but such        
effects1 however legitimate and         
powerful in the hands of ,turner1 were  
not in ,allston's manner2 they  would   
ruin and break the still harmony which  
was the law of his mind and  of his     
compositions4 ,under this tree1 on the  
path1 fall flickering spots  of         
sunshine1 in which sit or stand two or  
three figures4 ,the scarlet and  white  
of their dresses1 catching the sunshine1
 make the few high notes  that cause the
 whole piece to throb like music4       

,there is also a large ,swiss landscape1
 possessing in an extraordinary  degree 
the pure1 keen atmosphere1 as well as   
the grand mountain forms1  of the       
,alpine spaces4 ,to look on this piece  
exhilarates as does the  sight of the   
,alps themselves2 and it strikes the eye
 as a shrill  trumpet sound the ear4    
,this landscape1 a grand antithesis to  
the last  described1 marks a great range
 of power in the mind that produced them
  both4    ,but ,allston was not a      
landscape-painter4 ,his landscapes are  
few in  number1 though great in         
excellence4 ,they are poetic in the     
truest sense2  they are laden with      
thought and life1 and are of imagination
 all  compact4 ,they transport the      
beholder to a fairer world1 where1      
through  and behind the lovely          
superficies of things1 he sees the      
hidden ideal of  each member1--of rock1 
sea1 sky1 earth1 and forest1--and feels 
by a  clear magnetism that he is in     
presence of the very truth of things4   

,we now come to a class of ,allston's   
pictures which are known chiefly1       
perhaps only1 in ,boston4 ,they are     
justly prized by their owners as        
possessions of inestimable value2 they  
are the works that more than  others    
display his peculiar genius4 ,i allude  
to certain ideal heads and  figures     
called by these names3 ,beatrice1       
,rosalie1 ,the ,bride1 ,the  ,spanish   
,girl1 ,the ,evening ,hymn1 ,the ,tuscan
 ,girl1 ,miriam1 ,the  ,valentine1      
,lorenzo and ,jessica1 ,the ,flight of  
,florimel1 ,the ,roman  ,lady1 and      
others2 and ,i shall give a short       
description of the most  important of   
these1 sometimes in my own words1 and   
sometimes in those of  one who is the   
only writer ,i can find who has said    
anything distinctive  about the works of
 ,allston4 ,i refer to ,william ,ware1  
who died in the act  of preparing a     
course of lectures on the ,genius of    
,allston1--a task for  which he was well
 qualified by his artistic organization1

 his long study  of ,art1 and his clear 
appreciation of ,allston's power4    ,in
 these smaller ideal pieces ,allston    
seems to have found his own  genius1 so 
peculiar are they1 so different from the
 works of all other  masters1 and so    
divine in their expressive repose4 ,i   
say divine in their  repose with full   
intention2 for this is a repose1 not    
idle and  voluptuous1 not poetic and    
dreamy1 but a repose full of life1 a    
repose  which commands and controls the 
beholder1 and stirs within him that     
idealism that lies deep hidden in every 
mind4 ,these pieces consist of  heads   
and figures1 mostly single1 distinct as 
individuals1 and each a  heaven of      
beauty in itself4    ,the method of this
 artist was to suppress all the coarser 
beauties which  make up the substance of
 common pictures4 ,he was the least ad  
captandum of workers4 ,he avoided bright
 eyes1 curls1 and contours1  glancing   
lights1 strong contrasts1 and colors too
 crude for harmony4 ,he  reduced his    

beauty to her elements1 so that an inner
 beauty might play  through her         
features4 ,like the ,catholic discipline
 which pales the face  of the novice    
with vigils1 seclusion1 and fasting1 and
 thus makes room  and clears the way for
 the movements of the spirit1 so in     
these figures  every vulgar grace is    
suppressed4 ,no classic contours1 no    
languishing  attitudes1 no asking for   
admiration1--but a severe and chaste    
restraint1  a modest sweetness1 a       
slumbering intellectual atmosphere1 a   
graceful  self-possession1 eyes so      
sincere and pure that heaven's light    
shines  through them1 and1 beyond all1 a
 hovering spiritual life that makes each
  form a presence4    ,perhaps the two  
most remarkable and original of the     
pieces ,i have named  above are the     
,beatrice and the ,rosalie4 ,of the     
,beatrice there has  been much          
discussion whether she could have been  
intended to represent  the ,beatrice of 
,dante4 ,to me it appears that there is 

nothing like that  world- and           
heaven-renowned lady in this our        
,beatrice4 ,she sits alone3  one sees   
that in the expression of her eyes4 ,her
 dress is of almost  conventual         
simplicity2 the colors rich1 but sober2 
the style flowing and  medival4 ,she has
 soft brown hair2 soft1 velvet-soft1    
brown eyes2  features not salient1 but  
rounded into the contours of the head2  
her  whole expression receptive1 yet    
radiant with sentiment4 ,the complexion 
of a tender rose1 equally diffused1     
gives an indescribable air of  healthful
 delicacy to the face4 ,the expression  
of the whole figure is  that of one in a
 very dream of sentiment4 ,her twilight 
eyes see without  effort into the very  
soul of things1 as other eyes look at   
their  surfaces4 ,the sentiment of this 
figure is so powerful that by its gentle
  charm it fastens the beholder1 who    
gazes and cannot withdraw his eyes1     
wondering what is the spell that can so 
hold him to that face1 which is  hardly 

beautiful1 surely without surface       
beauty4 ,i once heard a person  who was 
unaccustomed to the use of critical     
terms say of these creations  of        
,allston1 ,here is beauty1 but not the  
beauty that glares on you2 and  this    
phrase1 so odd1 but so original1 well   
describes the beauty of this  ,beatrice1
 who1 though now transfigured by        
sentiment and capable of being  a       
home-goddess1 does not seem intended to 
shine in starry circles4    ,but for the
 beauty of execution in this picture1 it
 is unsurpassed4 ,it  is in this respect
 like the most beautiful things ever    
painted by  ,raphael1--like the ,madonna
 del ,cardellino1 whose face has light  
within1  luce di dentro1 as is the      
expressive ,italian phrase1--and is also
  like another picture that ,i have     
seen1 attributed to ,raphael1 in the    
collection of the late ,baron ,kestner  
at ,rome4    ,visiting the extremely    
curious and valuable gallery of this    
gentleman1  the ,hanoverian ,minister at

 ,rome1 after making us begin at the    
beginning1  among the very early        
masters1 he led us on with courteous    
determination  through his specimens of 
all the schools1 and made us observe the
  characteristics of each school and    
each master1 till at last we rested  in 
the last room1 where hung a single      
picture covered with a silken  curtain4 
,this at last1 with sacred and reverent 
ceremony1 was drawn  aside1 and revealed
 a portrait by ,raphael1--the portrait  
of a lady1  young and beautiful1 and    
glowing with a tender sentiment which   
recalled  to my remembrance these heads 
by ,allston1 not alone in the sentiment1
  but in the masterly beauty of the     
painting4 ,m4 ,kestner told us he       
supposed the picture to be a portrait of
 that niece of ,cardinal ,bibbiena  to  
whom ,raphael was betrothed4 ,the       
picture had come into his possession  by
 one of those wonderful chances which   
have preserved so many valuable  works  
from destruction4 ,at a sale of pictures

 at ,bologna1 he told us he  noticed a  
very ordinary head1 badly enough        
painted1 but with very  beautiful       
hands1--hands which betrayed the work of
 a master2 and he  conjectured this to  
be some valuable picture1 hastily       
covered with  coarse work to deceive the
 emissaries of a conqueror when they    
came to  select and carry off the most  
valuable pictures from the galleries of 
the conquered city4 ,he gave his agent  
orders to purchase it1 and when in  his 
possession a little careful work removed
 the upper colors and  discovered one of
 the most beautiful heads ever painted  
even by ,raphael4  ,though it may and   
will seem extravagant1 ,i am satisfied  
that there are  several heads by        
,allston that would lose nothing by     
comparison with this  admirable work4   
,indeed1 though ,m4 ,kestner's picture  
is a portrait1 it is  a work so entirely
 in the same class with the ,beatrice1  
the ,rosalie1  the ,valentine1 and some 
other works of ,allston1 in sentiment   

and  execution1 that the comparison is  
fairly challenged4    ,rosalie is       
different from ,beatrice4 ,she seems    
listening to music2  and so the little  
poem written by the author1 and recited 
by him when  showing the picture newly  
finished to his friends1 describes her4 
,the  face indicates1 not a dream of    
sentiment1 like that of ,beatrice1 but  
rather a rapture4 ,she is caught on a   
higher strain4 ,she is a creature  as   
passionate as tender2 more like ,juliet 
than like ,miranda2 fit to be  the love 
of a poet1 and to reward his song with  
the overflowing cup of  love4 ,in this  
figure also beauty melts into feeling4  
,the composition of  color is masterly2 
in the draperies it is inlaid in        
opposing fields1 by  which means the key
 of the whole is raised1 and the rising 
rapture of  expression powerfully       
seconded4 ,did ,i not fear to insist too
 much on  what may be only a private    
fancy1 ,i should say that these colors  
reverberate like some rich orchestral   

strain of music4    ,the ,roman ,lady   
reading4 ,this ,roman lady might be the 
mother of the  ,gracchi1 so stately and 
of so grand a style is she4 ,but she is 
a modern1  for she reads from a book4   
,she might be ,vittoria ,colonna1 the   
loved of  ,michel ,angelo1 so grave1 so 
dignified is her aspect4 ,the whole     
figure is  reading4 ,a vital            
intelligence seems to pass from the eyes
 to the book4  ,nothing tender in this  
woman1 who1 if a ,roman1 takes life     
after the  high ,roman fashion4 ,the    
beauty and perfect representation of the
 hands  should be noticed here1 as well 
as in the ,rosalie and ,beatrice4       
,triumphal ,song of ,miriam on the      
,destruction of ,pharaoh and his ,hosts 
in  the ,red ,sea4 ,this is a           
three-quarter length figure4 ,she stands
 singing1  with one hand holding the    
timbrel1 the other thrown aloft1 the    
whole  form up-borne by the swelling    
triumphal song4 ,i hardly know what it  
is  in this picture which takes one back

 so far into the world's early days4    
,the figure is neither antique nor      
modern2 the face is not entirely of  the
 ,hebrew type1 but the tossing          
exultation seems so truly to carry off  
the wild thrill of joy when a people is 
released from bondage1 that it  is      
almost unnecessary to put the words into
 her mouth1--,sing ye to the  ,lord1 for
 ,he hath triumphed gloriously2 the     
horse and his rider hath ,he  thrown    
into the sea4 ,this figure is           
dramatically imaginative4 ,in  looking  
at it1 one feels called on to sing      
triumphal songs with ,miriam1  and not  
to stand idly looking4 ,the magnetism of
 the artist at the moment  of conception
 powerfully seizes on the beholder4     
,the ,valentine is described by ,william
 ,ware,a as follows4    ,for the        
',valentine' ,i may say1 though to some 
it may seem an  extravagance1 ,i have   
never been able to invent the terms that
 would  sufficiently express my         
admiration of that picture1--,i mean1 of

 its  color2 though as a whole it is    
admirable for its composition1 for the  
fewness of the objects admitted1 for the
 simplicity and naturalness of  the     
arrangement4 ,but the charm is in the   
color of the flesh1 of the  head1 of the
 two hands4 ,the subject is a young     
woman reading a letter1  holding the    
open letter with both the hands4 ,the   
art can go no further1  nor as ,i       
believe has it ever gone any further4   
,some pigments or  artifices were       
unfortunately used1 which have caused   
the surface to  crack1 and which require
 the picture now to be looked at at a   
further  remove than the work on its own
 account needs or requires2 it even     
demands a nearer approach1 in order to  
be well seen1 than these cracks  will   
permit4 ,but these accidental blemishes 
do not materially interfere  with the   
appreciation and enjoyment of the       
picture4 ,it has what ,i  conceive to be
 that most rare merit1--it has the same 
universal hue of  nature and truth in   

both the shadows and the lights which   
,nature has1  but ,art almost never1 and
 which is the great cross to the artist4
 ,the  great defect and the great       
difficulty1 in imitating the hues of    
flesh1  lies in the shadows and the     
half-shadows4 ,you will often observe in
  otherwise excellent works of the most 
admirable masters1 that1 the  moment    
their pencil passes to the shadows of   
the flesh1 especially the  half-shadows1
 truth1 though not always a certain     
beauty1 forsakes them4  ,the shadows are
 true in their degree of dark1 but false
 in tone and hue4  ,they are true       
shadows1 but not true flesh4 ,you see   
the form of a face1  neck1 arm1 hand in 
shadow1 but not flesh in shade2 and were
 that portion  of the form sundered from
 its connection with the body1 it could 
never  be told1 by its color alone1 what
 it was designed to be4 ,allston's      
wonderful merit is1 7and it was         
,titian's17 that the hue of life and    
flesh is the same in the shadow as in   

the light4 ,it is not only shadow  or   
dark1 but it is flesh in shadow4 ,the   
shadows of most artists1 even  very     
distinguished ones1 are green1 or brown1
 or black1 or lead color1  and have some
 strong and decided tint other than that
 of flesh4 ,the  difficulty with most   
seems to have been so insuperable1 that 
they cut  the knot at a single blow1 and
 surrendered the shadows of the flesh1  
as  an impossibility1 to green or brown 
or black4 ,and in the general  imitation
 of the flesh tints the greatest artists
 have apparently  abandoned the task in 
despair1 and contented themselves with a
 correct  utterance of form and         
expression1 with well-harmonized darks  
and lights1  with little attention to   
the hues of ,nature4 ,such was          
,caravaggio always1  and ,guercino      
often1 and all their respective         
followers4 ,such was ,michel  ,angelo1  
and often ,raffaelle1--though at other  
times the color of  ,raffaelle is not   
inferior in truth and glory to ,titian1 

greatest of the  ,venetian colorists3 as
 in his portraits of ,leo ,x41 ,julius1 
and some  parts of his frescos4 ,but for
 the most part1 though he had the genius
  for everything1 for color as well as  
form1 yet one may conjecture he  found  
color in its greatest excellence too    
laborious for the careful  elaboration  
which can alone produce great results1  
too costly of time  and toil1 the       
sacrifice too great of the greater to   
the less4 ,allston  was apparently never
 weary of the labor which would add one 
more tint of  truth to the color of a   
head or a hand1 or even of any object of
 still  life1 that entered into any of  
his compositions4 ,any eye that looks   
can  see that it was a most laborious   
and difficult process by which he       
secured his results1--by no superficial 
wash of glaring pigments1 as in  the    
color of ,rubens1 whose carnations look 
as if he had finished the  forms at     
once1 the lights and the darks in solid 
opaque colors1 and then  with a free1   

broad brush or sponge washed in the     
carmine1 lake1 and  vermilion1 to confer
 the requisite amount of red1--but1 on  
the contrary1  wrought out in solid     
color from beginning to end1 by a       
painful and  sagacious formation1 on the
 palette1 of the very tint by which the 
effect1 the lights1 shadows1 and        
half-shadows1 and the thousand almost   
imperceptible gradations of hue which   
bind together the principal masses  of  
light and shade1 was to be produced4    
,here ,mr4 ,ware undoubtedly errs in    
attributing the success of ,allston's   
flesh tints to the use of solid color   
alone4 ,such effects are not  possible  
without the aid of transparent colors in
 glazing2 but it is the  judicious      
combination of solid with transparent   
pigments1 combined not  bodily on the   
palette1 but in their use on the canvas1
 that gives to  oil-painting all its    
unrivalled power in the hands of a      
master4 ,allston  was accustomed to     
inlay his pictures in solid crude color 

with a medium  that hardened like stone1
 and to leave them months and even years
 to dry  before finishing them with the 
glazing colors1 which worked in his     
hands  like magic over such a           
well-hardened surface4 ,by this method  
of working  he was able to secure       
solidity of appearance1 richness of     
color1 unity  of effect1 and atmospheric
 repose and tenderness enveloping all   
objects  in the picture4 ,many of his   
unfinished works are left in the first  
stage  of this process1 showing         
precisely how far he relied on the use  
of solid  color2 and by comparing the   
works left in this state with his       
finished  pictures1 one may see how much
 he was indebted to the use of          
transparent  glazes for the beauty1     
tenderness1 and variety of color in the 
last  stages of his work4    ,in #ahci  
there was an exhibition in ,boston of   
such of the works of  ,allston as could 
be borrowed for the occasion4 ,this was 
managed by the  friends of the artist   

for his benefit4 ,the exhibition was    
held in  ,harding's ,gallery1 a square1 
well-lighted room1 but too small for the
  larger pictures4 ,it was1 however1 the
 best room that could be procured  for  
the purpose4 ,here were shown forty-five
 pictures1 including one or  two        
drawings4 ,there was something          
peculiarly happy in this exhibition of  
works by a single mind4 ,on entering1   
the presence of the artist seemed  to   
fill the room4 ,the door-keeper held the
 door1 but ,allston held the  room2 for 
his spirit flowed from all the walls1   
and helped the spectator  to see his    
work aright4 ,this accompaniment of the 
artist's presence1  which hangs about   
all truly artistic works1 is disturbed  
in a  miscellaneous collection1 where   
jarring influences contend1 and the     
worst pictures outshine and outglare the
 best1 and for a time triumph  over     
them4 ,but in this exhibition no such   
disturbance met one1 but  rather one was
 received into an atmosphere of peace   

and harmony1 and in  such a temper      
beheld the pictures4    ,the largest    
picture on the walls was ,the ,dead ,man
 restored to ,life by  touching the     
,bones of the ,prophet ,elisha4 ,this is
 a great subject1  greatly treated1 full
 of power and expression4    ,the next  
in size was ,jeremiah dictating his     
,prophecy to ,baruch1 the  ,scribe4     
,this picture contains two figures1 both
 seated4 ,it is a picture  the scale of 
which demands that it be seen from a    
distance1 though its  perfect execution 
makes a nearer view desirable also4 ,if 
it were seen at  the end of some church 
aisle1 through arches1 and with a good  
light upon  it1 the effect would be much
 enforced4 ,it is a picture of          
extraordinary  expression4 ,the         
,prophet1 the grandest figure among the 
sons of men1 with  those strange eyes   
that ,allston loved to paint1--eyes     
which see  verities1 not objects1--is   
looking not upward1 but forward1 not    
into  space1 but into spirit2 with one  

hand raised1 as if listening1 he        
receives the heavenly communication1    
which the beautiful youth at his  feet  
is writing in a book4 ,the force and    
beauty of this work are  unsurpassed4   
,it is a perfect picture3 grand in      
design1 perfect in  composition1        
splendid in color1 successful in        
execution1 and the figures  full of     
expression1--for the inspiration of the 
,prophet seems to  overflow into the    
,scribe1 whose attitude indicates       
enthusiastic  receptiveness2 it is1     
indeed1 in every pictorial quality that 
can be  named1 admirable4    ,the other 
pictures in this collection1 with the   
exception of the large  ,swiss          
landscape1 were of cabinet size4 ,some  
of them have been already  described in 
this paper4 ,i will give ,mr4 ,ware's   
description of ,lorenzo  and ,jessica1  
and of ,the ,spanish ,girl4 ,mr4 ,ware  
says3--    ,but perhaps the most        
exquisite examples of repose are the    
',lorenzo and  ,jessica1' and ',the     

,spanish ,girl4' ,these are works also  
to which no  perfection could be        
added1--from which1 without loss1       
neither touch nor  tint could be        
subtracted4 ,we might search through all
 galleries1 the  ,louvre or any other1  
for their equals or rivals in either    
conception or  execution4 ,i speak of   
these familiarly1 because ,i suppose you
 all to be  familiar with them4 ,the    
first named1 the ',lorenzo and          
,jessica1' is a  very small picture1 one
 of the smallest of ,allston's best     
ones2 but no  increase of size could    
have enlarged its beauty or in any sense
 have  added to its value4 ,the lovers  
sit side by side1 their hands clasped1  
at  the dim hour of twilight1 all the   
world hushed into silence1 not a cloud  
visible to speck the clear expanse of   
the darkening sky1 as if  themselves    
were the only creatures breathing in    
life1 and they absorbed  into each      
other1 while their eyes1 turned in the  
same direction1 are  turned upon the    

fading light of the gentle1 but         
brilliant planet1 as it  sinks below the
 horizon3 the gentle brilliancy1 not the
 setting1 the  emblem of their mutual   
loves4 ,as you dwell upon the scene1    
your only  thought is1 ,may this quiet  
beauty1 this delicious calm1 never be   
disturbed1 but may        ',the peace of
 the scene pass into the heart6'    ,in 
the background1 breaking the line of the
 horizon1 but in fine unison  with the  
figures and the character of the        
atmosphere1 are the faint  outlines of a
 villa of ,italian architecture1 but to 
whose luxurious  halls you can hardly   
wish the lovers should ever return1 so  
long as they  can remain sitting upon   
that bank4 ,it is all painted in that   
deep1  subdued1 but rich tone1 in which1
 except by the strongest light1 the     
forms are scarcely to be made out1 but  
to which1 to the mind in some  moods1 a 
charm is lent1 surpassing all the glory 
of the sun4    ',the ,spanish ,girl' is 
another example to the same point4 ,it  

is one of  the most beautiful and       
perfect of all of ,mr4 ,allston's works4
 ,the  ,spanish girl gives her name to  
the picture1 but it is one of those     
misnomers of which there are many among 
his works4 ,one who looks at the        
picture scarcely ever looks at1         
certainly cares nothing for1 the        
,spanish girl1 and regards her as merely
 giving her name to the picture2  and   
when the mind recurs to it afterwards1  
however many years may have  elapsed1   
while he can recall nothing of the      
beauty1 the grace1 or the  charms of the
 ,spanish maiden1 the landscape1 of     
which her presence is a  mere inferior  
incident1 is never forgotten1 but       
remains forever as a  part of the       
furniture of the mind4 ,in this part of 
the picture1 the  landscape1 it must be 
considered as one of the most felicitous
 works of  genius1 where1 by a few      
significant tints and touches1 there is 
unveiled  a world of beauty4 ,you see   
the roots of a single hill only1 and a  

remote  mountain-summit1 but you think  
of ,alps and ,andes1 and the eye presses
  onwards till it at last rests on a low
 cloud at the horizon4 ,it is a  mere   
snatch of ,nature1 but1 though only     
that1 every square inch of the  surface 
has its meaning4 ,it carries you back to
 what your mind imagines  of the warm1  
reddish tints of the ,brown ,mountains  
of ,cervantes1 where  the shepherds and 
shepherdesses of that pastoral scene    
passed their  happy1 sunny hours4 ,the  
same deep feeling of repose is shown in 
all the  half-developed objects of the  
hill-side1 in the dull1 sleepy tint of  
the  summer air1 and in the warm1       
motionless haze that wraps sky1 land1   
tree1  water1 and cloud4 ,it is quite   
wonderful by how few tints and touches1 
by  what almost shadowy and indistinct  
forms1 a whole world of poetry can be   
breathed into the soul1 and the mind    
sent rambling off into pastures1        
fields1 boundless deserts of imaginary  
pleasures1 where only is warmth  and    

sunshine and rest1 where only poets     
dwell1 and beauty wanders abroad  with  
her sweeping train1 and the realities of
 the working-day world are  for a few   
moments happily forgotten4    ,the      
,flight of ,florimel is an upright      
landscape4 ,florimel1 on a white  horse1
 is rushing with long leaps through the 
forest4 ,the horse and  rider are so    
near the front of the picture as to     
occupy an important  space in the       
foreground4 ,the lady1 in her dress of  
beaten gold1 with  fair hair1 and pale1 
frightened face1 clings with both hands 
to her  bridle1 and half looks back     
towards her pursuer4 ,the color of this 
picture is of exquisite beauty4 ,the    
tender white and pale yellows of the    
horse and rider show like fairy colors  
in a fairy forest4 ,the whole is        
wonderfully light and airy1 flickering  
between light and shade4 ,the  forest   
has no heavy glooms4 ,the light breaks  
through everywhere4 ,the  forms of the  
trees are light and piny2 the red soil  

is seen1 the roots  of the trees1 the   
broken turf1 the sandy ground4 ,all the 
colors are  delightfully broken up in   
the mysterious half-light which confuses
 the  outlines of every object1 without 
making them shadowy4 ,such a picture    
one might see with half-shut eyes in a  
sunny wood1 if one had more  poetry than
 prose in one's head1 and were well read
 in the ,farie  ,queen4    ,a ,mother   
,watching her ,sleeping ,child4 ,this is
 a very small picture1  remarkable only 
for its tender sentiment and delightful 
coloring4 ,the  child is nude2 the flesh
 tints of a tender rose1 painted with   
that  luminous effect which leaves no   
memory of paint or pencil-touch behind  
it4    ,american ,scenery4 ,this is a   
small landscape1 with something of the  
,indian ,summer haze2 and a solitary    
horseman trotting across the  foreground
 with an indifferent manner1 as if he   
would soon be out of  sight1 wonderfully
 enhances the quietness of the scene4   
,isaac of ,york4 ,this head of a ,jew is

 powerfully painted1 warm and  rich2 as 
also are two heads called ,sketches of  
,polish ,jews1 which were  painted at   
one sitting4    ,a ,portrait of         
,benjamin ,west1 late ,president of the 
,royal ,academy1 has  all the most      
admirable qualities that a simple       
portrait can have4    ,a ,portrait of   
the ,artist1 painted in ,rome1 is very  
interesting1 from  the youthful         
sweetness of the face4    ,head of ,st4 
,peter is a study for the head of ,st4  
,peter in a large  picture of the ,angel
 delivering ,peter from ,prison4 ,in    
this large  picture1 lately brought from
 ,england to ,boston1 the head of the   
angel  is of surpassing beauty1 and     
makes a powerful contrast with that of  
the  ,apostle1 whose strong ,hebrew     
features are flooded with the light     
which  surrounds his heavenly deliverer4
    ,the ,sisters4 ,this picture        
represents two young girls of           
three-quarter  size1 the back of one    
turned toward the spectator4 ,in the    

,catalogue is a  note by the artist1 who
 says1--,the air and color of the head  
with  golden hair was imitated from a   
picture by ,titian1 called the ,portrait
  of his ,daughter1--but not the        
character or the disposition of the     
hair1  which in the portrait is a crop2 
the action of the portrait is also      
different1 holding up a casket with both
 hands4 ,the rest of the picture1  with 
the exception of the curtain in the     
background1 is original4 ,now  this is a
 very modest as well as honest statement
 of the artist2 for  both the figures   
seem perfectly original1 and do not     
recall ,titian's  ,daughter to the      
memory1 except as an example of a       
successful study of  ,titian's color1   
which ,i believe all are permitted1 nay1
 recommended1 to  imitate1 if they can4 
,it is1 however1 quite true1 that this  
picture is  less ,allstonian than the   
rest1 which makes his explanation       
welcome4 ,it  was undoubtedly painted as
 a study1 and was not an original       

suggestion  of his own mind1 as almost  
everything he has left evidently        
was1--if  internal evidence is evidence 
enough4 ,allston himself said1 that he  
never painted anything that did not cost
 him his whole mind2 and those  who read
 his genius in his works can easily     
believe this statement4    ,the ,tuscan 
,girl4 ,this is a very lovely little    
picture4 ,it is not a  study of costume1
 but a picture of dreamy girlhood musing
 in a wood4 ,the  sentiment of this     
charming little picture is best         
described in a little  poem with which  
its first appearance was accompanied1   
and which opens  thus3--        ,how    
pleasant and how sad the turning tide   
,of human life1 when side by side       
,the child and youth begin to glide     
,along the vale of years3      ,the pure
 twin-being for a little space1         
,with lightsome heart1 and yet a graver 
face1        ,too young for woe1 but not
 for tears6    ,i will not occupy any   
more space with describing the pictures 

in this  unique collection4 ,all were   
not brought together that might have    
been4  ,one very remarkable small       
picture1 called ,spalatro1 or the       
,bloody  ,hand1 was not with these4 ,its
 distance from ,boston probably         
prevented  its being risked on the      
dangers of a long journey4    ,there are
 several pictures by ,allston in        
,england4 ,of these ,i cannot  speak1 as
 ,i have not seen them4 ,of one1        
however1 ,elijah in the ,desert1  ,mr4  
,ware gives so striking a description1  
that ,i will quote nearly the  whole of 
it4    ,i turn with more pleasure to    
another work of ,mr4 ,allston1 even     
though  but few can ever have seen it1  
but which made upon my own mind1 when ,i
  saw it immediately after it was       
completed1 an impression of grandeur and
  beauty never to be effaced1 and never 
recalled without new sentiments of      
enthusiastic admiration4 ,i refer to his
 grand landscape of ',elijah in  the    
,desert1'--a large picture of perhaps   

six feet by four4 ,it might have  been  
more appropriately named an ,asian or   
,arabian ,desert4 ,that is to  say1 it  
is a very unfortunate error to give to  
either a picture or a  book a name which
 raises false expectations2 especially  
is this the case  when the name of the  
picture is a great or imposing one which
 greatly  excites the imagination4 ,what
 could be more so than this1 ',elijah in
 the  ,desert1 fed by ,ravens'8 ,extreme
 and fatal was the disappointment to    
many1 on entering the room1 when1       
looking on the picture1 no ,elijah was  
to be seen2 at least you had to search  
for him among the subordinate  objects1 
hidden away among the grotesque roots of
 an enormous  banyan-tree2 and the      
,prophet1 when found at last1 was hardly
 worth the  pains of the search4 ,but as
 soon as the intelligent visitor had    
recovered from his first disappointment1
 the objects which then  immediately    
filled the eye taught him1 that1 though 
he had not found  what he had been      

promised1 a ,prophet1 he had found more 
than a ,prophet1  a landscape which in  
its sublimity excited the imagination as
  powerfully as any gigantic form of the
 ,elijah could have done1 even  though  
,michel ,angelo had drawn it4 ,it is    
meant to represent1 and does  perfectly 
represent1 an illimitable desert1 a     
boundless surface of  barrenness and    
desolation1 where ,nature can bring     
forth nothing but  seeds of death1 and  
the only tree there is dead and         
withered1 not a leaf  to be seen nor    
possible4 ,the only other objects1      
beside the level of the  desert1 either 
smooth with sand or rough with ragged   
rock1 are a range  of dark mountains on 
the right1 heavy lowering clouds which  
overspread  and overshadow the whole    
scene1 the roots and wide-spread        
branches of an  enormous banyan-tree1   
through the tortuous and leafless       
branches of  which the distant          
landscape1 the hills1 rocks1 clouds1 and
 remote plains  are seen4 ,the roots of 

this huge tree of the desert1 in all    
directions  from the main trunk1 rise   
upward1 descend1 and root themselves    
again in  the earth1 then again rise1   
again descend into the ground and root  
themselves1 and so on1 growing smaller  
and smaller as the process is  repeated1
 till they disappear in the general     
level of the plain1 or lose  themselves 
among the rocks1 like the knots and     
convolutions of a huge  family of       
boa-constrictors4 ,the branches1 which  
almost completely fill  the upper part  
of the picture1 are done with such truth
 to general  ,nature1 are so admirable  
in color1 so wonderful in the treatment 
of  their perspective1 that the eye is  
soon happily withdrawn from any         
attention to the roots1 among which the 
,prophet sits1 receiving the food  with 
which the ravens1 as they float towards 
him1 miraculously supply  him4444 ,you  
forgot the ,prophet1 the ravens1 the    
roots1 and almost the  branches1 though 
these were too vast and multitudinous to

 be overlooked1  and were1 moreover1    
truly characteristic1 and dwelt only    
upon the heavy  rolling clouds1 the     
lifeless desert1 the sublime masses of  
the distant  mountains1 and the         
indeterminate misty outline of the      
horizon1 where  earth and heaven became 
one4 ,the picture was1 therefore1 a     
landscape of  a most sublime1 impressive
 character1 and not a mere              
representation of a  passage of         
,scripture history4 ,it would have been 
a great gain to the  work1 if the       
,scripture passage could have been      
painted out1 and the  desert only left4 
,but1 as it is1 it serves as one further
 illustration  of the characteristic of 
,mr4 ,allston's art1 of which ,i have   
already  given several examples4 ,for1  
melancholy1 dark1 and terrific almost1  
as  are all the features of the scene1 a
 strange calm broods over it all1 as  of
 an ocean1 now overhung by black        
threatening clouds1 dead and            
motionless1 but the sure precursors of  

change and storm2 and over the  desert  
hang the clouds which were soon to break
 and deluge the parched  earth and cover
 it again with verdure4 ,but at present 
the only motion  and life is in the     
little brook ,cherith1 as it winds along
 among the  roots of the great tree4    
,the sublime1 after all1 is better      
expressed in  the calmness1 repose1 and 
silence of the ',elijah1' than in the   
tempests  of ,poussin or ,vernet1       
,wilson or ,salvator ,rosa4             
,belshazzar's ,feast4 ,any criticism of 
,allston's works would be very          
imperfect which did not speak of his    
,belshazzar's ,feast1--because1  though 
the picture was never finished1 it      
occupied so large a part of  the life   
and thoughts of ,allston1 that it       
demands some mention4 ,it had  been an  
object of great interest among          
,allston's friends before it had  been  
seen by one of them4 ,it was intended by
 him to fulfil a commission  from       
certain gentlemen of ,boston for a large

 picture1 the subject of  which was to  
be chosen by himself4 ,a sum of money   
was also placed at his  disposal with   
the commission1 in order to secure to   
him leisure and  freedom from care1 that
 he might work at his ease1 and do      
justice to his  thought4 ,this          
commission was the result of the        
confidence in him and his  genius which 
was felt by those friends who knew him  
best4    ,the picture was begun1 went   
forward1 and was nearly completed1 when 
an  important change in the structure of
 the work was determined on1 and        
undertaken with great courage4 ,as often
 unfortunately happens in such  cases1  
the interruption to the flow of thought 
was fatal to the success  of the        
picture4 ,it was laid aside for many    
years1 but was the work  actually in    
hand at the time of ,allston's death4   
,when1 after that event1  his studio was
 entered by his nearest friends1 and the
 picture so long  guarded with jealous  
reserve was first seen1 it was found to 

be in a  disorganized1 almost chaotic   
state4 ,but though fragmentary1 the     
fragments were full of interest4 ,many  
passages were perfectly painted1  and   
the whole intention was full of grandeur
 and beauty4 ,but a picture  left in    
that state should never have been       
publicly shown4 ,deeply  interesting to 
artists1 and to those familiar with the 
genius of  ,allston1 it could be only a 
puzzling wonder to those who go to an   
exhibition to see finished pictures1 and
 who do not understand those  which are 
not finished4 ,with this work such      
persons could have no  concern4 ,yet1 by
 what appears a great error of          
judgement1 this worse  than unfinished  
picture was made the subject of a public
 exhibition1  though in a state of      
incompleteness which the artist during  
life would  not permit his nearest      
friend to behold4 ,and as if this       
violation of his  wishes were not       
enough1 a stolen and travestied copy    
soon appeared1 and  was heralded by     

placards1 on which the words ,great     
,picture by  ,washington ,allston were  
seen in letters large enough to be read 
across  the street1 and on which the    
words ,copy of were in such very small  
type that they were unnoticed1 except by
 those who looked for them4 ,this  copy 
went to other cities1 and gave of course
 a most erroneous  impression of the    
great painter's genius4    ,among the   
half-finished pictures found in the     
studio of ,allston after  his death were
 several designs on canvas in chalk or  
umber4 ,these seemed  so valuable1 and  
their condition so perishable1 that it  
was thought best  to have them engraved4
 ,this was undertaken by a friend and   
admirer of  the artist1 ,mr4 ,s4 ,h4    
,perkins1 who arranged the designs and  
superintended the engraving1 and        
published the work with the aid of a    
partial subscription and at his own     
risk4 ,the brothers ,cheney engraved    
the outlines1 and with peculiar skill   
and feeling imitated the broadly        

expressive chalk lines by combining     
several delicately traced lines into    
one4 ,these outlines and sketches were  
published in #ahej4    ,there are1 first
 six plates of outlines from heads and  
figures in a  picture of ,michael       
setting the ,watch4 ,this picture must  
have been  painted in ,england1 and in  
unknown here except by these outlines4  
,from  these alone great strength of    
design might be inferred4 ,there are1   
besides1 ,a ,sibyl1 sitting in a        
cave-like1 rocky place1 the eyes        
dilated with thought1 the mouth tenderly
 fixed2 the cave is open to the  sea4   
,this design would have proved one of   
the most characteristic works  of       
,allston1 had it been painted4 ,dido and
 neas4 ,then four plates from  figures  
of angels in ,jacob's ,dream4 ,this is a
 picture painted in  ,england for ,lord 
,egremont1 and is mentioned in ,leslie's
 ,recollections1  by the editor of that 
work1 in a minor key of praise4 ,then   
comes the  outline of a single figure1  

,uriel sitting in the ,sun4 ,this       
picture was  also painted in ,england4  
,as ,allston was fond of referring to   
it1 and  describing the methods he used 
to represent the light of the sun behind
  the angel1 as if he felt satisfied    
with the result1 it may be inferred     
that the effort to do so difficult a    
thing was successful4 ,the sun was      
painted over a white ground with        
transparent glazings of the primary     
colors laid and dried separately1 thus  
combining the colors  prismatically to  
produce white light4 ,the figure of the 
sitting angle is  grandly original1--of 
the most noble proportions1 and full of 
watchful  life1 as of one conscious of a
 great trust4    ,then come three       
compositions1 with many                 
figures1--,heliodorus1 ,fairies  on the 
,seashore1 and ,titania's ,court4 ,these
 show as much power in  composition as  
the single figures do in design4    ,the
 ,fairies on the ,seashore is an        
exquisitely graceful design1 both in    

the figures and the landscape4 ,it is a 
perfect poem1 even as it stands  in the 
outline4 ,a strip of sea1 a breaking    
wave1 a rocky island1 and on  the beach 
begins a stream of fairies1 diminishing 
as it curves up into  the sky4 ,the last
 one on the shore seems lingering1 and  
the next one to  her draws her upwards4 
,the design when painted would have had 
the lower  part of the picture in the   
shadow of night1 and the coming morn in 
the  sky1 the light of which should be  
caught on the distant figures up among  
the clouds4    ,titania's ,court is in a
 moon-lighted space in the forest4 ,six 
fairies  are dancing in a ring4 ,more   
are coming out of the depths of the wood
 and  off its rocky heights1 hand in    
hand1--a flow of graceful figures4 ,on  
the  right side of the picture sits     
,titania1 served by her ,indian page1   
who  kneels before her1 holding an      
acorn-cup4 ,this page is delicately     
differenced from the fairies by his     
straight hair1 his features1  ,asiatic1 

though handsome1 his girdle and         
bracelets of pearls1 and a  short       
striped skirt about his loins4 ,the     
fairies all have flowing  drapery or    
none1 and features regular as ,greeks4  
,two little figures in  the air above   
,titania's head are fanning her with    
butterflies' wings2  others are bringing
 water in shells and flower-cups2 others
 playing on  musical instruments4 ,this 
is better than most pictures of this    
often-painted subject1 because in it    
fancy does not override  imagination1   
but helps and serves it4    ,another    
design was in chalk1 on a dark canvas1  
of a ship at sea in a  squall4 ,this is 
wonderfully imitated in the             
engraving1--even all the  blotches and  
erasures are there4 ,the curves of the  
waves in a rolling  sea were never      
better caught in all their subtle force4
 ,the clouds have  great suggestions4   
,there is a figure of ,the ,prodigal    
,son1 from a pencil drawing2 and a      
,prometheus1 also from a pencil sketch4 

,allston seemed equally at home in      
drawing powerful figures in action1 or  
delicate dreamy figures in repose4 ,he  
had the true imaginative power  which   
realizes and understands all natural    
forms4    ,we have thus given a few     
words of description to some of these   
remarkable pictures4 ,we do not hope to 
convey any idea of them to those  who   
have not seen them1 for a picture is by 
its very nature incapable of  being     
described in words4 ,that which makes it
 a picture takes it out of  the sphere  
of words4 ,neither do we attempt to     
analyze the genius of this  great       
painter4 ,we can enumerate some of his  
artistic qualities3 his  power in color1
 so creative2 the still1 reposeful      
spirit of his  creations1 reminding one 
of ,beato ,angelico2 his grandly        
expressive  forms2 his powerful color   
compositions2 and above all1 that       
greatest  crowning merit1 that his works
 are1 almost without exception1         
vitalized  by an imaginative force which

 makes them living presences4 ,such     
effects  are not produced by talent1    
however great1 by culture1 however      
perfect1  but by a mind which is a law  
to itself1--in other words1 a genius4   
,such1  and nothing less1 was           
,washington ,allston4    ,,footnotes3   
,a ,lectures on the ,works and ,genius  
of ,washington ,allston4 ,boston3       
,phillips1 ,sampson1  ,co4 #aheb4       
,,doctor ,,johns      ,i4    ,in the    
summer of #ahab1 when the good people of
 ,connecticut were feeling  uncommonly  
bitter about the declaration of war     
against ,england1 and were  abusing ,mr4
 ,madison in the roundest terms1 there  
lived in the town of  ,canterbury a     
fiery old gentleman1 of nearly sixty    
years1 and a sterling  ,democrat1 who   
took up the cudgels bravely for the     
,administration1 and  stoutly belabored 
,governor ,roger ,griswold for his tardy
 obedience to the  ,president in calling
 out the militia1 and for what he called
 his absurd  pretensions in regard to   

,state sovereignty4 ,he was a man1 too1 
who meant  all that he said1 and gave   
the best proof of it by offering his    
military  services1--first to the       
,governor1 and then to the ,united      
,states ,general  commanding the        
,department4    ,nor was he wholly      
unfitted3 he was erect1 stanch1 well    
knit together1  and had served with     
immense credit in the local militia1 in 
which he  wore the title of ,major4 ,it 
does not appear that his offer was      
immediately accepted2 but the following 
season he was invested with the  command
 of a company1 and was ordered back and 
forth to various  threatened points     
along the seaboard4 ,his home affairs1  
meantime1 were  left in charge of his   
son1 a quiet young man of               
four-and-twenty1 who for  three years   
had been stumbling with a very reluctant
 spirit through the  law-books in the   
,major's office1 and who shared neither 
his father's  ardor of temperament nor  
his political opinions4 ,eliza1 a       

daughter of  twenty summers1 acted as   
mistress of the house1 and stood in     
place of  mother to a black-eyed little 
girl of thirteen1--the ,major's daughter
 by  a second wife1 who had died only a 
few years before4    ,notwithstanding   
the lack of political sympathy1 there   
was yet a strong  attachment between    
father and son4 ,the latter admired     
immensely the  energy and full-souled   
ardor of the old gentleman2 and the     
father1 in  turn1 was proud of the calm1
 meditative habit of mind which the son 
had  inherited from his mother4 ,there  
is metal in the boy to make a judge  of1
 the major used to say4 ,and when       
,benjamin1 shortly after his  graduation
 at one of the lesser ,new ,england     
colleges1 had given hint of  his        
possible study of theology1 the ,major  
answered with a ,pooh6 pooh6  which     
disturbed the son1--possibly weighed    
with him1--more than the  longest       
opposing argument could have done4 ,the 
manner of the father had  conveyed1     

unwittingly enough1 a notion of         
absurdity as attaching to the  lad's    
engaging in such sacred studies1 which  
overwhelmed him with a  sense of his own
 unworthiness4    ,the ,major1 like all 
sound ,democrats1 had always been an    
ardent admirer  of ,mr4 ,jefferson and  
of the ,french political school4        
,benjamin had a  wholesome horror of    
both1--not so much from any intimate    
knowledge of  their theories1 as by     
reason of a strong religious instinct1  
which had  been developed under his     
mother's counsels into a rigid and      
exacting  ,puritanism4    ,the first    
wife of the ,major had left behind her  
the reputation of a  saint4 ,it was not 
undeserved3 her quiet1 constant         
charities1--her  kindliness of look and 
manner1 which were in themselves the    
best of  charities1--a gentle1          
,christian way she had of dealing with  
all the  vagrant humors of her          
husband1--and the constancy of her      
devotion to all  duties1 whether        

religious or domestic1 gave her better  
claim to the  saintly title than most   
who wear it4 ,the ,major knew this1 and 
was proud  to say it4 ,if1 he was       
accustomed to say1 ,i am the most       
godless man in  the parish1 my wife is  
the most godly woman4 ,yet his          
godlessness was1  after all1 rather     
outside than real3 it was a kind of     
effrontery1  provoked into noisy display
 by the extravagant bigotries of those  
about  him4 ,he did not believe in      
monopolies of opinion1 but in good      
average  dispersion of all sorts of     
thinking4 ,on one occasion he had       
horrified  his poor wife by bringing    
home a full set of ,voltaire's ,works2  
but  having reasoned her--or fancying he
 had--into a belief in the entire       
harmlessness of the offending books1 he 
gratified her immensely by  placing them
 out of all sight and reach of the boy  
,benjamin4    ,he never interfered with 
the severe home course of religious     
instruction  entered upon by the mother4

 ,on the contrary1 he said1 ,the boy    
will need  it all as an offset to the   
bedevilments that will overtake him in  
our  profession4 ,the ,major had a very 
considerable country practice1 and had  
been twice a member of the ,legislature4
    ,his second wife1 a frivolous1      
indolent person1 who had brought him a  
handsome dot1 and left him the pretty   
black-eyed ,mabel1 never held equal     
position with the first4 ,it was        
observed1 however1 with some surprise1  
that under the sway of the latter he was
 more punctilious and regular in        
religious observances than before1--a   
fact which the shrewd ones  explained by
 his old doctrine of adjusting averages4
    ,benjamin1 ,eliza1 and ,mabel1--each
 in their way1--waited news from the    
military campaign of the ,major with    
great anxiety2 all the more because  he 
was understood to be a severe           
disciplinarian1 and it had been rumored 
in the parish that two or three of his  
company1 of rank ,federal  opinions1 had

 vowed they would sooner shoot the      
captain than any foreign  enemy of the  
,state4 ,the ,major1 however1 heard no  
guns in either front or  rear up to the 
time of the ,british attack upon the    
borough of  ,stonington1 in midsummer of
 #ahad4 ,in the defence here he was very
  active1 in connection with a certain  
artillery force that had come down  the 
river from ,norwich2 and although the   
attack of the ,british ,admiral  was a  
mere feint1 yet for a while there was a 
very lively sprinkling of  shot4 ,the   
people of the little borough were duly  
frightened1 the  ,ramilies seventy-four 
gun-ship of his ,majesty enjoyed an     
excellent  opportunity for long-range   
practice1 and the militia gave an honest
  airing to their patriotism4 ,the      
,major was wholly himself4 ,if the      
rascals would only attempt a landing6   
said he2 and as he spoke1 a  fragment of
 shell struck his sword-arm at the      
elbow4 ,the wound was a  grievous one1  
and the surgeon in attendance declared  

amputation to be  necessary4 ,the ,major
 combated the decision for a while1 but 
loss of  blood weakened his firmness1   
and the operation was gone through with 
very bunglingly4 ,next morning a country
 wagon was procured to transport  him   
home4 ,the drive was an exceeding rough 
one1 and the stump fell to  bleeding4   
,most men would have lain by for a day  
or two1 but the ,major  insisted upon   
pushing on for ,canterbury1 where he    
arrived late at night1  very much       
exhausted4    ,the country physician    
declared1 on examination next morning1  
that some  readjustment of the amputated
 limb was necessary1 which was submitted
 to  by the ,major in a very irritable  
humor4 ,friends and enemies of the      
wounded man were all kind and full of   
sympathy4 ,miss ,eliza was in a  flutter
 of dreary apprehension that rendered   
her incapable of doing  anything        
effectively4 ,benjamin was as tender and
 as devoted as a woman4  ,the wound     
healed in due time1 but the ,major did  

not rally4 ,the drain  upon his vitality
 had been too great2 he fell into a     
general decline1  which within a        
fortnight gave promise of fatal results4
 ,the ,major met  the truth like a      
veteran2 he arranged his affairs1 by the
 aid of his  son1 with a great show of  
method1--closed all in due time2 and    
when he  felt his breath growing short1 
called ,benjamin1 and like a good       
officer  gave his last orders4          
,mabel1 said he1 is provided for2 it is 
but just that her mother's  property    
should be settled on her2 ,i have done  
so4 ,for yourself and  ,eliza1 you will 
have need of a close economy4 ,i don't  
think you'll do  much at law2 you once  
thought of preaching2 if you think so   
now1 preach1  ,benjamin2 there's        
something in it2 at least it's better   
than  ,fed--,federalism4    ,a fit of   
coughing seized him here1 from which he 
never fairly rallied4  ,benjamin took   
his hand when he grew quiet1 and prayed 
silently1 while  the ,major slipped off 

the roll militant forever4      ,,ii4   
,the funeral was appointed for the      
second day thereafter4 ,the house was   
set in order for the occasion4 ,chairs  
were brought in from the  neighbors4 ,a 
little table1 with a ,bible upon it1 was
 placed in the  entrance-way at the foot
 of the stairs1 that all might hear what
 the  clergyman should say4 ,the body   
lay in the parlor1 with the ,major's    
sword  and cocked hat upon the coffin2  
and the old gentleman's face had never  
worn an air of so much dignity as it    
wore now4 ,death had refined away  all  
trace of his irritable humors1 of his   
passionate1 hasty speech4 ,it  looked   
like the face of a good man1--so said   
nine out of ten who gazed  on it that   
day2 yet when the immediate family came 
up to take their last  glimpse1--the two
 girls being in tears1--in that dreary  
half-hour after  all was arranged1 and  
the flocking-in of the neighbors was    
waited for1  ,benjamin1 as calm as the  
dead face below him1 was asking himself 

if the  poor gentleman1 his father1 had 
not gone away to a place of torment4 ,he
  feared it2 nay1 was he not bound to   
believe it by the whole force of his    
education8 and his heart1 in that hour1 
made only a feeble revolt  against the  
belief4 ,in the very presence of the    
grim messenger of the  ,eternal1 who had
 come to seal the books and close the   
account1 what  right had human affection
 to make outcry8 ,death had wrought the 
work  given him to do1 like a good      
servant2 had not he1 too1--,benjamin1--a
  duty to fulfil8 the purposes of       
,eternal ,justice to recognize1 to      
sanction1 to approve8 ,in the exaltation
 of his religious sentiment it  seemed  
to him1 for one crazy moment at least1  
that he would be justified  in taking   
his place at the little table where     
prayer was to be said1 and  in setting  
forth1 as one who knew so intimately the
 shortcomings of the  deceased1 all     
those weaknesses of the flesh and spirit
 by which the  ,devil had triumphed1 and

 in warning all those who came to his   
burial of  the judgments of ,god which  
would surely fall on them as on him1    
except  they repented and believed4 ,was
 he not1 indeed1 commissioned1 as it    
were1 by the lips of the dead man to cry
 aloud and spare not8    ,happily1      
however1 the officiating clergyman was  
of a more even temper1  and he said what
 little he had to say in way of         
improvement of the  occasion to the text
 of judge not1 that ye be not judged4   
,we are too apt1 said he1 7and he was   
now addressing a company that  crowded  
the parlors and flowed over into the    
yard in front1 where the  men stood with
 heads uncovered17 we are too apt to    
measure a man's  position in the eye of 
,god1 and to assign him his rank in the 
future1 by  his conformity to the       
external observances of religion1--not  
remembering1 in our complacency1 that we
 see differently from those who  look on
 from beyond the world1 and that there  
are mysterious and secret  relations of 

,god with the conscience of every man1  
which we cannot  measure or adjust4 ,let
 us hope that our deceased friend       
profited by such  to insure his entrance
 into the ,eternal ,city1 whose streets 
are of gold1  and the ,lamb the light   
thereof4    ,the listeners said ,amen to
 this in their hearts2 but the son1     
still  exalted by the fervor of that new
 purpose which he had formed by the     
father's death-bed1 and riveted more    
surely as he looked last on his  face1  
asked himself1 if the old preacher had  
not allowed a kindly  worldly prudence  
to blunt the sharpness of the ,word4    
,why not tell these  friendly mourners1 
thought he1 that they may well shed     
their bitterest  tears1 for that this   
old man they mourn over has lived the   
life of the  ungodly1 has neglected all 
the appointed means of escape1 has died 
the  death of the unrighteous1 and must 
surely suffer the pains of the second   
death8 ,should not the swift warning be 
brought home to me and to them8         

,sudden contact with ,death had refined 
all his old religious impressions  to an
 intensity that shaped itself into a    
flaming sword of retribution4  ,all     
this1 however1 as yet1 lay within his   
own mind1 not beating down his  natural 
affection1 or his grief1 but struggling 
for reconcilement with  them2 no outward
 expression1 even to those who clung to 
him so nearly1  revealed it4 ,the       
memorial-stone which he placed over his 
father's grave1  and which possibly is  
standing now within the old churchyard  
of  ,canterbury1 bore only this3--      
,,here ,,lies ,,the ,,body ,,of         
,,reuben ,,johns4      ,a ,,good        
,,husband2 ,a ,,kind ,,father2      ,a  
,,patriot1 ,,who ,,died ,,for ,,his     
,,country1            #a,,st ,,sept41   
#ahad4    ,and a little below1--        
,christ died for all4      ,,iii4    ,it
 will be no contravention of the truth  
of this epitaph1 to say that  the ,major
 had been always a most miserable       
manager of his private  business        

affairs2 it is even doubtful if the     
kindest fathers and best  husbands are  
not apt to be4 ,certain it is1 that1    
when ,benjamin came to  examine1 in     
connection with a village attorney1 7for
 the son had  inherited the father's    
inaccessibility to profit and loss      
statements17  such loose accounts as the
 ,major had left1 it was found that the 
poor  gentleman had lived up so closely 
to his income--whether as lawyer or     
military chieftain--as to leave his     
little home property subject to the     
payment of a good many outstanding      
debts4 ,there appeared1 indeed1 a  great
 parade of ledgers and day-books and    
statements of accounts2 but it  is by no
 means unusual for those who are        
careless or ignorant of  business system
 to make a pretty show of the requisite 
implements1 and  to confuse themselves1 
in a pleasant way1 with the intricacy of
 their  own figures4    ,the ,major     
sinned pretty largely in this way2 so   
that it was plain1 that1  after the sale

 of all his available effects1 including
 the library with  its inhibited        
,voltaire1 there would remain only      
enough to secure a  respectable         
maintenance for ,miss ,eliza4 ,to this  
end1 ,benjamin determined  at once that 
the residue of the estate should be     
settled upon  her1--reserving only so   
much as would comfortably maintain him  
during a  three years' course of        
battling with ,theology4    ,the younger
 sister1 ,mabel1--as has already been   
intimated1--was provided  for by an     
interest in certain distinct and        
dividend-bearing securities1  which--to 
the honor of the ,major--had never been 
submitted to the  alembic of his figures
 and accounts current4 ,she was placed  
at a  school where she accomplished     
herself for three or four years2 and put
  the seal to her accomplishments by    
marrying very suddenly1 and without     
family consultation1--under which she   
usually proved restive1--a young        
fellow1 who by aid of her snug fortune  

succeeded in establishing himself  in a 
thriving business2 and as early as the  
year #ahbj1 ,mabel1 under her  new name 
of ,mrs4 ,brindlock1 was the mistress of
 one of those fine  merchant-palaces at 
the lower end of ,greenwich ,street in  
,new ,york ,city1  which commanded a    
view of the elegant ,battery1 and were  
the admiration  of all country visitors4
    ,benjamin had needed only his       
father's hint1 7for which he was ever   
grateful17 and the solemn scenes of his 
death and burial1 to lead him to  an    
entire renunciation of his law-craft and
 to an engagement in fervid  study for  
the ministry4 ,this he prosecuted at    
first with a devout old  gentleman who  
had been a pupil of ,president ,edwards2
 and this private  reading was finished 
off by a course at ,andover4 ,his       
studies completed1  he was licensed to  
preach2 and not long after1 without any 
consideration  of what the future of    
this world might have in store for him1 
he  committed the error which so many   

grave and serious men are prone to      
commit1--that is to say1 he married     
hastily1 after only two or three  months
 of solemn courtship1 a charming girl of
 nineteen1 whose only idea  of meeting  
the difficulties of this life was to    
love her dear ,benjamin  with her whole 
heart1 and to keep the parlor dusted4   
,but unfortunately there was no parlor  
to dust ,the consequence was that  the  
newly married couple were compelled to  
establish a temporary home  upon the    
second floor of the comfortable house of
 ,mr4 ,handby1 a  well-to-do farmer1 and
 the father of the bride4 ,here the new 
clergyman  devoted himself resolutely to
 ,tillotson1 to ,edwards1 to ,john      
,newton1 and  in the intervals prepared 
some score or more of sermons1--to all  
which  ,mrs4 ,johns devoutly listening  
in their fresh state1 without ever a    
wink1  entered upon the conscientious   
duties of a wife4 ,from time to time    
some  old clergyman of the neighborhood 
would ask the ,major's son to assist    

him in the ,sabbath services2 and at    
rarer intervals the ,reverend ,mr4      
,johns was invited to some far-away     
township where the illness or absence   
of the settled minister might keep the  
new licentiate for four or five  weeks2 
on which occasions the late ,miss       
,handby was most zealous in  preparing a
 world of comforts for the journey1 and 
invariably followed  him up with one or 
two double letters1 hoping her dear     
,benjamin was  careful to wear the      
muffler which his ,rachel had knit for  
him1 and not  to expose his precious    
throat1--or longing for that quiet home 
of  their own1 which would not make     
necessary these cruel separations1  and 
where she should have the uninterrupted 
society of her dear  ,benjamin4    ,to  
all such the conscientious husband      
dutifully replied1 thankful for  his    
,rachel's expression of interest in such
 a sinner as himself1 and  trusting that
 she would not forget that health or the
 comforts of this  world were but of    

comparatively small importance1 since   
this was 'not  our abiding city4' ,he   
trusted1 too1 that she would not allow  
the  transitory affections of this life1
 however dear they might be1 to  engross
 her to the neglect of those which were 
far more important4 ,he  permitted      
himself to hope that ,rachel 7he was    
chary of endearing  epithets7 would not 
murmur against the dispensations of     
,providence1 and  would be content with 
whatever ,he might provide2 and hoping  
that ,mr4  ,handby and family were in   
their usual health1 remained her        
,christian  friend and devoted husband1 
,benjamin ,johns4    ,it so happened1   
that1 after this discursive life had    
lasted for some ten  months1 a serious  
difficulty arose between the clergyman  
and the parish  of the neighboring town 
of ,ashfield4 ,the person who served as 
the  spiritual director of the people   
was suspected of leaning strongly       
toward some current heresy of the day2  
and the suspicion being once set  on    

foot1 there was not a sermon the poor   
man could preach but some  quidnunc of  
the parish snuffed somewhere in it the  
taint of the false  doctrine4 ,the due  
convocations and committees of inquiry  
followed  sharply after1 and the        
incumbent received his dismissal in due 
form at  the hands of some brother in   
the bonds of the ,gospel4    ,a few     
weeks later1 ,giles ,elderkin of        
,ashfield1 ,society's ,committee1       
invited1 by letter1 the ,reverend       
,benjamin ,johns to come and fill their 
pulpit the following ,lord's day2 and   
added1--,if you conclude to preach  for 
us1 ,i shall be pleased to have you put 
up at my house over the  ,sabbath4      
,there you are1 said ,mr4 ,handby1 when 
the matter was announced in  family     
conclave1--just the man for them4 ,they 
like sober1 solid  preaching in         
,ashfield4    ,i call it real           
providential1 said ,mrs4 ,handby2       
fust-rate folks1 and  't a'n't a long   
drive over for ,rachel4    ,little ,mrs4

 ,johns looked upon the grave1 earnest  
face of her husband  with delight and   
pride1 but said nothing4    ,i know     
,squire ,elderkin1 says ,mr4 ,handby1   
meditatively1--a clever man1  and a     
forehanded man1 very4 ,it's a rich      
parish1 son-in-law2 they ought  to do   
well by you4    ,i don't like1 says ,mr4
 ,johns1 to look at what may become my  
spiritual  duty in that light4    ,i    
wouldn't1 returned ,mr4 ,handby2 but    
when you are as old as ,i am1           
son-in-law1 you'll know that we have to 
keep a kind of side-look upon  the good 
things of this world1--else we shouldn't
 be placed in it4    ,he heareth the    
young ravens when they cry1 said the    
minister1  gravely4    ,just it1 says   
,mr4 ,handby2 but ,i don't want your    
young ravens to be  crying4    ,at which
 ,rachel1 with the slightest possible   
suffusion of color1 and a  pretty       
affectation of horror1 said1--    ,now1 
papa6    ,there was an interuption here1
 and the conclave broke up2 but ,rachel1

  stepping briskly to the place she     
loved so well1 beside the minister1     
said1 softly1--    ,i hope you'll go1   
,benjamin2 and do1 please1 preach that  
beautiful  sermon on ,revelations4      
,,iv4    ,thirty or forty years ago     
there lay scattered about over ,southern
 ,new  ,england a great many quiet      
inland towns1 numbering from a thousand 
to  two or three thousand inhabitants1  
which boasted a little old-fashioned    
society of their own1--which had their  
important men who were heirs to  some   
snug country property1 and their        
gambrel-roofed houses odorous with      
traditions of old-time visits by some   
worthies of the ,colonial period1  or of
 the ,revolution4 ,the good1 prim dames1
 in starched caps and  spectacles1 who  
presided over such houses1 were proud of
 their tidy  parlors1--of their old     
,india china1--of their beds of thyme   
and sage in  the garden1--of their big  
,family ,bible with brazen clasps1--and1
 most  times1 of their minister4    ,one

 ,orthodox ,congregational ,society     
extended its benignant patronage  over  
all the people of such town2 or1 if a   
stray ,episcopalian or  ,seven-,day     
,baptist were here and there living     
under the wing of the  parish1 they were
 regarded with a serene and stately     
gravity1 as  necessary exceptions to the
 law of ,divine ,providence1--like      
scattered  instances of red hair or of  
bow-legs in otherwise well-favored      
families4    ,there were no wires       
stretching over the country to shock the
 nerves of  the good gossips with the   
thought that their neighbors knew more  
than  they4 ,there were no heathenisms  
of the cities1 no tenpins1 no travelling
  circus1 no progressive young men of   
heretical tendencies4 ,such towns  were 
as quiet as a sheepfold4 ,sauntering    
down their broad central  street1 along 
which all the houses were clustered with
 a somewhat dreary  uniformity of       
aspect1 one might of a summer's day hear
 the rumble of the  town mill in some   

adjoining valley1 busy with the town    
grist2 in autumn1  the flip-flap of the 
flails came pulsing on the ear from half
 a score of  wide-open barns that yawned
 with plenty2 and in winter1 the clang  
of  axes on the near hills smote sharply
 upon the frosty stillness1 and  would  
be straightway followed by the booming  
crash of some great tree4    ,but       
civilization and the railways have      
debauched all such quiet1  stately1     
steady towns4 ,there are none of them   
left4 ,if the iron cordon  of travel1 by
 a little divergence1 has spared their  
quietude1 leaving  them stranded upon a 
beach where the tide of active business 
never  flows1 all their dignities are   
gone4 ,the men of foresight and         
enterprise  have drifted away to new    
centres of influence4 ,the bustling     
dames in  starched caps have gone down  
childless to their graves1 or1 disgusted
  with gossip at second hand1 have      
sought more immediate contact with the  
world4 ,a ,german tailor1 may be1 has   

hung out his sign over the door of  some
 mouldering mansion1 where1 in other    
days1 a doughty judge of the  county    
court1 with a great raft of children1   
kept his honors and his  family warm4 ,a
 slatternly carryall1 with a driver who 
reeks of bad  spirit1 keeps up uneasy   
communication with the outside world1   
traversing  twice or three times a day  
the league of drive which lies between  
the  post-office and the                
railway-station4 ,a few iron-pated      
farmers1 and a few  gentlemen of ,irish 
extraction who keep tavern and stores1  
divide among  themselves the official   
honors of the town4    ,if1 on the other
 hand1 the people maintain their old    
thrift and  importance by actual contact
 with some great thoroughfare of travel1
  their old quietude is exploded2 a     
mushroom station has sprung up2         
mushroom villas flank all the hills2 the
 girls wear mushroom hats4 ,a  turreted 
monster of a chapel from some flamboyant
 tower bellows out its  ,sunday warning 

to a new set of church-goers4 ,there is 
a little coterie  of superior           
intelligences1 who talk of the          
humanities1 and diffuse  their airy     
rationalism over here and there a circle
 of the progressive  town4 ,even the    
meeting house1 which was the great      
congregational centre  of the town      
religion1 has lost its venerable air1   
taken off by some new  fancy of         
variegated painting4 ,the high1 square  
pews are turned into  low-backed seats1 
that flame on a summer ,sunday with such
 gorgeous  millinery as would have      
shocked the grave people of thirty years
 ago4  ,the deep bass note which once   
pealed from the belfry with a solemn and
  solitary dignity of sound has now lost
 it all amid the jangle of a  half-dozen
 bells of lighter and airier twang4     
,even the parson himself  will not be   
that grave man of stately bearing1 who  
met the rarest fun  only benignantly1   
and to whom all the villagers           
bowed1--but some new  creature full of  

the logic of the schools and the latest 
conventionalisms of manner4 ,the        
homespun disciples of other days would  
be brought grievously to the blush1 if  
some deep note of the old bell  should  
suddenly summon them to the presence of 
so fine a teacher1  encompassed with    
such pretty appliances of upholstery2   
and1 counting  their chances better in  
the strait path they knew on uncarpeted 
floors  and between high pews1 they     
would slink back into their graves      
content1--all the more content1 perhaps1
 if they should listen to the  service  
of the new teacher1 and1 in their       
common-sense way1 reckon what  chance   
the dapper talker might have1--as       
compared with the solemn  soberness of  
the old pastor1--in opening the         
ponderous doors for them  upon the      
courts above4    ,into this             
metamorphosed condition the town of     
,ashfield has possibly  fallen in these 
latter days2 but in the good year #ahai1
 when the  ,reverend ,benjamin ,johns   

was invited for the first time to fill  
its  pulpit of an early autumn ,sunday1 
it was still in possession of all its   
palmy quietude and of its ancient cheery
 importance4 ,and to that old  date we  
will now transfer ourselves4      ,v4   
,every other day the stage-coach comes  
into ,ashfield from the north1 on  the  
,hartford turnpike1 and rumbles through 
the main street of the town1  seesawing 
upon its leathern thoroughbraces4 ,just 
where the pike forks  into the main     
northern road1 and where the scattered  
farm-houses begin  to group more thickly
 along the way1 the country ,jehu       
prepares for a  triumphant entry by     
giving a long1 clean cut to the         
lead-horses1 and two  or three          
shortened1 sharp blows with his doubled 
lash to those upon the  wheel2 then1    
moistening his lip1 he disengages the   
tin horn from its  socket1 and1 with one
 more spirited chirrup to his team and a
 petulant  flirt of the lines1 he gives 
out1 with tremendous explosive efforts1 

a  series of blasts that are heard all  
down the street4 ,here and there a      
blind is coyly opened1 and some old dame
 in ruffled cap peers out1 or  some     
stout wench at a back door stands gazing
 with her arms a-kimbo4 ,the  horn      
rattles back into its socket again2 the 
lines are tightened1 and  the long lash 
smacks once more around the reeking     
flanks of the leaders4  ,yonder1 in his 
sooty shop1 stands the smith1 keeping up
 with his elbow a  lazy sway upon his   
bellows1 while he looks admiringly over 
coach and  team1 and gives an           
inquisitive glance at the nigh leader's 
foot1 that  he shod only yesterday4 ,a  
flock of geese1 startled from a         
mud-puddle  through which the coach     
dashes on1 rush away with outstretched  
necks1  and wings at their widest1 and a
 great uproar of gabble4 ,two           
school-girls--home for the nooning--are 
idling over a gateway1 half  swinging1  
half musing1 gazing intently4 ,there is 
a gambrel-roofed  mansion1 with a       

balustrade along its upper pitch1 and   
quaint ogees of  ancient joinery over   
the hall-door2 and through the cleanly  
scrubbed  parlor-windows is to be seen a
 prim dame1 who turns one spectacled    
glance upon the passing coach1 and then 
resumes her sewing4 ,there are  red     
houses1 with their corners and          
barge-boards dressed off with white1    
and on the door-step of one a green tub 
that flames with a great pink           
hydrangea4 ,scattered along the way are 
huge ashes1 sycamores1 elms1 in         
somewhat devious line2 and from a       
pendent bough of one of these last a    
trio of school-boys are seeking to beat 
down the swaying nest of an  oriole with
 a convergent fire of pebbles4    ,the  
coach flounders on1--past an old house  
with stone chimney1 7on which  an old   
date stands coarsely cut17 and with     
front door divided down its  middle1    
with a huge brazen knocker upon its     
right half1--with two ,st4  ,luke's     
crosses in its lower panels1 and two    

diamond-shaped lights  above4 ,hereabout
 the street widens into what seems a    
common2 and not far  below1 sitting     
squarely and authoritatively in the     
middle of the common1  is the red-roofed
 meeting-house1 with tall spire1 and in 
its shadow the  humble belfry of the    
town academy4 ,opposite these there     
comes into the  main street a highway   
from the east2 and upon one of the      
corners thus  formed stands the ,eagle  
,tavern1 its sign creaking appetizingly 
on a  branch of an overhanging sycamore1
 under which the stage-coach dashes up  
to the tavern-door1 to unlade its       
passengers for dinner1 and to find a    
fresh relay of horses4    ,upon the     
opposite corner is the country store of 
,abner ,tew1 ,esq41  postmaster during  
the successive administrations of ,mr4  
,madison and ,mr4  ,monroe4 ,he comes   
out presently from his shop-door1 which 
is divided  horizontally1 the upper half
 being open in all ordinary weathers2   
and  the lower half1 as he closes it    

after him1 gives a warning jingle to a  
little bell within4 ,a spare1 short1    
hatchet-faced man is ,abner ,tew1 who   
walks over with a prompt business-step  
to receive a leathern pouch from  the   
stage-driver4 ,he returns with it1--a   
few eager townspeople following  upon   
his steps1--reenters his shop1 and      
delivers the pouch within a  glazed door
 in the corner1 where the postmistress  
ex officio ,mrs4  ,abner ,tew1 a tall1  
gaunt woman in black bombazine and      
spectacles1  proceeds to assort the     
,ashfield mail4 ,by reason of this      
division of  duties1 the shop is known  
familiarly as the shop of the ,tew      
partners4    ,among the waiting         
expectant1 who loiter about among the   
sugar-barrels of  the grocery           
department1 there presently             
appears--with a new tinkle of  the      
little bell--a stout1 ruddy man1 just   
past middle age1 in  broad-brimmed white
 beaver and sober homespun suit1 who is 
met with a  deferential ,good day1      

,squire1 from one and another1 as he    
falls  successively into short parley   
with them4 ,a self-possessed1 cheery    
man1  who has strong opinions1 and does 
not fear to express them2 ,selectman    
for the last eight years2 who has       
presided in town-meeting time out of    
mind2 member of the ,legislature1 and   
once a ,senator for the district4  ,this
 was ,giles ,elderkin1 ,esq41 the       
gentleman who1 on behalf of the         
,ecclesiastical ,society1 had conducted 
the correspondence with the  ,reverend  
,mr4 ,johns2 and he was now waiting his 
reply4 ,thus is presently  brought to   
him by the postmistress1 who1 catching a
 glimpse of the  ,squire through the    
glazed door1 has taken the precaution to
 adjust her  cap-strings and dexterously
 to flirt one or two of the more        
apparent  creases out of her dingy      
bombazine4 ,the letter brings           
acceptance1 which  the ,squire1 having  
made out by private study near to the   
dusky window1  announces to ,mrs4       

,tew1--begging her to inform the people 
who should  happen in from up the road4 
,i hope he'll suit1 ,squire1 says ,mrs4 
,tew4    ,i hope he may1--hope he may1  
,mrs4 ,tew2 ,i hear well of him2 there's
 good  blood in him4 ,i knew his father1
 the ,major1--likely man4 ,i hope he    
may1  ,mrs4 ,tew4    ,and the ,squire1  
having penned a little notice1 by favor 
of one of the  ,tew partners1 proceeds  
to affix it to the meeting-house door2  
after  which he walks to his own house1 
with the assured step of a man who is   
conscious of having accomplished an     
important duty4 ,it is the very house   
we just now saw with the ponderous ogees
 over its front1 the balustrade  upon   
its roof1 and the dame in spectacles at 
the window3 this latter  being the      
spinster1 ,miss ,meacham1 elder sister  
to the wife of the  ,squire1 and taking 
upon herself1 with active zeal and a    
neatness that  knew no bounds1 the      
office of housekeeper4 ,this was        
rendered necessary  in a manner by the  

engagement of ,mrs4 ,elderkin with a    
group of young  flax-haired children1   
and periodic threats of addition to the 
same4 ,the  hospitalities of the house  
were fully established1 and no state    
official  could visit the town without  
hearty invitation to the ,squire's      
table4  ,the spinster received the      
announcement of the minister's coming   
with a  quiet gravity1 and betook       
herself to the needed preparation4      
,,vi4    ,mr4 ,johns1 meantime1 when he 
had left the ,handby parlor1 where we   
saw  him last1 and was fairly upon the  
stair1 had replied to the suggestion  of
 his little wife about the sermon on    
,revelations with a fugitive kiss1  and 
said1 ,i will think of it1 ,rachel4     
,and he did think of it1--thought of it 
so well1 that he left the  beautiful    
sermon in his drawer1 and took with him 
a couple of strong  doctrinal           
discourses1 upon the private hearing of 
which his charming  wife had commented  
by dropping asleep 7poor thing67 in her 

chair4    ,but the strong men and women 
of ,ashfield relished them better4      
,there was  a sermon for the morning on 
,regeneration the work only of grace2   
and  another for the afternoon1 on the  
outer leaf of which was written1 in  the
 parson's bold hand1 ,the doctrine of   
,election compatible with the  infinite 
goodness of ,god4 ,it is hard to say    
which of the two was the  better1 or    
which commended itself most to the      
church full of people who  listened4    
,deacon ,tourtelot1--a short1 wiry man1 
with reddish whiskers  brushed primly   
forward1--sitting under the very        
droppings of the pulpit1  with painful  
erectness1 and listening grimly         
throughout1 was inclined to  the sermon 
of the morning4 ,dame ,tourtelot1 who   
overtopped her husband by  half a head1 
and from her great scoop hat1 trimmed   
with green1 kept her  keen eyes fastened
 intently upon the minister on trial1   
was enlisted in  the same belief1 until 
she heard the ,deacon's timid expression

 of  preference1 when she pounced upon  
him1 and declared for the ,election     
discourse4 ,it was not her way to allow 
him to enjoy an opinion of his  own     
getting4 ,miss ,almira1 their only      
child1 and now grown into a spare       
womanhood1 that was decorated with      
another scoop hat akin to the           
mother's1--from under which hung two    
yellow festoons of ringlets tied  with  
lively blue ribbons1--was steadfastly   
observant2 though wearing a  fagged air 
before the day was over1 and consulting 
on one or two  occasions a little vial  
of salts1 with a side movement of the   
head1  and an inquiring nostril4        
,squire ,elderkin1 having thrown himself
 into a comfortable position in  the    
corner of his square pew1 is cheerfully 
attentive2 and at one or two  of the    
more marked passages of the sermon      
bestows a nod of approval1 and  a glance
 at ,miss ,meacham and ,mrs4 ,elderkin1 
to receive their  acknowledgment of the 
same4 ,the young ,elderkins 7of whom    

three are of  meeting-house size7 are   
variously affected3 ,miss ,dora1 being  
turned of  six1 wears an air of some    
weariness1 and having despatched all the
  edible matter upon a stalk of caraway1
 she uses the despoiled brush in        
keeping the youngest boy1 ,ned1 in a    
state of uneasy wakefulness4 ,bob1      
ranking between the two in point of     
years1 and being mechanically  inclined1
 devotes himself to turning in their    
sockets the little bobbins  which form a
 balustrade around the top of the pew2  
but being diverted  from this very      
suddenly by a sharp squeak that calls   
the attention of  his ,aunt ,joanna1 he 
assumes the penitential air of listener 
for full  five minutes2 afterward he    
relieves himself by constructing a small
  meeting-house out of the psalm-books  
and ,bible1 his ,aunt ,joanna's         
spectacle-case serving for a steeple4   
,there was an air of subdued reverence  
in the new clergyman1 which was  not    
only agreeable to the people in itself1 

but seemed to very many  thoughtful ones
 to imply a certain respect for them and
 for the parish4  ,the men of that day  
in ,ashfield were intolerant of mere    
elegances1 or of  any jauntiness of     
manner4 ,but ,mr4 ,johns was so calm and
 serious1 and yet  gave so earnest      
expression to the old beliefs they had  
so long  cherished1--he was so clearly  
wedded to all those rigidities by which 
the good people thought it a merit to   
cramp their religious  thinking1--that  
there was but one opinion of his        
fitness4    ,deacon ,tourtelot1 sidling 
down the aisle after service1 out of    
hearing  of his consort1 says to        
,elderkin1 ,smart man1 ,squire4    ,and 
the ,squire nods acquiescence4 ,sound   
sermonizer1--sound sermonizer1  ,deacon4
    ,these two opinions were as good as 
a majority-vote in the town of          
,ashfield1--all the more since the      
,squire was a thorough-going            
,jeffersonian ,democrat1 and the ,deacon
 a warm ,federalist1 so far as the  poor

 man could be warm at anything1 who was 
on the alert every hour of  his life to 
escape the hammer of his wife's         
reproaches4    ,so it happened that the 
parish was called together1 and an      
invitation  extended to ,brother ,johns 
to continue his ministrations for a     
month  further4 ,of course the novitiate
 understood this to be the crucial test2
  and he accepted it with a composure1  
and a lack of impertinent effort to     
please them overmuch1 which altogether  
charmed them4 ,on four successive       
,saturdays he drove over to             
,ashfield1--sometimes stopping with one 
or the  other of the two deacons1 and at
 other times with ,squire               
,elderkin1--and  on one or two occasions
 taking his wife by special invitation4 
,of her1  too1 the people of ,ashfield  
had but one opinion3 that she was of a  
ductile temper was most easy to be seen2
 and there was not a  strong-minded     
woman of the parish but anticipated with
 delight the power  and pleasure of     

moulding her to her wishes4 ,the husband
 continued to  preach agreeably to their
 notions of orthodoxy1 and at the end of
 the  month they gave him a call1 with  
the promise of four hundred dollars a   
year1 besides sundry odds and ends made 
up by donation visits and  otherwise4   
,this sum1 which was not an             
inconsiderable one for those days1      
enabled  the clergyman to rent as a     
parsonage the old house we have seen1   
with  the big brazen knocker1 and       
diamond lights in either half of its    
green  door4 ,it stood under the shade  
of two huge ashes1 at a little remove   
back from the street1 and within easy   
walk from the central common4 ,a  heavy 
dentilated cornice1 from which the paint
 was peeling away in flaky  patches1    
hung over the windows of the second     
floor4 ,within the door was  a little   
entry--7for years and years the pastor's
 hat and cane used to  lie upon a table 
that stood just within the door72 from  
the entry a  cramped stairway1 by three 

sharp angles1 led to the floor above4   
,to the  right and left were two low    
parlors4 ,the sun was shining broadly in
 the  south one when the couple first   
entered the house4    ,good6 said       
,rachel1 with her pleasant1 brisk       
tone1--this shall be your  study1       
,benjamin2 the bookcase here1 the table 
there1 a nice warm carpet1  we'll paper 
it with blue1 the ,major's sword shall  
be hung over the  mantel4    ,tut6 tut6 
says the clergyman1 a sword1            
,rachel1--in my study8    ,to be sure6  
why not8 says ,rachel4 ,and if you like1
 ,i will hang my  picture1 with the     
doves and the olive-branch1 above it2   
and there shall  be a shelf for         
hyacinths in the window4    ,thus she   
ran on in her pretty house-wifely       
manner1 cooing like the doves  she      
talked of1 plotting the arrangement of  
the parlor opposite1 of the  long       
dining-room stretching athwart the house
 in the rear1 and of the  kitchen under 
a roof of its own1 still farther        

back1--he all the while  giving grave   
assent1 as if he listened to her        
contrivance3 he was only  listening to  
the music of a sweet voice that somehow 
charmed his ear1  and thanking ,god in  
his heart that such music was bestowed  
upon a sinful  world1 and praying that  
he might never listen too fondly4       
,behind the house were yard1 garden1    
orchard1 and this last drooping away  to
 a meadow4 ,over all these the pair of  
light feet pattered beside the  master4 
,here shall be lilies1 she said2 there1 
a great bunch of  mother's peonies2 and 
by the gate1 hollyhocks2--he1 by this   
time1  plotting a sermon upon the       
vanities of the world4    ,yet in due   
time it came to pass that the parsonage 
was all arranged  according to the      
fancies of its mistress1--even to the   
,major's sword and  the twin doves4     
,esther1 a stout middle-aged dame1 and  
stanch  ,congregationalist1 recommended 
by the good women of the parish1 is     
installed in the kitchen as             

maid-of-all-work4 ,as gardener1 groom1  
7a  sedate pony and square-topped chaise
 forming part of the establishment17    
factotum1 in short1--there is the       
frowzy-headed man ,larkin1 who has his  
quarters in an airy loft above the      
kitchen4    ,the brass knocker is       
scoured to its brightest4 ,the parish is
 neighborly4  ,dame ,tourtelot is       
impressive in her proffers of advice4   
,the ,tew  partners1 ,elderkin1         
,meacham1 and all the rest1 meet the new
 housekeepers  open-handed4 ,before     
mid-winter1 the smoke of this new home  
was piling  lazily into the sky above   
the tree-tops of ,ashfield1--a home1 as 
we  shall find by and by1 of much trial 
and much cheer4 ,twenty years after1    
and the master of it was master of it   
still1--strong1 seemingly1 as  ever2 the
 brass knocker shining on the door2 the 
sword and the doves in  place4 ,but the 
pattering feet1--the voice that made    
music1--the tender1  wifely             
plotting1--the cheery sunshine that     

smote upon her as she  talked1--alas for
 us6--,all is ,vanity6          ,,roger 
,,brooke ,,taney4      ,a little more   
than two centuries ago1 ,thomas ,hobbes 
of ,malmesbury  published his great     
treatise on government1 under the title 
of  ,leviathan2 or1 the ,matter1 ,form1 
and ,power of the ,commonwealth1        
,ecclesiastical and ,civil1--in which he
 denied that man is born a social       
being1 that government has any natural  
foundation1 and1 in a word1 all  of what
 men now agree to be the first          
principles1 and receive as axioms1  of  
social and civil science2 and declared  
that man is a beast of prey1 a  wolf1   
whose natural state is war1 and that    
government is only a  contrivance of men
 for their own gain1 a strong chain     
thrown over the  citizen1--organized1   
despotic1 unprincipled power4 ,to this  
faithless and  impious work1 which at   
least did good by shocking the world and
 rallying  many of the best minds to    
develop and defend the true principles  

of  society and the state1 he put a fit 
frontispiece1 a picture of the vast     
form of ,leviathan1 the ,sovereign      
,state1 the ,mortal ,god1--a gigantic   
figure1 like that of ,giant ,despair or 
the horrid shapes we have  sometimes    
seen pictured as brooding over the      
,valley of the ,shadow of  ,death1--a   
,titanic form1 whose crowned head and   
mailed body fill the  background and    
rise above the distant hills and        
mountain-peaks in the  broad landscape  
which is spread out below1 with fields1 
rivers1 harbors1  cities1 castles1      
churches1 towns and villages1 and ships 
upon the seas  and in the ports4 ,its   
body and limbs are made up of countless 
human  figures1 of every class1 all     
bending reverently toward the sovereign 
head4 ,its arms stretch forward to the  
foreground4 ,in one hand it holds a     
magnificent crosier1 in the other a     
mighty sword1 which reach across and    
cover the whole4 ,it is surrounded with 
emblems of power1 of which it is  the   

life and embodiment4 ,in the front is a 
fortified city1 with its  streets and   
gate1 its cathedral rising high above   
all other structures1  surmounted by the
 cross1 the flag flying from the forts1 
the sentinel on  the ramparts4 ,its     
fortresses seem to defy and command the 
whole empire  over which ,leviathan     
predominates4 ,to show more fully how   
all-pervading  and resistless is the    
power of this monster made of mortal    
men1 and the  means and extent of its   
control in ,church and ,state1 to       
impress the  senses1 the emblems of its 
spheres and its instruments are depicted
  below4 ,first is a castle on a rocky  
height1 with the smoke rolling from  its
 battlements1 from which a cannon has   
just been fired2 opposite1 a  church1   
with a figure holding the cross above   
its roof of faith2 here a  coronet1     
opposite a mitre2 here is a cannon1 to  
thunder in civil war2  opposite are the 
mythic thunderbolts for the fulminations
 of the ,church2  below are arms1 drums1

 banners and flags1 helmet and halberd1 
spear and  sword and matchlock2 opposite
 appears a front1 between the devilish  
horns of which1 marked dilemma1 is      
formed a sort of trophy1 made up of  a  
trident spear1 labelled syllogism1 and  
bifurcated weapons1 named  real and     
intentional1 spiritual and temporal1 and
 one beyond whose  long straight point1 
labelled direct1 there is another sharp1
 keen  one1 curving round and covering  
it1 labelled indirect2 last is the      
battle-field1 with armies rushing       
together in deadly charge1 their flags  
flying above the long lines whose       
sloping spears bristle above the  clouds
 of smoke and dust1 the cavalry and foot
 engaged with sabres and  pistols1 men  
and horses fallen1 the victors1 the     
wounded1 the dying1 and  the dead1--the 
dread arbitrament of war2 opposite1 the 
judges ranged in  formal order1 with    
their caps and black robes1--a          
,rhadamanthine  tribunal4 ,seeing such a
 summary and embodiment of his idea1 a  

man will  shudder the more he ponders on
 such a conception of the state as such 
a  monstrous idol1 which men have       
fashioned out of their own bodies and   
invested with the attributes of         
superhuman power1 and worshipped as the 
creator of ,justice and ,law1 ,peace and
 ,order1 ,truth and ,religion1 and      
served and obeyed as their ,tyrant and  
,king4    ,the ,american state1--which1 
as ,franklin said1 first set forth      
religious  truth as the basis of        
government1 formed by the people1 who1  
calling on  all mankind to witness their
 solemn appeal to the ,supreme ,judge of
 the  world1 pledged themselves1 as     
,adams said1 to extinguish ,slavery as  
soon as practicable1--the state formed  
to establish justice1--the state  for   
which the founders reverently adopted as
 the true emblem the ,goddess  of       
,liberty1--had1 at the time when        
,slavery1 the patricide1 waged this  war
 to finish the revolution already almost
 complete1 so essentially  changed1 that

 it bore a striking resemblance to that 
dreadful picture of  the giant form of  
the ,leviathan4 ,populus ,romanus       
repente factus est  alius4    ,it will  
be difficult to decide which branch of  
our government was most  efficient in   
producing this change2 as it will be    
difficult for one who  considers the    
principle1 or want of principle1 on     
which this ,juggernaut  was constructed1
 to decide which would be the more      
horrible1 a decision  by battle or by   
the robed ministers of evil4 ,but as the
 ,leviathan1  ,slavery1--the ,mortal    
,god1 the incarnation of ,evil1--is     
growing more and  more shadowy1 and men 
again behold the heavenly ,guardian of  
their ,state1  ,americans feel1 and the 
world agrees1 that war1 though it       
reaches other  classes and in different 
form1 is really attended with less      
horror and  woe at the time than several
 judicial decisions have occasioned2 and
  that the lasting results of battles   
are incalculably more insignificant     

than the judgments of courts may be4    
99       99       99       99       99  
,roger ,brooke ,taney was1 when nearly  
sixty years old1 placed at the head  of 
the ,judiciary1 at a critical time in   
,american affairs4 ,the ,slave  ,power1 
so successful in extending its dominion1
 and already the  controlling influence 
in the government1 was pressing its     
unholy and  arrogant demands openly and 
without shame4 ,it had destroyed civil  
liberty in the ,slave ,states1 and was  
fast destroying it in the ,free4 ,it    
was stifling the right of petition in   
,congress1 and smothering free  speech  
in the ,states4 ,the ,executive was     
recommending that the mails  should be  
sifted for its safety4 ,the question of 
the right of ,slavery in  the           
,territories and the ,free ,states was  
taking form1 and the  slave-catchers    
claimed to hunt their prey through the  
,northern ,states1  without regard to   
the rights of freemen or the law of the 
land4 ,taney  had long been known as an 

astute and skilful lawyer1 a man of     
ability  and learning in his            
profession--as ability and learning are 
commonly  gauged4 ,he had been          
,attorney-,general of ,maryland1 and in 
#ahca had been  appointed               
,attorney-,general of the ,united       
,states4 ,he was an ardent  partisan    
supporter of the administration2 and in 
#ahcc1 when ,duane  refused to remove   
the deposits1 he was appointed to the   
,treasury as a  willing servant1 and did
 not hesitate to do what was expected of
 him4    ,in #ahce1 while the country   
was deeply agitated by questions        
concerning  the rights of ,states and   
the powers of the government1 he was    
nominated  to a vacancy on the ,supreme 
,bench4 ,his opinions on those questions
 were  well known1 and the consideration
 of his nomination indefinitely         
postponed4    ,but some time after the  
death of ,chief ,justice ,marshall1     
which occurred  on the #fth of ,july1   
#ahce1 ,taney was nominated as his      

successor1 and in  #ahcf1 the political 
complexion of the ,senate having in the 
mean time  changed1 was confirmed by    
party influence1 and took his seat at   
the head  of the ,judiciary in ,january1
 #ahcg4    ,he was essentially a        
partisan judge1 as much so as were the  
judges of  ,king ,charles1 who decided  
for the ship-money in accordance with   
their  previously announced opinions4   
,the ,president wrote him a letter in   
which  he thanked him for abandoning the
 duties of his profession and promptly  
aiding him by removing the deposits2 and
 ,webster declared he was the  pliant   
tool of the ,executive4 ,the            
,massachusetts1 ,kentucky1 and ,new     
,york  cases in the very first volume of
 the ,reports showed that1 if not swift 
to do the work for which he had been    
selected1 he did not hesitate to  embody
 his political principles in judicial   
decisions4 ,but we do not  intend to    
examine these1 or to review the long    
series of decisions1  extending over    

more than a quarter of a century1 and   
through more than  thirty volumes1 on   
the common or even the grander questions
 discussed in  that tribunal1 which will
 all1 or nearly all1 be unknown1--save  
to the  profession1--and will have but  
little influence on the welfare of the  
country and the course of history4 ,we  
would consider only the more  important 
of those decisions touching ,slavery1   
the cause of this  ,revolution1 which   
have already shaped the course of       
events1 and become  the record of his   
character as a jurist1 a patriot1 and a 
man4    ,his private opinions about     
,slavery are not matter of comment or   
inquiry4  ,there are two official       
opinions given by him while             
,attorney-,general in  #ahca which      
relate to the matter4 ,in one of these  
he had to consider  whether the ,united 
,states would protect the right of a    
slave-master over  his slave1 employed  
as a seaman on a ship trading to one of 
the ,states1  in which he expressed the 

opinion that the ,united ,states could  
not1 by  treaty1 control the several    
,states in the exercise of their power  
of  declaring a slave free on being     
brought within their limits4 ,in the    
other1 he held that a person removing   
his slaves with him to ,texas1  merely  
for a temporary sojourn1 and with the   
intention of returning  again in a short
 time to the ,united ,states1 might     
safely bring his  slaves back with him4 
,but he then declared1 that if the owner
 had placed  his slaves in ,texas as    
their domicile1 he would be liable to   
prosecution1 under the act of ,congress1
 if he should bring them back  into the 
,united ,states4    ,in #ahcg1 the very 
year ,taney took his seat on the        
,supreme ,bench1 he gave  the opinion of
 the ,court in the cases of the ,garonne
 and the ,fortune1  two vessels         
libelled1 under the act of #ahah1 for   
bringing as slaves into  ,new ,orleans  
persons who had1 in #ahca and #ahce1    
been carried to ,france  and some of    

them manumitted there4 ,the judge then  
said that1 assuming  that by ,french law
 they were entitled to freedom1 there is
 nothing in  this act to prevent their  
mistress bringing them back and holding 
them  as before4    ,he seems to have   
considered it immaterial1 or to have    
been ignorant1  that1 in accordance with
 the maxim1 ,once free1 forever free1   
declared  in the courts of his own      
,state of ,maryland1 the courts of      
,louisiana  held1 as did those of       
,kentucky and other ,states also1 that1 
having been  for one moment in ,france1 
it was not in the power of her former   
owner to  reduce her again to slavery1  
and to have forgotten the doctrines of  
one  of his own opinions4    ,slavery1  
when he came upon the bench1 began to   
look to the ,supreme ,court  as its     
surest defence4    ,the ,prigg case1 as 
it is called1 or1 as lawyers call it1   
,prigg vs4 ,the  ,commonwealth of       
,pennsylvania1 was an amicable suit2 the
 parties in  interest being the ,states 

of ,maryland and ,pennsylvania1 which   
were  represented by the ablest counsel1
 who came into court1 as ,johnson1      
,attorney-,general of ,pennsylvania1    
said1 to terminate disputes and         
contentions which were arising1 and had 
for years arisen1 along the  border line
 between them1 on the subject of the    
escape and delivering up  of fugitive   
slaves4 ,the counsel regarded           
themselves1 as he said1 as  engaged in  
the work of peace1 and of patriotism    
also4    ,edward ,prigg and others were 
indicted in ,pennsylvania for kidnapping
 a  negro woman on the #ast of ,april1  
#ahcg4 ,the cause came to trial before  
the ,york ,quarter ,sessions1 ,may #bb1 
#ahci2 and the counsel agreed that a    
special verdict should be taken and     
judgment rendered1 and thereupon the    
case carried up1 so as to present the   
questions of law arising1 under  the    
,pennsylvania ,emancipation ,act of     
#aghj1 upon the ,united ,states act of  
#agic touching fugitives from labor1 and

 the statute of ,pennsylvania  passed in
 #ahbf1 which provided for the seizure  
and surrender of fugitive  slaves and   
for the punishment of kidnapping4 ,the  
case was made up and  presented in that 
spirit of compromise which has been the 
bane and  delusion of ,america1 7as if  
there could be any compromise of        
justice17--the counsel for ,pennsylvania
 claiming that their statute was        
auxiliary to that of the ,united        
,states1 really beneficial to ,slavery1 
and that they advocated the true        
interests of the ,south as well as of   
the ,union and the ,north1--in order to 
have the ,judiciary authoritatively     
settle the vital question of the rights 
of the master in the seizure1  and of   
the ,states in the rendition1 of        
fugitive slaves4 ,the ,court  decided1  
fully1 that the master had a right to   
seize his fugitive slave  wherever he   
could find him1 and take him back       
without process2 that the  law of #agic 
was constitutional2 and that the ,united

 ,states had the  exclusive power of    
legislation on that matter4    ,but this
 did not satisfy ,chief ,justice ,taney4
 ,he agreed that the master  had the    
right of seizure4 ,he declared that this
 right was the law of  each ,state1 and 
that no ,state had power to abrogate or 
alter it1 and  foreshadowed the idea    
that the ,constitution carried ,slavery 
over all  the ,territories and ,states4 
,but he dissented from the ,court when  
they  held the ,pennsylvania act to be  
invalid4 ,and without relying on any    
principle1 without any discussion of1 or
 the slightest allusion to1 any         
authorities or the great fundamental    
questions involved in that issue1  he   
coolly depicted the inconveniences the  
slave-catcher might be subject  to in   
,states where there was but one         
,district ,judge1 and how essentially   
he would be aided by the ,state         
legislation2 and pointed out to his     
brethren those consequences which they  
did not contemplate and  to which they  

did not suppose the opinion they had    
given would lead4  ,and he said that1   
where the ,states had such statutes1 it 
had not  heretofore been supposed       
necessary1 in order to justify those    
laws1 to  refer them to the questionable
 powers of internal and local police4   
,they  were believed to stand upon surer
 and safer grounds1 to secure the       
delivery of the fugitive slave to his   
lawful owner4    ,counsel said1 ,the    
long1 impatient struggle on that        
question was nearly  over4 ,the decision
 of this ,court would put it at rest4   
,it was not so4  ,this decision was made
 in #ahdc4 ,but from that time the      
strife over that  question was more     
violent than ever4 ,the ,slave ,power   
took this decision  as a new concession 
and guaranty4 ,it certainly affirmed the
 right of the  master to exercise his   
absolute power1 in the most offensive   
form1 to be  beyond control of all      
legislation whatever1 ,state or         
,national4 ,the ,court  doubtless meant1

 as the ,states and the counsel did1 by 
giving to  ,congress the exclusive power
 of legislation on the surrender of     
fugitives from labor1 to settle this    
question in such form as to satisfy  the
 ,slave ,power4    ,if the opinion of   
,mr4 ,webster be worth anything1 they   
forgot the maxim1  ,judicis est jus     
dicere1 non dare4 ,most surely ,taney   
ignored his  ,state-,rights doctrines   
when1 looking far on for the interests  
of ,slavery  and the convenience of     
slave hunters1 he held the ,united      
,states  authorized to legislate on the 
matter2 and1 disguising the poison under
  the phrase1 the ,constitution and     
every clause of it is part of the law   
of every ,state of the land1 he put     
forth the dogma that the rendition      
clause merely provided for the rights of
 citizens1 put them under  protection of
 the ,general ,government1 and made the 
rights of the  master the law of each   
,state4 ,he was declaring a rule of     
government1  not a rule of law1 and     

creating a theory for the defence of    
property in  man4    ,in #ahej he went a
 step farther4 ,a ,kentucky slave-owner 
had been in the  habit of letting some  
of his slaves go into ,ohio to sing as  
minstrels4  ,he filed a bill against a  
steamboat and her captain to recover the
 value  of those slaves1 who1 after     
their return1 had been carried across   
the  river and escaped4 ,it must be     
remembered that they had not first      
escaped1 but had been carried to ,ohio4 
,but here1 again1 without  recurring to 
any of the principles presented and     
fairly involved in such  an issue1 again
 looking far on to consequences in the  
interest of  ,slavery1 again ignoring1  
not only the first principles of        
jurisprudence  and the declared ends of 
the ,constitution1 but even his own     
political  ,state-,rights doctrine1 7for
 if these men had not escaped1 why could
 not  ,ohio free them87 he declared a   
doctrine pregnant with mischief1--that  
each ,state had the absolute right to   

decide the status of all persons  within
 its limits4 ,this1 too1 has gone with  
war4 ,but his intent is none  the less  
clear4 ,the theory was obviously stated 
with a far-reaching view  to remote     
consequences4 ,and it must be considered
 in connection with the  fact that1 in  
lieu of the old rule which had been     
recognized by the  ,slave ,states1 that 
a slave1 by being carried to a ,free    
,state or  domiciled for a day in a     
foreign country by whose law he was     
enfranchised1 was liberated             
forever1--once free1 free forever and   
everywhere1--the ,slave ,power was      
beginning to assert a new rule for      
renslavement by recapture and on return4
    ,but the ,slave ,power1 having      
controlled the executive and directed   
the  legislative branch of the          
government1 again turned to judicial    
power as  the surest1 and best able to  
work out easily the largest and most    
lasting results4 ,the ,dred ,scott case 
was begun in #ahed1 and brought up1     

twice argued1 and finally decided in    
#ahef2 ,chief ,justice ,taney           
delivering the opinion of the ,court4   
,the facts and result of that case  are 
well known4 ,in a cause dismissed for   
want of jurisdiction1 this  ,court      
pretended to decide that no person of   
,african slave descent could  ever be a 
citizen of the ,united ,states1 and that
 the adoption of the  ,missouri         
,compromise line by the ,congress of    
#ahbj1 acquiesced in for  thirty-five   
years1 was unconstitutional4 ,this      
doctrine was entirely  extrajudicial1   
and1 as one of the judges declared1 an  
assumption of  authority4    ,we do not 
propose to discuss this decision4 ,it   
was the lowest depth4 ,it  probably did 
more than all legislative and executive 
usurpations to  revive the spirit of    
liberty1--to recall the country to the  
principles  of the founders of the      
,constitution4 ,it began the good       
work1--evoking  the truth1 by showing   
its own fiendish principles1--which the 

war is  likely to finish forever4 ,we   
wish1 however1 to give an analysis of   
the  doctrines and reasons on which his 
decision was based1 and therefrom to    
show what is the true place of ,roger   
,brooke ,taney as a jurist and a        
patriot4    ,now the course of his      
argument was this1--admitting that all  
persons who  were citizens of the       
several ,states at the time of the      
adoption of the  ,constitution became   
citizens of the ,united ,states1 to show
 that persons  of ,african descent1     
whose ancestors had been slaves1 were   
not in any  ,state citizens4    ,and    
first1 he tries to show this by the     
legislation and histories of  the times1
 and the language used in the           
,declaration of ,independence2  and     
after referring to the laws of two or   
three ,colonies restricting             
intermarriage of races1 and affirming   
that1 though freed1 colored  persons    
were in all the ,colonies held to be no 
part of the people1 and  declaring that 

in no nation was this opinion more      
uniformly acted upon  than by the       
,english government and people1         
admitting that the general  words 'all  
men are created equal1' etc41 would seem
 to embrace the  whole human family1 and
 that the framers of the ,declaration   
were high  in their sense of honor1 and 
incapable of asserting principles       
inconsistent with those on which they   
were acting1 he argues that1  because   
they had not fully carried out1 and did 
not afterwards fully  carry out1 their  
avowed principles by instant and        
universal  emancipation1 therefore he   
can give to as plain and absolute words 
as  were ever written1 expressive of    
universal laws1 a force just opposite   
to their terms2--a new form of argument1
 which begins by assuming the  truth of 
the proposition desired1 and ends by    
denying the truth of the  admitted      
premises4    ,he then proceeds1 to      
inquire if the terms we1 the people1 in 
the  ,constitution1 embraced the persons

 in question4 ,here1 too1 he admits     
that they did embrace all who were      
members of the several ,states4 ,then1  
turning round the power given ,congress 
to end the slave-trade after  #ahjh1 and
 arguing from it as a reserved right to 
acquire property till  that time2 laying
 aside the fact that the framers of the 
,declaration had  acted on their        
declared principles1 and that in many   
,states1 as in  ,massachusetts and      
,vermont1 even in ,southern ,states1 as 
in ,north ,carolina  they remained till 
#ahcg1 many freed colored persons were  
citizens at  that time1 with the remark1
 that the numbers that had been         
emancipated  at that time were but few  
in comparison with those held in        
slavery1  assuming that the very acts of
 the ,states suppressing the slave-trade
  helped instead of destroying his      
argument2 arguing from the fact that    
,congress had not authorized the        
naturalization of colored persons1 or   
enrolled them in the militia2 arguing   

even from ,state laws passed in the     
most passionate moments as late as      
#ahcc2 going back to the old ,colonial  
acts of ,maryland in #agag1 and of      
,massachusetts in #agje2 even coming    
down  to the fact that ,caleb ,cushing  
gave his opinion that they could not    
have  passports as citizens2 denying    
that the free inhabitants in the        
,articles of ,confederation1 which he   
was forced to concede did in terms      
embrace freemen1 actually did include   
them1 because the quota of land  forces 
was proportioned to the white           
inhabitants1--he affirmed that they     
were not and never could become         
citizens1 that neither the ,states nor  
the nation had power to lift them from  
their abject condition4 ,the  ,united   
,states could naturalize ,indians4 ,but 
neither the ,united ,states  nor the    
individual ,states could make colored   
persons citizens4    ,the ,chief        
,justice stated that colored persons    
were not1 at the time of  the adoption  

of the ,constitution1 citizens under the
 laws of the several  ,states and the   
laws of the civilized world4 ,but he    
knew1 for it had been  shown to him in  
the arguments1 that such persons1 and   
many who had been  slaves1 were then    
citizens in ,massachusetts1 ,new        
,hampshire1 and ,north  ,carolina1 as   
they likewise were in ,vermont1         
,pennsylvania1 and in other  ,states4   
,and he knew--for in #ahca he himself   
said it was a fixed  principle of the   
law of ,england1 that a slave becomes   
free as soon as he  touches her         
shores--that he declared as law what was
 not the law of  civilized nations2 that
 in #agfb ,lord ,northington declared   
that as soon  as a man sets foot on     
,english ground he is free2 and that    
,lord  ,mansfield had1 in #aggb1 held   
that ,slavery is so odious that it      
cannot  be established without positive 
law4 ,he knew 7or he declared what he   
did not know7 that at that day the      
sentiment in ,france was so directly  to

 the contrary1 that in #agia the law was
 ,tout individu est libre  aussitt qu'il
 est en ,france4 ,at the time to which  
he referred1 public  opinion in the     
,american ,states and in foreign        
countries1 and the  legislation of the  
various ,states1 were just the opposite 
of what he  stated them to be4 ,liberty 
was just at the moment more truly the   
sentiment of the country and of states  
in amity with it than at any  other4    
,the assertion1 that colored persons    
could not be and were not  citizens of  
the several ,states1 was simply false4  
,in most if not in all  of the ,states  
such persons were citizens4 ,in #aggf1  
the ,quakers refused  fellowship with   
such as held slaves2 that sect1 through 
all the ,states1  enfranchised their    
slaves1 who1 on such enfranchisement1   
became  citizens4 ,american courts were 
not behind the ,english courts4 ,states 
adopted the language of the ,declaration
 into their ,constitutions for the      
purpose of universal emancipation1 and  

the courts decided that that was  its   
effect4 ,at the time of the adoption of 
the ,constitution the leading  men of   
all sections considered emancipation    
essential to the realization  of the    
,american idea2 for their government was
 founded on a theory1 and  avowed       
principles1 which rendered it necessary1
 and which1 with the  performance of the
 pledges of the ,states and the exercise
 of the powers  directly given to the   
,union1 would make liberty universal and
 perpetual4    ,taney even argued that  
persons of ,african descent could not be
 citizens1  because they could enter    
every ,state when they pleased1 without 
pass or  passport1 and without          
obstruction1 to sojourn there as long as
 they  pleased1 to go where they please1
 at every hour of the day or night1     
without molestation1 unless they        
committed some violation of law for     
which a white man would be punished2 and
 it would give them full liberty  of    
speech1 in public and in private1 upon  

all subjects upon which its  own        
citizens might speak1 to hold public    
meetings1 and to bear arms6  ,as if this
 would not be to a true jurist and just 
judge expounding a  ,constitution made  
to establish justice itself the ground  
to for  deciding that citizenship was   
opened to them by emancipation2 as if   
the  blessings of liberty ought not to  
prevail over any inconveniences to      
slave-holders4    ,his argument from    
subsequent legislation was perfectly    
idle4 ,for1 at  most1 the statutes of   
,naturalization and ,enrolment merely   
showed that  ,congress did not then     
choose to apply to colored persons the  
power given  to them in absolute terms1 
and which he admits they had as to      
,indians4  ,while in other statutes1 as 
that of #ahjh1 of ,seamen1 and in       
several  treaties1 as1 for instance1    
those whereby ,louisiana1 ,florida1 and 
,new  ,mexico were acquired1 colored    
persons are expressly named as citizens4
    ,having denied the clear facts of   

history1 renounced the obligation of    
explicit language1 professed to stand on
 an argument every member of  which was 
destructive of his conclusion1 he thus  
stated the result3  ,they were at that  
time1 #aghi1 considered as a subordinate
 and  inferior class of beings1 who had 
been subjugated by the dominant race1   
and1 whether emancipated or not1 yet    
remained subject to their  authority1   
and had no rights or privileges but such
 as those who held  the power and the   
government might choose to grant them2  
that the  opinion had obtained for more 
than a century that they were beings of 
an inferior order1 with no rights which 
the white man was bound to  respect1 who
 might justly and lawfully be reduced to
 slavery1 an  ordinary article of       
merchandise and traffic wherever a      
profit could be  made of it2 and this   
opinion was then fixed and universal in 
the  civilized portion of the white     
race1--an axiom in morals as well as    
politics4 ,he then declares1 that to    

call them citizens would be an  abuse of
 terms not calculated to exalt the      
character of the ,american  citizen in  
the eyes of other nations4    ,no wonder
 the nations pointed the finger of      
scorn1 and cried out1 ,is  this the     
perfection of beauty1 the joy of the    
whole earth8 ,shade of  ,jefferson6 is  
this the reading ,america was to give   
the ,declaration8 ,did  you publish a   
lie to the world8 ,spirits of ,franklin1
 ,adams1 and  ,washington6 is this your 
work8 ,americans6 is this your          
character8    ,he declares1 further1    
that the ,court has no right to change  
the  construction of the ,constitution2 
that it speaks in the same words1  with 
the same meaning and intent1 with which 
it spoke when it came from  the hands of
 its framers1 and was voted on and      
adopted by the people of  the ,united   
,states4 ,any other rule of construction
 would abrogate the  judicial character 
of this ,court1 and make it the mere    
reflex of the  popular opinion or       

passion of the day4 ,this ,court was not
 created by the  ,constitution for such 
purposes4 ,higher and graver trusts have
 been  confided to it2 and it must not  
falter in the path of duty6 ,would to   
,god it had not faltered in the path of 
duty1 that it had been true to  those   
higher and graver trusts6 ,would that it
 had not been the mere  reflex of       
popular opinion or the passion of the   
day1 that it had not  abrogated its     
judicial character6 ,would that it had  
read the plain words  in the holy spirit
 in which they were written6 ,would that
 it had left  the ,constitution as it   
was1 and1 instead of thus writing its   
own  condemnation1 had shown how        
efficient an instrument that            
,constitution  would be1 if fearlessly  
used to carry out the great principles  
of  humanity for which its preamble     
declares it was established6    ,here is
 the key to the new distinction between 
the ,constitution as it is  and the     
,constitution as it was4 ,but as it was 

in the beginning1 so it is  and shall   
be4    ,but ,taney could not stop here4 
,compromises had been made through the  
other branches of the                   
government1--compromises held sacred for
 more than  a generation1 in the vain   
hope to appease the insatiate lust of   
the  ,slave ,power4 ,he went on with a  
longer and lower argument to declare one
  branch of the ,compromise--the act of 
,congress prohibiting slavery in        
territory north of #cf #cj'--void4      
,even more1--for he seemed determined to
 make clean work of it1--he went  on to 
say that a slave who had been made free 
by being taken 7not  escaping1 but by   
being carried by his owner7 to a ,free  
,state was reduced  to slavery again on 
arriving back in the ,state from which  
he had been  taken1 and that that was   
the result of ,strader vs4 ,graham1     
which  declared that the status of      
persons1 whether free or slave1 depended
  on the ,state law4 ,here1 again1 he   
sacrificed his cherished party          

principles to his love for ,slavery4    
,else how could the ,state to which  the
 slave had been carried be deprived of  
its right to enfranchise1 or  how could 
the ,united ,states power be extended   
further than to the  expressly granted  
case of escape8    ,but no4 ,he was a   
judicial ,calhoun4 ,his dogma was that  
the fundamental  law guaranteed property
 in man4 ,he declared that therefore    
,congress  could not interfere with it  
in the ,territories4 ,before he was     
judge1 he  admitted the right of        
sojourn4 ,there was but one step        
more1--the sacred  right of slave       
property in ,free ,states4 ,it was      
involved in what he had  already said1  
and was not so great an anomaly as he   
had already  sanctioned2 for if the     
,constitution guarantees this property  
in every  ,state1--if the ,states do not
 reserve the power to interfere with    
it1--if1 in case of escape1 ,congress   
has the power to reclaim it1--why  is   
not the owner to be guaranteed it in the

 ,states as well as in the              
,territories8    ,in looking across this
 long judicial ,sahara of twenty-seven  
years1 there  is but one oasis4 ,in the 
,amistad case1 the ,court did declare   
that ,cinque  and the rest1 who had been
 kidnapped1 had the right to regain     
their  natural liberty1 even at the cost
 of the lives of those who held them in 
bondage2 and for once the ,court1       
speaking by ,story1 did appeal to the   
laws of nature and of nations1 and      
decide the case upon the eternal        
principles of justice4 ,but all else is1
 in the light of this question  of      
,slavery1 by which this age will be     
remembered and judged1 a dreary1  barren
 waste of shifting1 blinding1 stifling  
sand4    ,history will tell whether     
,america is to be judged by the words   
spoken by  him who so long held the     
highest seat in her courts4 ,we do not  
think she  has fallen to such a depth4  
,he did not speak for her2 but he did   
for  himself4    ,by this record will   

the world judge ,chief ,justice ,taney4 
,his great  familiarity with the special
 practice2 his knowledge of the peculiar
  jurisdiction of his tribunals2 his    
acquaintance with the doctrines and     
decisions of the common law1 with equity
 and admiralty2 his opinions on         
corporate and municipal powers and      
rights1 on land claims1 ,state          
boundaries1 the ,gaines case1 the       
,girard will1 on corporations2 his      
decisions on patent-rights and on       
copyrights2 his opinions extending      
admiralty jurisdiction to inner waters1 
on liability of public officers1  and   
rights of ,state or national taxation1  
on the liquor and passenger  laws1 on   
,state insolvent laws1 on commercial    
questions1 on belligerent  rights1 and  
on the organization of ,states1--after  
doing service for the  day in the       
mechanical branch of his craft1 will    
soon be all forgotten4  ,but the        
slavocrats' revolution of the last two  
generations1 and the  ,secession war1   

and the triumph of ,liberty1 will be the
 theme of the  world2 and he1 of all who
 precipitated them1 will be most likely1
 after  the traitor leaders1 to be held 
in infamous remembrance2 for he did more
  than any other individual1--more than 
any ,president1 if not more than        
all1--more in one hour than the         
,legislature in thirty years1--to extend
  the ,slave ,power4 ,indeed1 he had    
solemnly decided all and more than all  
that ,president ,buchanan1 closing his  
long political life of servility in     
imbecility1 in ,december1 #ahfj1 asked  
to have adopted as an explanatory       
amendment of the ,constitution1 to fully
 satisfy the ,slave ,power4 ,well  would
 it have been for that ,power1 for a    
while at least1 had its members         
recollected that no tyranny is so       
secure1 none so remediless1 as that  of 
executive courts2 well for them1--if it 
is better to rule in hell  than serve in
 heaven1--but worse for the world1 had  
they been patient4  ,but the dose of    

poison was too great4 ,nature relieved  
itself4 ,war came1  not the ruin1 but   
the only salvation1 of the state4       
,the movements of events have been so   
rapid1 the work of generations  being   
done in as many years1 that ,taney's    
character is already historic2  and we  
can judge of it by his relation to the  
great event which alone  will preserve  
it from oblivion4    ,in judging his    
public character as the head of the     
,judiciary of ,america1  consider the   
cause he sought to promote1 his motives1
 the means he  used1 his resources as a 
jurist and a lawyer in that cause1 the  
intended  effect and actual results4    
,and of the cause this must be said and 
agreed by all1 that there was  never one
 of which a court could take cognizance 
in ,america1 ,england1 or  the world so 
utterly evil and infamous as that of    
,slavery in the ,united  ,states4 ,did  
he realize its extent8 ,yes1 there were 
few freedmen  compared with the slaves1 
say only sixty thousand out of seven    

hundred  thousand in #aghi4 ,he fully   
realized that1 in repudiating the       
promise  made for those seven hundred   
thousand1 a pledge made with the most   
solemn appeal to man and to ,god1 he    
utterly destroyed the rights and  hopes 
of four million men4 ,he knew he was    
deciding1 for a vast empire1  weal or   
woe2 and he knew it was woe1 or he had  
no sense of justice4    ,and his        
motives8 ,he was not venal1 not corrupt1
 not a respecter of  persons4 ,but there
 is something bad besides venality1     
corruption1 and  personal partiality4   
,the worst of motives is disposition to 
serve the  cause of evil4 ,the country  
knows1 the world will declare1 none     
served it  so well4 ,but was he         
conscious of serving it8 ,yes1--unless  
the traitors  so eagerly sought to put  
all these interests under his           
jurisdiction  without motive1--unless   
his eager and unnecessary1 and1 as was  
declared  and is now agreed1 assumed    
jurisdiction over it1 his far-seeing    

care  and untiring defence of them1     
their appeal to his decisions1 were all 
mistakes1--unless all these1 and his    
manner1 their motives1 and the  assured 
results1 coincided so as by the law of  
chances was  impossible1--he was        
conscious4 ,to deny it is to say that he
 was imbued  with the spirit of evil4   
,the world knows by what means he       
assumed to settle these questions4 ,we  
have seen something of the nature of his
 arguments4 ,with these1 too1 men  are  
somewhat familiar1 and by these let them
 judge of him as a jurist4    ,there is 
not in them all one faint recognition of
 the axioms of  law1--one position      
founded on the laws of nature or the    
rules of eternal  justice and the       
right1--one notice of the great primal  
rules laid down  by all jurists and     
great judges of ancient and modern      
times1 or of the  precepts of religion  
by which any magistrate in a ,christian 
land must  expect to be governed1 or to 
be held infamous forever4 ,nay1 more3 he

  does not recognize at all those       
fundamental principles of the           
,constitution and ,declaration which are
 stated in plain terms in the  first    
lines of both4 ,he did worse than       
torture and pervert language3 he        
reversed its meaning4 ,he denied the    
undoubted facts of history4 ,he  denied 
the settled truths of science4 ,he      
slandered the memory of the  founders of
 the government and framers of the      
,declaration4 ,he was ready  to cover   
the most glorious page of the history of
 his country with  infamy1 and insulted 
the intelligence and virtue of the      
civilized world4    ,where1 outside his 
axiom in morals and politics can be     
found so  monstrous a combination of    
ignorance1 injustice1 falsehood1 and    
impiety8  ,ignorant of the meaning of an
 axiom2 denying the truths of science2  
falsifying history2 setting above the   
,constitution the most odious  theory of
 tyranny1 long before exploded2 scoffing
 at the rules of  justice and sentiments

 of humanity1--he tied in a knot those  
cords which  must end the life of his   
country or be burst in revolution4      
,he well knew1 too1 what would be the   
effects of his decision4 ,avowedly  he  
was ready to lay the time-honored       
principles of civil right and the       
ancient law at the feet of the ,slave   
,power4 ,the passions of a mighty       
people never raged more fiercely than   
whilst that last cause was before  his  
court1--save in open war2 and there was 
almost war then4 ,he  well-knew nothing 
would so force them to desperation1--the
 desperation  of unlicensed barbarism or
 the immovable determination of truth   
and  justice driven to the wall4 ,he    
knew1 or if he did not1 was so ignorant 
that he was incompetent1 that in such a 
contest on such fundamental  principles1
 such a decision must end in revolution 
and civil war4 ,if he  dreamed of peace1
 then he was ready to seal the doom of  
four million1  and at the end of this   
century of ten million souls4    ,in all

 these decisions he appeals to no one   
great principle4 ,there is  little in   
all his judgments to raise him above the
 rank of respectable  jurists2 and in   
these1 presenting the fairest occasion  
ever offered to a  true lawyer1 to one  
fit to be called an ,american1 nothing  
that will not  cover his name with      
infamy1 where1 on far lesser occasions1 
,hale and  ,holt1 ,somers and           
,mansfield1 covered theirs with honor1  
and added to the  glory of their        
country1 and did good to mankind4    ,he
 was not1 indeed1 of that class of the  
bad to which the profane  ,jeffreys and 
,scroggs and the obscene ,kelyng belong4
 ,but he was as prone  to the wrong as  
was ,chief ,justice ,fleming in         
sustaining impositions1 and  ,chancellor
 ,ellesmere in supporting benevolences  
for ,king ,james2 as ready  to do it as 
,hyde and ,heath were to legalize       
general warrants by  expositions of the 
law2 as ,finch and ,jones1 ,brampton and
 ,coventry1 were  to legalize ship-money

 for ,king ,charles2 as swift as ,dudley
 was under  ,andros2 as ,bernard and    
,hutchinson and ,oliver were in         
,colonial times to  serve ,king ,george 
,,iii42 as judges have been in later    
times to do like  evil work4 ,some of   
these1 perhaps1 had no conscious intent 
to do  specific wrong4 ,their failure   
was judicial blindness2 their sin1      
unconscious love of evil4 ,but this     
question of ,slavery towers above all   
others that ,taney ever had to consider2
 ,america professed a loftier  standard 
of justice than ,england ever adopted2  
the question of the  liberty of a race  
is more important1 the question whether 
the ,state is  founded on might or on   
right is more vital1 than those of      
warrants and  ship-money1 benevolences  
and loans2 and ,roger ,brooke ,taney    
sinks below  all these tools of         
,tyranny4    ,hobbes said1 that1 when it
 should be thought contrary to the      
interest  of men that have dominion that
 the three angles of a triangle should  

equal two right angles1 that truth would
 be suppressed4 ,taney did deny  truths 
far plainer than that1--the axioms of   
right itself4 ,he did more  than any    
other man to make actual that awful     
picture of the ,great  ,leviathan1 the  
,mortal ,god4 ,how just1 how true1 were 
those last symbols  of the ,state       
founded on mortal power6 ,the end of the
 dread conflict of  battle is the same  
as the end of the equally dreadful issue
 of the  ,court4    ,but those he served
 themselves with the sword cut the knot 
he so  securely tied2 his own ,state was
 tearing off the poisoned robe in the   
very hour in which he was called before 
the ,judge of all4 ,america stood  forth
 once more the same she was when the old
 man was a boy4 ,the work  which he had 
watched for years and generations1 the  
work of evil to  which all the art of   
man and the power of the ,state had been
  subservient1 that work which he sought
 to finish with the fatal decree  of his
 august bench1 one cannon-shot shattered

 forever4    ,he is dead4 ,slavery is   
dying4 ,the destiny of the country is in
 the hand  of the ,eternal ,lord4       
,,the ,,mantle ,,of ,,st4 ,,john ,,de   
,,matha    ,a ,,legend ,,of ,,the ,,red1
 ,,white1 ,,and ,,blue1 ,a4,d4          
#aaed-ahfd          ,a strong and mighty
 ,angel1        ,calm1 terrible1 and    
bright1      ,the cross in blended red  
and blue        ,upon his mantle white6 
,two captives by him kneeling1          
,each on his broken chain1      ,sang   
praise to ,god who raiseth        ,the  
dead to life again6        ,dropping his
 cross-wrought mantle1        ,wear     
this1 the ,angel said2      ,take thou1 
,o ,freedom's priest1 its sign1--       
,the white1 the blue1 and red4          
,then rose up ,john de ,matha        ,in
 the strength the ,lord ,christ gave1   
,and begged through all the land of     
,france        ,the ransom of the slave4
        ,the gates of tower and castle  
,before him open flew1      ,the        
drawbridge at his coming fell1          

,the door-bolt backward drew4           
,for all men owned his errand1          
,and paid his righteous tax2      ,and  
the hearts of lord and peasant          
,were in his hands as wax4        ,at   
last1 outbound from ,tunis1        ,his 
bark her anchor weighed1      ,freighted
 with seven score ,christian souls      
,whose ransom he had paid4        ,but1 
torn by ,paynim hatred1        ,her     
sails in tatters hung2      ,and on the 
wild waves1 rudderless1        ,a       
shattered hulk she swung4        ,god   
save us6 cried the captain1        ,for 
nought can man avail3      ,oh1 woe     
betide the ship that lacks        ,her  
rudder and her sail6        ,behind us  
are the ,moormen2        ,at sea we sink
 or strand3      ,there's death upon the
 water1        ,there's death upon the  
land6        ,then up spake ,john de    
,matha3        ,god's errands never     
fail6      ,take thou the mantle which  
,i wear1        ,and make of it a sail4 
,they raised the cross-wrought mantle1  

,the blue1 the white1 the red2      ,and
 straight before the wind off-shore     
,the ship of ,freedom sped4        ,god 
help us6 cried the seamen1        ,for  
vain is mortal skill3      ,the good    
ship on a stormy sea        ,is drifting
 at its will4        ,then up spake     
,john de ,matha3        ,my mariners1   
never fear6      ,the ,lord whose breath
 has filled her sail        ,may well   
our vessel steer6        ,so on through 
storm and darkness        ,they drove   
for weary hours2      ,and lo6 the third
 gray morning shone        ,on ,ostia's 
friendly towers4        ,and on the     
walls the watchers        ,the ship of  
mercy knew1--      ,they knew far off   
its holy cross1        ,the red1 the    
white1 and blue4        ,and the bells  
in all the steeples        ,rang out in 
glad accord1      ,to welcome home to   
,christian soil        ,the ransomed of 
the ,lord4        ,so runs the ancient  
legend        ,by bard and painter told2
      ,and lo6 the cycle rounds again1  

,the new is as the old6        ,with    
rudder foully broken1        ,and sails 
by traitors torn1      ,our ,country on 
a midnight sea        ,is waiting for   
the morn4        ,before her1 nameless  
terror2        ,behind1 the pirate foe2 
,the clouds are black above her1        
,the sea is white below4        ,the    
hope of all who suffer1        ,the     
dread of all who wrong2      ,she drifts
 in darkness and in storm1        ,how  
long1 ,o ,lord6 how long8        ,but   
courage1 ,o my mariners6        ,ye     
shall not suffer wreck1      ,while up  
to ,god the freedman's prayers          
,are rising from your deck4        ,is  
not your sail the banner        ,which  
,god hath blest anew1      ,the mantle  
that ,de ,matha wore1        ,the red1  
the white1 the blue8        ,its hues   
are all of heaven1--        ,the red of 
sunset's dye1      ,the whiteness of the
 moon-lit cloud1        ,the blue of    
morning's sky4        ,wait cheerily1   
then1 ,o mariners1        ,for daylight 

and for land2      ,the breath of ,god  
is in your sail1        ,your rudder is 
,his hand4        ,sail on1 sail on1    
deep-freighted        ,with blessings   
and with hopes2      ,the saints of old 
with shadowy hands        ,are pulling  
at your ropes4        ,behind ye holy   
martyrs        ,uplift the palm and     
crown2      ,before ye unborn ages send 
,their benedictions down4        ,take  
heart from ,john de ,matha6--           
,god's errands never fail6      ,sweep  
on through storm and darkness1          
,the thunder and the hail6        ,sail 
on6 ,the morning cometh1        ,the    
port ye yet shall win2      ,and all the
 bells of ,god shall ring        ,the   
good ship bravely in6          ,,needle 
,,and ,,garden4    ,,the ,,story ,,of ,a
 ,,seamstress ,,who ,,laid ,,down ,,her 
,,needle ,,and ,,became ,a              
,,strawberry-,,girl4    ,,written ,,by  
,,herself4      ,,chapter ,,ii4    ,all 
of us children were sent to the public  
school as soon as we were old  enough4  

,there was no urgency required to get us
 off in the morning1 as  we were too    
fond of books and reading to be found   
lagging as to time1  neither were we    
often caught at the tail of a class4    
,fred was  particularly smart in his    
studies1 and was generally so much in   
advance  of myself as to be able to give
 me great assistance in things that ,i  
did  not fully understand1 and there was
 so much affection between us that he   
was always ready to play the teacher to 
us at home4    ,when fifteen years old1 
,i was taken from school1--my education 
was  finished1--that is to say1 ,i had  
received all ,i was to get1 and that was
  supposed to be enough for me3 ,i was  
not to shine in the world4 ,though  far 
short of what the children of wealthy   
parents receive at fashionable          
establishments1 yet it was quite        
sufficient for my station in life1      
which no one expected me to rise above4 
,i had not studied either ,french  or   
music or dancing1 nor sported fine      

dresses or showy bonnets2 for our  whole
 bringing up was in keeping with our    
position4 ,was ,i not to be a           
sewing-girl8--and how improper it would 
have been to educate me with  tastes    
which all the earnings of a sewing-girl 
would be unable to  gratify6 ,i presume1
 that1 if we had had the means1         
notwithstanding our  peculiarly strict  
training1 we should have been indulged  
in some of  these superfluities4 ,i know
 that ,i could easily have learned to   
enjoy  them quite as much as others do4 
,but we were so taught at home that the 
desire for them was never so strong as  
to occasion grief because it  could not 
be gratified4 ,i think we were quite as 
happy without them4    ,as soon as ,i   
had left school1 my mother installed me 
as her assistant  seamstress4 ,she had  
at intervals continued to work for the  
slop-shops1  in spite of the low prices 
and the discourteous treatment she      
received2  and now1 when established as 
her regular helper1 ,i saw and learned  

more  of the trials inseparable from    
such an employment4 ,i had also grown   
old  enough to understand what they     
were1 and how mortifying to an honorable
  self-respect4 ,but ,i took to the     
needle with almost as great a liking--at
  least at the beginning--as to my      
books4 ,the desire to assist my mother  
was also an absorbing one4 ,i was as    
anxious to make good wages as she  was2 
for ,i now consumed more stuff for      
dresses1 as well as a more costly       
material1 and in other ways increased   
the family expenses4 ,it was the  same  
with ,fred and ,jane1--they were growing
 older1 and added to the  general cost  
of housekeeping1 but without being able 
to contribute  anything toward meeting  
it4    ,a girl in my station in life    
feels an honorable ambition to clothe   
herself and pay for her board1 as soon  
as she reaches eighteen years of  age4  
,this praiseworthy desire seems to      
prevail universally with those  who have
 no portion to expect from parents1 if  

their domestic training  has been of the
 right character4 ,it does not spring   
from exacting  demands of either father 
or mother1 but from a natural feeling of
 duty  and propriety1 and a commendable 
pride to be thus far independent4 ,if   
able to earn money at any reputable     
employment1 such girls eagerly  embrace 
it4 ,they pay their parents from their  
weekly wages as  punctually as if       
boarding with a stranger1 and it is to  
many of them a  serious grief when dull 
times come on and prevent them from     
earning  sufficient to continue these   
payments4    ,so unjustly low is the    
established scale of female wages1 that 
girls of  this class are rarely able to 
save anything4 ,they earn from two to   
three  dollars per week1 and in         
thousands of cases not more than half of
 the  larger sum4 ,it is because of     
these extremely small wages that the    
price  of board for a working-woman is  
established at so low a figure1--being  
graduated to her ability to pay4 ,but   

low as the price may be1 it  consumes   
the chief part of her earnings1 leaving 
her little to bestow on  the apparel in 
which every ,american woman feels a     
proper pride in  clothing herself4 ,she 
must dress neatly at least1 no matter   
how the  doing so may stint her in      
respect of all bodily or mental         
recreation2  for1 with her1 appearance  
is everything4 ,a mean dress would in   
many  places exclude her from           
employment1--while a neat one would     
insure it4  ,then1 if working with other
 girls in factories1 or binderies1 or   
other  places where girls are largely   
employed1 and where even a fashionable  
style of dress is generally to be       
observed1 she feels it necessary to     
maintain a style equal to that of her   
fellow-workers4 ,thus the tax  imposed  
upon her by the absolute necessity of   
keeping up a genteel  appearance absorbs
 all the remainder of her little        
earnings4    ,not so with the           
servant-girl in a family4 ,she pays no  

board-tax1--her  earnings are all       
profit4 ,but thus having more to spend  
on dress1 she  clothes herself in       
expensive fabrics1 until she generally  
outshines even  her mistress4 ,so       
numerous is this class in our country1  
so high are  their wages1 and so        
uniformly do they spend their earnings  
in costly  goods of foreign manufacture1
 all now paying an excessive import     
duty1  that ,i am half inclined to think
 these foreign cooks and chambermaids   
may even be depended on to pay the      
interest of the public debt1 if not  the
 great bulk of the debt itself4 ,their  
consumption of imported fabrics  on     
which a high duty is levied is very     
large1 and no increase of price  seems  
to prevent them from continuing to      
purchase4 ,whoever shall inquire  of a  
shopkeeper on this subject will be told 
that this class of women  generally buy 
the most expensive goods4 ,indeed1 one  
has only to observe  them in the street 
to see that they all have silks as      

essential to their  outfit1 with        
abundance of laces and other foreign    
stuffs4    ,the change from the low     
wages1 the hard work1 and the mean fare 
in  ,ireland to the high pay1 the light 
work1 and the abundant food of the      
kitchens in this country1 seems to      
produce a total revolution in their     
habits and aspirations4 ,look at them as
 they land upon our wharves1 all  of    
them in the commonest attire1 the very  
coarsest shoes1 many without  bonnets4  
,mark the contrast in their appearance  
which only a few months'  employment as 
cooks or chambermaids produces4 ,every  
thread of the cheap  home-made fabrics  
in which they came to this country has  
disappeared2  and in place of them may  
be seen flashy silks or equally flashy  
chintzes  or delaines1 all the product  
of foreign looms4 ,every dollar they may
  have thus far earned has been spent in
 personal adornment4 ,at home1          
extremely low wages and scanty          
employment made money comparatively     

unattainable4 ,here1 high wages and an  
active competition for their  services  
have put money into their hands so      
plenteously as to open to  them a new   
life4 ,they see that ,american women    
generally dress  extravagantly2 that    
even their own countrywomen whom they   
meet on their  arrival here are         
expensively attired2 and the power of   
these pernicious  examples is such1     
that1 when aided by that natural        
fondness for personal  decoration which 
,i freely confess to be inherent in my  
sex1 they begin  their new career by    
imitating them4 ,at home1 public example
 taught them  to be saving of their     
money2 here1 it teaches no other lesson 
than to  spend it4 ,there1 it came      
slowly and painfully1 and was           
consequently  valued2 here1 it comes    
readily and for the asking1 and is      
parted with  almost as quickly as it has
 been earned4 ,i have never been the    
victim of  this common infatuation1 to  
spend my last dollar on a dress that    

would  not become my station2 ,i have   
been the architect of my own bonnets2 ,i
  have never been the owner of a silken 
outfit4    ,the idea of this class of   
women being large enough to pay the     
interest  on our public debt1 in the    
shape of duties on the imported goods   
which  they consume1 will of course     
excite a smile in all to whom it is     
suggested4 ,it will be a wonder1        
moreover1 how the attention of a quiet  
sewing-girl like myself should have been
 drawn to a subject so  exclusively     
within the domain of masculine thought4 
,but all know that  the nation has been 
feeling the pressure of a universal rise
 of prices4  ,when any woman comes to   
buy the commonest article of dry goods  
for the  family1 she finds that foreign 
fabrics are generally much higher in    
price than goods of the same quality    
made in this country4 ,on asking the    
reason for this difference1 she is told 
it is owing to the tariff1 to  the      
greatly enhanced duty that has been put 

on foreign goods1 and that  those who   
buy and consume them must pay this duty 
in the shape of an  increase of price4  
,i have resolutely refused to purchase  
the imported  goods1 and preferred those
 made at home1 thus unconsciously       
becoming a  member of the woman's league
 for the support of domestic            
manufactures4    ,but it is not so with 
the army of foreign servant-girls among 
us4 ,they  choose the finest and most   
expensive articles1 loaded as they are  
with a  heavy duty4 ,there are millions 
of ,american women who purchase in the  
same way4 ,this craving after foreign   
luxuries seems to be unconquerable  by  
anything short of absolute inability to 
indulge in it4 ,but ,i suppose  there   
must always be somebody to purchase and 
consume these imported  goods4 ,and     
perhaps1 after all1 it is well that     
there should be2 for if  the nation is  
to pay a great sum every year for       
interest out of its  import duties1 it  
could hardly raise the means1 unless    

there were an  army of thoughtless      
,american women and ,irish servant-girls
 to help it do  so4 ,if they are willing
 to undertake the task1 ,i am sure they 
have my  consent4    ,if the reader     
should be surprised at the idea of the  
interest on the  public debt being paid 
from the extravagance of one class of   
women1 he  will be more so at the       
assertion made by a speaker in the      
highest  deliberative body in the       
country1 that another class would be    
able to  pay the debt itself4 ,he said  
our dairy-women alone were able to do   
it1--that in ten years they would churn 
it out1--because within that  short     
period they would produce butter enough 
to discharge the whole  amount4 ,this   
may be all true2 for how should ,i know 
the number of cows  in this country1 or 
the disposition of the dairy-maids8 ,but
 ,i presume he  had not consulted them  
as to whether they were willing to milk 
cows and  churn butter for a term of ten
 years for the sole benefit of the      

nation4  ,i am inclined to think they   
would make no such patriotic sacrifice1 
except on compulsion4 ,but with tawdry  
servant-girls and equally tawdry        
ladies1 the case is widely different2   
the latter pursue their great task      
voluntarily2 indeed1 it would seem that 
they rather enjoy it2 so that  the more 
one reflects on the idea1 the less      
absurd does it appear4    ,it is very   
certain that the ,irish who come among  
us have for many years  been sending    
home millions of dollars to pay the     
passage hither of  friends whom they had
 left behind4 ,when these friends arrive
 here1 and  have earned money enough1   
they repeat the process of sending for  
others  whom they in turn have left4    
,the most limited inquiry will show how 
universal this system of thus helping   
one another has become4 ,thus the       
stream of remittances swells annually4  
,the millions of money so  transmitted  
proves the ability of this class to     
achieve great pecuniary  results in a   

certain direction4 ,that they thus exert
 themselves is  strong evidence of the  
intense affection existing among them4  
,there are  innumerable instances of the
 father of a large family of children   
coming  out as a pioneer1 then sending  
for the most useful child1 and their    
joint savings being devoted to sending  
for others1 until finally the  amount   
becomes large enough to bring the mother
 with the younger  children1--the latter
 being meanwhile generally supported at 
home from  savings remitted with        
affectionate punctuality from this      
country1 until  the happy day when they1
 too1 receive the order for a passage4  
,many  times the entire family of a     
widowed mother1 with the mother herself1
  has been thus transferred to our      
shores from the savings of the son or   
daughter who first ventured over4 ,i    
refer to this remarkable trait in  the  
,irish character1 not to censure1 but to
 praise4    ,but they remit only a      
fraction of their total earnings1 yet   

that  fraction constitutes a very large 
sum4 ,the remainder1 which so many of   
them spend principally in dress1 must be
 enormous4 ,i have neither the  taste   
nor the talent for reducing it to       
figures2 but the more one looks  at this
 question1 the more reasonable does the 
idea seem that the ,irish               
servant-girls1 together with the flash  
women of this country1 have             
deliberately undertaken to pay the      
interest on our great national debt4    
,how much it costs to clothe one of     
these gaudy creatures ,i cannot say2    
but the silks and finery worn by them   
are known to every shopkeeper as        
expensive articles4 ,as ,i have never   
been able to indulge in such1 ,i have   
been content to admire them as they     
flirted by me in the street1 or  swept  
up the aisles of our church on ,sunday4 
,it is so natural for a  woman to admire
 ornament in dress1 that ,i could not   
avoid being struck  with the finish of  
an exquisite bonnet1 the shape of a     

fashionable  cloak1 or the pattern of an
 elegant collar4 ,all these were paraded
  through the streets and in the church1
 as much to my gratification as to  that
 of the wearers4 ,they felt a pride in  
making the display1 and a  pleasure in  
beholding it4 ,i was like the poor      
lodger in the upper story  of an old    
house1 the windows of which overlooked a
 magnificent garden4  ,the wealthy      
proprietor had lavished on his domain   
all that taste and art  and money could 
command to make it gorgeous with        
shrubbery and flowers4  ,the poor       
lodger1 equally fond of floral beauties1
 beheld their glories1  and inhaled     
their soft perfumes1 as fully and as    
appreciatively as the  owner4 ,no       
emotion of envy disturbed her1--no      
longing to possess that of  which she   
enjoyed gratuitously so abundant a      
share4 ,her mere oversight  was all the 
possession she desired4    ,it was ever 
thus with me when the fine dresses of   
others swept by me  over the pavement4  

,i confess that ,i admired1 but no      
repining thought  ever came to disturb  
the perfect contentment with which ,i   
regarded my  plainer costume4 ,it was no
 grief to me to be unable to indulge in 
these  luxuries4 ,i saw them all1 which 
was more than even the wearers could    
say4 ,they wore them for the            
gratification of the crowd of           
lookers-on2  and if the crowd were      
gratified1 their mission was fulfilled4 
,but ,i did  sometimes think upon the   
cost of these expensive outfits1--how   
some  girls equally poor with me must   
toil and struggle to obtain means for an
  indulgence so unbecoming their        
position1--how others1 the wealthy ones1
  who1 having never earned a dollar1    
knew nothing of its value1 clothed      
themselves with all the lavish finery   
that money could command1 while  the    
meek sewing-girl who passed them on her 
way to the tailor's might  perhaps be   
kept from starving by the sums expended 
on the rich silks  which hung round them

 in superfluous flounces1 or the costly 
brilliants  which depended from their   
ears4    ,it was said by ,solomon1 that 
every wise woman buildeth her house4 ,it
  was averred by another wise man1 that 
the mother of a family must  furnish it 
with brains1 and that he never knew a   
man or woman of large  capacity who had 
a foolish mother4 ,it is historically   
true that the  great men of all ages    
have been the children of wise and      
careful  mothers4 ,such women understand
 the art of skilfully managing the whole
  machinery of the family4 ,taste and   
manners come to such by nature4 ,they   
cultivate the heart1 the mind1 and the  
conscience4 ,they moderate the          
aspirations of their daughters1 and     
purify and elevate those of their  sons4
 ,it is from the influence which such   
mothers exercise over the  household    
that respectability and happiness       
result4 ,my mother taught us  moderation
 in our views1 and conformity to our    
position in life1  especially to avoid  

overstepping it in the article of dress4
 ,she was at  the very foundation of our
 house2 it may be said that she built   
it4  ,while1 therefore1 our appearance  
was uniformly neat and genteel1 none of 
us were at any time dressed             
extravagantly4 ,thus educated from      
childhood1  it became a fixed habit of  
the mind to feel no envious longings at 
the  display which others made4    ,but 
curiosity could not be repressed4 ,it   
was always interesting to know  the cost
 of this or that fine article which     
others wore4 ,there was  little         
difficulty in obtaining this information
 as to the outfits of our  neighbors4   
,the fine lady invariably told her      
acquaintances how much her  cloak or    
bonnet cost1 and from these the         
information was communicated to  the    
servants1 whence it quickly radiated    
over the entire neighborhood4  ,the     
pride seemed to be1 not that the new    
bonnet was a superb affair1 but  that   
such a fashionable artist produced it1  

and that it cost so much  money4 ,had it
 been equally beautiful at half the     
cost1 or the handiwork  of an obscure   
milliner1 it would have been considered 
mean4 ,thus1  instead of a necessity for
 being extravagant1 it struck me there  
was a  desire to be so1 and principally 
in order that others1 when they looked  
on the display1 might be awed into      
deference1 if not into admiration1 by   
exact knowledge of the number of dollars
 which dangled from the  shoulders of   
the fashionable butterfly4 ,this        
boastful parade of  information as to   
how much one expends in this or that    
article implies  an undertone of        
vulgarity peculiar to those who have    
nothing but money  to be proud of4 ,the 
cultivated and truly genteel mind is    
never guilty of  it4 ,yet it somehow    
prevails too extensively among ,american
 women4  ,display is a sort of mania    
with too many of them4 ,a family in     
moderate  circumstances marries off a   
daughter with a portion of only two or  

three  thousand dollars1 yet it is all  
laid out in furnishing a house which is 
twice as spacious as a first start in   
life can possibly require4 ,not a       
dollar is saved for the future4 ,the    
wedding also has its shams4 ,costly     
silver plate is hired in large          
quantities from the manufacturer1 and   
spread ostentatiously over tables1 to   
which the wedding-guests are  invited1  
that they may admire the pretended      
presents thus insincerely  represented  
as having been made to the bride4 ,when 
the feast is over1 it  is all returned  
to the maker4 ,truth is sacrificed to   
display4 ,the latter  must be had1 no   
matter what may become of the former4   
,as ,i was animated by the common       
ambition of all properly educated girls 
in my position1 to pay my own way1 so ,i
 worked with my needle with the  utmost 
assiduity4 ,i worked constantly on such 
garments as my mother  could obtain from
 the shops1 going with her to secure    
them1 as well as  to deliver such as we 

had made up1 each of us very frequently 
carrying a  heavy bundle to and fro4    
,should the tailor sell the cheapest    
article in  his shop1 scarcely weighing 
a pound1 he was all courtesy to the     
buyer1  and his messenger would be      
despatched half over the city to deliver
 it4  ,not so1 however1 with the        
sewing-women4 ,there was no messenger to
 wait  on them2 their heavy bundles they
 must carry for themselves4    ,the     
prices paid to us were always low4 ,as  
the character of the work  varied1 so   
did the price4 ,sometimes we brought    
home shirts to make up at  only twenty  
cents apiece1 sometimes pantaloons at a 
trifle more1 and  sometimes vests at a  
shilling4 ,no fine lady knows how many  
thousand  stitches are required to make 
up one of these garments1 because she   
has  never thus employed her fingers4   
,but ,i know1 because ,i have often sat 
a  whole day and far into the night1 in 
making a single shirt4 ,no matter  how  
sick one might feel1 or how sultry and  

relaxing the weather1 the  work must go 
on2 for it must be delivered within a   
specified time4 ,i  have seen the most  
heartless advertisements in the         
newspapers1 calling  on some one1 giving
 even her name and the place of her     
residence1 to  return to the tailor     
certain articles she had taken to make  
up1 with a  threat to prosecute her1 if 
they were not returned immediately4 ,but
 the  poor sewing-girl thus publicly    
traduced as a thief may have been taken 
ill1 and been thus disabled from        
completing her task2 she may have lived 
a great distance from the shop1 and had 
no one to send with notice of  her      
illness1 so as to account for the       
non-delivery of the work2 yet in  her   
helplessness the stigma of dishonesty   
has been cruelly cast upon  her4    ,one
 of my schoolmates1 the eldest child of 
a widow who had five others  to provide 
for1 had just begun working for a shop  
situated a full mile  from her mother's 
residence4 ,she was a bright1 lively1   

and highly  sensitive girl of sixteen4  
,the day after bringing home a heavy    
bundle of  coarse pantaloons1 she was   
taken down with brain-fever4 ,it was    
believed  that she had been overcome by 
the effort required of her young and    
fragile frame in carrying the great     
burden under a hot noonday sun4 ,she    
languished for days1 but with intervals 
of consciousness1 during which  her     
inability to finish the work at the     
stipulated time was her constant        
anxiety4 ,her mother soothed her        
apprehension by assurances that a delay 
of a few days in the delivery could be  
of no consequence2 and so  believing1 in
 fact1 she sent no message to the tailor
 that her child was  ill and unable to  
complete her task4 ,a week of suffering 
thus passed4  ,saturday came and went   
without the work being delivered to her 
employer4  ,but the poor girl was       
better1 even convalescent2 another week 
would  probably enable her to resume the
 needle4 ,on ,sunday ,i went to see her4

  ,she was quiet1 and in her right mind1
 but still anxious about her  failure to
 be punctual4    ,i volunteered to call 
the next morning and inform the employer
 of her  illness4 ,i did so4 ,he was in 
a mean shop1 whose whole contents had   
been  displayed in thick festoons1 of   
jackets1 shirts1 and pantaloons1 on the 
outside1 where a man was pacing to and  
fro upon the pavement1 whose  vocation  
it was to accost and convert into a     
purchaser every passer-by  who chanced  
even to look1 at his goods4 ,i was most 
unfavorably impressed  with all that ,i 
saw about the shop4 ,when ,i went in1   
the impression  deepened4 ,there sat the
 proprietor in his shirt-sleeves1 a     
vulgar-looking creature1 smoking a      
cigar2 neither did he rise or cease  to 
puff when ,i accosted him4 ,why should  
he8 ,i was only a sewing-girl4 ,i  told 
him my business1--that my friend had    
been ill and unable to  complete her    
work1 but that she was now recovering1  
and would return it  before many days4  

,putting on a sneer so sinister and     
vicious that it was  long before ,i     
ceased to carry it in my memory1 he     
replied1--    ,it's of no               
consequence1--,i've seen to it4 ,she's  
too late4    ,though the man's manner   
was offensive1 yet ,i attached no       
particular  meaning to his words4 ,but  
on reaching home1 my mother showed me an
  advertisement in a widely circulated  
penny-paper which we took1 warning  the 
poor sick sewing-girl to return her work
 immediately1 on pain of  being         
prosecuted4 ,there was her name in full1
 and the number of the  house in the    
little court where she lived4 ,my mother
 was almost in tears  over the          
announcement4 ,we knew the family well2 
they were extremely  poor1 had been     
greatly afflicted by sickness1 while the
 mother was a  model of patient         
industry1 with so deep a sense of       
religious obligation  that nothing but  
her perfect reliance on the wisdom and  
goodness of ,god  could have supported  

her through all her multiplied          
afflictions4 ,her  husband had been for 
years a miserable drunkard1 as well as  
dreadfully  abusive of his wife and     
family4 ,the daughter had sat next to me
 at  school1 to and from which we had   
been in the daily habit of going        
together4 ,i had a strong affection for 
her4 ,it was natural that ,i should  be 
overwhelmed with indignation at the man 
who had perpetrated this  wanton        
outrage1 and excited with alarm for my  
poor friend1 should she be  made        
acquainted with it4 ,all day ,i was in  
an agony of apprehension for  her4 ,it  
was impossible for me to go to her1 as  
she lived a great way  off1 and we1 too1
 had work on our hands which was        
pressingly required at  the end of the  
week4    ,but that evening ,i stole off 
to see her4 ,i had no sooner set foot   
within  the narrow court than it was    
apparent that something had gone wrong4 
,there was a group of neighbors gathered
 round the door1 conversing in a        

subdued tone1 as if overtaken by a      
common calamity4 ,they told me that my  
poor young friend was dying6 ,some one1 
at the very hour when ,i was in  the    
shop of the unfeeling tailor1 excusing  
the delinquency of his sick             
sewing-girl1 had incautiously gone up   
into her chamber with the morning       
paper1 and1 in the absence of her       
mother1 had read to the unfortunate     
girl the terrible proclamation of her   
shame4 ,the effect was immediate  and   
violent4 ,the fever on her brain came   
back with renewed intensity1  and       
absolute madness supervened4 ,all day   
she raved with agonizing  incoherency1  
no medical skill availing to mitigate   
the violence of the  attack4 ,as evening
 came on1 it brought exhaustion of      
strength1 with  indications of speedy   
dissolution4 ,when ,i reached the       
bedside1 the poor  body lay calm and    
still2 but the yet unconquered mind was 
breaking forth  in occasional flashes of
 consciousness4 ,suddenly starting up   

and looking  round the group at her     
bedside1 she exclaimed1--    ,a thief1  
mother6 ,i am not a thief6    ,oh1 this 
death-bed--the first that ,i had ever   
seen--was awful6 ,but my  nervous       
organization enabled me to witness it   
without trepidation or  alarm4 ,love1   
sympathy1 regret1 and indignation were  
the only emotions  that took possession 
of my heart4 ,i even held in my own the 
now almost  pulseless hand of this poor 
victim of a brutal persecution1 and felt
 the  lessening current of her innocent 
life become weaker and weaker4 ,for     
three long hours--long indeed to me1 but
 far longer to her--we watched  and     
prayed4 ,suddenly the restlessness of   
immediate dissolution came over  her4   
,turning to her mother1 she again       
exclaimed1 as if perfectly  conscious1--
    ,dear mother1 tell them ,i was not a
 thief6    ,oh1 it was grievous unto    
heart-breaking to see and hear all this6
 ,but it  was the last effort1 the last 
word1 the closing scene4 ,i felt the    

pulsation stop short2 ,i looked into her
 face2 ,i saw that respiration had      
ceased2 ,i saw the lustre of the living 
eye suddenly disappear3 her  gentle     
spirit had burst the shackles which     
detained it here1 and winged  its       
flight1 we humbly trusted1 to a mansion 
of eternal rest4    ,not until then did 
a single tear come to relieve me4 ,we   
sat by the poor  girl's bedside in      
weeping silence4 ,no heavier heart went 
to its pillow  that night than mine4    
,i have related this incident as an     
illustration of the hazards to which    
needle-women are exposed when dealing   
with the more unprincipled  employers4  
,i will not say that tragedies of this  
character are of  frequent              
occurrence1--or that the provocation to 
them has not been too  often given4     
,there have no doubt been frequent      
instances of employers  being defrauded 
by sewing-women who have dishonestly    
failed to return  the work taken out1   
even giving to them a fictitious name   

and residence4  ,in such cases1 an      
effort to obtain redress by public      
exposure1 the only  apparent remedy1    
might seem excusable4 ,but though the   
fraud is  vexatious1 yet1 as the utmost 
that a sewing-girl could steal would be 
of  small value1 the resort to newspaper
 exposure seems to be a very harsh  mode
 of obtaining restitution4 ,it appears  
to me that vengeance1 more  than        
restitution1 is the object of him who   
hastily adopts it4 ,it may  lead to sad 
and even fatal mistakes1--fatal to life 
itself1 as well as  to the purest       
reputation1 the only capital which too  
many sewing-women  possess4    ,my      
weekly earnings with the needle1 while a
 girl1 never reached a sum  more than   
enough to board and clothe me4 ,but ,i  
felt proud of being able  to accomplish 
even what ,i did4 ,when any little sum  
for recreation was  wanted1 it was      
cheerfully handed out to me1 but our    
recreations were  rare and cheap1 for we
 selected those which were moderate and 

homely4 ,my  father taught me to work in
 the garden2 and there ,i spent many odd
 hours  in hoeing among the vegetables  
and flowers1 clearing the beds of weeds1
  and raking the ground smooth and even4
 ,this employment was beneficial to     
health and appetite1 and afforded an    
excellent opportunity for  reflection4  
,he taught me all the botanical names   
that he had picked up  from the         
gentlemen for whom he worked1 having    
acquired an amusing  fondness for       
remembering and repeating them4 ,i      
learned them all1 because  he desired me
 to do so1 and because ,i saw it        
gratified him for me to  take an        
interest in such things4 ,i do not think
 this kind of knowledge  did him much   
good2 for he was unable to give reasons 
when ,i inquired for  them4    ,but for 
the use of these sonorous designations  
for common things was a  sort of        
conversational hobby with him4 ,i cannot
 say that he was unduly  proud of the   
little draughts of learning he had thus 

taken at the  neighboring fountains1 but
 rather that it became a sort of passion
 with  him1 yet regulated by a sincere  
desire to impart to his children all the
  knowledge he had himself acquired4    
,there was great merriment among us     
when he first began to use some of these
 hard botanical names4 ,he did so  with 
the utmost gravity of countenance1 which
 only increased our  amusement4 ,i      
remember one summer evening he told     
,fred1 on leaving the  supper-table1 to 
go out and pull up a ,phytolacca that   
was going to  seed just over the        
garden-fence4 ,fred stopped in amazement
 at hearing so  strange a word2 and ,i  
confess that it bewildered even me4     
,then followed  the very explanation    
which father had intended to give4 ,he  
told us it  was a poke-bush4    ,oh1    
said ,fred1 with a broad laugh1 is that 
all8    ,but the word was forthwith     
written down1 so as to impress it on our
  memories1 and none of us have yet     
forgotten it4 ,it was singular1         

moreover1 how the imitative faculty     
gained strength among us4 ,we  children 
acquired the habit of speaking of all   
our garden-plants by such  outlandish   
names as father then taught us1--not    
seriously1 of course1  but as a capital 
piece of fun4 ,we knew no more of       
relations and  affinities than he1 and  
so used these names much as parrots     
repeat the  chance phrases they         
sometimes learn2 still1 the faint       
glimmerings of  knowledge thus early    
shed upon our minds came back to us in  
after life1  and1 explained and         
illustrated by study and observation1   
now serve as  positive lights to the    
understanding4    ,i thus learned a     
great deal by working in the garden1 and
 at the same  time became extremely fond
 of it1 taking the utmost delight in    
planting  the seeds and watching the    
growth of even a cabbage-head1 as well  
as in  keeping the ground clear of      
interloping weeds4 ,i even learned to   
combine  the useful with the beautiful1 

which some have declared to be the      
highest phase of art4 ,fred did all the 
digging1 and in dry times was  very     
ready to water whatever might be        
suffering from drought4    ,my mother   
encouraged these labors as aids to      
health4 ,the time they  occupied could  
be spared from the needle1 as the garden
 required  attention but a few months1  
and only occasionally even then1 while  
the  needle could be employed the whole 
year round4 ,besides1 the family        
earnings were not all absorbed by our   
weekly expenses4 ,we had no rent to     
pay1 and there was nothing laid out in  
improvements4 ,hence a small  portion of
 father's earnings was carefully laid by
 every week1--not  enough to make us    
rich1 but still sufficient to prevent   
us1 if  continued1 from ever becoming   
poor4    ,while thus industriously      
working with the needle1 we began to    
feel the  effect on female labor which  
the introduction of sewing-machines had 
occasioned4 ,the prices given by the    

tailors were not only becoming less  and
 less1 but our employers were           
continually more exacting as to the     
quality of the work1 and evidently more 
independent of us4 ,in very busy        
seasons1 when they really needed all the
 clothing we could make up1 they  were  
courteous enough1 because they were then
 unable to do without us4  ,but the     
introduction of sewing-machines seemed  
to revolutionize their  behavior4 ,as   
every movement of the machine was       
exactly like every other1  so there was 
an astonishing uniformity in the work it
 performed2 and if  it made the first   
stitch neatly1 all the succeeding ones  
must be equally  neat4 ,hence the       
beautiful regularity of the work it     
turned out4 ,it  looked nicer than any  
we could do by hand1 though in reality  
not more  substantial4 ,its amazing     
rapidity of execution was another       
element of  superiority1 against which1 
it was believed1 no sewing-woman could  
successfully contend4    ,heretofore1 ,i

 had noticed that our employers had1 on 
numerous occasions1  set up the most    
frivolous pretexts for reducing our     
wages4 ,in all my  experience they never
 once advanced them1 even when crowding 
us so hard  as to compel us to sew half 
the night4 ,the standing cry was that we
 must  work for less1 but there was     
never a lisp of giving us more4 ,at one 
time  the reason was--for reasons were  
plenty enough--that the merchant had    
advanced the prices of his cloths2 at   
another1 that a new tariff had  enhanced
 the cost of goods2 at another1 that the
 men in their employ had  struck for    
higher wages4 ,generally1 the reason    
alleged for the new  imposition on us   
was foolish and unsatisfactory1 and to  
most women1 who  knew so little of      
merchandise and tariffs1 quite          
incomprehensible4 ,the  whole drift was1
 that1 as others laid it on the tailors1
 the latter must  lay it on the         
sewing-women4 ,but all the reasons thus 
set before us ,i  turned over in my     

mind1 and thought a great deal about4 ,i
 never had the  uncomplaining timidity  
of my mother1 when dealing with these   
men1--and  so1 on more than one         
occasion1 was bold enough to speak out  
for our  rights4 ,it struck me1 from the
 various pretexts set up for cutting    
down  our scanty wages1 that they were  
untrue1 and had been trumped up for the 
sole purpose of cheapening our work4    
,some of them were so transparently     
false that ,i wondered how any one could
 have the impudence to present  them4   
,those who did so must have considered a
 sewing-woman as either too  dull to    
detect the fallacy1 or too timid to     
expose and resent it4    ,we had on one 
occasion just begun sewing for a tailor 
who was considered  to be of the better 
class1--that is1 one who kept a shop in 
a  fashionable street1 and sold a finer 
and better description of goods  than   
were to be found in the slop-shops1--and
 while making up a dozen  fine vests1   
were congratulating ourselves on having 

advanced a step in  our profession4 ,the
 man was very civil to us1 and had      
justly acquired  the reputation1 among  
the sewing-women1 of dealing fairly and 
courteously with those he employed4     
,when our first dozen vests were  done1 
we took them in4 ,there was a decided   
commendation as to the  excellence of   
the work1--it was entirely              
satisfactory1--the price was  paid1--but
 if we wanted more1 he would have to pay
 us so much less4 ,this  was at the very
 beginning of the season1 when such     
vests would be in  demand4 ,had it been 
at the close1 when sales were dull and  
little work  needed1 ,i could have      
understood why a reduction was demanded1
 or why no  more vests were to be given 
out2 but now ,i could not1 and felt     
mortified  and indignant4    ,my mother 
said nothing4 ,on such occasions she    
invariably submitted to  the imposition 
without remonstrance4 ,it is the        
misfortune of most  sewing-women to be  
obliged to bear these hard exactions in 

silence4  ,continued employment is with 
them so great a necessity as to compel  
them  to do so4 ,but not feeling this   
urgency myself1 and being now grown a   
little older1 and no doubt a little     
bolder1 ,i ventured to address the      
tailor in reply4    ,why do you ask us  
to take less for our work1 ,sir8        
,goods have gone up1 ,miss1 he          
responded4 ,the importers charge us     
twenty per cent more4    ,do you require
 them to take less1 as you do us8       
,oh1 said he1 they're very independent4 
,we may buy or not1 they say1  just as  
we please4 ,everybody wants these       
goods1--they are very scarce in  the    
market1 and we must pay the advance or  
go without them4    ,then1 ,i added1 if 
the goods are so scarce and desirable1  
the vests  made of them ought to be     
equally so1 and thus command a          
corresponding  advance from the         
consumer4    ,certainly1 he quickly     
replied1 we put the advanced cost on the
  buyer4    ,then the same reason holds 

good to make him pay more and us to take
  less1 ,i replied1 with an impetuosity 
of tone and manner that ,i could  not   
resist1 ,if you get the advance out of  
him1 why do you take it off  of us8     
,i saw that my mother was growing       
restless and uneasy1 but ,i continued1--
    ,do you consider the reason you have
 given for reducing our scanty wages  to
 be either just or generous8 ,you       
require us to sit up half the night  to 
get this work done1 that you may supply 
customers who1 by your own  statement1  
will pay you as good a profit on our    
next week's work as you  get on that    
which we have just delivered4 ,you      
advance your own prices1  but cut down  
ours4 ,by the money paid us you see that
 we have made only  four dollars in the 
week1 and now you ask us to work for    
three4 ,can two  women live on three    
dollars a week8 ,you might----    ,i was
 so fully under way1 that there is no   
knowing what more ,i might  have said1  
had not my mother stopped me short4 ,but

 my indignation was  roused1 and ,i was 
about to begin again1 when the tailor   
interposed by  saying1--    ,do as you  
please1 ,miss1--that's my price1--and   
yours too1 or not1 just  as you choose4 
,just then the man's wife came into the 
shop1 and called off his  attention from
 us4 ,i noticed that she was dressed in 
the extreme of the  fashion4 ,there were
 silks1 and laces1 and jewelry in       
abundance1 the  profits of the          
unrequited toil of many poor            
sewing-women4 ,i told my  mother we     
would take no more vests from this shop1
 and would look for a  new employer1 and
 started to go out4 ,but she1 being less
 excitable1  lingered1 asked for a      
second bundle1 and came out with it on  
her arm4 ,i  carried it home1 but it    
weighed heavily on my hands4 ,we made up
 the  vests1 but the otherwise pleasant 
labor of my needle was embittered by    
the reflection of how great a wrong had 
been done to us4 ,the sting of  this    
imposition continued to rankle in my    

heart so long as we were the  bondwomen 
of this particular man4    ,this        
persistent tendency to a reduction of   
wages acquired new strength  from the   
introduction of sewing-machines4 ,as    
they came gradually into  general use1  
we found the cry raised in all the shops
 that machine-work  was so much better  
than hand-work1 that nothing but the    
former was  wanted1--customers would    
have no other4 ,i am satisfied that this
 also  was to some extent a mere pretext
 to accomplish a fresh reduction of     
prices4 ,the work may really have been  
better done1 yet1 notwithstanding  that 
fact1 we were told the shops would      
continue to employ us at  hand-work1 if 
we would do it at the same rate with the
 machine-work4 ,it  was thus evident    
that it was not a question as to the    
quality of the  sewing1 but simply one  
of price4 ,machinery had been made to   
compete with  muscle1 and we were fairly
 in a dilemma which occasioned us an    
amount of  uneasiness that was truly    

distressing4    ,i did not attempt to   
fly in the face of this state of things 
by argument  or repining4 ,i saw the    
result--at least ,i thought so--from the
  beginning4 ,to satisfy my doubts1 ,i  
first went to see the machines while  in
 operation4 ,how they could possibly    
overcome the mechanical  perplexities of
 needle and thread ,i could not imagine2
 neither1 when ,i  saw them performing  
their work with such beautiful          
simplicity1 could ,i  clearly understand
 how it was done4 ,but my curiosity was 
gratified1 and  my doubts resolved1--the
 great fact was made manifest4 ,it      
struck me with  a sort of dismay4 ,my   
mother was with me on this occasion1 and
 she was  quite as much discouraged as  
myself1 for her darling theory of the   
supremacy of the needle had been blown  
to the winds4 ,she would be  compelled  
to admit that hereafter the machine was 
to be paramount1 and  the seamstress    
comparatively obsolete4    ,it could not
 be denied that the machines were       

capable of doing work as  beautifully as
 it could be done by needle-women4 ,then
 we were confounded  by the amazing     
rapidity with which they made the       
stitches4 ,we saw that  it was vain to  
expect our slow fingers to compete with 
the  lightning-like velocity attained by
 simply putting the foot upon a         
treadle4 ,i have no doubt that thousands
 of sewing-girls1 all over the  country1
 were equally astonished and            
disheartened1 when they came to be      
assured of the success of these         
machines4 ,they must have seen1 as we   
did1 that prices would speedily go down4
 ,indeed1 all who were in  immediate    
communication with the tailors became   
aware1 at a very early  day1 of the     
downward tendency4 ,i confess that no   
other result was to be  expected1 and   
that in this instance the call upon us  
was not entirely a  pretext of the      
tailors1 but a necessity forced upon    
them by a new agency  suddenly          
introduced into their business1 which   

they must immediately  counteract or    
embrace1 or else give up their          
occupation4    ,the first tailor who    
bought a dozen machines found no        
difficulty in  having as many girls     
taught to operate them4 ,the makers saw 
to it that  no impediment to their sale 
should occur from girls of ordinary     
intelligence being unable to use them2  
so the first sewers were taught  either 
by the inventors themselves or by the   
skilled mechanics who  constructed the  
machines4 ,as the girls learned quickly1
 so1 when only a  small number had      
become expert at using them1 they served
 as teachers to  others4 ,thus the      
operatives were multiplied almost as    
rapidly as the  machines4 ,it was quite 
as difficult1 at the first introduction1
 to  obtain the machines as it was to   
procure operators1 so immediately was   
the invention recognized by a vast      
industrial interest as the forerunner   
of a complete revolution in all         
departments of sewing4    ,but1 as      

already mentioned1 the first tailor who 
bought machines was able  to set them at
 work directly4 ,as one machine would   
perform about as much  in a day as ten  
women1 the saving in the labor of the   
nine thus  dispensed with enabled him to
 reduce the price of his manufactured   
goods  to a figure so low that he could 
undersell all others in the trade4      
,cheapness being everywhere the cry1 he 
who sold at the lowest rates was  able  
to dispose of the most goods4 ,it is not
 likely that he gave his  customers the 
full benefit of all the saving made by  
discharging nine  girls out of ten4     
,this was large2 for1 while he saved    
their wages1 he  made little or no      
advance in those of the remaining girl1 
who now did on  a machine as much work  
as the whole ten had previously done    
with their  needles4 ,the only          
difference to her was1 that she dropped 
the needle1  and employed a machine4    
,she was1 in either case1 a mere        
sewing-girl2 and  if she made her two or

 three dollars a week1 it was enough4   
,she had  never made more3 why should   
she be permitted to do so now8 ,it would
 have  been altogether contrary to usage
 to permit such a hand to have any      
benefit from any general improvement or 
economy in the employer's great         
establishment4 ,the men are frequently  
able to exact it1 but the women  never4 
,a tailor thus underselling all others1 
and yet making greater profits  than    
ever1 invited imitation and competition4
 ,all who were able to  procure machines
 did so as fast as the inventors could  
supply the  demand4 ,this became so     
enormous and pressing that new          
manufactories were  speedily            
established1 and rival machines came    
into use by scores4  ,clothing-shops and
 other establishments went into         
operation with a  hundred machines in   
each1 throwing multitudes of            
sewing-women out of  employment4 ,steam 
was called in to take the place of      
female fingers4 ,the  human1 machine was

 suddenly discarded1--turned off1       
without notice or  compunction1 to seek 
other occupation1 or to suffer for want 
of it4    ,no wonder that we should be  
dismayed when such a prospect as this   
was  seen opening itself before us4     
,neither is it to be wondered at that   
prices broke down as the revolution     
progressed4 ,i was confounded at the    
low rates to which wages fell4 ,the     
price for making a shirt was reduced    
one half4 ,fine bosoms1 crowded with    
plaits and full of seams1 were made  for
 a few cents per dozen4 ,even the mean  
slop-shop work was so poorly  paid1 that
 no woman1 working full time1 could earn
 much more than a  dollar a week4 ,if   
ill1 or with a family of children to    
look after1 her  case was apparently    
hopeless4 ,how all the sewing-women thus
 suddenly  reduced to idleness were to  
gain a livelihood ,i could not          
comprehend4 ,a  cry of distress rose up 
from the toiling inmates of many a      
humble home  around us4 ,the privilege  

to toil had been suddenly withdrawn from
 them4    ,even my mother1 as ,i have   
said1 began to wake up from the delusion
 under  which she had hitherto labored1 
that the needle was a woman's best and  
surest dependence2 for here was a       
revolution that had not entered into    
her imagination4 ,though not at any time
 impoverished or even straitened  by it1
 yet she saw how others were2 and it led
 her to think that women  might be not  
only usefully employed at many new      
things1 but that they  ought to be      
qualified by education for even a       
variety of occupations1 so  that1 when  
one staff gave way1 another would remain
 to lean upon4 ,i  suggested that the   
reason why so many were at that time    
idle was1 that  all of them had been    
brought up to do the same thing1--to    
sew1--and that  they did not seek       
employment in other pursuits because    
their industrial  education had not been
 sufficiently diversified2 they were not
  qualified1 and consequently would not 

be employed4    ,a woman can become     
expert at the needle only by proper     
training through  a regular             
apprenticeship4 ,if necessary in that   
instance1 it is equally  so in all      
others4 ,every great city abounds in    
employments for which  women are        
especially fitted1 both mentally and    
physically2 and they are  shut out from 
them only for want of proper training1  
and the deplorable  absence of available
 facilities for acquiring it4 ,the boy  
is  apprenticed1 serves out his time1   
and secures remunerative wages4 ,why    
not give a similar training to his      
sister8 ,if girls were properly         
instructed1 they would be profitably    
employed4 ,it has been so with the      
seamstress3 why should it be otherwise  
in a different sphere8    ,at no time   
had we been in the habit of telling my  
father the particulars  of our          
experience with the tailors4 ,he heard  
only incidentally how  little we earned1
 while our greatest grievances were     

rarely spoken of  before him4 ,the truth
 is1 that he had a very poor opinion of 
the craft4  ,i am sure1 that1 if he had 
known as much of them as we did1 it     
would  have been even more unfavorable4 
,but here was an entirely new trouble to
  be met and overcome1 requiring the    
utmost wisdom of the whole family to    
master it4 ,as to our ceasing work1 no  
one dreamed of that2 the anxiety  was1  
to be kept at it4 ,our consultations and
 discussions were  consequently frequent
 and long4 ,my father joined in these   
with great  interest1 but could suggest 
no remedy4    ,i had noticed that our   
penny paper was crowded with            
advertisements for  girls who understood
 working on a sewing-machine2 and ,i    
learned from  several of my             
acquaintances that not only was the     
demand for such  operatives unlimited1  
but that an expert hand was able to earn
 quite as  much as with the needle      
formerly1 while some were earning much  
more4 ,it  struck me that ,i had        

overlooked the important fact that all  
the sewing  for the public was still to 
be done by women1 even though machines  
had  been invented on which to do it3 in
 our first depression1 we had           
innocently supposed that in future it   
was to be done by men4 ,it was  obvious1
 then1 that our only course was to get  
machines1--one for my  mother1 and one  
for myself4 ,i knew that ,i should learn
 quickly1 and was  sure that ,i could   
earn as much as any one else4    ,my    
mother entered heartily into the plan1  
as it held out to us the  certainty of  
continued employment4 ,we explained the 
case to my father1  and he also approved
 of the project1 and agreed to buy us a 
machine4 ,he  thought it better to begin
 with only one1 to see whether we could 
understand it1 and find a sale for our  
work1 as well as how we liked it4       
,besides1 when these machines were first
 made1 the inventors exacted an         
exorbitant price for them1--they1 too1  
in this way levying a cruel tax  on the 

sewing-women4 ,the cost at that time was
 from a hundred and twenty  to a hundred
 and fifty dollars4 ,my father could    
manage to provide us  with one1 but the 
expense of two was more than he could   
assume4 ,i was  then within a few weeks 
of being eighteen2 and it was arranged  
that ,i  should devote the intervening  
time to learning how to operate a       
machine1  by attending one of the       
schools for beginners then opened by    
lady  teachers1 and that the new        
purchase should be my birthday present4 
,so1  paying ten dollars for            
instruction1 and agreeing to work eight 
weeks  without wages1 ,i took my        
position1 with more than a dozen others1
 as a  learner at the sewing-machine4   
,,notes ,,of ,a ,,pianist4      ,i4     
,there is a class of persons to whom art
 in general is but a fashionable        
luxury1 and music in particular but an  
agreeable sound1 an elegant  superfluity
 serving to relieve the tedium of       
conversation at a soiree1  and fill up  

the space between sorbets and supper4   
,to such1 any  philosophical discussion 
on the sthetics of art must seem as     
puerile an  occupation as that of the   
fairy who spent her time weighing grains
 of  dust with a spider's web4 ,artists1
 to whom1 through a foreign prejudice   
which dates back to the barbarism of the
 ,middle ,ages1 they persist in         
refusing any high place in the social   
scale1 are to them only petty  tradesmen
 dealing in suspicious wares 7in most   
instances unshrewdly1  since they rarely
 get rich1 which aggravates their       
position72 while what  they call        
performers are looked upon by them as   
mere tricksters or  jugglers1 who profit
 by the dexterity of their fingers1 as  
dancers and  acrobats by the suppleness 
of their limbs4 ,the painter whose works
  decorate their saloons figures in the 
budget of their expenses on a line  with
 the upholsterer1 whose hangings they   
speak of in the same breath  with       
,church's ,heart of the ,andes1 and     

,rosa ,bonheur's ,cattle ,fair4    ,it  
is not for such people that ,i write2   
but there are others1--and to  these ,i 
address myself1--who recognize in the   
artist the privileged  instrument of a  
moral and civilizing influence2 who     
appreciate art  because they derive from
 it pure and ennobling inspirations2 who
 respect  it because it is the highest  
expression of human thought1 aiming at  
the  absolute ideal2 and who love it as 
we love the friend to whom we  confide  
our joys and sorrows1 and in whom we    
find a faithful response to  every      
movement of the soul4    ,lamartine has 
said1 with truth1 ,music is the         
literature of the heart2  it commences  
where speech ends4 ,in fact1 music is a 
psycho-physical  phenomenon4 ,in its    
germ1 it is a sensation2 in its full    
development1 an  ideal4 ,it is          
sufficient not to be deaf to perceive   
music1 at least1 if  not to appreciate  
it4 ,even idiots and maniacs are subject
 to its  influence4 ,not being          

restricted to any precise sense1 going  
beyond the  mere letter1 and expressing 
only states of the soul1 it has this    
advantage over literature1 that every   
one can assimilate it to his own        
passions1 and adapt it to the sentiments
 which rule him4 ,its power1  limited in
 the intellectual order to the imitative
 passions1 is in that  of the           
imagination unlimited4 ,it responds to  
an interior1 indefinable  sense         
possessed by all1--the ideal4           
,literature is always objective3 it     
speaks to the understanding1 and        
determines in us impressions in keeping 
with the determined sense which  it     
expresses4 ,music1 on the contrary1 may 
be1 in turn1 objective and  subjective1 
according to the disposition in which we
 find ourselves at  the moment of       
hearing it4 ,it is objective when1      
affected only by the  purely physical   
sensation of sound1 we listen to it     
passively1 and it  suggests to us       
impressions4 ,a march1 a waltz1 a flute 

imitating the  nightingale1 the         
chromatic scale imitating the murmuring 
of the wind in  the ,pastoral ,symphony1
 may be taken as examples4    ,it is    
subjective when1 under the empire of a  
latent impression1 we  discover in its  
general character an accordance with our
 psychological  state1 and we assimilate
 it to ourselves2 it is then like a     
mirror in  which we see reflected the   
movements which agitate us1 with a      
fidelity  all the more exact from the   
fact that1 without being conscious of   
it1 we  ourselves are the painters of   
the picture which unrolls itself before 
our imagination4    ,let me explain4    
,play a melancholy air to a proscript   
thinking of his  distant home2 to a     
deserted lover2 to a mother mourning the
 loss of a  child2 to a vanquished      
warrior2--and be assured they will all  
appropriate to themselves the plaintive 
harmonies1 and fancy they detect  in    
them the accents of their own grief4    
,the fact of music is still a mystery4  

,we know that it is composed of  three  
principles1--air1 vibration1 and        
rhythmic symmetry4 ,strike an  object in
 an exhausted receiver1 and it produces 
no sound1 because no  air is there2     
touch a ringing glass1 and the sound    
stops1 because there  is no vibration2  
take away the rhythm of the simplest air
 by changing  the duration of the notes 
that compose it1 and you render it      
obscure and  unrecognizable1 because you
 have destroyed its symmetry4    ,but   
why1 then1 do not several hammers       
striking in cadence produce music8      
,they certainly comply with the three   
conditions of air1 vibration1 and       
rhythm4 ,why is the accord of a third so
 pleasing to the ear8 ,why is the  minor
 mode so suggestive of sadness8 ,there  
is the mystery1--there the  unexplained 
phenomenon4    ,we restrict ourselves to
 saying that music1 which1 like speech1 
is  perceived through the medium of the 
ear1 does not1 like speech1 call  upon  
the brain for an explanation of the     

sensation produced by the  vibration on 
the nerves2 it addresses itself to a    
mysterious agent  within us1 which is   
superior to intelligence1 since it is   
independent of  it1 and makes us feel   
that which we can neither conceive nor  
explain4    ,let us examine the various 
attributes of the musical phenomenon4   
#a4 ,music is a physical agent4 ,it     
communicates to the body shocks which   
agitate the members to their base4 ,in  
churches the flame of the candles       
oscillates to the quake of the organ4 ,a
 powerful orchestra near a sheet  of    
water ruffles its surface4 ,a learned   
traveller speaks of an iron ring  which 
swings to and fro to the murmur of the  
,tivoli ,falls4 ,in  ,switzerland ,i    
excited at will1 in a poor child        
afflicted with a  frightful nervous     
malady1 hysterical and catalyptic       
crises1 by playing  in the minor key of 
,e flat4 ,the celebrated ,doctor        
,bertier asserts that  the sound of a   
drum gives him the colic4 ,certain      

medical men state that  the notes of the
 trumpet quicken the pulse and induce   
slight  perspiration4 ,the sound of the 
bassoon is cold2 the notes of the       
,french  horn at a distance1 and of the 
harp1 are voluptuous4 ,the flute played 
softly in the middle register calms the 
nerves4 ,the low notes of the  piano    
frighten children4 ,i once had a dog who
 would generally sleep on  hearing      
music1 but the moment ,i played in the  
minor key he would bark  piteously4 ,the
 dog of a celebrated singer whom ,i knew
 would moan  bitterly1 and give signs of
 violent suffering1 the instant that his
  mistress chanted a chromatic gamut4 ,a
 certain chord produces on my sense  of 
hearing the same effect as the          
heliotrope on my sense of smell and  the
 pine-apple on my sense of taste4       
,rachel's voice delighted the ear by    
its ring before one had time to seize   
the sense of what was said1 or          
appreciate the purity of her diction4   
,we may affirm1 then1 that musical      

sound1 rhythmical or not1 agitates the  
whole physical economy1--quickens the   
pulse1 incites perspiration1 and        
produces a pleasant momentary irritation
 of the nervous system4    #b4 ,music is
 a moral agent4 ,through the medium of  
the nervous system1  the direct         
interpreter of emotion1 it calls into   
play the higher  faculties2 its language
 is that of sentiment ,furthermore1 the 
motives  which have presided over       
particular musical combinations         
establish links  between the composer   
and the listener4 ,we sigh with ,bellini
 in the  finale of ,la ,somnambula2 we  
shudder with ,weber in the sublime      
phantasmagoria of ,der ,freischutz2 the 
mystic inspirations of ,palestrina1  the
 masses of ,mozart1 transport us to the 
celestial regions1 toward  which they   
rise like a melodious incense4 ,music   
awakens in us  reminiscences1 souvenirs1
 associations4 ,when we have wept over a
 song1  it ever after seems to us bathed
 in tears4    ,a celebrated pianist     

tells me that1 in a city where he was   
giving  concerts1 he became acquainted  
with a charming young girl4 ,he was     
twenty  years old1 and had all the      
poetic and generous illusions of that   
romantic age4 ,she was sixteen4 ,they   
loved each other without daring to      
confess it1 and perhaps without knowing 
it themselves4 ,but the hour of         
separation came3 he was passing his last
 evening at her house4 ,observed  by the
 family1 he could only furtively join   
hands with her at the moment  of        
parting4 ,the poem was but commenced1 to
 be arrested at the first  page3 he     
never saw her again4 ,disheartened1     
distracted with grief1 he  wandered     
through the dark streets1 until at two  
in the morning he found  himself again  
under her windows4 ,she too was awake4  
,their thoughts1  drawn together by that
 divine tie which merits the name of    
love only in  the morning of life1 met  
in unison1 for she was playing gently in
 the  solitude of her chamber the first 

notes of a mazurka which they had       
danced together4 ,tears came to my eyes1
 said my friend1 on hearing  this music1
 which seemed to me sublime2 it was the 
stifled plaint of her  heart2 it was her
 grief which exhaled from her fingers2  
it was the  eternal adieu4 ,for years ,i
 believed this mazurka to be a          
marvellous  inspiration1 and it was not 
till long after1 when age had dispelled 
my  illusions and obliterated the adored
 image1 that ,i discovered it was  only 
a vulgar and trivial commonplace3 the   
gold was changed to brass4    ,the old  
man1 chilled by years1 may be insensible
 to the pathetic accents  of ,rossini1  
of ,mozart3 but repeat to him the simple
 songs of his youth1  the present       
vanishes1 and the illusions of the past 
come back again4 ,i  once knew an old   
,spanish general who detested music4    
,one day ,i began to  play to him my    
,siege of ,saragossa1 in which is       
introduced the ,marcha  ,real 7,spanish 
national air71 and he wept like a child4

 ,this air  recalled to him the immortal
 defence of the heroic city1 behind the 
falling walls of which he had fought    
against the ,french1 and sounded to     
him1 he said1 like the voice of all the 
holy affections expressed by the  word  
home4 ,the mercenary ,swiss troops1 when
 in ,france and ,naples1  could not hear
 the ,ranz des ,vaches 7the shepherd    
song of old and rude  ,helvetia7 without
 being overcome by it4 ,when from       
mountain to mountain  the signal of     
revolt summoned to the cause the three  
insurgent ,cantons1  the desertions     
caused by this air became so frequent   
that the government  prohibited it4 ,the
 reader will remember the comic effect  
produced upon  the ,french troops in the
 ,crimea by the ,highlanders marching to
 battle to  the sound of the bagpipe1   
whose harsh1 piercing notes inspired    
these  brave mountaineers with valor1 by
 recalling to them their country and    
its heroic legends4 ,napoleon ,,iii4    
finds himself compelled to allow the    

,arab troops incorporated into his army 
their barbarous tam-tam music1  lest    
they revolt4 ,the measured beat of the  
drum sustains the soldier in  long      
marches which otherwise would be        
insupportable4 ,the ,marseillaise       
contributed as much toward the          
republican victories of #agic1 when     
,france  was invaded1 as the genius of  
,general ,dumouriez4    #c4 ,music is a 
complex agent4 ,it acts at once on life1
 on the instinct1  the forces1 the      
organism4 ,it has a psychological       
action4 ,the negroes  charm serpents by 
whistling to them2 it is said that fawns
 are  captivated by a melodious voice2  
the bear is aroused with the fife2      
canaries and sparrows enjoy the         
flageolet2 in the ,antilles1 lizards are
  enticed from their retreats by the    
whistle2 spiders have an affection  for 
fiddlers2 in ,switzerland1 the herdsmen 
attach to the necks of their  handsomest
 cows a large bell1 of which they are so
 proud1 that1 while  they are allowed to

 wear it1 they march at the head of the 
herd2 in  ,andalusia1 the mules lose    
their spirit and their power of         
endurance1 if  deprived of the numerous 
bells with which it is customary to deck
 these  intelligent animals2 in the     
mountains of ,scotland and ,switzerland1
 the  herds pasture best to the sound of
 the bagpipe2 and in the ,oberland1     
cattle strayed from the herd are        
recalled by the notes of the trumpet4   
,donizetti1 a year before his death1 had
 lost all his faculties1 in  consequence
 of a softening of the spinal marrow4   
,every means was  resorted to for       
reviving a spark of that intellect once 
so vigorous2 but  all failed4 ,in a     
single instance only he exhibited a     
gleam of  intelligence2 and that was on 
hearing one of his friends play the     
septette of his opera of ,lucia4 ,poor  
,donizetti6 said he2 what a  pity he    
should have died so soon6 ,and this was 
all4    ,in #ahdh1 after the terrible   
insurrection which made of ,paris a vast

  slaughter-house1 to conceal my sadness
 and my disgust ,i went to the  house of
 one of my friends1 who was             
superintendent of the immense insane    
asylum in ,clermont-sur-,oise4 ,he had a
 small organ1 and was a tolerably  good 
singer4 ,i composed a mass1 to the first
 performance of which we  invited a few 
artists from ,paris and several of the  
most docile inmates  of the asylum4 ,i  
was struck with the bearing of the      
latter1 and asked my  friend to repeat  
the experiment1 and extend the number of
 invitations4  ,the result was so       
favorable1 that we were soon able to    
form a choir from  among the patients1  
of both sexes1 who rehearsed on         
,saturdays the hymns  and chants they   
were to sing on ,sunday at mass4 ,a     
raving lunatic1 a  priest1 who was      
getting more and more intractable every 
day1 and who  often had to be put in a  
strait-jacket1 noticed the periodical   
absence  of some of the inmates1 and    
exhibited curiosity to know what they   

were  doing4 ,the following ,saturday1  
seeing some of his companions preparing 
to go to rehearsal1 he expressed a      
desire to go with them4 ,the doctor     
told him he might go on condition that  
he would allow himself to be  shaved and
 decently dressed4 ,this was a thorny   
point1 for he would never  attend to his
 person1 and became furious when        
required to dress2 but1 to  our great   
astonishment1 he consented at once4     
,this day he not only  listened to the  
music quietly1 but was detected several 
times joining  his voice with that of   
the choir4 ,when ,i left ,clermont1 my  
poor old  priest was one of the most    
constant attendants at the rehearsals4  
,he  still had his violent periods1 but 
they were less frequent2 and when       
,saturday arrived1 he always dressed    
himself with care1 and waited           
impatiently for the hour to go to       
chapel4    ,to resume3 ,music being a   
physical agent1--that is to say1 acting 
on  the individual without the aid of   

his intelligence2 a moral  agent1--that 
is to say1 reviving his memory1 exciting
 his imagination1  developing his       
sentiment2 and a complex agent1--that is
 to say1 having  a physiological action 
on the instinct1 the organism1 the      
forces1 of  man1--,i deduce from this   
that it is one of the most powerful     
means for  ennobling the mind1 elevating
 the morals1 and1 above all1 refining   
the  manners4 ,this truth is now so well
 recognized in ,europe that we see      
choral societies--,orpheons and         
others--multiplying as by enchantment1  
under the powerful impulse given them by
 the state4 ,i speak not simply  of     
,germany1 which is a singing nation1    
whose laborious1 peaceful1  intelligent 
people have in all time associated      
choral music as well with  their labors 
as with their pleasures2 but ,i may cite
 particularly  ,france1 which counts    
to-day more than eight hundred ,orpheon 
societies1  composed of workingmen4 ,how
 many of these1 who formerly dissipated 

their  leisure time at drinking-houses1 
now find an ennobling recreation in     
these associations1 where the spirit of 
union and fraternity is  engendered and 
developed6 ,and if we could get at the  
statistics of  crime1 who can doubt that
 they would show it had diminished in   
proportion to the increase of these     
societies8 ,in fact1 men are better1    
the heart is in some sort purified1 when
 impregnated with the noble  harmonies  
of a fine chorus2 and it is difficult   
not to treat as a  brother one whose    
voice has mingled with your own1 and    
whose heart has  been united to yours in
 a community of pure and joyful         
emotions4 ,if  ,orpheon societies ever  
become established in ,america1 be      
assured that  bar-rooms1 the plague of  
the country1 will cease1 with revolvers 
and  bowie-knives1 to be popular        
institutions4    ,music1 when employed  
in the service of religion1 has always  
been its  most powerful auxiliary4 ,the 
organ did more for ,catholicism in the  

,middle ,ages than all its preaching2   
and ,palestrina and ,marcello have      
reclaimed and still reclaim more        
infidels than all the doctors of the    
,church4    ,we enter a house of        
worship4 ,still under the empire of the 
external  world1 we carry there our     
worldly thoughts and occupations2 a     
thousand  distractions deter us from    
religious reflection and meditation4    
,the word  of the preacher reaches the  
ear indeed1 but only as a vague sound4  
,the  sense of what is said is arrested 
at the surface1 without penetrating  the
 heart4 ,but let the grand voice of the 
organ be heard1 and our whole  being is 
moved2 the physical world disappears1   
the eyes of the soul  open2 we bow the  
head1 we bend the knee1 and our         
thoughts1 disengaged  from matter1 soar 
to the eternal regions of the ,good1 the
 ,beautiful1 and  the ,true4            
,,garnaut ,,hall4            ,here or   
hereafter8 ,in the body here1      ,or  
in the soul hereafter do we writhe1     

,atoning for the malice of our lives8   
,of the uncounted millions that have    
died1      ,not one has slipped the     
napkin from his chin      ,and loosed   
the jaw to tell us3 even he1      ,the  
intrepid ,captain1 who gave life to find
      ,a doubtful way through clanging  
worlds of ice1--      ,a fine           
inquisitive spirit1 you would think1    
,one to cross-question ,fate            
complacently1      ,less for his own    
sake than ,science's1--      ,not even  
he1 with his rich gathered lore1        
,returns from that dark journey down to 
death4      ,here or hereafter8 ,only   
this ,i know1      ,that1 whatsoever    
happen afterwards1      ,some men do    
penance on this side the grave4         
,thus ,regnald ,garnaut for his cruel   
heart4          ,owner and lord was he  
of ,garnaut ,hall1      ,a relic of the 
,norman conquerors1--      ,a quaint1   
rook-haunted pile of masonry1      ,from
 whose top battlement1 a windy height1  
,regnald could view his twenty          

prosperous farms2      ,his creaking    
mill1 that1 perched upon a cliff1       
,with outspread wings seemed ever taking
 flight2      ,the red-roofed cottages1 
the high-walled park1      ,the noisy   
aviary1 and1 nearer by1      ,the       
snow-white ,doric parsonage1--all his   
own4      ,and all his own were chests  
of antique plate1      ,horses and      
hounds and falcons1 curious books1      
,chain-armor1 helmets1 ,gobelin         
tapestry1      ,and half a mile of      
painted ancestors4      ,lord of these  
things1 he wanted one thing more1       
,not having which1 all else to him was  
dross4          ,for ,agnes ,vail1 the  
curate's only child1--      ,a little   
,saxon wild-flower that had grown       
,unheeded into beauty day by day1       
,and much too delicate for this rude    
world1--      ,with that intuitive      
wisdom of the pure1      ,saw that he   
loved her beauty1 not herself1      ,and
 shrank from him1 and when he came to   
speech      ,parried his meaning with a 

woman's wit1      ,then sobbed an hour  
when she was all alone4      ,and       
,regnald's mighty vanity was hurt4      
,why1 then1 snarled he1 if ,i had asked 
the ,queen      ,to pick me some fair   
woman from the ,court1      ',t were but
 the asking4 ,a blind curate's girl1    
,it seems1 is somewhat difficult1--must 
have1      ,to warm her feet1 our       
coronet withal6      ,and ,agnes        
evermore avoided him1      ,clinging    
more closely to the old man's side2     
,and in the chapel never raised an eye1 
,but knelt there like a medieval saint1 
,her holiness her buckler and her       
shield1--      ,that1 and the golden    
floss of her long hair4          ,and   
,regnald felt that somehow he was       
foiled1--      ,foiled1 but not beaten4 
,he would have his way4      ,had not   
the ,garnauts always had their will     
,these six or seven centuries1 more or  
less8      ,meanwhile he chafed2 but    
shortly after this      ,regnald        
received the sorest hurt of all4        

,for1 one eve1 lounging idly in the     
close1      ,watching the windows of the
 parsonage1      ,he heard low voices in
 the alder-trees1      ,voices he knew1 
and one that sweetly said1      ,thine6 
and he paused with choking heart1 and   
saw      ,eustace1 his brother1 and fair
 ,agnes ,vail      ,in the soft moonrise
 lingering with clasped hands4      ,the
 two passed on1 and ,regnald hid himself
      ,among the brushwood1 where his   
vulpine eyes      ,dilated in the       
darkness as they passed4      ,there1 in
 the dark1 he lay a bitter hour         
,gnawing his nails1 and then arose      
unseen      ,and crept away with murder 
in his soul4          ,eustace6 curse on
 him1 with his handsome eyes6           
,regnald had envied ,eustace many a     
day1--      ,envied his fame1 and that  
exceeding grace      ,and courtliness   
which he had learned at ,court      ,of 
,sidney1 ,raleigh1 ,essex1 and the rest3
      ,for when their father1 lean ,sir 
,egbert1 died1      ,eustace1 whose     

fortune dangled at his thigh1--      ,a 
,damask blade1--had hastened to the     
,court      ,to line his purse1         
perchance to build a name2      ,and    
catching there the passion of the time1 
,he1 with a score of doughty ,devon     
lads1      ,sailed with bold ,drake into
 the ,spanish seas2      ,returning     
whence1 with several ugly scars1--      
,which made him lovelier in women's     
eyes1--      ,and many a chest of       
ingots1--not the less      ,these latter
 made him lovely1--sunned himself1      
,sometimes at ,court1 sometimes at      
,garnaut ,hall1--      ,at ,court1 by   
favor of the ,virgin ,queen1      ,for  
great ,elizabeth had smiled on him4     
,so ,regnald1 who was neither good nor  
brave      ,nor graceful1 liked not     
,eustace from the start1      ,and this 
night hated him4 ,with angry brows1     
,he sat in a bleak chamber of the ,hall1
      ,his fingers toying with his      
poniard's point      ,abstractedly4     
,three times the ancient clock1         

,bolt-upright like a mummy in its case1 
,doled out the hour3 at length the round
 red moon1      ,rising above the       
ghostly poplar-tops1      ,looked in on 
,regnald nursing his dark thought1      
,looked in on the stiff portraits on the
 wall1      ,and dead ,sir ,egbert's    
empty coat-of-mail4          ,a quick   
step sounded on the gravel-walk1        
,and then came ,eustace1 humming a      
sea-song1      ,of how the ,grace of    
,devon1 with ten guns1      ,and ,master
 ,raleigh on the quarter-deck1          
,bore down and tackled the great        
galleon1      ,madre de ,dios1 raked her
 fore and aft1      ,and took her       
bullion1--singing1 light at heart1      
,his first love's first kiss warm upon  
his lip4      ,straight onward came     
young ,eustace to his death6      ,for  
hidden behind the arras near the stair  
,stood ,regnald1 like the ,demon in the 
play1      ,grasping his rapier part-way
 down the blade      ,to strike the foul
 blow with its heavy hilt4              

,straight on came ,eustace1--blithely   
ran the song1      ,old ,england's      
darlings are her hearts of oak4         
,the lights were out1 and not a soul    
astir1      ,or else the dead man's     
scabbard1 as it clashed      ,against   
the marble pavement when he fell1       
,had brought a witness4 ,not a breath or
 sound1      ,only the sad wind wailing 
in the tower1      ,only the mastiff    
growling in his sleep1      ,outside the
 gate1 and pawing at his dream4         
,now in a wing of that old gallery1     
,hung with the relics of forgotten      
feuds1      ,a certain door1 which none 
but ,regnald knew1      ,was fashioned  
like the panels of the wall1      ,and  
so concealed by carven grapes and       
flowers      ,a man could search for it 
a dozen years      ,and swear it was    
not1 though his touch had been          
,upon the very panel where it was4      
,the secret spring that opened it       
unclosed      ,an inner door of         
iron-studded oak1      ,guarding a      

narrow chamber1 where1 perchance1       
,some bygone lord of ,garnaut ,hall had 
hid      ,his threatened treasure1 or1  
most like1 bestowed      ,some too      
adventurous antagonist4      ,sealed in 
the compass of that stifling room1      
,a man might live1 at best1 but half an 
hour4          ,hither did ,regnald bear
 his brother's corse      ,and set it   
down4 ,perhaps he paused to gaze      ,a
 moment on the quiet moon-lit face1     
,the face yet beautiful with new-told   
love6      ,perhaps his heart misgave   
him1--or1 perhaps----      ,now1 whether
 't was some dark avenging ,hand1       
,or whether 't was some fatal freak of  
wind1      ,we may not know1 but        
suddenly the door      ,without slammed 
to1 and there was ,regnald shut         
,beyond escape1 for on the inner side   
,was neither spring nor bolt to set him 
free6          ,mother of ,mercy6 what  
were a whole life      ,of pain and     
penury and conscience-smart      ,to    
that half-hour of ,regnald's with his   

,dead8          --,the joyous sun rose  
over the white cliffs      ,of ,devon1  
sparkled through the poplar-tops1       
,and broke the death-like slumber of the
 ,hall4      ,the keeper fetched their  
breakfast to the hounds2      ,the      
smart1 young ostler whistled in the     
stalls2      ,the pretty housemaid      
tripped from room to room2      ,and    
grave and grand behind his master's     
chair1      ,but wroth within to have   
the partridge spoil1      ,the senile   
butler waited for his lord4      ,but   
neither ,regnald nor young ,eustace     
came4      ,and when 't was found that  
neither slept at ,hall      ,that night1
 their couches being still unpressed1   
,the servants stared4 ,and as the day   
wore on1      ,and evening came1 and    
then another day1      ,and yet another1
 till a week had gone1      ,the wonder 
spread1 and riders sent in haste        
,scoured the country1 dragged the       
neighboring streams1      ,tracked      
wayward footprints to the great chalk   

bluffs1      ,but found not ,regnald1   
lord of ,garnaut ,hall4      ,the place 
that knew him knew him never more4      
,the red leaf withered and the green    
leaf grew4      ,and ,agnes ,vail1 the  
little ,saxon rose1      ,waxed pale and
 paler1 till the country-folk      ,half
 guessed her fate was somehow           
intertwined      ,with that dark house4 
,when her pure soul had passed1--       
,just as a perfume floats from out the  
world1--      ,wild tales were told of  
how the brothers loved      ,the        
self-same maid1 whom neither one would  
wed      ,because the other loved her as
 his life2      ,and that the two1 at   
midnight1 in despair1      ,from one    
sheer cliff plunged headlong in the sea4
      ,and when1 at night1 the hoarse   
east-wind rose high1      ,rattled the  
lintels1 clamoring at the door1         
,the children huddled closer round the  
hearth      ,and whispered very softly  
with themselves1      ,that's ,master   
,regnald looking for his ,bride6        

,the red leaf withered and the green    
leaf grew4      ,decay and dolor settled
 on the ,hall4      ,the wind went      
howling in the dismal rooms1            
,rustling the arras2 and the            
wainscot-mouse      ,gnawed through the 
mighty ,garnauts on the wall1      ,and 
made a lodging for her glossy young     
,in dead ,sir ,egbert's empty           
coat-of-mail2      ,the griffon dropped 
from off the blazoned shield2      ,the 
stables rotted2 and a poisonous vine    
,stretched its rank nets across the     
lonely lawn4      ,for no one went      
there1--'t was a haunted spot4      ,a  
legend killed it for a kindly home1--   
,a grim estate1 which every heir in turn
      ,left to the orgies of the wind   
and rain1      ,the newt1 the toad1 the 
spider1 and the mouse4          ,the red
 leaf withered and the green leaf grew4 
,and once1 't is said1 the ,queen       
reached out her hand      ,and let it   
rest on ,cecil's velvet sleeve1         
,and said1 ,i prithee1 ,cecil1 tell us  

now1      ,was 't ever known what       
happened to those men1--      ,those    
,garnauts8--were they never1 never      
found8      ,the weasel face had fain   
looked wise for her1      ,but no one of
 that century ever knew4          ,the  
red leaf withered and the green leaf    
grew4      ,and in that year the good   
,prince ,albert died      ,the land     
changed owners1 and the new-made lord   
,sent down his workmen to revamp the    
,hall      ,and make the waste place    
blossom as the rose4      ,by chance1 a 
workman in the eastern wing1            
,fitting the cornice1 stumbled on a     
door1      ,which creaked1 and seemed to
 open of itself2      ,and there within 
the chamber1 on the flags1      ,he saw 
two figures in outlandish guise      ,of
 hose and doublet1--one stretched out   
full-length1      ,and one half fallen  
forward on his breast1      ,holding the
 other's hand with vice-like grip3      
,one face was calm1 the other sad as    
death1      ,with something in it of a  

pleading look1      ,as might befall a  
man that dies at prayer4      ,amazed1  
the workman hallooed to his mates       
,to see the wonder2 but ere they could  
come1      ,the figures crumbled and    
were shapeless dust4          ,,the     
,,pleiades ,,of ,,connecticut4      ,in 
that remote period of history which is  
especially visited upon us in  our      
school-days1 in expiation of the sins of
 our forefathers1 there  nourished seven
 poets at the court of ,ptolemy         
,philadelphus4 ,royal favor  and amiable
 dispositions united them in a club3    
public applause and  self-appreciation  
led them to call it ,the ,pleiades4 ,in 
the middle of the  sixteenth century1   
,pierre ,ronsard1 emulous of ,greek     
fame1 took to him  six other poets more 
wretched than himself1 and made up a    
second  ,pleiades for ,france4 ,the     
third rising of this rhythmical         
constellation  was seen in ,connecticut 
a long time ago4    ,connecticut is     
pleasant1 with wooded hills and a       

beautiful river2  plenteous with tobacco
 and cheese2 fruitful of merchants1     
missionaries1  sailors1 peddlers1 and   
singlewomen2--but there are no poets    
known to  exist there1 unless it be that
 well-paid band who write the rhymed    
puffs  of cheap garments and cosmetics4 
,the brisk little democratic ,state has 
turned its brains upon its machinery4   
,not a snug valley1 with a few  drops of
 water at the bottom of it1 but rattles 
with the manufacture of  notions1 great 
and small1--axes and pistols1 carriages 
and clocks1 tin  pans and toys1 hats1   
garters1 combs1 buttons1 and pins4 ,you 
see that the  enterprising natives can  
turn out any article on which a profit  
may be  made1--except poetry4 ,that     
product1 you would say1 was out of the  
question4 ,nevertheless1 the species    
poet1 although extinct1 did once  exist 
on that soil4 ,the evidence is          
conclusive that palaeozoic  verse-makers
 wandered over those hills in bygone    
ages4 ,their moss-grown  remains1 still 

visible here and there1 are as          
unmistakable as the  footprints of the  
huge wading birds in the red sandstone  
of ,middletown  and ,chatham4 ,o la     
posie va-t'elle se nicher8 ,how came the
 ,muses to  settle in ,connecticut8     
,dr4 ,samuel ,peters1 in his trustworthy
 history of the ,colony1 gives no       
answer to this question2 but among the  
oldest inhabitants of remote            
,barkhamstead1 for whom it is said      
,general ,washington and the worthies of
  his date still have a being in the    
flesh1 there lingers a mythological     
tradition which may explain this        
aberration of ,connecticut character4   
,the legend runs thus4    ,in the first 
half of the eighteenth century1 ,english
 readers were  entertained with         
elaborate allegories1 in which the      
passions1 the vices1  and even the      
habits of mankind were personified4     
,lighter ethical topics  were served up 
in letters from ,philotryphus1          
,septimius1 or others ending  in us1 and

 in communications from ,flirtilla1     
,jack ,modish1 and ,co4  ,eastern tales 
and apologues1 meditations on human     
life1 essays on  morality1 inquiries as 
to whether the arts and sciences were   
serviceable  or prejudicial to the human
 race1 dissertations on the wisdom and  
virtue  of the ,chinese1 were all the   
fashion in literature4 ,the ,genius of  
authorship1 or the ,demon1 if you prefer
 it1 was so precise1 refined1  exquisite
 in manner1 and so transcendentally     
moral in ethics1 that he  had become    
almost insufferable to his master1      
,apollo4 ,the ,god was a  little tired1 
if the truth were known1 with the       
monotonous chant of  ,pope1 in spite of 
his wit4 ,he began to think that        
something more was  required1 to satisfy
 the soul than polished periods and     
abstract  didactic morality1--and was   
not much surprised when he observed that
  ,prior1 after dining with ,addison and
 ,co41 liked to finish the evening  with
 a common soldier and his wife1 and     

refresh his mind over a pipe and  a pot 
of beer4 ,but ,pope was dead1 and so was
 ,thomson1 and ,goldsmith not  yet heard
 from4 ,there was a famine of literary  
invention in ,england4 ,out  of work and
 wages for himself and his troupe1      
disgusted at the age  and clime1 barren 
of every glorious theme1 ,phoebus       
,apollo determined to  emigrate4        
,berkeley had reported favorably of the 
new ,western ,continent3  it was a land 
of poetical promise to the ,bishop4     
,there shall be sung another golden age1
        ,the rise of empire and of arts2
      ,the good and great inspiring epic
 rage1        ,the wisest heads and     
noblest hearts4    ,trusting in the     
judgment of a man who had every virtue  
under heaven1 the  ,god of ,song shipped
 with the tuneful ,nine for ,america4   
,owing1 perhaps1  to insufficiency of   
transportation1 the ,graces were left   
behind4 ,the  vessel sailed past ,rhode 
,island in a fog1 and disembarked its   
precious  freight at ,new ,haven1 in the

 ,colony of ,connecticut4 ,in the       
pleasant  summer weather1 the           
distinguished foreigners travelled      
northward as far  as ,litchfield ,hill1 
and thence to ,hartford1 on the banks of
 the  beautiful river4 ,they found the  
land well wooded and well watered2 the  
natives good-natured1 industrious1 and  
intelligent3 but the scenery was        
monotonous to the ,pierian colonists1   
and the people distasteful4 ,the        
clipped hair and penitential scowl of   
the men made heavy the hearts of  the   
,muses2 their daughters and wives had a 
sharp1 harsh1 pert tang in  their       
speech1 that grated upon the ears of    
,apollo1 who held with ,king  ,lear as  
to the excellence of a low1 soft voice  
in woman4 ,each native  seemed to the   
strangers sadly alike in looks1 dress1  
manners1 and  pursuits1 to every other  
native4 ,of ,art they were absolutely   
ignorant4  ,they built their temples on 
the same model as their barns4 ,poetry  
meant  ,psalms sung through their noses 

to the accompaniment of a bass-viol4 ,of
  other musical instruments1 they knew  
only the ,jews-harp for home            
delectation1 and the drum and fife for  
training-days4 ,doctrinal religion      
furnished them with a mental relaxation 
which supplied the place of  amusement4 
,sandemanians1 ,adamites1 ,peterites1   
,bowlists1 ,davisonians1 and            
,rogereens1 though agreeing mainly in   
essentials1 found vast  gratification in
 playing against each other at          
theological dialectics4  ,on one        
cardinal point of discipline only--the  
necessity of administering  creature    
comfort to the sinful body--did all     
sects zealously unite4 ,they  offered   
copious1 though coarse1 libations to    
,bacchus1 in the  spirit-stirring rum of
 their native land4,b    ,after careful 
observation1 the nine ladies conferred  
together1 and  decided that in this part
 of the world their sphere of usefulness
 was  limited and their mission a       
failure4 ,polymnia1 ,urania1 and ,clio  

might  get into good society1 but       
,thalia and ,terpsichore were sure to be
 set in  the stocks2 and what was poor  
,erato to expect1 but a whipping1 in a  
commonwealth that forbade its women to  
uncover their necks or to expose  their 
arms above the wrists8 ,they made up    
their minds not to locate2  packed up   
barbiton and phorminx1 mask and cothurn1
 took the first ship  bound to ,europe1 
and quietly sailed away4 ,their stay was
 short1 but they  left their mark4 ,to  
this day ,phoebes are numerous in       
,connecticut1 and  nine women to one man
 has become the customary proportion of 
the sexes4  ,as ,greece had ,parnassus1 
,helicon1 and ,pindus1 ,connecticut had 
,new ,haven1  ,hartford1 and ,litchfield
 ,hill1--halting-places of the          
illustrious  travellers4 ,there they    
scattered the seeds of poetry1--seeds   
which fell  upon stony places1 but1     
warmed by the genial influence of the   
,sun-,god1  sprang up and brought forth 
such fruit as we shall see4    ,john    

,trumbull was born in ,watertown1 ,a4,d4
 #agej2 two years later1 in             
,northampton1 came ,timothy ,dwight3    
both of the best ,new ,england breed3   
,dwight1 a grandson of ,jonathan        
,edwards2 ,trumbull1 cousin to kind old 
,governor ,trumbull1 7whose pompous     
manner in transacting the most  trifling
 public business amused ,chastellux and 
the ,hussar officers at  ,windham17 and 
consequently second cousin to the son of
 the ,governor1  ,colonel ,john         
,trumbull1 whose paintings might        
possibly have added to the  amusement of
 the gay ,frenchmen1 had they stayed in 
,america long enough  to see them4      
,cowley1 ,milton1 and ,pope lisped in   
numbers2 but the  precocity of ,trumbull
 was even more surprising4 ,he passed   
his college  examination at the age of  
eight1 in the lap of a ,dr4 ,emmons2 but
 was  remanded to the nursery to give   
his stature time to catch up with his   
acquirements4 ,dwight1 too1 was ready   
for college at eight1 and was  actually 

entered at thirteen4    ,about this time
 there were symptoms of an sthetical    
thaw in  ,connecticut4 ,there had been  
no such word as play in the dictionary  
of  the ,new-,englanders4 ,they worked  
hard on their stony soil1 and read hard 
in their stony books of doctrine4 ,that 
stimulant to the mind1 outside of  daily
 routine1 which the human race must have
 under all circumstances1  7we call it  
excitement nowadays17 was found by the  
better sort in  theological quarrels1 by
 the baser in ,new ,england rum1--the   
two things  most cheering to the spirit 
of man1 if ,byron is to be believed4    
,education meant solid learning1--that  
is to say1 studies bearing upon         
divinity1 law1 medicine1 or merchandise2
 and to peruse works of the  imagination
 was considered an idle waste of        
time1--indeed1 as partaking  somewhat of
 the nature of sin4 ,but the growing    
taste of ,connecticut was  no longer    
satisfied with ,dr4 ,watts's moral      
lyrics1 whose jingle is still  so       

instructive and pleasant to extreme     
youth4 ,milton and ,dryden1 ,thomson    
and ,pope1 were read and admired2 ,the  
,spectator was quoted as the  standard  
of style and of good manners2 and daring
 spirits even ventured  upon            
,richardson's novels and ,tristram      
,shandy4    ,while in this literary     
revival all ,yale was anxious1 young    
,dwight and  ,trumbull were indulging in
 hope4 ,smitten with the love of verse1 
,dwight  announced his rising genius    
7these are the words of the ,connecticut
  ,magazine and ,new ,haven ,gazette7 by
 versions of two odes of ,horace1 and   
by ,america1 a poem after the manner of 
,pope's ,windsor ,forest4 ,at the  age  
of nineteen he invoked the venerable    
,muse who has been called in as  the    
,poet's ,lucina1 since ,homer           
established her professional            
reputation1 and dashed boldly at the    
epic1--the greatest work human  nature  
is capable of4 ,his great work was ,the 
,conquest of ,canaan4  ,trumbull1 more  

modest1 wrote ,the ,progress of         
,dulness1 in three cantos4  ,to these   
young men of genius came later two other
 nurslings of the  ,muses1--,david      
,humphreys from ,derby1 and ,joel       
,barlow from ,reading4 ,they  caught the
 poetical distemper4 ,barlow1 fired by  
,dwight's example1 began  ,the ,vision  
of ,columbus4 ,the four friends1 young  
and hopeful1  encouraging and praising  
each other1 gained some local reputation
 by  fugitive pieces in imitation of    
,english models1 published ,spectator   
essays in the ,new ,haven papers1 and   
forestalled all cavillers by damning    
the critics after the method used by    
,dryden and ,pope against ,settle and   
,cibber4    ,trumbull chose the law as a
 profession1 and went to ,boston to     
finish his  studies in #aggc4 ,a clerk  
in the office of ,john ,adams1 who      
lodged with  ,gushing1 ,speaker of the  
,massachusetts ,house1 could have read  
but little  law in the midst of that    
political whirlwind which was driving   

men of  every trade and profession into 
revolution4 ,boston stubbornly          
persevered  in the resolution not to    
consume ,british goods1 notwithstanding 
the  efforts of the ,addressers and     
,protesters and ,tories generally1 who  
preached their antiquated doctrines of  
passive obedience and divine  right1 and
 painted in their darkest colors the    
privation and suffering  caused by the  
blockade4 ,trumbull joined the ,whigs1  
pen in hand1 and laid  stoutly about him
 both in prose and verse4 ,then came the
 skirmish at  ,lexington1 and all ,new  
,england sprang to arms4 ,dwight joined 
the army as  chaplain4 ,humphreys       
volunteered on ,putnam's staff4 ,barlow 
served in the  ranks at the ,battle of  
,white ,plains2 and then1 after devoting
 his mind  to theology for six weeks1   
accepted the position of chaplain in a  
,massachusetts regiment4 ,the little    
knot of poets was broken up4 ,one of    
them asked in mournful numbers1--       
,amid the roar of drums and guns1       

,when meet again the ,muses' sons8      
,they met again after the thunder and   
lightning were over1 but in another     
place4 ,new ,haven saw the rising of the
 constellation2 its meridian  brilliancy
 shone upon ,hartford4 ,at the close of 
the war1 the four  poetical luminaries1 
as they were called by the ,connecticut 
,magazine  and ,new ,haven ,gazette1    
hung up the sword in ,hartford and      
grasped the  lyre4 ,the epidemic of     
verse broke out again4 ,the four added  
to their  number ,dr4 ,lemuel ,hopkins1 
a physician1 ,richard ,alsop1 a         
gentleman of  much cultivation1 and     
,theodore ,dwight1 a younger brother of 
,timothy4  ,there were now seven stars  
of the first magnitude4 ,many other     
aspirants  to a place in the heavens    
were necessarily excluded2 among them1  
two are  worthy of notice1--,noah       
,webster1 who was already then and there
  meditating his method for teaching the
 ,american people to mispel1 and        
,oliver ,wolcott1 afterward ,secretary  

of the ,treasury4 ,bound by the sweet   
influences of the ,pleiades1 ,wolcott   
wrote a poem1--,the ,judgment of        
,paris4 ,his biographer1 who has read   
it1 has given his critical opinion  that
 it would be much worse than ,barlow's  
epic1 were it not much  shorter4    ,the
 year #aghc brought peace with ,england1
 but it found matters in a  dangerous   
and unsettled state at home4 ,after     
seven years of revolution  it takes some
 time to bring a people down to the safe
 and sober jog-trot  of every-day life4 
,the lower classes were demoralized by  
the license and  tumult of war1 and by  
poverty2 they were surly and turbulent1 
and showed  a disposition to shake off  
yokes domestic as well as foreign1--the 
yoke  of taxation in particular3 for    
every man of them believed that he had  
already done more1 suffered more1 and   
paid more1 than his fair share4  ,the   
calamity of a worthless paper           
legal-tender currency added to the      
general discontent4 ,hence any public   

measure involving further  disbursements
 met with angry opposition4 ,large      
arrears of pay were due  to soldiers1   
and bounties had been promised to induce
 them to disband  peacefully1 and to    
compensate them for the depreciation of 
the currency4  ,congress had also       
granted five years' extra pay to        
officers1 in lieu of  the half-pay for  
life which was first voted4 ,the army1  
in consequence1  became very unpopular4 
,a great clamor was raised against the  
,cincinnati  ,society1 and factious     
patriots pretended to see in it the     
foundation of  an hereditary            
aristocracy4 ,the public irritability1  
excited by pretexts  like these1 broke  
out into violence4 ,in ,connecticut1    
mobs collected to  prevent the army     
officers from receiving the certificates
 for the five  years' pay1 and a        
convention was assembled to elect men   
pledged to  non-payment4 ,shay and      
,shattuck headed an insurrection in     
,massachusetts4  ,there were riots at   

,exeter1 in ,new ,hampshire4 ,when      
,shay's band was  defeated and driven   
out of the ,state1 ,rhode ,island--then 
sometimes  called ,rogue's ,island1 from
 her paper-money operations--refused to 
give  up the refugee rebels4 ,the times 
looked gloomy4 ,the nation1 relieved    
from the foreign pressure which had     
bound the ,colonies together1 seemed    
tumbling to pieces2 each ,state was an  
independent sovereignty1 free to  go to 
ruin in its own way4 ,the necessity for 
a strong central government  to replace 
,english rule became evident to all     
judicious men2 for1 as one  ,pelatiah   
,webster remarked1 ,thirteen staves1 and
 ne'er a hoop1 cannot  make a barrel4   
,the ,hartford ,wits had fought out the 
war against ,king  ,george2 they now    
took up the pen against ,king ,mob1 and 
placed themselves  in rank with the     
friends of order1 good government1 and  
union4 ,hence the  ,anarchiad4 ,an      
ancient epic on the ,restoration of     
,chaos and  ,substantial ,blight was dug

 up in the ruins of an old ,indian fort1
 where  ,madoc1 the mythical ,welsh     
,columbus1 or some of his descendants1  
had  buried it4 ,colonel ,humphreys1 who
 had read the ,rolliad in ,england1     
suggested the plan2 ,barlow1 ,hopkins1  
and ,trumbull joined with him in        
carrying it out4 ,extracts from the     
,anarchiad were prepared when  wanted1  
and the verses applied fresh to the     
enfeebled body politic4 ,they  chanted  
the dangers and difficulties of the old 
,federation and the  advantages of the  
new ,constitution4 ,union was the burden
 of their song2  and they took a        
prophetic view of the stormy future1 if 
thirteen  independent ,states should    
divide this territory between them4     
,shall lordly ,hudson part contending   
powers1      ,and broad ,potomac lave   
two hostile shores8      ,must          
,alleghany's sacred summits bear        
,the impious bulwarks of perpetual war8 
,his hundred streams receive your heroes
 slain1      ,and bear your sons        

inglorious to the main8    ,we1         
miserrimi1 have lived to see it1 and to 
see modern ,shayites vote  to establish 
such a state of things forever4    ,when
 the new government was firmly settled  
and found to work well1 the  same class 
of men who had opposed the ,union formed
 the ,anti-,federal1  ,democratic1 or   
,french party4 ,the ,hartford school    
were ,federalists1 of  course4 ,theodore
 ,dwight and ,alsop1 assisted by ,dr4   
,hopkins1 published in  the local papers
 ,the ,political ,greenhouse and ,the   
,echo1--an  imitation of ,the           
,anti-,jacobin1--to check the progress  
of false taste  in writing1 and to stem 
the torrent of ,jacobinism in ,america  
and the  hideous morality of            
revolutionary madness4 ,it was a place  
and time  when1 in the ,hartford        
vocabulary1        ,patriot stood       
synonymous with rogue2    and their     
versified squibs were let off at men    
rather than at measures4  ,as a specimen
 of their mode of treatment1 let us take

 ,matthew ,lyon1  first an ,irish       
redemptioner bought by a farmer in      
,derby1 then an  ,anti-,federal champion
 and member of ,congress from ,vermont2 
once famous  for publishing ,barlow's   
letter to ,senator ,baldwin1--for his   
trial under  the ,alien and ,sedition   
,act1--for the personal difficulty when 
,he seized the tongs        ,to avenge  
his wrongs1      ,and ,griswold thus    
engaged4    ,the ,hartford poets notice 
him thus3--        ,this beast within a 
few short years      ,was purchased for 
a yoke of steers2      ,but now the wise
 ,vermonters say      ,he's worth six   
hundred cents a day4    ,other leaders  
of the ,anti-,federal party fare no     
better4 ,mr4 ,jefferson's  literary and 
scientific whims came in for a share of 
ridicule4        ,great sire of stories 
past belief2      ,historian of the     
,mingo chief2      ,philosopher of      
,indians' hair2      ,inventor of a     
rocking-chair2      ,the correspondent  
of ,mazzei1      ,and ,banneker1 less   

black than he1 et seq4    ,the paper    
containing this paragraph had the       
felicity of being quoted in  ,congress  
by the ,honorable ,john ,nicholas1 of   
,virginia1 to prove that  ,connecticut  
wished to lead the ,united ,states into 
a war with ,france4 ,the  honorable     
gentleman read on until he came to the  
passage1--        ,each ,jacobin began  
to stir1      ,and sat as though on     
chestnut-burr1    when he stopped short4
 ,mr4 ,dana of ,connecticut took up the 
quotation and  finished it1 to the great
 amusement of the ,house4    ,the last  
number was published in #ahje4 ,as we   
look over the ,echo1 and  find nothing  
in it but doggerel1--generally very dull
 doggerel1--we  might wonder at the     
applause it obtained1 if we did not     
recollect how  fiercely the two great   
parties engaged each other4 ,in a riot1 
any stick1  stone1 or ignoble fragment  
of household pottery is valuable as a   
missile  weapon4    ,while the          
constellation was shining resplendent   

over ,connecticut1 each  bright star had
 its own particular twinkle4 ,trumbull  
had his ,progress  of ,dulness1 in three
 cantos1--an imitation1 in manner1 of   
,goldsmith's  ,double ,transformation4  
,the title is happy4 ,the decline of    
,miss ,harriet  ,simper from bellehood  
to an autumnal marriage1 in ,canto      
,,iii41 is more  tiresome than the      
progress of ,tom ,brainless from the    
plough-tail to the  pulpit1 in ,canto   
,i4 ,the ,reverend ,mr4 ,brainless1 when
 called and  settled1--        ,on      
,sunday in his best array      ,deals   
forth the dulness of the day4    ,these 
two lines1 descriptive1 unfortunately1  
of too many ministrations1  are all that
 have survived of the three cantos4     
,trumbull's chef  d'oeuvre is           
,mc,fingal1 begun before the war and    
finished soon after  the peace4 ,the    
poem covers the whole ,revolutionary    
period1 from the  ,boston tea-party to  
the final humiliation of ,great         
,britain3 ,lord ,north  and ,general    

,gage1 ,hutchinson1 ,judge ,oliver1 and 
,treasurer ,gray2 ,doctors  ,sam4       
,peters and ,seabury2 passive obedience 
and divine right2 no taxation  without  
representation2 ,rivington the printer1 
,massachusettensis1 and  ,samuel ,adams2
 ,yankee ,doodle2 who began the war8    
town-meetings1  liberty-poles1 mobs1    
tarring1 feathering1 and smoking        
,tories2 ,tryon1  ,galloway1 ,burgoyne1 
,prescott1 ,guy ,carleton2 paper-money1 
regulation1 and  tender2 in short1 all  
the men and topics which preserve our   
polyphilosophohistorical societies from 
lethargic extinction4 ,mc,fingal  hit   
the taste of the times2 it was very     
successful4 ,but although thirty        
editions were sold in shops or hawked   
about by peddlers1 there was no         
copyright law in the land1 and ,trumbull
 took more praise than solid  pudding by
 his poetry4 ,it was reprinted in       
,england1 and found its way to  ,france4
 ,the ,marquis de ,chastellux1 an author
 himself1 took an especial  interest in 

,american literature4 ,he wrote to      
congratulate ,trumbull upon  his        
excellent poem1 and took the opportunity
 to lay down the conditions  prescribed 
for burlesque poetry4 ,these1 ,sir1 you 
have happily seized  and perfectly      
complied with4444 ,i believe that you   
have rifled every  flower which that    
kind of poetry could offer4444 ,nor do  
,i hesitate to  assure you that ,i      
prefer it to every work of the          
kind1--even to  ,hudibras4              
,notwithstanding the opinion of the     
pompous ,marquis1 nobody  reads         
,mc,fingal4 ,time has blotted out most  
of the four cantos4 ,there  are left a  
few lines1 often quoted by gentlemen of 
the press1 and  invariably ascribed to  
,hudibras3--        ,for any man with   
half an eye      ,what stands before him
 can espy2      ,but optics sharp it    
needs1 ,i ween1      ,to see what is not
 to be seen4        ,but as some muskets
 so contrive it      ,as oft to miss the
 mark they drive at1      ,and though   

well aimed at duck or plover1      ,bear
 wide and kick their owners over4       
,no man e'er felt the halter draw       
,with good opinion of the law4    ,the  
last two verses have passed into        
immortality as a proverb4 ,perhaps a    
few other grains of corn might be picked
 out of these hundred and  seventy pages
 of chaff4    ,dr4 ,dwight staked his   
fame on ,the ,conquest of ,canaan1 an   
attempt to  make an ,iliad out of the   
,old ,testament4 ,eleven books2 nine    
thousand six  hundred and seventy-two   
dreary verses1 full of battles and      
thunderstorms2 peopled with ,irad1      
,jabin1 ,hanniel1 ,hezron1 ,zimri1 and  
others like them1 more colorless and    
shadowy than the brave ,gyas and the    
brave ,cloanthus4 ,not a line of this   
epic has survived4 ,shorter and much    
better is ,greenfield ,hill1 a didactic 
poem1 composed1 the author said1  to    
amuse and to instruct in economical1    
political1 and moral sentiments4        
,greenfield was1 for a time1 the scene  

of the ,doctor's professional  labors4  
,his descriptions of ,new ,england      
character1 of the prosperity and        
comfort of ,new ,england life1 are      
accurate1 but not vivid4 ,the book is   
full of good sense1 but there is little 
poetry in it4 ,true to the  literary    
instincts of the ,pleiads1 he shines    
with reflected light1 and  works after  
,thomson and ,goldsmith so closely that 
in many passages  imitation passes into 
parody4    ,like ,timotheus of ,greece1 
,timothy of ,connecticut                
to his breathing flute and sounding lyre
      ,could swell the soul to rage1 or 
kindle soft desire4    ,he wrote a war  
chant2 he wrote psalms2 and there is a  
song in the  ,litchfield ,collection in 
which he attempts to kindle soft desire4
 ,here  is an extract3--        ,no     
longer1 then1 fair maid1 delay          
,the promised scenes of bliss1      ,nor
 idly give another day        ,the joys 
assigned to this4      ,quit1 then1 oh1 
quit1 thou lovely maid6         ,thy    

bashful virgin pride1--    and so on    
sings the ,doctor4 ,who would have      
thought that          profound ,solomon 
would tune a jig1      ,or ,nestor play 
at pushpin with the boys1    as         
,shakspeare has it8 who would have      
expected erotic tints and ,epicurean    
morality from the author of ,the        
,conquest of ,canaan1 and of four       
volumes of orthodox and weighty         
theology8    ,the ,ode to ,columbia1    
,columbia6 ,columbia6 to glory arise1   
,the queen of the world and the child of
 the skies6    written when ,dwight was 
a chaplain in the ,revolutionary ,army1 
is  probably more known to the moderns  
than any of his poetical efforts4 ,it   
is a vision of the future greatness of  
the new-born nation1--short1  spirited1 
and finished with more care than he was 
in the habit of giving  to his verses4  
,in like manner the brave and burly     
,colonel           ,humphreys charmed   
the listening throng2      ,sweetly he  
sang amid the clang of arms4    ,at     

,washington's head-quarters in          
,peekskill he composed ,an ,address to  
the ,armies of the ,united ,states4 ,it 
was recited publicly in ,london1 and    
translated by ,chastellux into ,french  
prose4 ,three years later he  published 
a poem on the ,happiness of ,america1   
which ran through ten  editions4 ,in it 
the gallant man-at-rhymes tells the     
story of his own  campaigns3--          
,from whom ,i learnt the martial art2   
,with what high chiefs ,i played my     
early part3      ,with ,parsons first1  
whose eye with piercing ken      ,reads 
through their hearts the characters of  
men4      ,then how ,i aided in the     
following scene      ,death-daring      
,putnam1 then immortal ,greene4         
,then how great ,washington my youth    
approved1      ,in rank preferred and as
 a parent loved2      7,for each fine   
feeling in his bosom blends1--      ,the
 first of heroes1 sages1 patriots1      
friends67      ,with him what hours on  
warlike plans ,i spent      ,beneath the

 shadow of th' imperial tent2      ,with
 him how oft ,i went the nightly round  
,through moving hosts1 or slept on      
tented ground2      ,from him how oft   
7nor far below the first      ,in high  
behests and confidential trust17--      
,from him how oft ,i bore the dread     
commands      ,which destined for the   
fight the eager bands2      ,with him   
how oft ,i passed th' eventful day1     
,rode by his side as down the long array
      ,his awful voice the columns      
taught to form1      ,to point the      
thunders and to pour the storm4    ,this
 extract will give a fair idea of the   
,colonel's manner4 ,a poem on  ,the     
,future ,glory of the ,united ,states of
 ,america1 another on ,the  ,industry of
 the ,united ,states of ,america1 and   
,the ,death of ,general  ,washington1   
make up his credentials to a seat on the
 ,american  ,parnassus4    ,joel        
,barlow1 ,virgilian ,barlow1 is the most
 remarkable of the cluster4  ,he started
 in the race of life with ten           

competitors of his own blood1  and came 
in a successful adventurer in both      
hemispheres4 ,after serving  in the army
 with musket and prayer-book1 he        
practised law1 edited a  newspaper1 kept
 a book-shop1--and having exhausted the 
variety of  callings offered by         
,connecticut1 went to ,france as agent  
for the ,scioto  ,land ,company1 and    
opened an office in ,paris with a grand 
flourish of  advertisements4 ,farms for 
sale on the banks of the ,ohio1 la belle
  rivire2 the finest district of the    
,united ,states6 ,healthful and         
delightful climate2 scarcely any frost  
in winter2 fertile soil2 a  boundless   
inland navigation2 magnificent forests  
of a tree from which  sugar flows2      
excellent fishing and fowling2 venison  
in abundance2 no  wolves1 lions1 or     
tigers2 no taxes2 no military duty4 ,all
 these  unexampled advantages offered to
 colonists at five shillings the acre6  
,the speculation took well4 ,nothing was
 talked of but the free and rural  life 

to be led on the banks of the ,scioto4  
,brissot's foolish book on  ,america    
confirmed the promises of ,barlow1 and  
stimulated the ardor of  purchasers4    
,the ,scioto ,company turned out to be a
 swindling land-company1 the  precursor 
of many that have resembled it4 ,the    
lands they offered had  been bought of  
the ,ohio ,company1 but were never paid 
for4 ,when the poor  ,french barbers1   
fiddlers1 and bakers1 as they are called
 in a  contemporary narrative1 reached  
the banks of la belle rivire1 they      
found that their title-deeds were good  
for nothing1 and that the woods         
produced savages instead of sugar4 ,some
 died of privation1 some were  scalped1 
and some found their way to ,new        
,orleans4 ,the few who remained         
eventually obtained a grant of a few    
acres from the ,ohio ,company1 by       
paying for them over again4    ,in the  
mean time the ,french ,revolution had   
broken out1 and ,barlow saw  the visions
 and dreamed the dreams of the          

enthusiasts of that day4 ,he  dropped   
the land business1 and he dropped his   
,new ,england prejudices1  religious as 
well as political1 and his ,new ,england
 common sense4  ,connecticut men who    
wander into other lands and other       
opinions seem  peculiarly subject to    
such violent transformations4 ,some of  
the most  ignivorous of our ,southern   
countrymen are the offspring of         
,connecticut2  and1 strange as it may   
appear1 the sober land of the pumpkin   
and onion  exports more arbiters of     
elegance and punctilio1 more judges     
without  appeal of horses1 wine1 and    
beauty1 more gentlemen of the most      
sensitive  and demonstrative honor1 than
 any other ,northern ,state4            
,inspired by the instincts of his race1 
,barlow fancied he saw the  approach of 
a new era of perfection4 ,to hasten its 
advent in ,england1 he  translated      
,volney's ,ruins1 and went to ,london to
 publish his  translation4 ,there he    
wrote his ,advice to the ,privileged    

,classes1 a  political pamphlet1 and    
became an active member of the          
,constitution  ,society4 ,the ,society  
commissioned him as delegate to the     
,french  ,convention1 with an address of
 congratulation and a gift of a thousand
  pairs of shoes4 ,the ,convention      
rewarded him with the dignity of        
,citoyen  ,francais4 ,barlow adopted the
 character1 and carried it out4 ,he sang
 at  a supper a parody of ,god save the 
,king1 composed by himself4             
,fame1 let thy trumpet sound6      ,tell
 all the world around          ,how     
,capet fell6      ,and when great       
,george's poll      ,shall in the basket
 roll1      ,let mercy then control     
,the ,guillotine6        ,god save the  
,guillotine1      ,till ,england's ,king
 and ,queen          ,her power shall   
prove2      ,when all the sceptred crew 
,have paid their homage to          ,the
 ,guillotine6    ,a few years before1   
,barlow had dedicated the ,vision of    
,columbus to  poor ,capet1 whose        

destruction he celebrates so            
pleasantly1--with many  assurances of   
the gratitude of ,america1 and of his   
own veneration4  ,coelum1 non animum1   
would never have been written1 if       
,horace had  properly understood        
,connecticut character4    ,barlow's    
zeal was pleasing to the rulers of      
,france4 ,they sent him and  the ,abb   
,grgoire to revolutionize ,savoy1 and to
 divide it into  departments4 ,after his
 return1 he became rich by speculation1 
and lived  handsomely in the ,hotel de  
,clermont-,tonnerre4 ,his reputation    
extended to  his own country4 ,the      
,united ,states employed him to         
negotiate with the  ,barbary            
pirates1--that is to say1 to buy off the
 wretched cutthroats who  infested the  
,mediterranean4 ,he went to ,africa1 and
 made arrangements  which were          
considered advantageous then1 and would 
be hooted at as  disgraceful now4 ,in   
the treaty with ,algiers occurred a     
passage that gave  great offence to his 

friends at home1 and to ,federalists in 
general4 ,it  was to this effect1 if not
 in these words3 ,that the government of
 the  ,united ,states is not1 in any    
sense1 founded on the ,christian        
religion4    ,in #ahje1 after seventeen 
years of absence1 ,barlow returned to   
,america1  built himself a house near   
,washington1 and called it ,kalorama4   
,jefferson  and the ,democrats received 
him with open arms2 he embraced them    
with  equal warmth1 and was a very great
 man for some time4 ,a new edition of   
the ,columbiad completed his fame1--an  
edition gotten up at his own  expense1  
with engravings by his friend ,robert   
,fulton2 the paper1 type1               
illustrations1 and binding1 far superior
 to anything as yet produced by         
,american publishers4 ,at the request of
 the ,president1 ,barlow went back  to  
,france as ,minister1 in the place of   
,general ,armstrong4 ,it was the  winter
 of the ,russian campaign4 ,a personal  
interview with the ,emperor on  the     

subject of the ,berlin and ,milan       
,decrees seemed necessary1 and ,barlow  
hurried to ,wilna to meet him4 ,the     
weather was unusually severe1 the  roads
 rough1 and the accommodations wretched4
 ,cold and exposure brought  on a       
violent illness2 and ,barlow expired in 
a miserable hut near ,cracow4  ,the     
,columbiad is an enlargement1 or rather 
a dilution1 of the ,vision  of          
,columbus1 by the addition of some two  
thousand verses4 ,the epic  opens with  
,columbus in prison2 to him enters      
,hesper1 an angel4 ,the angel  leads    
,columbus to the ,mount of ,vision1     
whence he beholds the panorama of  the  
,western ,continent he had discovered4  
,hesper acts as showman1 and  explains  
the tableaux as they roll on4 ,he points
 out the geographical  features of      
,america1 not forgetting ,connecticut   
,river2 relates the  history of ,mexico 
and of ,peru1 and explains the origin of
 races1  cautioning ,columbus against   
the theory of several ,adams4 ,turning  

north1  he describes the settlement of  
the ,english colonies1 and narrates the 
old ,french ,war of ,general ,wolfe and 
the ,american ,revolution1 with the     
customary episodes1--,saratoga1         
,yorktown1 ,major ,andr1 ,miss ,mc,crea1
 and  the prison-ships4 ,finally1 the   
angel predicts the glory of the world's 
future1--perpetual peace1 unrestricted  
commerce1 public works1 health  and     
longevity1 one universal language4 ,the 
globe1 one confederate1  independent    
sway1 shall        ,spread with the sun1
 and bound the walks of day2      ,one  
central system1 one all-ruling soul1    
,live through the parts1 and regulate   
the whole4    ,there is evidently no    
room for the serpent ,secession in      
,barlow's  paradise4 ,this grand        
federation of the terrestrial ball is   
governed by a  general council of       
elderly married men1 long rows of       
reverend sires  sublime1 presided over  
by a sire elect shining in peerless     
grandeur4  ,the delegates hold their    

sessions in ,mesopotamia1 within a      
sacred  mansion of high architectural   
pretensions4        ,on rocks of adamant
 the walls ascend1      ,tall columns   
heave1 and sky-like arches bend2        
,bright o'er the golden roof the        
glittering spires      ,far in the      
concave meet the solar fires2      ,four
 blazing fronts1 with gates unfolding   
high1      ,look with immortal splendor 
round the sky4    ,in the spacious court
 of the capitol of the world stands the 
statue of  the ,genius of ,earth1       
holding ,truth's mighty mirror in his   
hand4 ,on the  pedestal are carved the  
noblest arts of man4 ,beneath the       
footstool of  the ,genius1              
all destructive things1      ,the mask  
of priesthood and the mace of kings1    
,lie trampled in the dust2 for here1 at 
last1      ,fraud1 folly1 error1 all    
their emblems cast4      ,each envoy    
here unloads his weary hand      ,of    
some old idol from his native land4     
,one flings a pagod on the mingled heap2

      ,one lays a crescent1 one a cross 
to sleep2      ,swords1 sceptres1       
mitres1 crowns and globes and stars1    
,codes of false fame and stimulants to  
wars1      ,sink in the settling mass4  
,since guile began1      ,these are the 
agents of the woes of man4    ,it will  
be observed that ,barlow improved       
slightly upon the old loyalist  cry1    
,une loi1 un roi1 une foi4 ,one         
government1 one reverend sire  elect1   
and no religion1 was his theory of the  
future of mankind4    ,few men in these 
degenerate days have the endurance to   
read the  ,columbiad through2 but ,hasty
 ,pudding1 which ,barlow celebrated in  
verse as good sound republican diet1 may
 be read with some pleasure4 ,it        
belongs to the same class of poems as   
,philips's ,cider1 ,dyer's  ,fleece1 and
 ,grainger's ,sugar-,cane1 and is quite 
as good as most of  them4    ,there is  
little to be said about ,alsop4 ,he was 
a scholarly gentleman1  who published a 
few mild versions from the ,italian and 

the ,scandinavian1  and a poem on the   
,memory of ,washington1 and was         
considerate enough not  to publish a    
poem on the ,charms of ,fancy1 which    
still exists1 we  believe1 in           
manuscript4 ,in some verses extracted   
from it by the editors  of the          
,cyclopdia of ,american ,literature we  
recognize with interest  that traveller 
of the future who is to moralize over   
the ruins of the  present1--known to all
 readers as ,macaulay's ,new-,zealander1
 although  ,goldsmith1 ,kirke ,white1   
and others had already introduced him to
 the  public4 ,alsop brings this        
,wandering ,jew of literature from      
,nootka ,sound  to gaze on many a       
shattered pile and broken stone1 where  
fair  ,bostonia1 ,york's proud emporium1
 or ,philadelphia1 caught the  admiring 
gaze4    ,the wild-eyed1 excitable ,dr4 
,hopkins had more vigor and originality 
than  his brother stars4 ,there is much 
rough humor in his burlesque of the     
essay of ,brackenridge of ,pittsburg on 

the ,indian ,war3--                     
,as if our ,god      ,one single thought
 on ,indians e'er bestowed2      ,to    
them his care extends1 or even knew1    
,before ,columbus told him1 where they  
grew2    and in his epitaph on the      
,victim of a ,cancer ,quack3--          
,the case was this3--a pimple rose      
,southeast a little of his nose1        
,which daily reddened and grew bigger1  
,as too much drinking gave it vigor2    
and in the ,hypocrite's ,hope3--        
,blest is the man who from the womb     
,to saintship him betakes2      ,and    
when too soon his child shall come1     
,a long confession makes2    and in the 
squib on ,ethan ,allen's infidel book3--
        ,lo6 ,allen 'scaped from        
,british jails1      ,his tushes broke  
by biting nails1      ,appears in       
hyperborean skies1      ,to tell the    
world the ,bible lies4    ,dr4 ,hopkins 
published very little2 he might be      
excused1 if he had  written more4       
,addison said1 he never yet knew an     

author who had not his admirers4 ,the   
,connecticut authors were no exception  
to this rule4 ,to begin with1 they      
admired themselves1 and they admired one
 another2 each played squire to  his    
gifted friend1 and sounded the trumpet  
of his fame4 ,it was1 ,see6  ,trumbull  
leads the train1 or the ardent throng2  
,trumbull6 earliest  boast of ,fame2    
,lo6 ,trumbull wakes the lyre4          
,superior poet1 in whose classic strain 
,in bright accordance wit and fancy     
reign2      ,whose powers of genius in  
their ample range      ,comprise each   
subject and each tuneful change1        
,each charm of melody to ,phoebus dear1 
,the grave1 the gay1 the tender1 the    
severe4    ,barlow is a ,child of       
,genius2 ,columbus owes much of his     
glory to him4            ,in ,virgilian 
,barlow's tuneful lines      ,with added
 splendor great ,columbus shines4       
,then we have ,majestic ,dwight1 sublime
 in epic strain2 ,blest ,dwight2        
,dwight of ,homeric fire4 ,colonel      

,humphreys is fully up to the           
regulation standard3--        ,in lore  
of nations skilled and brave in arms1   
,see ,humphreys glorious from the field 
retire1      ,sheathe the glad sword and
 string the sounding lyre4    ,dwight   
thought ,mc,fingal much superior to     
,hudibras2 and ,hopkinson1  the author  
of ,hail ,columbia1 mentions1 as a      
melancholy instance of  sthetic         
hallucination1 that ,secretary ,wolcott1
 whose taste in  literature was         
otherwise good1 had an excessive        
admiration for ,the  ,conquest of       
,canaan4 ,a general chorus of neighbors 
and friends rose in  the columns of the 
,connecticut ,magazine and ,new ,haven  
,gazette3--,it is  with a noble and     
patriotic pride that ,america boasts of 
her ,barlow1  ,dwight1 ,trumbull1 and   
,humphreys1 the poetical luminaries of  
,connecticut2 and all true              
,new-,englanders preferred their        
home-made  verses to the best imported  
article4 ,the fame of the ,seven        

extended into  the neighboring ,states2 
,boston1 not yet the ,athens of         
,america1 confessed  that ,pegasus was  
not backed by better horsemen from any  
part of the  ,union4 ,but the glory grew
 fainter as the distance increased from 
the  centre of illumination4 ,in ,new   
,york1 praise was qualified4 ,the ,rev4 
,samuel ,miller of that city1 who       
published in #ahjj ,a ,brief ,retrospect
 of  the ,literature of the ,eighteenth 
,century1 calls ,mr4 ,trumbull a        
respectable poet1 thinks that ,dr4      
,dwight's ,greenfield ,hill is entitled 
to considerable praise1 and finds much  
poetic merit in ,mr4 ,barlow's  ,vision2
 but he closes the chapter sadly1 with a
 touch of ,johnson's  vigor3--,the      
annals of ,american literature are short
 and simple4 ,the  history of poverty is
 usually neither very various nor very  
interesting4 ,farther ,south the voice  
of the scoffer was heard4 ,mr4  ,robert 
,morris ventured to say in the ,assembly
 of ,pennsylvania1 that  ,america had   

not as yet produced a good poet4 ,great 
surprise and  indignation1 when this    
speech reached the eyes of the          
,connecticut men6  ,morris might        
understand banking1 but in taste he was 
absurdly deficient4  ,no poets6 ,what   
did he call ,john ,trumbull of          
,hartford1 and ,joel ,barlow1  author of
 ,the ,vision of ,columbus8 ,we appeal  
to the bar of taste1  whether the       
writings of the poets now living in     
,connecticut are not  equal to anything 
which the present age can produce in the
 ,english  language4    ,cowper showed  
excellent sense when he                 
wrote1--,wherever else ,i am  accounted 
dull1 let me at least pass for a genius 
at ,olney4 ,the  ,hartford ,wits passed 
for geniuses in ,connecticut1 which is  
better1 as  far as the genius is        
concerned1 than any extent or duration  
of  posthumous fame4 ,let their shades1 
then1 be satisfied with the good  things
 in the way of praise they received in  
their lives2 for between us  and them   

there is fixed a great gulf of oblivion1
 into which ,time1 the  merciless critic
 from whose judgment there is no appeal1
 has tumbled  their works4    ,in #agic1
 a volume of ,american ,poems1 ,selected
 and ,original1 was  published in       
,litchfield by subscription4 ,a second  
volume was promised1  if the first met  
with that success which the value of the
 poems it  contained seemed to warrant2 
but no second volume appeared4 ,when    
,hopkins died1 in #ahja1 the            
constellation was sinking fast to the   
horizon2 a few years later it had set1  
and only elderly inhabitants  remembered
 when the ,down-,eastern sky was made   
bright by it4 ,barlow's  magnificent    
edition revived the recollection for a  
time1 and the old  defiant cry was      
raised again1 that the ,columbiad was   
comparable1 not  to say superior1 to any
 poem that had appeared in ,europe since
 the  independence of the ,united       
,states4 ,but ,english reviewers refused
 to  chime in4 ,their critical remarks  

were not flattering1 although merciful  
as compared with the jeers of the       
,edinburgh at ,byron's ,hours of        
,idleness1 or the angry abuse with which
 the earlier productions of the  ,lake  
,school were received4 ,nevertheless1   
,paulding1 ,ingersoll1 and ,walsh1      
indignant1 sprang to their quills1 and  
attacked the prejudiced ,british  with  
the argumentum ad hominem1 ,england's   
sores and blotches1 etc42  the          
argumentum ,tu quoque1 ,we're as good a 
poet as you are1 and a  better1 too2    
and1 lastly1 pleaded minority in bar of 
adverse criticism1  ,we are a young     
nation1 and so on4 ,this was to yield   
the point4 ,if a  young nation          
necessarily writes verses similar in    
quality to those of  very young persons1
 it would always be proper to take      
,uncle ,toby's  advice1 and say no more 
about it4 ,deaf to ,walsh's ,appeal1 and
 to  ,inchiquin's ,letters1 ,sydney     
,smith1 as late as ,january1 #ahbj1     
asked1 in  the ,edinburgh1 that         

well-known and stinging question1 ,in   
the four  quarters of the globe1 who    
reads an ,american book8 ,even at home1 
,hesper and ,the ,mount of ,vision soon 
faded out of sight4 ,at that  time1     
#ahjh-ahaj1 readers of verse had1 not to
 mention ,cowper1 ,the ,lay  of the     
,last ,minstrel and ,marmion1 ,gertrude 
of ,wyoming1 ,thalaba1  ,moore's        
,anacreon1 and two volumes by ,william  
,wordsworth1--poems with  which the     
,american producer was unable to        
compete4 ,in #ahbj ,samuel ,g4          
,goodrich of ,hartford published a      
complete edition of ,trumbull's works in
  two volumes1 the type large and the   
paper excellent1--with a portrait of    
the author1 and good engravings of      
,mc,fingal in the ,cellar1 and of       
,abijah  ,mann bearing the ,town        
,resolves of ,marshfield to ,boston4    
,the sale did not  repay the outlay4    
,when ,trumbull died1 in #ahca1 he was  
as completely  forgotten as any         
,revolutionary colonel or captain4      

,humphreys once feeling1 that1 in spite 
of all his struggles1 he was not  doing 
much1 exclaimed1--        ,why1 niggard 
language1 dost thou balk my soul8    ,he
 did not see the reason why3 his soul   
had not much to say4 ,this was  the     
trouble with them all4 ,there was not a 
spark of genuine poetic fire  in the    
,seven4 ,they sang without an ear for   
music2 they strewed their  pages with   
faded artificial flowers which they     
mistook for ,nature1 and  endeavored to 
overcome sterility of imagination and   
want of passion by  veneering with      
magniloquent epithets4 ,they padded     
their ill-favored  ,muse1 belaced and   
beruffled her1 and covered her with     
garments  stiffened with tawdry         
embroidery to hide her leanness2 they   
overpowdered  and overrouged to give her
 the beauty ,providence had refused4 ,i 
say  their ,muse1 but they had no ,muse 
of their own2 they imported an inferior 
one from ,england1 and tried her in     
every style1--,pope's and ,dryden's1    

,goldsmith's and ,gray's1 and never rose
 above a poor imitation2 producing      
something which looked like a model1 but
 lacked its flavor3 wooden  poetry1 in  
short1--a genuine product of the soil4  
,judging from their allusions to        
themselves1 no one of the ,seven        
mistrusted his own poetical powers or   
the gifts of his colleagues4 ,they  seem
 to have died in their error1           
unrepentant1 in the comfortable hope  of
 an hereafter of fame4 ,their works have
 faded out of sight like an  unfinished 
photograph4 ,it was a sad waste of human
 endeavor1 a  profitless employment of  
labor1 unusual in ,connecticut4,c       
,but1 although thus wrecked upon the    
rock of rhyme1 these bards of           
,connecticut were not mere waste-paper  
of mankind1 as ,franklin sneeringly     
called our poets1 but sensible1         
well-educated gentlemen of good ,english
  stock1 of the best social position1   
and industrious in their business2  for 
,alsop was the only one who left no     

calling for the idle trade4  ,hopkins   
stood at the head of his profession4    
,dwight was beloved and  respected as   
minister1 legislator1 theologian1 and   
,president of ,yale  ,college4 ,trumbull
 was a member of the ,state             
,legislature1 ,state's  ,attorney1 and  
,judge of the ,supreme ,court4          
,humphreys served on  ,washington's     
staff1 received a sword from ,congress  
for his gallantry at  ,yorktown1 was    
,secretary of ,legation at ,paris1      
,minister to ,portugal and  ,spain1 and 
introduced merino sheep into ,new       
,england4 ,barlow1 as we have  already  
seen1 was ,ambassador to ,france at the 
time of his death4 ,all of  these1      
except ,trumbull1 had borne arms1 and   
did not throw away their  shields like  
,archilochus and ,horace4 ,they were    
sincere patriots1 who  honestly         
predicted a future of boundless progress
 in wealth1 science1  religion1 and     
virtue for the ,united ,states1--the    
exemplar of liberty and  justice to the 

world1 surpassing all nations that have 
ever existed1 in  magnitude1 felicity1  
and duration4 ,and on the other hand1   
every one of  them believed in the      
decline and impending fall of their old 
enemy1  ,great ,britain4 ,barlow's      
,hesper even hints that a ,columbus from
 ,new  ,england may one day rediscover  
the ,old ,world4    ,after the peace1   
when the closer union of the ,states    
under one general  government was       
proposed1 the ,hartford ,wits worked    
hard to argue down and  to laugh down   
the bitter and absurd opposition which  
sprang up4 ,that  great question was    
settled definitively by the adoption of 
the new  ,constitution1 and another took
 its place3 ,how is this document to be 
interpreted8 ,the ,hartford men1        
excepting1 of course1 ,joel ,barlow1 the
  ,lost ,pleiad of the group1 whose head
 had been turned by the bewildering     
theories of his ,french fellow-citizens1
 were warmly in favor of  administering 
the new government on ,federal          

principles4 ,were not the  ,federalists 
right8 ,more than thirty years ago1 ,de 
,tocqueville pronounced  in their favor2
 ,de ,witt1 in his recent essay on      
,jefferson1 comes to the  same decision3
 both observers who have no             
party-feelings nor  class-prejudices to 
mislead them4 ,and have not the last few
 years given  us all light enough to see
 that abstractly1 as statesmen1 the     
,federal  leaders were right8 ,as       
politicians1 in the degraded ,american  
sense of  the word1 they were unskilful2
 they accelerated the downfall of their 
party by injudicious measures and by    
petty rivalries4 ,but although their    
ruin might have been adjourned1 it could
 not have been avoided2 we now  know    
that their fate was inevitable4 ,the    
democracy must have run over  them and  
trodden them out by the sheer brute     
force of numbers2 no  superiority in    
wisdom or in virtue could have saved    
them long4    ,in those hot and angry   
days a mania politica raged among the   

inhabitants of the ,united ,states4 ,one
 could no longer recognize the  sensible
 people who had fought the ,british     
stoutly for seven years1  without the   
slightest idea that they were struggling
 for anything more  than independence of
 foreign rule4 ,thomas ,paine and ,joel 
,barlow1  graduates of the great ,french
 ,revolution ,university1 had come to   
teach  them the new jargon3 the virtue  
and wisdom of the people2 the natural   
rights of man2 the natural propensity of
 rulers and priests to ignore  them2 and
 other similar high-sounding words1 the 
shibboleth and the  mainstay of the     
,democratic party to this day4 ,the     
,anti-,federalists were  as much pleased
 to learn that they had been contending 
for these  beautiful phrases as was     
,monsieur ,jourdain when told he had    
been  speaking de la prose all his life4
 ,they assumed the title of ,citizen1   
invented that of ,citess to please      
strong-minded sisters1 and became as    
crazy as ,monsieur ,jourdain when       

invested with the dignity of            
,mamamouchi4  ,they proclaimed that the 
government of the ,united ,states1 like 
all other  governments1 was naturally   
hostile to the rights of the people2    
,france  was their only hope2 if the    
leagued despotisms succeeded against    
her1  they would soon send their engines
 of destruction among them4 ,they       
planted trees of liberty1 and danced    
about them1 and sang the ,carmagnole    
with variations from ,yankee ,doodle2   
they offered their lives for  liberty1  
which was in no danger1 not even from   
their follies2 and swore  destruction to
 tyrants1 as if that unpopular class of 
persons existed in  the ,united ,states4
 ,they were the people1--the wise1 the  
pure1--who could  do no wrong4 ,the     
,federalists were aristocrats1          
monocrats1--lovers of  court ceremonies 
and levees1 chariots and servants and   
plate4 ,the  distinguished chief of the 
,french party1 whose heart was a        
perpetual  bleeding fountain of         

philanthropy1 was not above pretending  
to believe  that his opponents were     
striving to establish the hell of       
monarchy in  this republican paradise1  
and were ready to surrender the commerce
 of  the country1 and almost every      
privilege as a free1 sovereign1 and     
independent nation1 to the ,british4    
,even such a man as ,samuel ,adams1 at  
a dinner on board of a ,french frigate1 
could put the bonnet rouge on  his      
venerable head1 and pray that ,france   
alone might rule the seas4    ,the      
,new-,englanders laughed at the charge  
of monarchical predilections1  so       
absurdly inconsistent with their        
history1 their laws1 habits1 and        
feelings4 ,before the war1 leading men  
in other ,colonies had affected to      
dread their levelling propensities2 and 
,general ,charles ,lee had said of      
them1 with some truth1 that they were   
the only ,americans who had a  single   
republican qualification or idea4       
,freedom was an old fireside            

acquaintance2 they knew that the        
dishevelled1 hysterical creature the    
,gallo-,democrats worshipped was a      
delusion1 and feared she might prove a  
snare4 ,their common sense taught them  
to pay little attention to a  priori    
disquisitions on natural rights1 social 
compacts1  etc41--metaphysics of        
politics1 nugatory for all practical    
,american  purposes1--and to reject as  
ridiculous the promised millennium of   
supreme reason and perfected man4 ,from 
a long experience in the  management of 
public affairs1 they learned that our   
new government was  in danger from its  
weakness rather than from its strength2 
hence they  rejected the fatal doctrine 
of ,state rights1 the root of the       
greatest  political evil1 ,secession4   
,in the theories and in the measures of 
the  ,democrats1 in the very absurdity  
of the accusations made against         
themselves1 they thought they perceived 
a reckless purpose to relax  authority  
for the sake of popularity1 which would 

lead to mob-rule1 more  distasteful to  
the orderly ,yankee than any other form 
of tyranny4  ,moreover1 in the ,eastern 
,states most of the ,anti-,federalists  
belonged  to the lowest class of        
society2 and1 not content with urging   
their  pernicious public policy1 the    
more turbulent of the party showed a    
strong inclination to adopt ,french     
principles in religion and morals1 as   
well as in government4 ,robespierre had 
announced pompously1 ,l',atheisme  est  
aristocratique4 ,new ,england           
,federalists thought it democratic on   
this side of the ocean4 ,if they must   
choose between the ,tri-,color and  the 
,cross of ,st4 ,george1 they preferred  
the ,cross4 ,there was no  guillotine in
 ,great ,britain1--no capering about    
plaster statues of the  ,goddess of     
,reason2 people read their ,bibles1 went
 to church1 and  respected the holy     
sacrament of matrimony4 ,but they wished
 for neither a  ,france nor an ,england2
 they desired to make an ,america after 

their own  hearts1--religious1 just1    
orderly1 and industrious2 they believed 
that  on the ,federalist plan such a    
nation could be built up1 and on no     
other2 they opposed ,jeffersonian       
politics then as they oppose            
,jeffersonian-,davis politics now1 and  
they were as heartily abused then  as   
they have been since1 and as foolishly4 
,it must be confessed that the ,hartford
 ,wits did ample injustice to their     
antagonists4 ,mr4 ,jefferson was        
certainly not an ,avatar of the enemy of
  mankind1 nor were his followers       
atheists1 anarchists1 and rogues4 ,but  
in  #agii there were no shabbier        
,democrats than those of ,connecticut4  
,if we  may judge of the old race by a  
few surviving specimens1 we may pardon  
our poets1 if they added contempt to    
theoretical disapprobation1 and1 in     
their eagerness to        ,confound     
their politics    and        ,expose    
their knavish tricks1    allowed their  
feelings to exaggerate the unpleasant   

traits of the master  and of his        
disciples4    ,the ,hartford men were on
 the losing side4 ,federalism expired   
with the  election of ,monroe4 ,its     
degenerate successor1 ,whiggism1 had no 
principles of value1 and only lagged in 
the rear of the ,democratic  advance4   
,statesmanship and good sense went      
hopelessly down before the  discipline  
of party and the hunger for office2 and 
with each year it  became easier to     
catch a well-meaning1 but short-sighted 
public in any  trap baited with the     
usual ad captandum commonplaces4 ,we are
 very  frequently told that ,history is 
philosophy teaching by example1--one  of
 those copy-book apophthegms which      
people love to repeat as if they        
contained important truth4 ,but the     
teachings of history or of philosophy   
never reach the ears of the multitude2  
they are drowned by the din of  selfish 
rogues or of blind enthusiasts4 ,poor   
stupid humanity goes round  and round   
like a mill-horse in a dreary ring of   

political follies4 ,the  cast-off       
sophisms and rhetorical rubbish of a    
past generation are  patched up1        
scoured1 and offered to the credulous   
present as something  novel and         
excellent4 ,people do not know how often
 the rotten stuff has  been used and    
thrown away1 and accept it readily4     
,after a while1 they  discover to their 
cost1 as their ancestors did before     
them1 that it is  good for nothing4 ,but
 even if it were possible to have a     
grand  international patent-office for  
political devices1 where the venerable  
machines1 so often reinvented to break  
down again1 could be labelled           
worthless1 and exhibited to all the     
world1 ,i fear that the newest pet      
demagogue would persuade the voters of  
his district1 in spite of their  eyes1  
that he had contrived an improvement to 
make some one of the  rickety old things
 work4 ,no wonder that ,dr4 ,franklin   
lost patience1 when  he saw how sadly   
reason was perverted by ignorance1      

selfishness1 and  wickedness1 and wished
 that mankind had never been endowed    
with a  reasoning faculty1 since they   
know so little how to make use of it1   
and  so often mislead themselves by it1 
and that they had been furnished with  a
 good sensible instinct instead of it4  
,connecticut should be proud of her     
poets3 not as literary luminaries of    
the first magnitude1 but as manly       
citizens1 who sincerely loved justice1  
order1 self-control2--in two words1     
genuine freedom2 as cultivated          
gentlemen1 who belonged to a class no   
longer numerous4        ,this small1    
this blest secluded ,state      ,still  
meets unmoved the blasts of ,fate4      
,unmoved1 indeed1 as in ,federal times1 
but suffering sadly from  depletion4    
,the great ,west and the city of ,new   
,york have sucked her best  blood4      
,there still remain inventive           
machinists1 acute money-changers1       
acutest peddlers2 but the seed of the   
,muses has run out4 ,no more  ,pleiades 

at ,hartford2 no three mighties1 like   
,hosmer1 ,ellsworth1 and  ,johnson2 no  
lawyers of infinite wit1 like ,tracy and
 ,daggett2 no ,wolcotts  or ,shermans3  
but the small ,state can boast that she 
has still within her  borders many sons 
full of the spirit shown by ,comfort    
,sage and by ,return  ,jonathan ,meigs1 
when they marched for ,boston at the    
head of their  companies as soon as the 
news of ,lexington reached ,connecticut4
    ,,footnotes3    ,b ,it may interest 
temperance men to learn that somewhat   
later than the  period alluded to above1
 ,connecticut paid excise on #djj1jjj   
gallons of  rum yearly1--about two      
gallons to each inhabitant1 young and   
old1 male  and female4    ,c ,philip    
,freneau1 whose ,jacobin newspaper was  
despised by all good  ,federalists1     
wrote better verses than the ,all       
,connecticut ,seven4 ,his  ,indian      
,burying-,ground is worthy of a place in
 an anthology4 ,this  stanza has often  
been ascribed to ,campbell2 it is as    

good as any one in  ,schiller's         
,nadowessie ,death-,lament1--        ,by
 midnight moons1 o'er glistening dews1  
,in vestments for the chase arrayed1    
,the hunter still the deer pursues2     
,the hunter and the deer a shade4       
,,ice ,,and ,,esquimaux4      ,,chapter 
,,iii4    ,,birds ,,and ,,boy',s ,,play4
    ,our schooner sailed once up and    
down the coast of ,labrador1 skirting it
  for a distance of five hundred miles2 
but in these papers ,i sail back  and   
forth as many times as ,i please4       
,having1 therefore1 followed up the     
ice1 ,i am again at ,sleupe ,harbor1 our
 first port1 and invite thee to go  with
 us in a day's pursuit of ,eider-,duck2 
for among these innumerable  islands the
 eider breeds1 and not elsewhere in     
considerable numbers1 so  far as we     
could learn1 short of--somewhere in the 
remote ,north4  ,bradford1 this morning1
 ,june #aeth1 has hired the two         
,canadians to take  him to the          
bird-haunts in their own boat1 and to   

shoot for him1--kindly  offering a place
 to the ,judge and myself4    ,the word 
,eider had long been to me a name to    
conjure with4 ,at some  far-away period 
in childhood it got imbedded in my      
fancy1 and in process  of time had      
acquired that subtilest1 indefinable    
fascination which  belongs only to      
imaginative reminiscence4 ,in the       
future1 ,i suppose1 all  this existence 
will have become such a childhood1 its  
earth changed to  sky1 its dulness      
sharpened to a tender1 delicious        
poignancy of  allurement and suggestion4
 ,and were it not bliss enough for an   
immortality1 this boundless deepening   
and refining of experience through      
memory and imagination8 ,only to feel   
thrilling in one's being chords of      
connection with times immeasurably      
bygone6 only to be fed with ethereal    
remembrance out of a youth scarcely less
 ancient than the stars6 ,pity          
,tithonus no more2 or pity him only     
because in him age had become the  enemy

 of itself1 and spilled the wine from   
its own cup4    ,the wind was ahead1 and
 blew freshly down through the          
wilderness of  islands1 sweeping between
 granite shores along many and many a   
winding  channel2 the boat careened     
almost to her gunwale1 yielding easily  
at  first1 but holding hard when well   
down1 as good boats will2 the waves     
beat saucily against her1 now and then  
also catching up a handful of  spray1   
and flinging it full in our faces1 not  
forbearing once or twice  to dash it    
between the open lips of a talker1      
salting his speech  somewhat too much   
for his comfort1 though not too much for
 the  entertainment of his              
interlocutors2 while overhead the rifted
 gray was  traversed by whited seams1   
making another wilderness of islands in 
the  clouds4 ,we had gone a mile1 and   
were now sailing smoothly in the lee of 
an island1 when ,bradford exclaimed1    
,see there6 ,what's that8 ,why1 that's  
a 'sea-goose4' ,can you get him for me8 

7to the elder ,canadian74 ,i had        
snuggled down in the bottom of the boat1
 and sprang up1 expecting1 from  the    
word goose1 to see a large and not      
handsome bird1 when instead  appeared   
the tiniest tid-bit of swimming elegance
 that eye ever beheld4  ,reddish about  
neck and breast1 graceful as a swan in  
form and motion1  while not larger than 
a swallow1 light as the lightest feather
 on the  water1 turning its curving neck
 and dainty head to look1--it seemed    
more  like an embodied fancy than a     
creature inured to the chill of ,arctic 
seas and the savagery of ,arctic storms4
 ,what goose first gave it the  name    
sea-goose passes conjecture4 ,sea-fairy 
were more appropriate4    ,this was the 
,hyperborean ,phalarope1--a big name for
 so tiny a creature4  ,nuttall says that
 in #ahcc great numbers of them appeared
 about ,chelsea  ,beach4 ,ruddy1 airy1  
fairy1 feathered ,graces1 they must seem
 in our  practical ,yankee land like a  
mythology on wings1 a flock of exquisite

  old ,grecian fancies1 flitting1 light1
 and sweetly strange1 and almost        
impossible1 through the atmosphere of   
modern industries4    ,soon a new       
attraction4 ,it was a bird in the water 
quite near1 about the  size of a pigeon1
 though slenderer1 glossy black1 save a 
patch of pure  white on the wing1 and   
with an eye that glittered like a black 
jewel4    ,sea-pigeon1 said the artist1 
and desired his skilful ,canadian to    
secure the prize4 ,the other arose and  
took deliberate aim4 ,the bird1 now  not
 more than ten yards distant1 did not   
offer to fly1 and made no  attempt to   
swim away1 but kept its paddles well    
under it1 with its head  turned from us1
 while it swung lightly from side to    
side1 glancing  backward with its keen1 
audacious eye1 now over this shoulder1  
now over  that4 ,the gun flashed2 the   
shot spattered over the spot where a    
bird had  been2 but quicker than a flash
 that creature was under water and well 
out of harm's way6 ,the shot could have 

been scarcely out of the muzzle  before 
he had disappeared4 ,to see such        
inconceivable celerity reminded  one    
that the wings of gnats1 which vibrate  
fifteen thousand times in a  second1 and
 light1 that makes 7vide ,tyndale7      
twenty and odd millions  of undulations 
in going an inch1 are not without their 
fellow-wonders in  ,nature4 ,meanwhile  
the whole performance was so cool and   
neat that ,i  could not afterwards help 
thinking of this creature as a humorist1
 and  picturing it as quietly chuckling 
to itself under water4 ,with reason1    
too2 for above water was such a         
prolonged and ludicrous stare of        
amazement from at least three pairs of  
eyes as might satisfy the most          
immoderate appetite for the laughable4  
,this artful dodger was the ,black      
,guillemot4 ,it cannot be shot1 if its  
eye is on the fowler4 ,eager for        
specimens1 ,i tried my long1 powerful   
ducking-gun upon it an hour or two      
later1 sufficiently to prove this4  ,the

 birds would wait and watch1 all the    
while glancing from side to  side1 and  
dip1 dip1 dipping their bills in the    
water with infinite wary  quickness of  
movement1 and yet with an air of        
audacious unconcern2 but  the pull at   
the trigger seemed to touch some nerve  
in them1 and by the  same act you fired 
your shot at them and fired them under  
water4    ,the curious dipping of the   
bill just alluded to is mentioned as    
characteristic of the ,phalaropes1      
though ,i did not observe it1 and is    
thought to be a snapping-up of minute   
,crustacea4 ,but in the case of the     
,black ,guillemot1 ,i question if this  
be its true explanation4 ,the bird      
makes this movement only when on the    
alert4 ,several of them are  frolicking 
together2 you show yourself1 and        
instantly their bills begin  to         
dip1--each movement being quick as      
lightning1 but with a second of  space  
between4 ,i thought it partly an        
escape-valve for their nervous          

excitement1 and partly a keeping in     
practice of their readiness to dive4    
,to suppose them taking food under such 
circumstances1--one would fain  think   
himself more formidable in their eyes   
than that coolness would  imply4    ,in 
the afternoon1 however1 of this day--to 
anticipate a little--my  specimen was   
obtained4 ,while the boat waited at the 
shore of a low  island1 the ,judge and  
,i sauntered up the smooth1 bare granite
 slope to  the ridge1 and1 looking over 
a breast-high wall of solid rock1 saw a 
flock of these birds in a cove on the   
opposite side4    ,shall ,i fire8 ,i    
said4    ,you couldn't hit them2 they   
are more than two gun-shots off4        
,however1  added the ,judge1 presently1 
your ,long ,tom will reach one gunshot1 
and  fire one and a half more2 it will  
do no harm to try4    ,i fired at the   
farthest2 they went under1 but when they
 returned to the  surface one had come  
to grief4 ,i walked leisurely towards   
them1 and  stood on the shore1          

reloading2 but they gave me no heed2    
they were  intent on their stricken     
comrade4 ,gathering around him1 they    
began  pulling at him with their bills1 
trying to replace him in an upright     
position4 ,the poor fellow strove to    
comply1 for he was not yet quite  dead2 
but quickly fell over again on the side4
 ,they renewed their  efforts1          
assiduously playing ,good ,samaritan to 
this brother who had  fallen among human
 thieves4 ,at last they got impatient1  
and pecked at  him sharply1 evidently   
looking on him as wanting in pluck4     
,they had  seemed very human before2 but
 when they began to be vexed at him     
because  he would not gratify their     
benevolence with the sense of success1  
,i  really could see no reason why they 
should be masquerading there in         
feathers1 being as human as anybody6    
,it was an elegant bird1 with its fine  
shape1 its plumage of glossy jet  and   
snow1 and its legs of bright scarlet1   
bright as name4 ,use it has1  too1 for  

its flame-legs in the frigid seas it    
frequents2 for it is found  in the      
uttermost ,north1 and dares all the     
severities of ,polar cold4    ,but we   
have got into the afternoon too quickly1
 and now return to our  morning pursuit 
of eider-duck4 ,it was not long after   
the above spectacle  of magic           
disappearance that the elder ,canadian  
rose1 went forward1 and  fired his      
piece4 ,two large birds1 one black and  
white1 the other brown1  sprang up from 
the water and flew briskly away1--flew1 
as ,i thought1 out  of sight2 the man   
meanwhile returning to his seat and the 
helm1 with the  same composed silence1  
and the same attractive1 inscrutable    
face as  before4 ,but three hundred     
yards farther on we came to the male    
bird1  quite dead4 ,i was near firing   
upon it1 being led by its motion on the 
waves to think it alive1 and not in the 
least connecting it with the  bird4 ,i  
had but just now seen flying off in all 
apparent health1--when  the ,canadian1  

touching ,bradford1 and pointing1 said  
quietly1 ,dead1 and  the latter shouted 
to me accordingly4 ,presently1 as the   
boat swept past1  ,i stooped and drew it
 in1--a beautiful creature1 with velvety
 violet  black accompanied by dark      
olive-green about the head1 while the   
neck1  breast1 and back were white as   
snow1 and all the rest a glistening     
black4    ,an eider6 ,king eider6 cried 
the ,artist1 joyfully4 ,then1 ,isn't it 
a  king eider8 he said to the ,canadian1
 holding it up4    ,the other nodded4   
,really a king eider6 murmured the      
,artist1 as he now bent over it with    
bright eyes4    ,it was not1 but the    
male of the other species1 though ,i    
knew no better  at the time4 ,the king  
duck is one of the most ,arctic of all  
,arctic  birds1 and condescends to      
,lower ,labrador only in winter1 nor    
then  frequently4 ,a temperature at the 
freezing-point is to him a mere oven1   
which one should be a salamander to live
 in2 with the thermometer thirty  or    

forty degrees lower1 he is still        
sweltered2 while his custom of  growing 
his own coat1 though it saves him from  
shoddy1 expense1 and  ,paris fashions1  
has the disadvantage that he cannot     
strip it off at  pleasure1 not even when
 away from the ladies and the           
dinner-table4 ,he is  fain1 therefore1  
to keep well away toward the ,polar     
,north1 where the  climate is more      
temperate and pleasing1 leaving         
,newfoundlanders and  ,labradorians to  
roast themselves1 if they will do so4   
,while the boat sailed on1 still seeking
 the eider-island1--which at  first1 so 
the ,artist said1 was half a mile off1  
then a piece  farther1 then right up    
here1 then just ahead1 and now          
threatened to  keep ahead1--,i nested   
myself again in the bottom1 and renewed 
an old  boy-custom by studying the elder
 ,canadian's physiognomy4 ,it was       
strangely attractive1 and yet strangely 
impenetrable1 a rare out-door  face1    
clean and firm as naked granite after a 

rain1 healthful as  balsam-firs1 and so 
honestly weather-beaten that one could  
not help  regarding it as a feature of  
natural scenery4 ,all out-of-doors was  
implied in it1 and it belonged as much  
to the horizon as to the nearest        
objects4 ,the eye1 with its unceasing1  
imperturbable search1 never an  instant 
relaxing its intentness1 and never      
seeming to make an effort any  more than
 the sky in looking blue1 asserted this 
relationship1 for by  the same glance it
 seemed to take in equally the farthest 
and the  nearest2 only over us in the   
boat it passed always as over vacant    
space4  ,yet any question was answered  
at once with quiet1 willing brevity1 not
  as if he had been interrupted in his  
thoughts1 or was recalled to a          
recognition of our existence1 but just  
as he would turn the tiller in  steering
 his boat1--while the eye still         
continued its conversation with  that   
impersonal1 elemental company which he  
seemed to keep4 ,i found it  out of my  

power to relate myself to him as an     
individual4 ,in most faces  you study   
special character2 but in him it was    
somewhat older and more                 
primitive1--somewhat which seemed to be 
rather existence itself than any        
special form of it4 ,one felt in him    
that same world-old secret which  haunts
 ancient woods1 and would have asked him
 to utter it1 were not its  presence the
 only utterance it can have4 ,alas1 he  
that speaks must use  ,english1 ,french1
 or some language which is partly       
conventional2 and that  pre-,adamite or 
,saturnian vernacular in which we are   
all trying to  speak has no verbal sign4
 ,poets1 indeed1 contrive to catch it1  
one knows  not how1 in the meshes of    
ordinary language1 and only therefore   
are  poets2 but to frame in it any      
question or answer suited to the wants  
of  the understanding is a feat beyond  
man's power4 ,it is true that ,mr4      
,herbert ,spencer1 having1 by diligent1 
heroic self-desiccation1 got his  mind  

into the purely adult1 dried-beef       
condition1 well freed from all          
boy-juices of imagination1 has          
discovered that all ,fact in this       
universe1 which cannot be verbally      
formulated and made a scientific  dogma1
 is without significance to man's       
spirit1 however it may be  negatively   
implied as a vacant somewhat by his     
logic4 ,for which  discovery the        
incomparable man will please accept my  
profoundest  ingratitude4    ,after     
positive philosophy1 the croak of       
ravens1 the hoot of owls1  anything that
 has the touch1 the charm1 and infinite 
suggestion of  ,nature and life1 will be
 more than welcome2 and in good time we 
have  reached the desired island4       
,not to find eiders1 though1 but only   
,saddle-,back ,gulls1 a crowd of which  
arose on our approach1 and hovered about
 at safe1 yet tantalizing  distance1    
keeping up their monotonous1 piping     
scream4 ,the saddle-back1 a  large1     
powerful white bird1 with a patch of    

black crossing it like a  saddle1 is the
 great enemy of the eider1 pillaging its
 nest and  devouring its young at every 
opportunity1 and had probably driven the
  ducks from this place4 ,it is a pirate
 of pirates1 a ,semmes in the air1      
cowardly toward equals1 relentless      
toward the weak and unweaponed2 and  the
 chief care of the mother duck is to    
protect her little brood from  these    
greedy confederates4 ,one of the        
coolest1 yet wariest rascals in  the    
world1 it can scarcely be surprised1 but
 lingers about1 just beyond  gun-shot   
range1 screaming1 as if it said1 ,why   
don't you fire8  ,fire6--who cares8 ,i  
came at length to cherish toward them no
 little  animosity1 and would willingly 
have played ,kearsarge upon them1 could 
any challenge have drawn them from port4
 ,but during the whole cruise not  one  
of them consoled us with so much as a   
feather4    ,the flight of this bird    
meanwhile is magnificent1--so full of   
powerful  grace1 of achieving leisure   

and ease4 ,nothing can be more striking 
than  its contrast with the labored     
propulsion of the duck4 ,a few slow     
waves  of the wing1 and there it is high
 in the air2 then a droop1 a decline1   
but so light and soft1 so exquisitely   
graduated1 that the downward drift  of a
 feather seems lumpish and leaden in the
 comparison2 then again up  it goes with
 such an ease as if it rose by specific 
levity1 like smoke  from a chimney in a 
day of calm2 and aloft it wheels1       
circles1 floats1  and at length sails on
 its broad vans away1 passing in a few  
minutes  over wide spaces1 and yet1 with
 its leisurely stroke1 seeming engaged  
only in airing its pinions4 ,one might  
fancy it the very spirit of motion      
imaged in a picturesque symbol4    ,in  
that delightful book1 ,out-,door        
,papers1 the author celebrates          
charmingly the charm of birds2 but ,i1  
who am more humanist than  naturalist1  
would say rather1 ,what exhaustless     
fascination in their  flight6--for this 

appears to touch by some subtile        
suggestion upon the  hope or dream of   
man4 ,i am1 indeed1 now--though always1 
please ,god1 a  boy--not so young a boy 
as once1 when ,i could be unhappy for   
the want of  wings1 and deem1 for a     
moment1 that life is little worth       
without them2  yet never does a bird fly
 in my view1 especially if its flight be
 lofty  and sustained1 but it seems to  
carry some deep1 immemorial secret of my
  existence1 as if my immortal life flew
 with it4 ,sweet fugitive1 when  will it
 fly with me8 ,whenever it does1--and   
something assures me that  one day it   
will1--then the new heavens and new     
earth6 ,meanwhile the  intimation of it 
puts to the lip some unseen cup1 out of 
which1 in a  soft ecstasy of pain that  
is better than pleasure1 ,i quaff peace1
 peace4  ,it is not always nor often    
that one is open to this supreme charm2 
but  it comes at times1 and then to hope
 all and believe all is easy as to      
breathe4    ,this mood also carries me  

farther than almost anything else into  
childhood2 for1 in the height of it1 ,i 
can go back by link after link of       
remembrance1 and see myself 444 there   
444 and there 444 and there again  444  
and at last deep into the rosy suffusion
 of dawn1--still looking up1  and intent
 on that airy motion4 ,to this day ,i   
know birds better by their  flight than 
by their forms1 unless it be the form of
 the wing4    ,i tried to see what it is
 which gives to the flight of some birds
 that  look of majestic ease4 ,partly it
 is due to the slow stroke1 but more1 ,i
  thought1 to the flexibility of the    
wing1 and to the fact that this is  less
 directly up-and-down in its action than
 that of the duck1 for  example4 ,the   
chief effort of the duck is to sustain  
its weight4  ,consequently the wing must
 lie flat 7comparatively7 upon the air1 
and be  kept straight out1 economizing  
its vertical pressure2 and hence the    
noticeable stiffness and toilsomeness of
 its progression4 ,the gull1 less       

concerned to sustain itself1 uses the   
wing more flexibly1 bending it  slightly
 at the elbow1 and pressing back the    
outer portion with each  stroke4 ,so a  
heavy swimmer must keep his hands flat1 
pressing down upon  the water to hold up
 his head2 while one who swims very     
lightly handles  them more freely and   
flexibly1 using them at pleasure to     
assist his  progress4 ,yet the matter   
refuses to be wholly explained1 and     
remains  partly a mystery4 ,darwin1 when
 in ,patagonia1 observed condors        
circling  in the air1 and saw them sail 
half an hour by the watch without any   
smallest vibration of the wings and     
without the smallest perceptible        
descent4 ,i used in boyhood to see bald 
eagles do the same for a  considerable  
period1 though ,i never timed them      
exactly1 and wonder at it  now as ,i did
 then4    ,away now to another island1  
still seeking ducks4 ,arrived1 the      
,canadians  land1 in order1 in          
,bradford's behalf1 to have the first   

chance2 while  the ,judge and ,i1 who   
pretend to no skill with the gun1 remain
 awhile  behind4 ,the island had the    
shape described in our first paper3 a   
gentle  slope and rock-beach on one     
side1--a steep1 broken1 half-precipitous
  descent on the other4 ,landing        
presently1 ,i went slowly along the     
slope1--slowly1 for one's feet sank deep
 at every step in the elastic  moss1 so 
that it was like walking on a           
feather-bed4 ,some patches of           
shrubbery1 two and a half or three feet 
high1--the first approach to  woody     
growth ,i had seen1--drew my attention2 
and it is curious now to  think what    
importance they had in my eyes1 as if   
here were the promise  of a new world4  
,i hastened towards them1 forgetting the
 coveted ducks2  and the ,canadian's    
gun1 which sounded in the distance1 did 
not reawaken  my ambition4 ,forgetting  
or remembering were probably much the   
same2 for  ,i had scarcely fired a gun  
in twenty and odd years1 never had taken

 a  bird on the wing1 and1 besides1 must
 now fire from the left  shoulder1--the 
right eye being like ,goldsmith's       
tea-cups1 wisely kept  for show4 ,but as
 ,i touched the shrubbery there was a   
stir1 a rustle1 a  whirr1 and away went 
a large brown bird1 scurrying off toward
 the sea4  ,upon the impulse of the     
moment1 ,i up gun1 and blazed after4 ,to
 my  amazement1 the bird fell4 ,i       
stumped off for my prize1 actually      
achieving  a sort of run1 the first for 
years1--pretty sure1 however1 that the  
creature was making game of me rather   
than ,i of it1 and would rise and  flirt
 its tail in my face when ,i should be  
near enough to make the  mockery        
poignant4 ,no1 the poor thing's game was
 up4 ,it was a large bird1  of an       
orange-brown hue1 mottled with faint    
white and shadings of black4  ,a        
powerful relenting came over me1 and ,i 
could have sat down and cried  like a   
baby1 had that been suitable for a boy  
of my years4    ,do you know that was   

pretty well done8 cried a voice4    ,it 
was ,bradford1 who was hurrying up4 ,i  
had no heart to answer2 ,i was  not     
jolly4    ,why1 it's a female eider1 he 
said1 when near2 you've shot an eider on
  the wing6    ,o tempora6 ,o mores6    
then the ,elder was glad6--all his      
compunction  drowned in the pleasure of 
connecting himself1 even through the    
gates of  death1 with a youthful        
fascination4    ,it now occurred to     
me--and the conjecture proved           
correct--that these  plats of shrubbery 
must serve as hiding-places for the     
duck4 ,the  ,canadians1 whose behavior  
was all along mysterious1 had forborne  
to give  us any hint4 ,i was vexed at   
them then1 but had no reason perhaps4   
,this  was their larder1 which they     
could not wish to impoverish4 ,besides1 
fishermen and visitors on this coast are
 so sweeping and ruthless in  their     
destructions1 that one might reasonably 
desire to protect the  birds against    
them4 ,it is not so much by shooting the

 birds as by  destroying their eggs that
 the mischief is done4 ,a party will    
take  possession of an island at night1 
carry off every egg that can be found1  
and throw it into the sea1--then1       
returning next forenoon1 take the  fresh
 eggs laid in the mean time for food4   
,on the whole1 ,i feel less  like       
blaming our guides than like returning  
to make apologies4 ,yet to us  also the 
ducks are necessary1 for we have no     
fresh meat but such as our  guns obtain2
 and to one seeking health1 this was a  
matter of some  serious moment4    ,the 
elder ,canadian has also shot a duck1   
and1 besides1 a red-breasted  diver1 a  
noble bird2 and with these prizes we set
 sail for another  island1 frequented by
 ,tinkers4 ,the day meanwhile had       
cleared1 the sun  shone richly1 and we  
began to see somewhat of the glory1 as  
well as  grimness1 of ,labrador4 ,away  
to the southwest1 eminent over the      
lesser  islands1 rose ,mecatina1 all    
tossed into wild billows of blue1 with  

purple in the hollows2 while to the     
north the hills of the mainland  lifted 
themselves up to hold fellowship with it
 in height and hue4    ,tinker1 we      
found1 meant ,murre and ,razor-,billed  
,auk4 ,these are finely  shaped birds1  
black above and white below1 twice the  
size of a pigeon1  and closely          
resembling each other1 save in the bill4
 ,that of the murre  is not noticeable2 
but the other's is singularly shaped1   
and marked with  delicate1 finely cut   
grooves1 the central one being nicely   
touched with  a line of white1 while a  
similar thread of white runs from the   
bill to  the eye4    ,i notice it thus1 
because it suggested to me a reflection4
 ,looking at  this bill1 ,i asked myself
 how ,darwin's theory comported with it4
 ,the  struggle for life1--are all the  
forms of organic existence due to that8 
,but how did the struggle for life cut  
these grooves1 paint these  ornamental  
lines8 ,beauty is its own excuse for    
being2 and that ,nature  respects beauty

 is1 to my mind1 nothing less than fatal
 to the ,darwinian  hypothesis4 ,that   
his law exists as a modifying influence 
,i freely  admit1 and accredit him with 
an important addition to our thought    
upon  such matters2 that it is the sole 
formative influence ,i shall be better  
prepared to believe when ,i see that    
beauty is not regarded in ,nature1  but 
is a mere casual attendant upon use4    
,the artist ,greenough did1  indeed1    
strenuously maintain this last4 ,but the
 sloth and the  bird-of-paradise are    
equally useful to themselves2 if beauty 
were but an  aspect of use1 these should
 be equally comely in our eyes4 ,no2 the
  struggle for life has not grooved the 
bill of the auk1 and painted the  tail  
of the peacock1 any more1 so far as ,i  
can see1 than it has given to  evening  
and morning their scarlet and gold4 ,and
 so my auk said to me1  ,any attempt to 
string existence upon a single thread   
has failed and  will fail1 unless it be 
that thread which man can never         

formulate1 never  stretch out into a    
straight line1--the ,eternal ,unity1    
,god4    ,these birds have a catlike    
instinct of fidelity to old haunts1 and1
  having once chosen a habitat1 adhere  
to it1 despite many a year of           
persecution4 ,they prefer inaccessible  
cliffs1 on every projecting shelf  and  
jut of which the eggs are laid1 but also
 inhabit islands where are  many clefts1
 fissures1 and holes made by tumbled    
masses of rock4 ,this at  which we had  
arrived was not much more than a hundred
 feet high2 and the  cliffs in which it 
terminated on one side were scarcely to 
be named  inaccessible4 ,the number of  
birds upon it seemed to our novice-eyes 
immense1 but at a later period would    
have seemed trivial4 ,they are  always  
flying about the shores1 and have also a
 laudable curiosity1  which leads them  
to investigate when any strange form    
appears or any  strange noise is made in
 the neighborhood of their homes4    ,on
 landing1 the ,judge made off to the    

left1 and was soon heard from1--as  it  
afterwards appeared1 with immediate     
success4 ,the ,canadian and myself  took
 our station upon a broad platform some 
forty feet above the sea1  with steep   
rocks behind1 and were soon busily      
engaged in--missing6 ,it  was nothing   
but bang6 pish6 bang6 pshaw6 for half an
 hour4 ,it could  not be said that the  
birds were indifferent to the prospect  
of being  immortalized as specimens4 ,on
 the contrary1 they showed an           
appreciation  of the honor1 and an open 
zeal to obtain it1 which were worthy of 
the  highest commendation4 ,but they    
very properly declined to be bungled    
even into a taxidermist paradise4       
,nothing could be more admirably        
orthodox than their resolution to be    
immortalized secundum artem2 and        
considering how many are ready to sneak1
 without the smallest regard to  desert 
or self-respect1 into any attainable    
post mortem felicity1 this  honorable   
cut direct to all mere aukward and      

heterodox inductions into  happiness    
begot in me toward these creatures      
sentiments of the highest               
consideration4 ,all the while they kept 
flying past1 often near1 but  always    
going through the air like a dart1 as if
 they would say1 ,take1  but earn6      
,at first the effect of this superior   
behavior on their part was to  produce  
humiliation1 and1 along with this1 a    
weak1 nervous excitement1  and an       
attempt to reach my ends by mere        
determination4 ,i accordingly got  to   
pulling upon them with a vehemence which
 probably disturbed my aim1  as if ,i   
had been drawing at a halibut rather    
than at a trigger4 ,but the  gates which
 are appointed to fly open before a high
 behavior are but as  the barred gates  
of ,destiny toward mere low strength4   
,the gods and birds  were immitigable4  
,i must do better1 not merely do more4  
,meditating on these matters1 and moved 
by the lofty demeanor of my             
challengers1 ,i at length proceeded     

seriously to self-amendment4            
,exchanging my large duck-shot for some 
of smaller size1 ,i no longer  blurted  
at my auk when he was just abreast2 but1
 deferentially allowing  him to pass1   
and then1 aiming after him1 as if ,i    
accepted his lead1 ,i  gently suggested 
to him my desires2 whereupon1 in the    
most becoming  manner1 he descended and 
plumped into the sea1 without so much as
  flapping a wing1 or being guilty of   
the faintest impropriety4 ,it was       
beautiful4 ,continuing this behavior1 ,i
 found my attentions uniformly          
reciprocated4 ,once1 indeed1 when ,i    
fell into a shade of brusquerie1  the   
individual whom ,i had complimented     
stood upon his self-respect1 and1  as ,i
 thought1 flew away2 but ,bradford1 who 
had courteously come up just  as ,i     
began to succeed1 was so kind as to see 
him fall punctiliously into  the water1 
when he had gone far enough to suggest a
 reprimand of my  slight unseemliness4  
,and now1 when the ,artist was          

,christian enough to  exclaim1 ,why1    
,blank1 ,i did not know you were such a 
shot6 ,i thought it  high time to rest  
on my 7back and7 laurels4 ,reposing1    
therefore1 upon  the round leathern     
pillow which was my inseparable and     
invaluable  companion1 ,i enjoyed my    
spine-ache cum dignitate till the others
 were  ready to return4    ,on the way  
to the ship an eider sprang up from a   
steep ridge we were  passing1 and fell  
in a second1 ,bradford exclaiming1      
,that's the best  shot to-day6 ,the yawl
 soon followed us4 ,ph---- had taken two
 eiders on  the wing2 we had six in all4
 ,others brought auks and murres2 but   
the  ,judge still led the van4 ,next    
morning the ,colonel and ,judge brought 
in  four eiders1--the last for the      
entire voyage4 ,others were afterward   
seen1 but only seen4 ,the ,parson1 some 
weeks later1 closed our intrusive       
intimacy with them by an attempt to     
capture some of their young in the      
water4 ,it couldn't be done4 ,they were 

only a few days old1 but1 rich in       
pre-natal instruction1 they always      
waited until the hand was just upon     
them1--not to waste any part of their   
stay beneath water1--and  then--under in
 a moment4 ,one saw that pirate         
saddle-back must needs  bestir himself  
in order to catch them1 and one could   
appreciate the  sagacity of the mother  
duck in hurrying her brood1 almost as   
soon as  they are born1 into the water4 
,and so farewell1 eiders6 ,if all goes  
to my wish1 you shall yet have a  place 
on other-world islands and seas1 where  
saddle-backs shall not  pillage your    
nests1 nor coat-backs point at you any  
,long ,tom6           99       99       
99       99       99    ,we give account
 only of what was characteristic1 and   
therefore will now  jump five weeks of  
time and a hundred leagues of space4    
,but since this  is a long leap1 a few  
stepping-stones will be convenient4 ,the
 ,parson1  then1 has brought in on the  
way a nice batch of velvet duck1        

noticeable  for their extremely large1  
oval1 elevated1 scarlet nostrils2 we    
have  shot at seals1 and almost hit them
 in the most admirable manner2 we  have 
hunted for an indubitable polar         
bear1--and found a dog and a  midnight  
mystification2 we have played at chess1 
euchre1 backgammon1  whist1             
debating-club1 story-telling1           
nightmare1--one of our number           
developing an incomparable genius for   
the last2 we have played at  getting    
tolerable cooking out of two slovens1   
one of whom knows nothing1  and the     
other everything but his business1--and 
have lost the game2 we  have played at  
catching trout1 and found this the best 
joke of all4  ,there are beautiful      
brook-trout on the coast of ,labrador4  
,they say so2  it is so4 ,beautiful     
trout1--mostly visible to the naked eye6
 ,not many of  them1 but enough to      
gratify an elegant curiosity4    ,but   
here we are1 ,july #ba1 lat4 #ed #cj'4  
,bradford has hooked an iceberg1  and   

will play him for the afternoon4 ,half a
 mile off is an island of  the character
 common to most of the innumerable      
islands strown all along  from ,cape    
,charles to ,cape ,chudleigh1--an alp   
submerged to within three  hundred feet 
of the summit4 ,such islands1 and such a
 coast6 ,but this is  a notable         
bird-island4 ,so three of us are set    
ashore there with our  guns1 the        
indefatigable ,professor coming along   
also with his perpetual  net4    ,the   
island--which is rather two islands than
 one1 for straight through  it1 toward  
the eastern extremity1 goes the         
narrowest possible  chasm--proved       
precipitous and inaccessible1 save in a 
bit of inlet at  the hither opening of  
this chasm and on three rods of sloping 
rock to  the right4 ,like almost all its
 fellows1 however1 it raises one side   
higher than the other2 and conjecturing 
that the farther and higher face  would 
be the favorite haunt of these          
cliff-loving birds1--murres and  auks   

again1--,i left my companions busily    
shooting near the landing1 and  made my 
way up and across4 ,it was no easy task1
 for the wild rock was  tossed and      
tilted1 broken and heaped and           
saw-toothed1 as if it  represented some 
savage spasm or fit of madness in       
,nature4 ,but  clambering1 sliding1     
creeping1 zigzagging1 turning back to   
find new  openings1 and in every manner 
persisting1 ,i slowly got on2 while deep
  down in the chasm on my left1--a      
hundred feet deep1 and in the middle    
not more than a foot wide1 though       
champered away a little at the          
top1--the water surged in and out with a
 thunderous1 muffled sough and  moan1   
like a ,titan under the earth1 pinned   
down eternally in pain4 ,it  was awfully
 impressive1--so impressive that ,i     
reflected neither upon it  nor on       
myself4 ,with this immitigable1         
adamantine wildness about me1 and  that 
abysmal1 booming stifle of plaint1 to   
which all the air trembled1  sounding   

from below1 ,i became another being1 and
 the very universe was  no longer       
itself2 past and future were not1 and ,i
 was a dumb atomy  creeping over the    
bare peaks of existence1 while out of   
the blind heart  of the world issued an 
everlasting prayer1--a prayer without   
hope6 ,and  this1 too1 if not boy's     
play1 was a true piece of               
boy-experience4 ,i can  recall--and     
better now by the aid of this           
half-hour--moments in  childhood when   
existence became thus awful1 when it    
overpowered1  overwhelmed me1 and when  
time1 instead of melting in golden      
ripeness  into the fruitful eternity    
that lies before1 seemed to fall back1  
doomed  forever1 into the naked eternity
 behind4 ,goethe's ,erl-,king1 almost   
alone in modern literature1 touches     
truly1 and on its shadowed side1 the    
immeasurable secret which haunts and    
dominates the heart of a child2  while  
,wordsworth's ,ode on the ,intimations  
of ,immortality in ,childhood  is our   

noblest suggestion of its illuminated   
obverse side4    ,at length ,i issued   
upon the opposite face of the island1   
and found  myself on a shelf of rock    
about three feet wide1 with one hundred 
and  fifty feet1 more or less1 of       
vertical cliff beneath1 and about the   
same  height of half-cliff behind and   
above4 ,it was a pretty perch1 and gave 
one a feeling of consequence2 for what  
pigmy perched on ,alps ever failed  to  
consider his elevation one of stature   
strictly1 and not at all of  position8  
,the outer edge of the shelf rose1      
inclosing me as in a box1 so  that ,i   
was safe as the owner of an annuity     
based upon ,united ,states  securities4 
,away to my right the perpendicular     
cliff rose higher still1  and1 being    
there covered with clefts1 cavelets1 and
 narrow shelves1 was  the peculiar home 
of the birds1 who had taken possession  
of this island  on a long lease4        
,their numbers were inconceivable4 ,two 
hundred yards off in the water was  an  

island of them1 an acre of feathery     
black4 ,to the right ,i could see  them 
now and then ascending in literal       
clouds2 and the sober ,ph----1 who      
rowed along here beyond my view1 saw the
 cliffs1 as he looked up1 white  for a  
half-mile with their snowy breasts1 and 
could find no words to  express his     
sense of their multitude4    ,but so far
 as ,i was concerned1--for my comrades  
did better1--it was the  birds          
themselves that did the sporting that   
afternoon4 ,they came  streaming by1    
never crowding together so that more    
than one could be  included in the      
chances of shot1 but incessantly        
trailing along1 and  scurrying past with
 the speed of an arrow4 ,i peppered     
away1 with little  result but that of   
spicing their afternoon's enjoyment for 
them2 for the  wicked creatures took it 
all in the jolliest way1 flinging       
themselves  past with a flirt and a     
wink1 just as if ,i had been no lord of 
creation  at all4 ,i had disdained to   

shoot them when at rest2 for there      
seemed to  be some ancient compact      
between us1 by which they were to have  
their  chance and ,i mine4 ,but when one
 came and planted himself on a little   
jut  thirty yards to my right1 and      
mocked me with a look of patronage1     
seeming to regard me as the weaker party
 and to incline to my side1 ,i  broke   
the pact1 and1 masking my hurt conceit  
under some virtuous  indignation against
 him as a deserter and traitor1 turned  
and smote him  under the fifth rib4     
,and now it came upon me that ,i must   
secure that bird4 ,to shoot without     
obtaining were mere wantonness4 ,yes1 ,i
 would have him1 and justify  myself to 
myself4 ,to do it was difficult1 even in
 ,labradorian boy-eyes4  ,between me and
 the auk the upper half of the cliff    
made a deep recess1  terminating in a   
right angle1 with a platform of granite 
some  seventy-five feet below4 ,along   
both faces of this recess1 nearly on a  
level with myself1 ran a shelf not more 

than six inches wide1 with  vertical    
wall above and beneath2 and on this ,i  
must go4 ,i began1  therefore1 working  
along this1 proceeding with care1       
observing my  footing1 and clutching    
with my hands whatever knob or crevice  
,i could  find4 ,but when near the      
angle1 ,i found that the shelf          
terminated some  two feet short of its  
apex1 and began again at about the same 
distance  beyond4 ,seeking about        
cautiously for finger-hold1 ,i reached  
out my left  foot1 and planted it on the
 opposite side1 but could not stretch   
far  enough to make a place for the     
right foot when ,i should withdraw it4  
,i  began debating with myself1 whether1
 in case ,i should swing across and     
rest on the left foot alone1 ,i could   
work this along and make room for  the  
right4 ,i knew that the process would   
have to be repeated on my  return2 so ,i
 must estimate two chances at once4     
,and now for the first time1 as ,i stood
 thus1 some faint misgiving arose  in   

me1 some faint question whether ,i was  
not doing one unjustifiable  thing to   
avoid doing another4 ,it occurred to me 
that there was another  personage1--not 
a bird-seeking boy1 like this one here1 
but a grave  man1--with whom ,i had an  
important connection1 and who cherished 
serious  purposes and had many hopes of 
worthy labor yet to fulfil4 ,was ,i     
doing  the fair thing by him8 ,he was   
not here1 to be sure2 ,i had left him   
somewhere between ,worcester and        
,labrador1 with due pledge of reunion2  
but even in his absence he was to be    
considered4 ,besides1 he was my  master1
 and though he had permitted me to go   
gambolling off by myself1  on my promise
 to bring him back a more serviceable   
spine1 yet his claim  remained1 and ,i  
should be dishonorable to ignore it4    
,at first1 indeed1 these considerations 
seemed vague1 far-fetched1 little       
better than affectations4 ,the clear    
thing to be done was to get that  bird4 
,this done1 ,i could consider the rest4 

,to admit any other thought  militated  
in some way against the singleness and  
compactness of my  being4 ,wise or      
unwise1 what had ,i to do with far-off  
matters of that  sort8 ,my business was 
to succeed in a certain task1 not to be 
sage and  so forth4 ,i actually felt a  
kind of shame to be debating any other  
than  the all-important question1 ,can  
,i get my right foot over here beside   
the  left8 ,nor was it till certain     
faces pictured themselves to my mind1   
that  the heart took part with reason1  
and the tangential left foot returned1  
rounding itself once more into the      
proper orbit of my life4 ,i had been    
standing there perhaps a minute4    ,it 
was an invaluable experience4 ,it       
carried me farther into the heart of    
the boy-world than ,i had gone for      
twenty-five years and more4 ,and as the 
boy-world is the big world1 the life of 
too many being but another and  less    
attractive phase of boyhood1 it supplied
 a gloss to the book of  daily          

observation1 which ,i could on no       
account part with4 ,the  inconceivable  
indifference of most men to             
considerations of speculative  truth    
became conceivable4 ,the way in which   
the axioms of sages slip off  from      
multitudes1 as mere vague glittering    
generalities1 good enough  for          
cherishers of the intuitions to lisp of 
by moonlight1 but sheer  fiddle-dee-dee 
to firmly built men1--the commentary of 
the able lawyer  upon ,emerson's        
lecture1 ,i don't understand it1 but my 
girls do6--all  this appears in a new   
light4 ,are not most men working along  
some cliff1  financial or other1 after a
 bird8 ,and do they not honestly regard 
it as  mere nonsense to be thinking     
about being sage and so forth1 when the 
real question is how to get the right   
foot across here beside the left8    ,i 
had gone back to my perch1 where a      
rueful1 puerile remorse tugged now  and 
then at my elbow1 and said1 ,but that   
bird6 ,you haven't given up  that bird8 

when the ,professor appeared on the apex
 of the island above1  shouting1 ,here's
 a--hawk1 ,i thought he said1 and caught
 up my gun4 ,but  what8 ,fox8           
,yes1--blue fox4    ,now1 then1 up the  
cliff6 ,creep1 crawl1 wriggle1 slide1   
clamber1  scramble1 clutch1 climb1 here 
jumping--actually jumping1 ,i6--over a  
crevice1 then drawing myself round an   
insuperable jut by two honest  sturdy   
weeds--many thanks to them6--which had  
the consideration to be  there and to   
plant themselves firmly in the rock2 at 
last ,i reached the  height1 puffing    
like a high-pressure steam-engine4      
,h-h-h-where--ff6 ff6--h-is-ee8         
,right over here4 ,i've been chasing him
 this last half-hour4 ,finally1  the    
audacious little rascal would stick up  
his head over a rock1 and  bark at me4  
,i soon had him2 and was again struck   
with the vivacity which may be          
exhibited by a creature whose life is   
really ended4 ,as ,i fired1 the  animal 
gave a loud whish6 and sped away like   

the wind1 disappearing  behind a jut of 
rock five or six rods farther away2 but 
five feet from  that point ,i found it  
dead4 ,this post mortem activity1 they  
told me1  was made possible by the small
 size of the shot4 ,perhaps1 then1 a    
creature slain with a missile           
sufficiently subtile might go an        
indefinite time without finding it out1 
supposing itself alive and well4        
,institutions and politicians1 we have  
all known1 possess this power of        
ignoring their own decease4 ,judaism has
 been dead these eighteen hundred       
years2 yet here are ,jew synagogues in  
,new ,york and ,boston4 ,were the like  
true of individuals1 it might explain to
 us some lives which seem  inexplicable 
on any other hypothesis4 ,i think1 for  
example1 of some  editors1 who are      
evidently post-dating their decease2 and
 when these go  on writing leading      
articles1 and being sweet upon our      
brethren of the  ,south1 one does not   
say1 ,disloyal1 but only1 ,so long in   

learning  what has happened6    ,my     
prize was the white fox1 a year old1 and
 not quite in adult costume4  ,how it   
got upon this island were matter for    
conjecture4 ,probably on the  ice4      
,another skip1--and here we are upon    
another of these summits surrounded  by 
sea4 ,the home of ,puffins this is4 ,the
 puffin is an odd little fellow1        
smaller than the auk1 but of the same   
general hue1 with a short neck and  a   
queer bill4 ,this is very thin from side
 to side1 twice as wide up and  down as 
it is long1 strongly marked with        
concentric scarlet ridges1 and          
altogether agrees so little with this   
plain-looking bird1 that one can        
scarcely regard it as belonging         
naturally to him1 and fancies that he   
must lay it aside at night1 as people do
 false teeth4 ,it is an easy bird  to   
take flying2 for1 on seeing you1 it     
peaks its wings downward in a  manner   
indescribably prim and prudish1 and     
scales past1 turning its  stubby neck1  

and inspecting you with an air of       
comical1 muddy gravity  and curiosity4  
,my comrade1 ,ph----1 got two dozen to  
my eight2 but ,i was  consoled with a   
large ,arctic falcon1 which had been    
dining at  fashionable hours on a       
full-grown puffin1 having set its table 
in a deep  gorge between vertical walls4
 ,it was of the kind called by ,audubon 
,falco ,labradora1 concerning which     
,professor ,baird1 of the ,smithsonian  
,institute1 who has had the kindness to 
write to me1 doubts whether it  may not 
be an immature stage of ,falco          
,candicans1 one of the two  undoubted   
species of ,arctic falcons4 ,captain    
,handy1 however1 a very  observant and  
intelligent man1 was sure1 from the     
feeling of the bones1  that it must be  
an old bird4    ,once more only ,i will 
ask the reader to accompany me4 ,we had 
gone ashore  in a place called ,stag    
,bay1 not to hunt stags1 but to seek a  
bear1 to  whose acquaintance we seemed  
to have obtained a preliminary          

introduction  by trustworthy            
informations4 ,bruin1 however1          
positively declined the  smallest       
approach to intimacy1 refusing even to  
look at our cards1 and  sending out the 
most hopeless ,not at home4 ,separating1
 therefore1 we  strolled on the         
beach1--for a beach there actually was  
at this  place1--and observing some     
,piping ,plovers1 tiny waders1 ,i made  
for them4  ,one of them stood as        
sentinel on a rock1 and1 thinking the   
ornithologist  might like him for a     
specimen1 ,i fired4 ,the large shot     
scattered around  him1 the distance     
being considerable1 without injury2 but 
,i insisted on  his being dead1 and     
searched as if enough of searching would
 in some way  cause him to be so4 ,it   
wouldn't1 however2 and ,i was about     
turning away1  when1 a rod or two off1  
,i saw him evidently desperately        
wounded4 ,ah6  there is my bird1 after  
all1 ,i muttered1 and started with a    
leisurely  step to pick it up4          

,terrified at my approach1 the little   
wretch began to  hobble and flutter     
away1 keeping about his original        
distance4 ,i  quickened my pace2 he     
exerted his broken strength still more1 
and made  out to mend his4 ,i walked as 
rapidly as ,i could2 but new terror lent
 the  poor thing new wings1 and it      
contrived--,i could not for my life     
conjecture how--to keep a little beyond 
my reach4 ,it would not do to  leave him
 suffering thus2 and ,i coaxed myself   
into a quick run1 when up  the little   
hypocrite sprang1 and scudded away like 
a bee6 ,not the  faintest suspicion of  
its being otherwise than at death's door
 had  entered my mind until that moment1
 though ,i had seen this trick less     
skilfully performed before4             
,returning1 ,i went to the top of the   
beach and began examining the coarse    
grass which grew there1 thinking that   
the nests must be hereabout1 and        
desirous of a peep at the eggs4 ,i had  
hardly pushed my foot in this  grass a  

few times1 when another wounded bird    
appeared but a few feet  off4 ,the      
emergency being uncommon1 it put forth  
all its histrionic  power1 and never    
,booth or ,siddons did so well4 ,with   
breast ploughing in  the sand1 head     
falling helplessly from side to side1   
feet kicking out  spasmodically and yet 
feebly behind1 and wings fluttering and 
beating  brokenly on the beach1 it      
seemed the very symbol of fear1 pain1   
and  weakness1 ,i made a sudden spring  
forward1--off it went1 but immediately  
returned when ,i pushed my foot again   
toward the grass1 renewing its  speaking
 pantomime4 ,i could not represent      
suffering so well1 if ,i really  felt   
it4 ,with a convulsive kick1 its poor   
little helpless head went  under1 and it
 tumbled over on the side2 then it      
swooned1 was dying2 the  wings flattened
 out on the sand1 quivering1 but        
quivering less and less2  it gasped with
 open mouth and closing eye1 but the    
gasps grew fainter  and fainter2 at last

 it lay still1 dead2 but when ,i poked  
once more in  the grass1 it revived to  
endure another spasm of agony1 and die  
again4  ,dear1 witty little ,garrick1 ,i
 said1 had you a thousand lives and ten 
thousand eggs1 ,i would not for a       
kingdom touch one of them6 and ,i       
wished he could show me some enemy to   
his peace1 that ,i might make war  upon 
the felon forthwith4    ,and in this    
becoming frame of mind ,i ended my      
chapter of ,boy's ,play in  ,labrador4  
,,the ,,old ,,house4          ,my little
 birds1 with backs as brown        ,as  
sand1 and throats as white as frost1    
,i've searched the summer up and down1  
,and think the other birds have lost    
,the tunes you sang1 so sweet1 so low1  
,about the old house1 long ago4         
,my little flowers1 that with your bloom
        ,so hid the grass you grew upon1
      ,a child's foot scarce had any    
room        ,between you1--are you dead 
and gone8      ,i've searched through   
fields and gardens rare1      ,nor found

 your likeness anywhere4        ,my     
little hearts1 that beat so high        
,with love to ,god1 and trust in men1   
,oh1 come to me1 and say if ,i          
,but dream1 or was ,i dreaming then1    
,what time we sat within the glow       
,of the old-house hearth1 long ago8     
,my little hearts1 so fond1 so true1    
,i searched the world all far and wide1 
,and never found the like of you3       
,god grant we meet the other side       
,the darkness 'twixt us now that stands1
      ,in that new house not made with  
hands6          ,,memories ,,of         
,,authors4    ,a ,,series ,,of          
,,portraits ,,from ,,personal           
,,acquaintance4      ,,coleridge4    ,in
 #ahaf the wandering and unsettled ways 
of the poet were calmed and  harmonized 
in the home of the ,gillmans at         
,highgate1 where the remainder  of his  
days1 nearly twenty years1 were passed  
in entire quiet and  comparative        
happiness4 ,mr4 ,gillman was a surgeon2 
and it is understood  that ,coleridge   

went to reside with him chiefly to be   
under his  surveillance1 to break       
himself of the fearful habit he had     
contracted of  opium-eating1--a habit   
that grievously impaired his mind1      
engendered  self-reproach1 and          
embittered the best years of his life4,d
 ,he was the  guest and the beloved     
friend as well as the patient of ,mr4   
,gillman2 and  the devoted attachment of
 that excellent man and his estimable   
wife  supplied the calm contentment and 
seraphic peace1 such as might have  been
 the dream of the poet and the hope of  
the man4 ,honored be the name  and      
reverenced the memory of this true      
friend6 ,he died on the #ast of  ,june1 
#ahcg1 having arranged to publish a life
 of ,coleridge1 of which he  produced   
but the first volume4,e    ,coleridge's 
habit of taking opium was no secret4 ,in
 #ahaf it must have  reached a fearful  
pitch4 ,it had produced during many     
years an  accumulation of bodily        
suffering that wasted the frame1        

poisoned the  sources of enjoyment1 and 
entailed an intolerable mental load that
  scarcely knew cessation2 the poet     
himself called it the accursed  drug4   
,in #ahad ,cottle wrote him a strong    
protest against this terrible  and      
ruinous habit1 entreating him to        
renounce it4 ,coleridge said in  reply1 
,you have poured oil into the raw and   
festering wound of an old  friend1      
,cottle1 but it is oil of vitriol6 ,he  
accounts for the accursed  habit by     
stating that he had taken to it first to
 obtain relief from  intense bodily     
suffering2 and he seriously contemplated
 entering a  private insane asylum as   
the surest means of its removal4 ,his   
remorse  was terrible and perpetual2 he 
was rolling rudderless1 the wreck of    
what he once was1 wretched1 helpless1   
and hopeless4    ,he revealed this      
dominion to ,de ,quincey with a deep    
expression of  horror at the hideous    
bondage4 ,it was this conspiracy of     
himself  against himself that was the   

poison of his life4 ,he describes it    
with  frantic pathos as the scourge1 the
 curse1 the one almighty blight1  which 
had desolated his life1 the thief       
to steal      ,from my own nature all   
the natural man4    ,the habit was1 it  
would seem1 commenced in #ahjb2 and if  
,mr4 ,cottle is to  be credited1 in     
#ahad he had been long accustomed to    
take from two  quarts of laudanum in a  
week to a pint a day4 ,he did1 however1 
ultimately conquer it4    ,it was during
 his residence with ,mr4 ,gillman that  
,i knew ,coleridge4 ,he  had arranged to
 write for ,the ,amulet2 and            
circumstances warranted my  often seeing
 him1--a privilege of which ,i gladly   
availed myself4 ,in this  home at       
,highgate1 where all even of his whims  
were studied with  affectionate and     
attentive care1 he preferred the quiet  
of home  influences to the excitements  
of society2 and although ,i more than   
once  met there his friend ,charles     
,lamb1 and other noteworthy men1 ,i     

usually  found him1 to my delight1      
alone4 ,there he cultivated flowers1 fed
 his  pensioners1 the birds1 and wooed  
the little children who gambolled on    
the heath1 where he took his daily      
walks4    ,it is a beautiful view1--such
 as can be rarely seen out of           
,england1--that which the poet had from 
the window of his bed-chamber4          
,underneath1 a valley1 rich in          
,patrician trees1 divides the hill of   
,highgate from that of ,hampstead2 the  
tower of the old church at  ,hampstead  
rises above a thick wood1--a dense      
forest it seems1 although  here and     
there a graceful villa stands out from  
among the dark green  drapery that      
infolds it4 ,it was easy to imagine the 
poet often  contrasting this scene with 
that of ,brockan's sov'ran height1 where
 no  finer influence of friend or child 
had greeted him1 and exclaiming1--      
,o thou ,queen6      ,thou delegated    
,deity of ,earth1      ,o dear1 dear    
,england6    ,and what a wonderful      

change there is in the scene1 when the  
pilgrim to  this shrine at ,highgate    
leaves the garden and walks a few steps 
beyond  the elm avenue that still fronts
 the house6    ,forty years have brought
 houses all about the heath1 and shut in
 the  prospect2 but from any ascent you 
may see regal ,windsor on one side and  
,gravesend on the other1--twenty miles  
of view1 look which way you will4  ,but 
when the poet dwelt there1 all ,london  
was within ken1 a few yards  from his   
door4    ,the house has undergone some  
changes1 but the garden is much as it   
was  when ,i used to find the poet      
feeding his birds there3 it has the same
  wall--moss-covered now--that overhangs
 the dell2 a shady tree-walk  shelters  
it from sun and rain1--it was the poet's
 walk at midday2 a  venerable climber1  
the ,glycenas1 was no doubt planted by  
the poet's  hand3 it was new to ,england
 when the poet was old1 and what more   
likely  than that his friends would have
 bidden him plant it where it has since 

flourished forty years or more8    ,i   
was fortunate in sharing some of the    
regard of ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,gillman2      
after the poet's death1 they gave me his
 inkstand1 7a plain inkstand of  wood17 
which is before me as ,i write1 and a   
myrtle on which his eyes  were fixed as 
he died4 ,it is now an aged and gnarled 
tree in our  conservatory4,f    ,one of 
the very few letters of ,coleridge ,i   
have preserved ,i transcribe1  as it    
illustrates his goodness of heart and   
willingness to put himself  to          
inconvenience for others4         ,,dear
 ,,sir1--it runs1--,i received some five
 days ago a letter       depicting the  
distress and urgent want of a widow and 
a sister1       with whom1 during the   
husband's lifetime1 ,i was for two or   
three years a housemate2 and yesterday  
the poor lady came up       herself1    
almost clamorously soliciting me1 not1  
indeed1 to       assist her from my own 
purse1--for she was previously assured  
that there was nothing therein1--but to 

exert myself to collect       the sum of
 twenty pounds1 which would save her    
from ,god knows       what4 ,on this    
hopeless task1--for perhaps never man   
whose name       had been so often in   
print for praise or reprobation had so  
few       intimates as myself1--when ,i 
recollected that before ,i left         
,highgate for the seaside you had been  
so kind as to intimate       that you   
considered some trifle due to           
me1--whatever it be1 it       will go   
some way to eke out the sum which ,i    
have with a sick       heart been all   
this day trotting about to make up1     
guinea by       guinea4 ,you will do me 
a real service1 7for my health          
perceptibly sinks under this            
unaccustomed flurry of my               
spirits17 if you could make it          
convenient to inclose to me1            
however small the sum may be1 if it     
amount to a bank-note of       any      
denomination1 directed ',grove1         
,highgate1' where ,i am1 and            

expect to be any time for the next eight
 months4 ,in the mean       time1       
believe me                  ,yours      
obliged1                    ,s4 ,t4     
,,coleridge4        #dth ,december1     
#ahbh4        ,i find also1 at the back 
of one of his manuscripts1 the following
 poem1  which ,i believe to be          
unpublished2 for ,i cannot trace it in  
any edition  of his collected works4    
,,love',s ,,burial-,,place4--,a         
,,madrigal4        ,lady4 ,if ,love be  
dead4        ,poet4           ,and ,i   
aver it4        ,lady4 ,tell me1 ,bard1 
where ,love lies buried4        ,poet4  
,love lies buried where 'twas born3     
,o gentle ,dame1 think it no scorn1     
,if in my fancy ,i presume      ,to call
 thy bosom poor ,love's tomb1--         
,and on that tomb to read the line1     
,here lies a ,love that once seemed     
mine1      ,but caught a cold1 as ,i    
divine1      ,and died at length of a   
decline6    ,i here copy his autograph  
lines1 as he wrote them in ,mrs4 ,hall's

 album4  ,they will be found1 too1 as a 
note1 in the ,biographia ,literaria4    
,,on ,,the ,,portrait ,,of ,,the        
,,butterfly ,,on ,,the ,,second ,,leaf  
,,of ,,this ,,album4        ,the        
butterfly the ancient ,grecians made    
,the soul's fair emblem1 and its only   
name3      ,but of the soul escaped the 
slavish trade      ,of earthly life6    
,for in this mortal frame      ,ours is 
the reptile's lot1 much toil1 much      
blame1      ,manifold motions1 making   
little speed1      ,and to deform and   
kill the things whereon we feed6        
,s4 ,t4 ,,coleridge4        #cjth       
,april1 #ahcj4    ,all who had the honor
 of the poet's friendship or            
acquaintance speak of  the marvellous   
gift which gave to this illustrious man 
almost a  character of inspiration4 ,the
 wonderful eloquence of his conversation
  can be comprehended only by those who 
have heard him speak4 ,it was  sparkling
 at times1 and at times profound2 but   
the melody of his voice1  the impressive

 solemnity of his manner1 the radiant   
glories of his  intellectual            
countenance1 bore off1 as it were1 the  
thoughts of the  listener from his      
discourse2 and it was rarely that he    
carried away from  the poet any of the  
gems that fell from his lips4           
,montgomery describes the poetry of     
,coleridge as like electricity1         
flashing at rapid intervals with the    
utmost intensity of effect1--and        
contrasts it with that of ,wordsworth1  
like galvanism1 not less  powerful1 but 
rather continuous than sudden in its    
wonderful influence4  ,but of his poems 
it is needless for me to speak2 some of 
them are  familiar to all readers of the
 ,english tongue throughout the world4  
,wilson1 in the ,noctes1 says1 ,wind him
 up1 and away he  goes1--discoursing    
most excellent music1 without a discord1
 full1 ample1  inexhaustible1 serious1  
and divine2 and in another place1 ,he   
becomes  inspired by his own silver     
voice1 and pours out wisdom like a sea4 

,wordsworth speaks of him as quite an   
epicure in sound4 ,the painter  ,haydon 
speaks of his eloquence and lazy luxury 
of poetical outpouring2  and ,rogers    
7,table-,talk7 is reported to have said1
 ,one morning1  breakfasting with me1 he
 talked for three hours without         
intermission1 so  admirably that ,i wish
 every word he uttered had been written 
down3 but  he does not quote a single   
sentence of all the poet said2,g and a  
writer in the ,quarterly ,review        
expresses his belief that nothing is    
too high for the grasp of his           
conversation1 nothing too low3 it       
glanced  from earth to heaven1 from     
heaven to earth1 with a speed and a     
splendor1  an ease and a power1 that    
almost seemed inspired4 7,nor did ,i    
ever find  him incoherent1 as some have 
pretended2 but ,i agree with ,de        
,quincey1  that he had the largest and  
most spacious intellect1 the subtilest  
and  the most comprehensive that has yet
 existed among men47 ,of ,coleridge1    

,shelley writes1--        ,all things he
 seemed to understand1      ,of old or  
new1 at sea or land1      ,save his own 
soul1 which was a mist4    ,i have      
listened to him more than once for above
 an hour1 of course  without putting in 
a single word3 ,i would as soon have    
bellowed a loose  song while a          
nightingale was singing4 ,there was     
rarely much change of  countenance2 his 
face was at that time 7it is said from  
his habit of  opium-eating7 overladen   
with flesh1 and its expression impaired2
 yet to  me it was so tender and gentle 
and gracious and loving1 that ,i could  
have knelt at the old man's feet almost 
in adoration4 ,my own hair is  white    
now2 yet ,i have much the same feeling  
as ,i had then1 whenever the  form of   
the venerable man rises in memory before
 me4 ,i cannot recall  now1 and ,i      
believe could not recall at the time1 so
 as to preserve1 as a  cherished thing  
in my remembrance1 a single sentence of 
the many  sentences ,i heard him utter2 

yet in his ,table-,talk there is a world
 of  wisdom1--and that is only a        
collection of scraps1 chance-gathered4  
,if  any left his presence unsatisfied1 
it resulted rather from the             
superabundance than the paucity of the  
feast4,h    ,i can recall many evening  
rambles with him over the high lands    
that look  down on ,london2 but the     
memory ,i cherish most is linked with a 
crowded  street1 where the clumsy and   
the coarse jostled the old man eloquent1
 as  if he had been earthly1 of the     
earth4 ,it was in the ,strand3 he       
pointed  out to me the window of a room 
in the office of the ,morning ,post1    
where he had consumed much midnight oil2
 and then for half an hour he  talked of
 the sorrowful joy he had often felt1   
when1 leaving the office  as day was    
dawning1 he heard the song of a caged   
lark that sang his  orisons from the    
lattice of an artisan1 who was rising to
 begin his  labor as the poet was pacing
 homewards to rest after his work all   

night4  ,thirty years had passed2 but   
that unforgotten melody1 that dear      
bird's  song1 gave him then as much true
 pleasure as when1 to his wearied head  
and heart1 it was the matin hymn of     
,nature4    ,i remember once meeting him
 in ,paternoster ,row4 ,he was inquiring
 his way  to ,bread ,street1 ,cheapside2
 and of course ,i endeavored to explain 
to  him1 that1 if he walked straight on 
for about two hundred yards and took    
the fourth turning to the right1 it     
would be the street he wanted4 ,i       
perceived him gazing so vague and       
unenlightened1 that ,i could not help   
expressing my surprise1 as ,i looked    
earnestly at his forehead and saw  the  
organ of locality unusually prominent   
above the eyebrows4 ,he took my         
meaning1 laughed1 and said1 ,i see what 
you are looking at4 ,why1 at  school my 
head was beaten into a mass of bumps1   
because ,i could not  point out ,paris  
in a map of ,france4 ,it is said that   
,spurzheim  pronounced him to be a      

mathematician1 and affirmed that he     
could not be  a poet4 ,such opinion the 
great phrenologist could not have       
expressed2  for undoubtedly he had a    
large organ of ideality1 although at    
first it  was not perceptible1 in       
consequence of the great breadth and    
height of  his profound forehead4       
,more than once ,i met there that most  
remarkable man1--martyr and  saint1 as  
,mrs4 ,oliphant styles him1 and as      
perhaps he was1--the ,rev4  ,edward     
,irving4 ,the two1 he and ,coleridge1   
were singular contrasts1--in            
appearance1 that is to say1 for their   
minds and souls were in  harmony4,i ,the
 ,scotch minister was tall1 powerful in 
frame1 and of  great physical vigor1 a  
gaunt and gigantic figure1 his long1    
black1  curly hair hanging partially    
over his shoulders4 ,his features were  
large  and strongly marked2 but the     
expression was grievously marred1 like  
that  of ,whitefield1 by a squint that  
deduced much from his apostolic         

character1 and must have operated       
prejudicially as regarded his mission4  
,his mouth was exquisitely cut4 ,it     
might have been a model for a sculptor  
who desired to portray strong will      
combined with generous sympathy4 ,yet   
he looked what he was1--a brave man1 a  
man whom no abuse could humble1  no     
injuries subdue1 no oppression crush4   
,to me he realized the idea of  the     
,baptist ,st4 ,john2 and ,i imagine the 
comparison must have been made  often4  
,in the pulpit1 where1 ,i lament to say1
 ,i heard ,irving but once1 and then    
not under the peculiar influences that  
so often swayed and guided him1  he was 
undoubtedly an orator1 thoroughly       
earnest in his work1 and1  beyond all   
question1 deeply and solemnly impressed 
with the truths of  the mission to which
 he was devoted4 ,at times1 no doubt1   
his manner1  action1 and appearance     
bordered on the grotesque2 but it was   
impossible  to listen without being     
carried away by the intense fervor and  

fiery  zeal with which he dwelt on the  
promises or annunciated the threats of  
the ,prophets1 his predecessors4 ,his   
vehemence was often startling1          
sometimes appalling4 ,leigh ,hunt called
 him1 with much truth1 the  ,boanerges  
of the ,temple4 ,he was a soldier1 as   
well as a servant1 of the  cross4 ,few  
men of his age aroused more bitter or   
more unjust and  unchristian hostility4 
,he was in advance of his time2 perhaps1
 if he  were living now1 he would still 
be so2 for the spirituality of his      
nature cannot yet be understood4 ,there 
were not wanting those who  decried him 
as a pretender1 a hypocrite1 and a      
cheat4 ,those who knew him  best depose 
to the honesty of his heart1 the depth  
of his convictions1  the fervor of his  
faith2 and many yet live who will       
indorse this  eloquent tribute of his   
biographer3--,to him1 mean thoughts and 
unbelieving hearts were the only things 
miraculous and out of ,nature2  he      
desired to know nothing in heaven or    

earth1 neither comfort nor  peace nor   
any consolation1 but the will and work  
of the ,master he  loved4 ,irving died  
comparatively young3 there were but     
forty-two years  between his birth and  
death4 ,more than thirty years have     
passed since he  was called from earth2 
and to this generation the name of      
,edward ,irving  is little more than a  
sound1 signifying nothing4 ,yet it was a
 power in  his day2 and the seed he     
scattered cannot all have fallen among  
thorns4  ,his love for ,coleridge was   
devoted1 a mingling of admiration1      
affection1  and respect4    ,they were  
made acquainted by a mutual friend1     
,basil ,montagu1 who himself  occupied  
no humble station in intellectual       
society4 ,his evenings were  often rare 
mental treats4 ,he presented the most   
refined picture of a  gentleman1 tall1  
slight1 courteous1 seemingly ever       
smiling1 yet without  an approach to    
insincerity4 ,he had the esteem of his  
contemporaries1 and  the homage of the  

finer spirits of his time4 ,they were   
earned and  merited4 ,those who knew him
 knew also his wife4 ,mrs4 ,montagu was 
one of  the most admirable women ,i have
 ever known3 she was likened to ,mrs4   
,siddons1 and forcibly recalled the     
portraits of that admirably gifted      
woman4 ,tall and stately1 and with      
evidence1 which ,time had by no means   
obliterated1 of great beauty in youth1  
her expression somewhat severe1  yet    
gracious in manner and generous in      
words4 ,she had been the honored        
associate of many of the most           
intellectual men and women of the age2  
and  not a few of them were her familiar
 friends4,j    ,whenever it was my      
privilege to be admitted to the evening 
meetings at  ,highgate1 ,i met some of  
the men who were then famous1 and have  
since  become parts of the literature of
 ,england4    ,i attended one of the    
lectures delivered by ,coleridge at the 
,royal  ,institution1 and ,i strive to  
recall him as he stood before his       

audience4  ,there was but little        
animation2 his theme did not seem to    
stir him into  life2 even the usual     
repose of his countenance was rarely    
broken up2 he  used little or no action2
 and his voice1 though mellifluous1 was 
monotonous3 he lacked1 indeed1 that     
earnestness without which no man is     
truly eloquent4    ,at the time ,i speak
 of1 he was growing corpulent and heavy3
 being seldom  free from pain1 he moved 
apparently with difficulty1 yet liked to
 walk  up and down and about the room as
 he talked1 pausing now and then as if  
oppressed by suffering4    ,i need not  
say that ,i was a silent listener during
 the evenings at  ,highgate to which ,i 
have referred1 when there were present  
some of those  who now rule us from     
their urns2 but ,i was free to gaze on  
the  venerable man1--one of the         
humblest1 but one of the most fervid1   
perhaps1 of the worshippers by whom he  
was surrounded1--and to treasure  in    
memory the poet's gracious and loving   

looks1 the thick1 waving1  silver hair1 
the still1 clear1 blue eye2 and on such 
occasions ,i used  to leave him as if ,i
 were in a waking dream1 trying to      
recall1 here and  there1 a sentence of  
the many weighty and mellifluous        
sentences ,i had  heard1--seldom with   
success1--and feeling at the moment as  
if ,i had been  surfeited with honey4   
,the portrait of ,coleridge is best     
drawn by his friend ,wordsworth1 and it 
sufficiently pictures him3--        ,a  
noticeable man1 with large1 gray eyes1  
,and a pale face1 that seemed           
undoubtedly      ,as if a blooming face 
it ought to be2      ,heavy his low-hung
 lip did oft appear1      ,depressed by 
weight of moving phantasy2              
,profound his forehead was1 though not  
severe4    ,wordsworth elsewhere speaks 
of him as the brooding poet with the    
heavenly eyes1 and as1 often too much in
 love with his own dejection4  ,the     
earliest word-portrait we have of him   
was drawn by ,wordsworth's  sister in   

#agig3--;,at first ,i thought him very  
plain1--that is1 for about  three       
minutes4 ,he is pale1 thin1 has a wide  
mouth1 thick lips1 longish1             
loose-growing1 half-curling1 rough1     
black hair4 ,his eye is large and  full1
 and not dark1 but gray2--such an eye as
 would receive from a heavy  soul the   
dullest expression1 but it speaks every 
emotion of his animated  mind4 ,he has  
fine1 dark eyebrows1 and an overhanging 
forehead4    ,this is ,de ,quincey's    
sketch of him in #ahjg3--;,in height he 
seemed about  five feet eight inches1 in
 reality he was an inch and a half      
taller4,k  ,his person was broad and    
full1 and tended even to corpulence2 his
  complexion was fair1 though not what  
painters technically call fair1  because
 it was associated with black hair2 his 
eyes were soft and large  in their      
expression1 and it was by a peculiar    
appearance of haze or  dimness which    
mixed with their light4 ,a lady of      
,bristol1 writes ,de  ,quincey1 assured 

me she had not seen a young man so      
engaging in his  exterior as ,coleridge 
when young1 in #agif4 ,he had then a    
blooming and  healthy complexion1       
beautiful and luxuriant hair1 falling in
 natural  curls over his shoulders4     
,lockhart says1--,coleridge has a grand 
head1 but very ill-balanced1 and  the   
features of the face are coarse2        
although1 to be sure1 nothing can       
surpass the depth of meaning in his     
eyes1 and the unutterable dreamy  luxury
 of his lips4    ,hazlitt describes him 
in early manhood as with a complexion   
clear and  even light1 a forehead broad 
and high1 as if built of ivory1 with    
large  projecting eyebrows1 and his eyes
 rolling beneath them like a sea with   
darkened lustre4 ,his mouth was rather  
open1 his chin good-humored and  round1 
and his nose small4 ,his hair1 black and
 glossy as the raven's  wing1 fell in   
smooth masses over his forehead1--long1 
liberal hair1  peculiar to enthusiasts4 
,sir ,humphry ,davy1 writing of         

,coleridge in #ahjh1 says1--,his mind is
 a  wilderness1 in which the cedar and  
the oak1 which might aspire to the      
skies1 are stunted in their growth by   
underwood1 thorns1 briers1 and          
parasitical plants2 with the most       
exalted genius1 enlarged views1         
sensitive heart1 and enlightened mind1  
he will be the victim of want of  order1
 precision1 and regularity4    ,leigh   
,hunt speaks of his open1 indolent1     
good-natured mouth1 and of his  forehead
 as prodigious1--a great piece of placid
 marble4    ,wordsworth again3--        
,noisy he was1 and gamesome as a boy1   
,tossing his limbs about him in delight4
    ,in the autumn of #ahcc1 ,emerson1  
on his second visit to ,england1 called 
on ,coleridge4 ,he found him to         
appearance a short1 thick1 old man1 with
  bright blue eyes1 and fine clear      
complexion4    ,a minute and certainly a
 true picture is that which ,carlyle    
formed of  him1 in words1 some years    
later1 and probably not long before his 

removal from earth3--,brow and head were
 round1 and of massive weight1  but the 
face was flabby and irresolute4 ,the    
deep eyes1 of a light hazel1  were as   
full of sorrow as of inspiration2       
confused pain looked mildly  from them1 
as in a kind of mild astonishment4 ,the 
whole figure and  air1 good and amiable 
otherwise1 might be called flabby and   
irresolute1--expressive of weakness     
under possibility of strength4 ,he  hung
 loosely on his limbs1 with knees bent  
and stooping attitude2 in  walking he   
rather shuffled than decisively stepped2
 and a lady once  remarked1 he never    
could fix which side of the garden-walk 
would suit  him best1 but continually   
shifted in corkscrew fashion1 and kept  
trying  both4 ,a heavy-laden1           
high-aspiring1 and surely much-suffering
 man4 ,his  voice1 naturally soft and   
good1 had contracted itself into a      
plaintive  snuffle and sing-song2 he    
spoke as if preaching1--you would have  
said  preaching earnestly1 and also     

hopelessly1 the weightiest things4      
,such1 according to these high          
authorities1 was the outer man          
,coleridge1--he who            in       
bewitching words1 with happy heart1     
,did chant the vision of that ancient   
man1      ,that bright-eyed mariner4    
,there are several portraits painted of 
him4 ,the best would appear to be  that 
which was made by ,allston1 at ,rome1 in
 #ahjf4 ,wordsworth speaks of  it as the
 only likeness of the great original    
that ever gave me the  least pleasure4  
,that by ,northcote strongly recalls him
 to my  remembrance3 the dreamy eyes2   
the full1 round1 yet pale face1--       
that seemed undoubtedly      ,as if a   
blooming face it ought to be2    the    
pleasant mouth2 the low-hung lip2 the   
broad and lofty forehead1--             
,profound1 though not severe4    ,in his
 later days he took snuff largely1      
,whatever he may have been in  youth1   
writes ,mr4 ,gillman1 in manhood he was 
scrupulously clean in his  person1 and  

especially took great care of his hands 
by frequent  ablutions4    ,although in 
his youth and earlier manhood ,coleridge
 had been                        through
 life      ,chasing chance-started      
friendships1    not long before his     
death he is described as thankful for   
the deep1  calm peace of mind he then   
enjoyed1--a peace such as he had never  
before  experienced1 nor scarcely hoped 
for4 ,all things were then looked at by 
him through an atmosphere by which all  
were reconciled and harmonized4    ,it  
is true1 he did but little of the       
promised and purposed much4 ,his        
friend1 ,justice ,talfourd1 while       
testifying to the benignity of his      
nature1 describes his life as one       
splendid and sad prospectus1--and1      
according to ,wordsworth1 his mental    
power was frozen at its marvellous      
source2,l yet what a world of wealth he 
has bequeathed to us1 although  the     
whole produce of his pen1 in poetry1 is 
compressed within one single  small     

volume6    ,thus writes ,talfourd1 in   
his ,memorials of ,charles              
,lamb3--,after a long  and painful      
illness1 borne with heroic patience1    
which concealed the  intensity of his   
sufferings from the by-standers1        
,coleridge died1--if  that can be called
 death which removes the soul from its  
impediment of  clay1 extends            
immeasurably its sphere of usefulness1  
and perpetuates the  power to benefit   
mankind so long as earth endures4       
,within a few months past ,i again drove
 to ,highgate1 and visited the  house in
 which the poet passed so many happy    
years of calm contentment  and seraphic 
peace1--again repeated those lines      
which1 next to his  higher faith1 were  
the faith by which his life was ruled   
and guided3--        ,he prayeth best   
who loveth best        ,all things both 
great and small2      ,for the dear ,god
 who loveth us1        ,he made and     
loveth all6    ,his remains lie in a    
vault in the graveyard of the old church

 at  ,highgate4 ,he was a stranger in   
the parish where he died1               
notwithstanding  his long residence     
there1 and was therefore interred alone2
 not long  afterwards1 however1 the     
vault was built to receive the body of  
his  wife3 there they rest together4 ,it
 is inclosed by a thick iron grating1   
and the interior is lined with white    
marble4 ,when ,i visited the tomb in    
#ahfd1 one of the marble slabs had      
accidentally given way1 and the coffin  
was partially exposed4 ,i laid my hand  
upon it in solemn reverence1 and        
gratefully recalled to memory him who1  
in his own emphatic words1 had          
,here found life in death4              
,,footnotes3    ,d ,de ,quincey more    
than insinuates that1 instead of        
,gillman persuading  ,coleridge to      
relinquish opium1 ,coleridge seduced    
,gillman into taking it4    ,e ,gillman 
published but one volume of a ,life of  
,coleridge4 ,the volume  he gave me     
contains his corrections for another    

edition4 ,de ,quincey says  of it that  
it is a thing deader than a             
door-nail1--which is waiting  vainly1   
and for thousands of years is doomed to 
wait1 for its sister  volume1 namely1   
,volume ,second4 ,it must be ever       
regretted1 that of the  poet's later    
life1 of which he knew so much1 he wrote
 nothing2 but the  world was justified  
in expecting in the details of his      
earlier  pilgrimage something which it  
did not get4    ,f ,mrs4 ,gillman gave  
me also the following sonnet4 ,i believe
 it never  to have been published2 but  
although she requested ,i would not have
  copies of it made to give away1 ,i    
presume the prohibition cannot now be   
binding1 after a lapse of thirty years  
since ,i received it4 ,the poet1 he  who
 wrote the sonnet1 and the admirable    
woman to whom it was addressed1  have   
long since met4      ,,sonnet ,,on ,,the
 ,,late ,,samuel ,,taylor ,,coleridge4  
,and thou art gone1 most loved1 most    
honored friend6      ,no1 never more thy

 gentle voice shall blend      ,with air
 of ,earth its pure1 ideal tones1--     
,binding in one1 as with harmonious     
zones1      ,the heart and intellect4   
,and ,i no more      ,shall with thee   
gaze on that unfathomed deep1      ,the 
,human ,soul3 as when1 pushed off the   
shore1      ,thy mystic bark would      
through the darkness sweep1      ,itself
 the while so bright6 ,for oft we seemed
      ,as on some starless sea1--all    
dark above1      ,all dark below1--yet1 
onward as we drove1      ,to plough up  
light that ever round us streamed       
,but he who mourns is not as one bereft 
,of all he loved3 thy living ,truths are
 left4                ,,washington      
,,allston4        ,cambridge ,port1     
,massachusetts1 ,america4    ,for my    
still dear friend1 ,mrs4 ,gillman1 of   
the ,grove1 ,highgate4    ,g ,madame de 
,stal is reported to have said that     
,coleridge was rich in  a monologue1 but
 poor in a dialogue4    ,h ,it may not  
be forgotten that the ,rev4 ,edward     

,irving1 in dedicating  to ,coleridge   
one of his books1 acknowledges          
obligations to the venerable  sage for  
many valuable teachings1 as a spiritual 
man and as a ,christian  pastor3 lessons
 derived from his conversations         
concerning the  revelations of the      
,christian faith1--helps in the way of  
truth1--from  listening to his          
discourses4 ,coleridge has said1 he     
never found the  smallest hitch or      
impediment in the fullest utterance of  
his most  subtile fancies by word of    
mouth4    ,i ,their friendship lasted   
for years1 and was full of kindness on  
the  part of the philosopher1 and of    
reverential respect on that of ,irving1 
who1 following the natural instinct of  
his own ingenuous nature1 changed  in an
 instant in such a presence from the    
orator1 who1 speaking in ,god's  name1  
assumed a certain austere pomp of       
position1--more like an  authoritative  
priest than a simple presbyter1--into   
the simple and  candid listener1 more   

ready to learn than he was to teach4    
,j ,barry ,cornwall is the husband of   
her daughter by a prior marriage2  and  
,adelaide ,procter1 during her brief    
life1 made a name that will live  with  
the best poets of our day4    ,k ,de    
,quincey elsewhere states his height to 
be five feet ten1--exactly  the height  
of ,wordsworth3 both having been        
measured in the studio of  ,haydon4     
,l ,very early in his life1 ,lord       
,egmont said of him1 he talks very much 
like an angel1 and does nothing at all4 
,de ,quincey speaks of his  indolence as
 inconceivable2 and ,joseph ,cottle     
relates some amusing  instances of his  
forgetfulness1 even of the hour at which
 he had  arranged to deliver a lecture  
to an assembled audience4          ,,the
 ,,chimney-,,corner4      ,,ii4         
,,little ,,foxes4    ,papa1 what are you
 going to give us this winter for our   
evening  readings8 said ,jennie4    ,i  
am thinking1 for one thing1 ,i replied1 
of preaching a course of  household     

sermons from a very odd text prefixed to
 a discourse which ,i  found at the     
bottom of the pamphlet-barrel in the    
garret4    ,don't say sermon1 papa1--it 
has such a dreadful sound2 and on winter
  evenings one wants something          
entertaining4    ,well1 treatise1 then1 
said ,i1 or discourse1 or essay1 or     
prelection2  ,i'm not particular as to  
words4    ,but what is the queer text   
that you found at the bottom of the     
pamphlet-barrel8    ,it was one preached
 upon by your mother's                  
great-great-grandfather1 the  very      
savory and much-respected ,simeon       
,shuttleworth1 'on the occasion of  the 
melancholy defections and divisions     
among the godly in the town of  ,west   
,dofield'2 and it runs thus1--',take us 
the foxes1 the little foxes1  that spoil
 the vines3 for our vines have tender   
grapes4'    ,it's a curious text enough2
 but ,i can't imagine what you are going
 to  make of it4    ,simply an essay on 
,little ,foxes1 said ,i2 by which ,i    

mean those  unsuspected1 unwatched1     
insignificant little causes that nibble 
away  domestic happiness1 and make home 
less than so noble an institution       
should be4 ,you may build beautiful1    
convenient1 attractive houses1--you  may
 hang the walls with lovely pictures and
 stud them with gems of ,art2  and there
 may be living there together persons   
bound by blood and  affection in one    
common interest1 leading a life common  
to themselves  and apart from others2   
and these persons may each one of them  
be  possessed of good and noble traits2 
there may be a common basis of          
affection1 of generosity1 of good       
principle1 of religion2 and yet1        
through the influence of some of these  
perverse1 nibbling1 insignificant       
little foxes1 half the clusters of      
happiness on these so promising vines   
may fail to come to maturity4 ,a little 
community of people1 all of whom  would 
be willing to die for each other1 may   
not be able to live happily  together2  

that is1 they may have far less         
happiness than their  circumstances1    
their fine and excellent traits1 entitle
 them to expect4    ,the reason for this
 in general is that home is a place not 
only of  strong affections1 but of      
entire unreserves2 it is life's undress 
rehearsal1 its back-room1 its           
dressing-room1 from which we go forth to
  more careful and guarded intercourse1 
leaving behind us much dbris of         
cast-off and every-day clothing4 ,hence 
has arisen the common proverb1  ',no man
 is a hero to his valet-de-chambre'2 and
 the common warning1  ',if you wish to  
keep your friend1 don't go and live with
 him4'    ,which is only another way of 
saying1 said my wife1 that we are all   
human and imperfect2 and the nearer you 
get to any human being1 the more        
defects you see4 ,the characters that   
can stand the test of daily  intimacy   
are about as numerous as four-leaved    
clovers in a meadow2 in  general1 those 
who do not annoy you with positive      

faults bore you with  their insipidity4'
 ,the evenness and beauty of a strong1  
well-defined  nature1 perfectly governed
 and balanced1 is about the last thing  
one is  likely to meet with in one's    
researches into life4    ,but what ,i   
have to say1 replied ,i1 is this1--that1
 family-life being  a state of          
unreserve1 a state in which there are   
few of those barriers  and veils that   
keep people in the world from seeing    
each other's defects  and mutually      
jarring and grating upon each other1 it 
is remarkable that  it is entered upon  
and maintained generally with less      
reflection1 less  care and forethought1 
than pertain to most kinds of business  
which men  and women set their hands to4
 ,a man does not undertake to run an    
engine  or manage a piece of machinery  
without some careful examination of its 
parts and capabilities1 and some inquiry
 whether he have the necessary          
knowledge1 skill1 and strength to make  
it do itself and him justice4 ,a  man   

does not try to play on the violin      
without seeing if his fingers are  long 
and flexible enough to bring out the    
harmonies and raise his  performance    
above the grade of dismal scraping to   
that of divine music4  ,what should we  
think of a man who should set a whole   
orchestra of  instruments upon playing  
together without the least provision or 
forethought as to their chording1 and   
then howl and tear his hair at the      
result8 ,it is not the fault of the     
instruments that they grate harsh       
thunders together2 they may each be     
noble and of celestial temper2 but      
united without regard to their nature1  
dire confusion is the result4  ,still   
worse were it1 if a man were supposed so
 stupid as to expect of  each instrument
 a rle opposed to its nature1--if he    
asked of the  octave-flute a bass solo1 
and condemned the trombone because it   
could  not do the work of the           
many-voiced violin4    ,yet just so     
carelessly is the work of forming a     

family often performed4  ,a man and     
woman come together from some affinity1 
some partial accord of  their nature    
which has inspired mutual affection4    
,there is generally  very little careful
 consideration of who and what they     
are1--no thought  of the reciprocal     
influence of mutual traits1--no previous
 chording and  testing of the           
instruments which are to make lifelong  
harmony or  discord1--and after a short 
period of engagement1 in which all their
  mutual relations are made as opposite 
as possible to those which must  follow 
marriage1 these two furnish their house 
and begin life together4  ,ten to one1  
the domestic roof is supposed at once   
the proper refuge for  relations and    
friends on both sides1 who also are     
introduced into the  interior concert   
without any special consideration of    
what is likely to  be the operation of  
character on character1 the play of     
instrument with  instrument2 then follow
 children1 each of whom is a separate   

entity1 a  separate will1 a separate    
force in the family2 and thus1 with the 
lesser  forces of servants and          
dependants1 a family is made up4 ,and   
there is no  wonder if all these        
chance-assorted instruments1 playing    
together1  sometimes make quite as much 
discord1 as harmony4 ,for if the husband
 and  wife chord1 the wife's sister or  
husband's mother may introduce a        
discord2 and then again1 each child of  
marked character introduces  another    
possibility of confusion4 ,the          
conservative forces of human  nature are
 so strong and so various1 that with all
 these drawbacks the  family state is   
after all the best and purest happiness 
that earth  affords4 ,but then1 with    
cultivation and care1 it might be a     
great deal  happier4 ,very fair pears   
have been raised by dropping a seed into
 a  good soil and letting it alone for  
years2 but finer and choicer are  raised
 by the watchings1 tendings1 prunings of
 the gardener4 ,wild  grape-vines bore  

very fine grapes1 and an abundance of   
them1 before our  friend ,dr4 ,grant    
took up his abode at ,iona1 and1        
studying the laws of  ,nature1 conjured 
up new species of rarer fruit and flavor
 out of the  old4 ,and so1 if all the   
little foxes that infest our domestic   
vine and  fig-tree were once hunted out 
and killed1 we might have fairer        
clusters  and fruit all winter4    ,but1
 papa1 said ,jennie1 to come to the     
foxes2 let's know what they  are4       
,well1 as the text says1 little foxes1  
the pet foxes of good people1           
unsuspected little animals1--on the     
whole1 often thought to be really       
creditable little beasts1 that may do   
good1 and at all events cannot do  much 
harm4 ,and as ,i have taken to the      
,puritanic order in my discourse1 ,i    
shall set them in sevens1 as ,noah did  
his clean beasts in the ark4 ,now  my   
seven little foxes are                  
these3--,fault-finding1 ,intolerance1   
,reticence1  ,irritability2             

,exactingness1 ,discourtesy1            
,self-,will4 ,and here1 turning  to my  
sermon1 is what ,i have to say about the
 first of them4           99       99   
99       99       99                    
,fault-finding1--a most respectable     
little animal1 that many people let  run
 freely among their domestic vines1     
under the notion that he helps  the     
growth of the grapes1 and is the        
principal means of keeping them in      
order4    ,now it may safely be set down
 as a maxim1 that nobody likes to be    
found  fault with1 but everybody likes  
to find fault when things do not suit   
him4    ,let my courteous reader ask    
him- or herself if he or she does not   
experience a relief and pleasure in     
finding fault with or about whatever    
troubles them4    ,this appears at first
 sight an anomaly in the provisions of  
,nature4  ,generally we are so          
constituted that what it is a pleasure  
to us to do  it is a pleasure to our    
neighbor to have us do4 ,it is a        

pleasure to  give1 and a pleasure to    
receive4 ,it is a pleasure to love1 and 
a  pleasure to be loved2 a pleasure to  
admire1 a pleasure to be admired4 ,it   
is a pleasure also to find fault1 but   
not a pleasure to be found fault  with4 
,furthermore1 those people whose        
sensitiveness of temperament leads  them
 to find the most fault are precisely   
those who can least bear to be  found   
fault with2 they bind heavy burdens and 
grievous to be borne1 and  lay them on  
other men's shoulders1 but they         
themselves cannot bear the  weight of a 
finger4    ,now the difficulty in the   
case is this3 ,there are things in life 
that  need to be altered2 and that      
things may be altered1 they must be     
spoken  of to the people whose business 
it is to make the change4 ,this opens   
wide the door of fault-finding to       
well-disposed people1 and gives them    
latitude of conscience to impose on     
their fellows all the annoyances  which 
they themselves feel4 ,the father and   

mother of a family are  fault-finders1  
ex officio2 and to them flows back the  
tide of every  separate individual's    
complaints in the domestic circle1 till 
often the  whole air of the house is    
chilled and darkened by a drizzling     
,scotch  mist of querulousness4 ,very   
bad are these mists for grape-vines1 and
  produce mildew in many a fair cluster4
    ,enthusius falls in love with       
,hermione1 because she looks like a     
moonbeam1--because she is ethereal as a 
summer cloud1 spirituelle4 ,he          
commences forthwith the perpetual       
adoration system that precedes          
marriage4 ,he assures her that she is   
too good for this world1 too  delicate  
and fair for any of the uses of poor    
mortality1--that she ought  to tread on 
roses1 sleep on the clouds1--that she   
ought never to shed a  tear1 know a     
fatigue1 or make an exertion1 but live  
apart in some  bright1 ethereal sphere  
worthy of her charms4 ,all which is duly
 chanted  in her ear in moonlight walks 

or sails1 and so often repeated that a  
sensible girl may be excused for        
believing that a little of it may be    
true4    ,now comes marriage1--and it   
turns out that ,enthusius is very       
particular  as to his coffee1 that he is
 excessively disturbed1 if his meals are
 at  all irregular1 and that he cannot  
be comfortable with any table           
arrangements which do not resemble those
 of his notable mother1 lately  deceased
 in the odor of sanctity2 he also wants 
his house in perfect  order at all      
hours4 ,still he does not propose to    
provide a trained  housekeeper2 it is   
all to be effected by means of certain  
raw ,irish  girls1 under the            
superintendence of this angel who was to
 tread on  roses1 sleep on clouds1 and  
never know an earthly care4 ,neither has
  ,enthusius ever considered it a part  
of a husband's duty to bear personal    
inconveniences in silence4 ,he would    
freely shed his blood for               
,hermione1--nay1 has often frantically  

proposed the same in the hours of       
courtship1 when of course nobody wanted 
it done1 and it could answer no  manner 
of use2 and thus to the idyllic         
dialogues of that period succeed  such  
as these3--    ,my dear1 this tea is    
smoked3 can't you get ,jane into the way
 of making  it better8    ,my dear1 ,i  
have tried2 but she will not do as ,i   
tell her4    ,well1 all ,i know is1     
other people can have good tea1 and ,i  
should think  we might4    ,and again at
 dinner3--    ,my dear1 this mutton is  
overdone again2 it is always overdone4  
,not always1 dear1 because you recollect
 on ,monday you said it was just  right4
    ,well1 almost always4    ,well1 my  
dear1 the reason to-day was1 ,i had     
company in the parlor1 and  could not go
 out to caution ,bridget1 as ,i         
generally do4 ,it's very  difficult to  
get things done with such a girl4    ,my
 mother's things were always well done1 
no matter what her girl was4    ,again3 
,my dear1 you must speak to the servants

 about wasting the coal4  ,i never saw  
such a consumption of fuel in a family  
of our size2 or1 ,my  dear1 how can you 
let ,maggie tear the morning paper8 or1 
,my dear1 ,i  shall actually have to    
give up coming to dinner1 if my dinners 
cannot be  regular2 or1 ,my dear1 ,i    
wish you would look at the way my shirts
 are  ironed1--it is perfectly          
scandalous2 or1 ,my dear1 you must not  
let  ,johnnie finger the mirror in the  
parlor2 or1 ,my dear1 you must stop  the
 children from playing in the garret2   
or1 ,my dear1 you must see  that ,maggie
 doesn't leave the mat out on the       
railing when she sweeps the  front hall2
 and so on1 up-stairs and down-stairs1  
in the lady's  chamber1 in attic1       
garret1 and cellar1 my dear is to see   
that nothing  goes wrong1 and she is    
found fault with when anything does4    
,yet ,enthusius1 when occasionally he   
finds his sometime angel in tears1  and 
she tells him he does not love her as he
 once did1 repudiates the  charge with  

all his heart1 and declares he loves her
 more than  ever1--and perhaps he does4 
,the only thing is that she has passed  
out of  the plane of moonshine and      
poetry into that of actualities4 ,while 
she  was considered an angel1 a star1 a 
bird1 an evening cloud1 of course  there
 was nothing to be found fault with in  
her2 but now that the angel  has become 
chief business-partner in an earthly    
working firm1 relations  are different4 
,enthusius could say the same things    
over again under the  same              
circumstances1 but unfortunately now    
they never are in the same              
circumstances4 ,enthusius is simply a   
man who is in the habit of speaking     
from impulse1 and saying a thing merely 
and only because he feels it4  ,before  
marriage he worshipped and adored his   
wife as an ideal being  dwelling in the 
land of dreams and poetries1 and did his
 very best to  make her unpractical and 
unfitted to enjoy the life to which he  
was to  introduce her after marriage4   

,after marriage he still yields         
unreflectingly to present impulses1     
which are no longer to praise1 but  to  
criticize and condemn4 ,the very        
sensibility to beauty and love of       
elegance1 which made him admire her     
before marriage1 now transferred to  the
 arrangement of the domestic mnage1 lead
 him daily to perceive a  hundred       
defects and find a hundred annoyances4  
,thus far we suppose an amiable1        
submissive wife1 who is only grieved1   
not provoked1--who has no sense of      
injustice1 and meekly strives to make   
good the hard conditions of her lot4    
,such poor1 little1 faded women have  we
 seen1 looking for all the world like   
plants that have been nursed and  forced
 into bloom in the steam-heat of the    
conservatory1 and are now  sickly and   
yellow1 dropping leaf by leaf1 in the   
dry1 dusty parlor4    ,but there is     
another side of the picture1--where the 
wife1 provoked and  indignant1 takes up 
the fault-finding trade in return1 and  

with the keen  arrows of her woman's wit
 searches and penetrates every joint of 
the  husband's armor1 showing herself   
full as unjust and far more culpable in 
this sort of conflict4    ,saddest of   
all sad things is it to see two once    
very dear friends  employing all that   
peculiar knowledge of each other which  
love had given  them only to harass and 
provoke1--thrusting and piercing with a 
certainty of aim that only past habits  
of confidence and affection could  have 
put in their power1 wounding their own  
hearts with every deadly  thrust they   
make at one another1 and all for such   
inexpressibly  miserable trifles as     
usually form the openings of            
fault-finding dramas4    ,for the       
contentions that loosen the very        
foundations of love1 that  crumble away 
all its fine traceries and carved work1 
about what  miserable1 worthless things 
do they commonly begin6--a dinner       
underdone1  too much oil consumed1 a    
newspaper torn1 a waste of coal or soap1

 a dish  broken6--and for this miserable
 sort of trash1 very good1 very         
generous1  very religious people will   
sometimes waste and throw away by       
double-handfuls the very thing for which
 houses are built1 and coal  burned1 and
 all the paraphernalia of a home        
established1--their  happiness4 ,better 
cold coffee1 smoky tea1 burnt meat1     
better any  inconvenience1 any loss1    
than a loss of love2 and nothing so     
surely  burns away love as constant     
fault-finding4    ,for fault-finding    
once allowed as a habit between two near
 and dear  friends comes in time to     
establish a chronic soreness1 so that   
the  mildest1 the most reasonable       
suggestion1 the gentlest implied        
reproof1  occasions burning irritation2 
and when this morbid stage has once set 
in1 the restoration of love seems       
wellnigh impossible4    ,for example3   
,enthusius1 having got up this morning  
in the best of  humors1 in the most     
playful tones begs ,hermione not to make

 the tails of  her gs quite so long2 and
 ,hermione fires up with--    ,and1     
pray1 what else wouldn't you wish me to 
do8 ,perhaps you would be  so good1 when
 you have leisure1 as to make out an    
alphabetical list of  the things in me  
that need correcting4    ,my dear1 you  
are unreasonable4    ,i don't think so4 
,i should like to get to the end of the 
requirements  of my lord and master     
sometimes4    ,now1 my dear1 you really 
are very silly4    ,please say something
 original1 my dear4 ,i have heard that  
till it has  lost the charm of novelty4 
,come now1 ,hermione1 don't let's       
quarrel4    ,my dear ,sir1 who thinks of
 quarrelling8 ,not ,i2 ,i'm sure ,i was 
only  asking to be directed4 ,i trust   
some time1 if ,i live to be ninety1 to  
suit your fastidious taste4 ,i trust the
 coffee is right this morning1  and the 
tea1 and the toast1 and the steak1 and  
the servants1  and the front-hall mat1  
and the upper-story hall-door1 and the  
basement premises2 and now ,i suppose ,i

 am to be trained in respect to my      
general education4 ,i shall set about   
the tails of my gs at once1 but  trust  
you will prepare a list of any other    
little things that need  emendation4    
,enthusius pushes away his coffee1 and  
drums on the table4    ,if ,i might be  
allowed one small criticism1 my dear1 ,i
 should observe  that it is not good    
manners to drum on the table1 said his  
fair  opposite4    ,hermione1 you are   
enough to drive a man frantic6 exclaims 
,enthusius1  rushing out with bitterness
 in his soul1 and a determination to    
take his  dinner at ,delmonico's4       
,enthusius feels himself an abused man1 
and thinks there never was such a       
sprite of a woman1--the most utterly    
unreasonable1 provoking human being  he 
ever met with4 ,what he does not think  
of is1 that it is his own               
inconsiderate1 constant fault-finding   
that has made every nerve so  sensitive 
and sore1 that the mildest suggestion of
 advice or reproof on  the most         

indifferent subject is impossible4 ,he  
has not1 to be sure1 been  the guilty   
partner in this morning's encounter2 he 
has said only what is  fair and proper1 
and she has been unreasonable and cross2
 but1 after  all1 the fault is remotely 
his4    ,when ,enthusius awoke1 after   
marriage1 to find in his ,hermione in   
very  deed only a bird1 a star1 a       
flower1 but no housekeeper1 why did he  
not  face the matter like an honest man8
 ,why did he not remember all the fine  
things about dependence and uselessness 
with which he had been filling  her head
 for a year or two1 and in common       
honesty exact no more from her  than he 
had bargained for8 ,can a bird make a   
good business-manager8 ,can  a flower   
oversee ,biddy and ,mike1 and impart to 
their uncircumcised ears  the high      
crafts and mysteries of elegant         
housekeeping8    ,if his little wife has
 to learn her domestic rle of household 
duty1  as most girls do1 by a thousand  
mortifications1 a thousand perplexities1

  a thousand failures1 let him1 in      
ordinary fairness1 make it as easy to   
her as possible4 ,let him remember with 
what admiring smiles1 before  marriage1 
he received her pretty professions of   
utter helplessness and  incapacity in   
domestic matters1 finding only poetry   
and grace in what1  after marriage1     
proved an annoyance4    ,and if a man   
finds that he has a wife ill adapted to 
wifely duties1 does  it follow that the 
best thing he can do is to blurt out1   
without form or  ceremony1 all the      
criticisms and corrections which may    
occur to him in  the many details of    
household life8 ,he would not dare to   
speak with as  little preface1 apology1 
or circumlocution1 to his               
business-manager1 to  his butcher1 or   
his baker4 ,when ,enthusius was a       
bachelor1 he never  criticized the table
 at his boarding-house without some     
reflection1 and  studying to take unto  
himself acceptable words whereby to     
soften the  asperity of the criticism4  

,the laws of society require that a man 
should  qualify1 soften1 and wisely time
 his admonitions to those he meets in   
the outer world1 or they will turn again
 and rend him4 ,but to his own  wife1 in
 his own house and home1 he can find    
fault without ceremony or  softening4   
,so he can2 and he can awake1 in the    
course of a year or two1  to find his   
wife a changed woman1 and his home      
unendurable4 ,he may find1  too1 that   
unceremonious fault-finding is a game   
that two can play at1  and that a woman 
can shoot her arrows with far more      
precision and skill  than a man4    ,but
 the fault lies not always on the side  
of the husband4 ,quite as often  is a   
devoted1 patient1 good-tempered man     
harassed and hunted and baited  by the  
inconsiderate fault-finding of a wife   
whose principal talent  seems to lie in 
the ability at first glance to discover 
and make  manifest the weak point in    
everything4    ,we have seen the most   
generous1 the most warm-hearted and     

obliging of  mortals1 under this sort of
 training1 made the most morose and     
disobliging of husbands4 ,sure to be    
found fault with1 whatever they do1     
they have at last ceased doing4 ,the    
disappointment of not pleasing they     
have abated by not trying to please4    
,we once knew a man who married a       
spoiled beauty1 whose murmurs1          
exactions1 and caprices were infinite4  
,he had at last1 as a refuge to  his    
wearied nerves1 settled down into a     
habit of utter disregard and  neglect2  
he treated her wishes and her complaints
 with equal  indifference1 and went on  
with his life as nearly as possible as  
if she  did not exist4 ,he silently     
provided for her what he thought proper1
  without troubling himself to notice   
her requests or listen to her           
grievances4 ,sickness came1 but the     
heart of her husband was cold and  gone2
 there was no sympathy left to warm her4
 ,death came1 and he  breathed freely as
 a man released4 ,he married again1--a  

woman with no  beauty1 but much love and
 goodness1--a woman who asked little1   
blamed  seldom1 and then with all the   
tact and address which the utmost       
thoughtfulness could devise2 and the    
passive1 negligent husband became  the  
attentive1 devoted slave of her will4   
,he was in her hands as clay in  the    
hands of the potter2 the least breath or
 suggestion of criticism  from her lips1
 who criticized so little and so        
thoughtfully1 weighed  more with him    
than many outspoken words4 ,so different
 is the same human  being1 according to 
the touch of the hand which plays upon  
him6    ,i have spoken hitherto of      
fault-finding as between husband and    
wife3 its  consequences are even worse  
as respects children4 ,the habit once   
suffered to grow up between the two that
 constitute the head of the  family     
descends and runs through all the       
branches4 ,children are more  hurt by   
indiscriminate1 thoughtless             
fault-finding than by any other one     

thing4 ,often a child has all the       
sensitiveness and all the               
susceptibility of a grown person1 added 
to the faults of childhood4  ,nothing   
about him is right as yet2 he is        
immature and faulty at all  points1 and 
everybody feels at perfect liberty to   
criticize him to right  and left1 above1
 below1 and around1 till he takes refuge
 either in  callous hardness or         
irritable moroseness4    ,a bright1     
noisy boy rushes in from school1 eager  
to tell his mother  something he has on 
his heart1 and ,number ,one cries out1--
    ,oh1 you've left the door open6 ,i  
do wish you wouldn't always leave the   
door open6 ,and do look at the mud on   
your shoes6 ,how many times must ,i     
tell you to wipe your feet8    ,now     
there you've thrown your cap on the sofa
 again4 ,when will you learn  to hang it
 up8    ,don't put your slate there2    
that isn't the place for it4    ,how    
dirty your hands are6 what have you been
 doing8    ,don't sit in that chair2 you

 break the springs1 jouncing4    ,mercy6
 how your hair looks6 ,do go up-stairs  
and comb it4    ,there1 if you haven't  
torn the braid all off your coat6 ,dear 
me1 what a  boy6    ,don't speak so     
loud2 your voice goes through my head4  
,i want to know1 ,jim1 if it was you    
that broke up that barrel that ,i  have 
been saving for brown flour4    ,i      
believe it was you1 ,jim1 that hacked   
the edge of my razor4    ,jim's been    
writing at my desk1 and blotted three   
sheets of the best  paper4    ,now the  
question is1 if any of the grown people 
of the family had to run  the gantlet of
 a string of criticisms on themselves   
equally true as  those that salute      
unlucky ,jim1 would they be any         
better-natured about it  than he is8    
,no2 but they are grown-up people2 they 
have rights that others are bound  to   
respect4 ,everybody cannot tell them    
exactly what he thinks about  everything
 they do4 ,if every one could and did1  
would there not be  terrible reactions8 

,servants in general are only grown-up  
children1 and the same  considerations  
apply to them4 ,a raw1 untrained ,irish 
girl introduced  into an elegant house  
has her head bewildered in every        
direction4 ,there  are the gas-pipes1   
the water-pipes1 the whole paraphernalia
 of elegant  and delicate conveniences1 
about which a thousand little details   
are to  be learned1 the neglect of any  
one of which may flood the house1 or    
poison it with foul air1 or bring       
innumerable inconveniences4 ,the        
setting of a genteel table and the      
waiting upon it involve fifty           
possibilities of mistake1 each one of   
which will grate on the nerves of  a    
whole family4 ,there is no wonder1 then1
 that the occasions of  fault-finding in
 families are so constant and harassing2
 and there is no  wonder that mistress  
and maid often meet each other on the   
terms of the  bear and the man who fell 
together fifty feet down from the limb  
of a  high tree1 and lay at the bottom  

of it1 looking each other in the face   
in helpless1 growling despair4 ,the     
mistress is rasped1 irritated1          
despairing1 and with good reason3 the   
maid is the same1 and with equally  good
 reason4 ,yet let the mistress be       
suddenly introduced into a              
printing-office1 and required1 with what
 little teaching could be given  her in 
a few rapid directions1 to set up the   
editorial of a morning  paper1 and it is
 probable she would be as stupid and    
bewildered as ,biddy  in her beautifully
 arranged house4    ,there are elegant  
houses which1 from causes like these1   
are ever vexed  like the troubled sea   
that cannot rest4 ,literally1 their     
table has  become a snare before them1  
and that which should have been for     
their  welfare a trap4 ,their gas and   
their water and their fire and their    
elegancies and ornaments1 all in        
unskilled1 blundering hands1 seem only  
so many guns in the hands of ,satan1    
through which he fires at their         

,christian graces day and night1--so    
that1 if their house is kept in  order1 
their temper and religion are not4    ,i
 am speaking now to the consciousness of
 thousands of women who are in  will and
 purpose real saints4 ,their souls go up
 to heaven--its love1 its  purity1 its  
rest--with every hymn and prayer and    
sacrament in church2  and they come home
 to be mortified1 disgraced1 and made to
 despise  themselves1 for the unlovely  
tempers1 the hasty words1 the cross     
looks1  the universal nervous           
irritability1 that result from this     
constant  jarring of finely toned chords
 under unskilled hands4    ,talk of     
hair-cloth shirts1 and scourgings1 and  
sleeping on ashes1 as  means of         
saintship6 there is no need of them in  
our country4 ,let a woman  once look at 
her domestic trials as her hair-cloth1  
her ashes1 her  scourges1--accept       
them1--rejoice in them1--smile and be   
quiet1 silent1  patient1 and loving     
under them1--and the convent can teach  

her no more2  she is a victorious saint4
    ,when the damper of the furnace is  
turned the wrong way by ,paddy1 after   
the five hundredth time of explanation1 
and the whole family awakes  coughing1  
sneezing1 strangling1--when the gas is  
blown out in the  nursery by ,biddy1 who
 has been instructed every day for weeks
 in the  danger of such a               
proceeding1--when the tumblers on the   
dinner-table are  found dim and         
streaked1 after weeks of training in the
 simple business  of washing and        
wiping1--when the ivory-handled knives  
and forks are left  soaking in hot      
dish-water1 after incessant explanations
 of the  consequences1--when four or    
five half-civilized beings1 above1      
below1  and all over the house1 are     
constantly forgetting the most important
  things at the very moment it is most  
necessary they should remember          
them1--there is no hope for the mistress
 morally1 unless she can in very  deed  
and truth accept her trials religiously1

 and conquer by accepting4  ,it is not  
apostles alone who can take pleasure in 
necessities and  distresses1 but mothers
 and housewives also1 if they would     
learn of the  ,apostle1 might say1 ,when
 ,i am weak1 then am ,i strong4    ,the 
burden ceases to gall when we have      
learned how to carry it4 ,we can  suffer
 patiently1 if we see any good come of  
it1 and say1 as an old  black woman of  
our acquaintance did of an event that   
crossed her  purpose1 ,well1 ,lord1 if  
it's you1 send it along4    ,but that   
this may be done1 that home-life1 in our
 unsettled1 changing  state of society1 
may become peaceful and restful1 there  
is one  ,christian grace1 much treated  
of by mystic writers1 that must return  
to  its honor in the ,christian ,church4
 ,i mean--,,the ,,grace ,,of ,,silence4 
,no words can express1 no tongue can    
tell1 the value of ,,not ,,speaking4    
,speech is silvern1 but silence is      
golden1 is an old and very precious     
proverb4    ,but1 say many voices1 what 

is to become of us1 if we may not speak8
  ,must we not correct our children and 
our servants and each other8 ,must  we  
let people go on doing wrong to the end 
of the chapter8    ,no2 fault must be   
found2 faults must be told1 errors      
corrected4 ,reproof  and admonition are 
duties of householders to their         
families1 and of all  true friends to   
one another4    ,but1 gentle reader1 let
 us look over life1 our own lives and   
the lives  of others1 and ask1 ,how much
 of the fault-finding which prevails has
 the  least tendency to do any good8    
,how much of it is well-timed1          
well-pointed1 deliberate1 and just1 so  
spoken as to be effective8    ,a wise   
reprover upon an obedient ear is one of 
the rare things  spoken of by           
,solomon1--the rarest1 perhaps1 to be   
met with4 ,how many  really religious   
people put any of their religion into   
their manner of  performing this most   
difficult office8 ,we find fault with a 
stove or  furnace which creates heat    

only to go up chimney and not warm the  
house4  ,we say it is wasteful4 ,just so
 wasteful often seem prayer-meetings1   
church-services1 and sacraments2 they   
create and excite lovely1 gentle1  holy 
feelings1--but1 if these do not pass out
 into the atmosphere of  daily life1 and
 warm and clear the air of our homes1   
there is a great  waste in our religion4
    ,we have been on our knees1         
confessing humbly that we are as awkward
 in  heavenly things1 as unfit for the  
,heavenly ,jerusalem1 as ,biddy and     
,mike1  and the little beggar-girl on   
our door-steps1 are for our parlors4 ,we
  have deplored our errors daily1       
hourly1 and confessed that the          
remembrance of them is grievous unto us1
 the burden of them is  intolerable1 and
 then we draw near in the sacrament to  
that ,incarnate  ,divinity whose        
infinite love covers all our            
imperfections with the  mantle of ,his  
perfections4 ,but when we return1 do we 
take our servants  and children by the  

throat because they are as untrained and
 awkward and  careless in earthly things
 as we have been in heavenly8 ,does no  
remembrance of ,christ's infinite       
patience temper our impatience1 when we 
have spoken seventy times seven1 and our
 words have been disregarded8  ,there is
 no mistake as to the sincerity of the  
religion which the church  excites4     
,what we want is to have it used in     
common life1 instead of  going up like  
hot air in a fireplace to lose itself in
 the infinite  abysses above4    ,in    
reproving and fault-finding1 we have    
beautiful examples in ,holy ,writ4      
,when ,saint ,paul has a reproof to     
administer to delinquent ,christians1   
how does he temper it with gentleness   
and praise6 how does he first make      
honorable note of all the good there is 
to be spoken of6 how does he  give      
assurance of his prayers and love6--and 
when at last the arrow  flies1 it goes  
all the straighter to the mark for this 
carefulness4    ,but there was a        

greater1 a purer1 a lovelier than ,paul1
 who made ,his  home on earth with      
twelve plain men1 ignorant1 prejudiced1 
slow to  learn1--and who to the very day
 of ,his death were still contending on 
a  point which ,he had repeatedly       
explained1 and troubling ,his last      
earthly  hours with the old contest1    
,who should be greatest4 ,when all else 
failed1 on ,his knees before them as    
their servant1 tenderly performing  for 
love the office of a slave1 he said1 ,if
 ,i1 your ,lord and ,master1  have      
washed your feet1 ye also ought to wash 
one another's feet4    ,when parents1   
employers1 and masters learn to reprove 
in this spirit1  reproofs will be more  
effective than they now are4 ,it was by 
the  exercise of this spirit that       
,fnelon transformed the proud1 petulant1
  irritable1 selfish ,duke of ,burgundy1
 making him humble1 gentle1 tolerant  of
 others1 and severe only to himself3 it 
was he who had for his motto1  that     
,perfection alone can bear with         

imperfection4    ,but apart from the    
fault-finding which has a definite aim1 
how much is  there that does not profess
 or intend or try to do anything more   
than  give vent to an irritated state of
 feeling6 ,the nettle stings us1 and we 
toss it with both hands at our neighbor2
 the fire burns us1 and we throw  coals 
and hot ashes at all and sundry of those
 about us4    ,there is fretfulness1 a  
mizzling1 drizzling rain of             
discomforting  remark2 there is         
grumbling1 a northeast storm that never 
clears2 there  is scolding1 the         
thunderstorm with lightning and hail4   
,all these are  worse than useless2 they
 are positive sins1 by whomsoever       
indulged1--sins as great and real as    
many that are shuddered at in  polite   
society4    ,all these are for the most 
part but the venting on our             
fellow-beings of  morbid feelings       
resulting from dyspepsia1 overtaxed     
nerves1 or general  ill health4    ,a   
minister eats too much mince-pie1 goes  

to his weekly lecture1 and1  seeing only
 half a dozen people there1 proceeds to 
grumble at those  half-dozen for the    
sins of such as stay away4 ,the ,church 
is cold1 there  is no interest in       
religion1 and so on3 a simple outpouring
 of the  blues4    ,you and ,i do in one
 week the work we ought to do in six2 we
 overtax  nerve and brain1 and then have
 weeks of darkness in which everything  
at  home seems running to destruction4  
,the servants never were so careless1   
the children never so noisy1 the house  
never so disorderly1 the ,state  never  
so ill-governed1 the ,church evidently  
going over to ,antichrist4  ,the only   
thing1 after all1 in which the existing 
condition of affairs  differs from that 
of a week ago is1 that we have used up  
our nervous  energy1 and are looking at 
the world through blue spectacles4 ,we  
ought  to resist the devil of           
fault-finding at this point1 and        
cultivate  silence as a grace till our  
nerves are rested4 ,there are times when

 no  one should trust himself to judge  
his neighbors1 or reprove his children  
and servants1 or find fault with his    
friends1--for he is so sharp-set  that  
he cannot strike a note without striking
 too hard4 ,then is the time  to try the
 grace of silence1 and1 what is better  
than silence1 the power  of prayer4     
,but it being premised that we are never
 to fret1 never to grumble1  never to   
scold1 and yet it being our duty in some
 way to make known and  get rectified   
the faults of others1 it remains to ask 
how2 and on this  head we will improvise
 a parable of two women4    ,mrs4       
,standfast is a woman of high tone1 and 
possessed of a power of  moral principle
 that impresses one even as sublime4    
,all her perceptions  of right and wrong
 are clear1 exact1 and minute2 she is   
charitable to  the poor1 kind to the    
sick and suffering1 and devoutly and    
earnestly  religious4 ,in all the minuti
 of woman's life she manifests an       
inconceivable precision and perfection4 

,everything she does is perfectly  done4
 ,she is true to all her promises to the
 very letter1 and so  punctual that     
railroad time might be kept by her      
instead of a  chronometer4    ,yet1 with
 all these excellent traits1 ,mrs4      
,standfast has not the faculty  of      
making a happy home4 ,she is that most  
hopeless of fault-finders1--a           
fault-finder from principle4 ,she has a 
high1 correct standard for  everything  
in the world1 from the regulation of the
 thoughts down to the  spreading of a   
sheet or the hemming of a towel2 and to 
this exact  standard she feels it her   
duty to bring every one in her          
household4 ,she  does not often scold1  
she is not actually fretful1 but she    
exercises  over her household a calm1   
inflexible severity1 rebuking every     
fault2  she overlooks nothing1 she      
excuses nothing1 she will accept of     
nothing  in any part of her domain but  
absolute perfection2 and her reproofs   
are  aimed with a true and steady point1

 and sent with a force that makes  them 
felt by the most obdurate4    ,hence1   
though she is rarely seen out of temper1
 and seldom or never  scolds1 yet she   
drives every one around her to despair  
by the use of the  calmest and most     
elegant ,english4 ,her servants fear1   
but do not love  her4 ,her husband1 an  
impulsive1 generous man1 somewhat       
inconsiderate and  careless in his      
habits1 is at times perfectly desperate 
under the  accumulated load of her      
disapprobation4 ,her children regard her
 as  inhabiting some high1 distant1     
unapproachable mountain-top of goodness1
  whence she is always looking down with
 reproving eyes on naughty boys  and    
girls4 ,they wonder how it is that so   
excellent a mamma should have  children 
who1 let them try to be good as hard as 
they can1 are always  sure to do        
something dreadful every day4    ,the   
trouble with ,mrs4 ,standfast is1 not   
that she has a high standard1  and not  
that she purposes and means to bring    

every one up to it1 but  that she does  
not take the right way4 ,she has set it 
down that to blame  a wrong-doer is the 
only way to cure wrong4 ,she has never  
learned that  it is as much her duty to 
praise as to blame1 and that people are 
drawn  to do right by being praised when
 they do it1 rather than driven by      
being blamed when they do not4    ,right
 across the way from ,mrs4 ,standfast is
 ,mrs4 ,easy1 a pretty little  creature1
 with not a tithe of her moral worth1--a
 merry1 pleasure-loving  woman1 of no   
particular force of principle1 whose    
great object in life  is to avoid its   
disagreeables and to secure its         
pleasures4    ,little ,mrs4 ,easy is    
adored by her husband1 her children1 her
 servants1  merely because it is her    
nature to say pleasant things to every  
one4 ,it  is a mere tact of pleasing1   
which she uses without knowing it4      
,while  ,mrs4 ,standfast1 surveying her 
well-set dining-table1 runs her keen eye
  over everything1 and at last brings up

 with1 ,jane1 look at that black  spot  
on the salt-spoon6 ,i am astonished at  
your carelessness6--,mrs4  ,easy would  
say1 ,why1 ,jane1 where did you learn to
 set a table so  nicely8 ,all looking   
beautifully1 except--ah6 let's see--just
 give a rub  to this salt-spoon2--now   
all is quite perfect4 ,mrs4 ,standfast's
  servants and children hear only of    
their failures2 these are always  before
 them and her4 ,mrs4 ,easy's servants   
hear of their successes4 ,she  praises  
their good points2 tells them they are  
doing well in this1 that1  and the other
 particular2 and finally exhorts them1  
on the strength of  having done so many 
things well1 to improve in what is yet  
lacking4 ,mrs4  ,easy's husband feels   
that he is always a hero in her eyes1   
and her  children feel that they are    
dear good children1 notwithstanding     
,mrs4  ,easy sometimes has her little   
tiffs of displeasure1 and scolds roundly
  when something falls out as it should 
not4    ,the two families show how much 

more may be done by a very ordinary     
woman1 through the mere instinct of     
praising and pleasing1 than by the      
greatest worth1 piety1 and principle1   
seeking to lift human nature by a  lever
 that never was meant to lift it by4    
,the faults and mistakes of us poor     
human beings are as often perpetuated   
by despair as by any other one thing4   
,have we not all been burdened by a     
consciousness of faults that we were    
slow to correct because we felt         
discouraged8 ,have we not been sensible 
of a real help sometimes from the       
presence of a friend who thought well of
 us1 believed in us1 set our  virtues in
 the best light1 and put our faults in  
the background8    ,let us depend upon  
it1 that the flesh and blood that are in
 us--the  needs1 the wants1 the         
despondencies--are in each of our       
fellows1 in  every awkward servant and  
careless child4    ,finally1 let us all 
resolve1--    ,first1 to attain to the  
grace of ,,silence4    ,second1 to deem 

all ,,fault-,,finding that does no good 
a ,,sin2 and to  resolve1 when we are   
happy ourselves1 not to poison the      
atmosphere for  our neighbors by calling
 on them to remark every painful and    
disagreeable feature of their daily     
life4    ,third1 to practise the grace  
and virtue of ,,praise4 ,we have all    
been  taught that it is our duty to     
praise ,god1 but few of us have         
reflected  on our duty to praise men2   
and yet for the same reason that we     
should  praise the divine goodness it is
 our duty to praise human excellence4   
,we should praise our friends1--our near
 and dear ones2 we should look on  and  
think of their virtues till their faults
 fade away2 and when we love  most1 and 
see most to love1 then only is the wise 
time wisely to speak  of what should    
still be altered4    ,parents should    
look out for occasions to commend their 
children1 as  carefully as they seek to 
reprove their faults2 and employers     
should  praise the good their servants  

do as strictly as they blame the evil4  
,whoever undertakes to use this weapon  
will find that praise goes farther  in  
many cases than blame4 ,watch till a    
blundering servant does something  well1
 and then praise him for it1 and you    
will see a new fire lighted  in the eye1
 and often you will find that in that   
one respect at least  you have secured  
excellence thenceforward4    ,when you  
blame1 which should be seldom1 let it be
 alone with the person1  quietly1       
considerately1 and with all the tact you
 are possessed of4 ,the  fashion of     
reproving children and servants in the  
presence of others  cannot be too much  
deprecated4 ,pride1 stubbornness1 and   
self-will are  aroused by this1 while a 
more private reproof might be received  
with  thankfulness4    ,as a general    
rule1 ,i would say1 treat children in   
these respects just as  you would grown 
people2 they are grown people in        
miniature1 and need as  careful         
consideration of their feelings as any  

of us4    ,lastly1 let us all make a    
bead-roll1 a holy rosary1 of all that is
 good  and agreeable in our position1   
our surroundings1 our daily lot1 of all 
that is good and agreeable in our       
friends1 our children1 our servants1    
and charge ourselves to repeat it daily1
 till the habit of our minds be  to     
praise and to commend2 and so doing1 we 
shall catch and kill one  ,little ,fox  
who hath destroyed many tender grapes4  
,,pro ,,patria    ,l4 ,m4 ,s41 ,,jun41  
,,sepult4 ,,dec4 #ba1 #ahfd4            
,drift1 snows of winter1 o'er the turf  
,that hides in death his cherished form6
      ,and roar1 ye pine-trees1 like the
 surf        ,that breaks before this   
eastern storm6        ,o turbulent      
,december blast6        ,o night        
tempestuous and grim6      ,ye cannot   
chill or overcast        ,the tender    
thought that dwells on him6             
,wilder the tumult he defied1           
,darker the leaden storm he braved1     
,where swept the battle's smoking tide1 

,and banners1 torn and blackened1 waved4
        ,not scathless he amid the fray3
        ,shot through the lungs1--the   
message went3      ,now surely ,love    
shall find a way        ,to hold him    
here at home content4        ,oh1 thou  
hast done enough1 ,love cried1          
,for duty1 fame1--enough1 indeed6       
,he touched his sabre1 and replied1--   
,it is our country's hour of need4      
,back to the field1 from respite brief1 
,back to the battle's fiery breath1     
,hurried our young high-hearted chief   
,to lead the charge where waited ,death4
        ,oh1 fallen in manhood's fairest
 noon1--        ,we will remember1 'mid 
our sighs1      ,he never yields his    
life too soon1        ,for country and  
for right who dies4          ,a         
,,fortnight ,,with ,,the ,,sanitary4    
,for three years ,i had been a thorough 
believer in the ,united ,states         
,sanitary ,commission4 ,reading         
carefully its publications1 listening   
with  tearful interest to the narrations

 of those who had been its immediate    
workers at the front1 following in      
imagination its campaigns of love and   
mercy1 from ,antietam to ,gettysburg1   
from ,belle ,plain to ,city ,point1 and 
thence to the very smoke and carnage of 
the actual battle-field1 ,i had  come to
 cherish an unfeigned admiration for it 
and its work4 ,for three  years1 too1 ,i
 had been an earnest laborer at one of  
its  outposts1--striving with others    
ever to deepen the interest and increase
  the fidelity of the loyal men and     
women of a loyal ,new ,england town4 ,i 
was prepared then1 both from my hearty  
respect for the charity and from  my    
general conception of the nature and    
vastness of its operations1 to  welcome 
every opportunity to improve my         
knowledge of its plans and  practical   
workings4 ,i therefore gladly accepted  
the invitation which  came to me to     
visit the head-quarters of the          
,commission at ,washington1  and to     
examine for myself the character and    

amount of the benefits which  it        
confers4    ,the evening of ,august     
#bc;d found me1 after a speedy and      
pleasant trip  southward1 safely        
ensconced in the sanctum of my good     
friend ,mr4 ,knapp1  the head of the    
,special ,relief ,department4 ,starting 
from that base of  operations1 ,i spent 
two crowded weeks in ceaseless          
inquiries4 ,every  avenue of information
 was thrown wide open4 ,two days ,i     
wandered1 but not  aimlessly1 from      
office to office1 from storehouse to    
storehouse1 from  soldiers' home to     
soldiers' home1 conversing with the men 
who have given  themselves up           
unstintedly to this charity1 examining  
the books of the  ,commission1 gathering
 statistics1 seeing1 as it were1 the    
hungry soldier  fed and the naked       
soldier clothed1 and the sick and       
wounded soldier  cared for with a more  
than fraternal kindness4 ,i visited the 
hospitals1  and with my own hands       
distributed the ,sanitary delicacies to 

the  suffering men4 ,steaming down the  
,chesapeake1 and up the ,james1 and     
along  its homeless shores1 ,i came to  
,city ,point2 was a day and a night on  
board the ,sanitary barges1 whence full 
streams of comfort are flowing  with an 
unbroken current to all our diverging   
camps2 passed a tranquil1  beautiful    
,sabbath in that city of the sick and   
wounded1 whose white  tents look down   
from the bluffs upon the turbid river2  
rode thirteen  miles out almost to the  
,weldon ,road1 then in sharp contest    
between our  ,fifth ,army ,corps and the
 ,rebels2 from the hills which ,baldy   
,smith  stormed in ,june saw the spires 
of ,petersburg2 went from tent to tent  
and  from bedside to bedside in the     
field hospitals of the ,fifth and ,ninth
  ,corps1 where the luxuries prepared by
 willing hands at home were  bringing   
life and strength to fevered lips and   
broken bodies4 ,i came  back with my    
courage re-animated1 and with a more    
perfect faith in the  ultimate triumph  

of the good cause4 ,i came back with a  
heartier respect  for our soldiers1     
whose patience in hardship and courage  
in danger are  rivalled only by the     
heroism with which they bear the pains  
of sickness  and wounds4 ,i came back   
especially with the conviction1 that1 no
 matter  how much we had contributed to 
the ,sanitary work1 we had done only    
that  which it was our duty to do1 and  
that1 so long as we could furnish       
shelter for our families and food for   
our children1 it was our plain          
obligation to give and to continue      
giving out of our riches or out of  our 
poverty4           99       99       99 
99       99    ,i have felt that in no  
way could ,i do better service than by  
seeking to  answer for others the very  
questions which my fortnight with the   
,sanitary has answered for me4 ,most1 no
 doubt1 have a general conviction  that 
the charity inaugurated by the ,sanitary
 ,commission is at once  marvellous in  
its extent and unique in the history of 

war4 ,all1 perhaps1  are prepared to    
allow that the heart which conceived    
such an enterprise1  and the mind which 
organized it1 and the persistent will   
which carried  it to a successful issue1
 are entitled to all the praise which we
 can  give them4 ,few will deny now that
 this and kindred associations1 by      
decreasing the waste of war1 will affect
 in an important degree our  national   
fortunes4 ,and most1 indeed1 know       
something even about the  details of    
,sanitary work4 ,they comprehend1 at    
least1 that through its  agency many a  
homely comfort and many a home luxury   
find their way to  the wards of great   
hospitals4 ,they have seen1 too1 the    
,commission step  forward in great      
emergencies1 after some terrible battle1
 when every  energy of ,government was  
burdened and overburdened by the        
gigantic  demands of the hour1 and from 
its storehouses send thousands of       
packages1 and from its offices hundreds 
of relief agents1 to help to  meet      

almost unprecedented exigencies4    ,but
 what people wish to know1 and what1    
despite all that has been  written1 they
 do not know fully and definitely1 is   
how and when and  where1 and through    
what channels and by what methods1 the  
,commission  works3 precisely how the   
millions which have been poured into its
  treasury from public contributions and
 private benefactions have been  coined 
into comfort for the soldier1--how the  
thousands and hundreds of  thousands of 
garments which have gone forth to       
unknown destinations have  been made    
warmth for his body and cheer to his    
soul4 ,the whole height  and depth and  
length and breadth of ,sanitary work1   
what varied  activities and what        
multiform charities are included in the 
great  circumference of its             
organization1--of that not one in twenty
 has any  adequate conception4 ,and all 
about that is what everybody wishes to  
know4 ,the curiosity1 moreover1 which   
dictates such queries1 is a natural  and

 laudable curiosity4 ,those who have    
given at every call1 and often  from    
scanty means1 and those who have plied  
the needle summer and  winter1 early and
 late1 have a right to put such         
questions4 ,the  ,commission wishes to  
answer all proper inquiries fully and   
unreservedly4  ,it would throw open its 
operations to the broadest sunlight4 ,it
 believes  that the more entirely it is 
known1 in its successes and its failures
  alike1 the more sure it is to be      
liberally sustained4 ,to bring the      
humblest contributor from the most      
distant branch1 as it were1 into        
immediate communication with the front  
is a work most desirable to be  done4 ,i
 do not wish to glorify the ,commission1
 nor to theorize about it1  nor to      
discuss its relative merit as compared  
with that of kindred                    
organizations1--but rather to tell just 
what it is doing1 precisely  where the  
money goes1 and exactly what kinds of   
good are attempted4           99        

99       99       99       99    ,the   
work of the ,sanitary ,commission may be
 naturally and conveniently  classed    
under five heads4    ,first1 the work   
undertaken for the prevention of        
sickness and suffering4    ,second1 the 
,special ,relief ,department4    ,third1
 the ,hospital ,directory4    ,fourth1  
the assistance given to stationary      
hospitals4    ,fifth1 the grand         
operations in the front1 on or near the 
actual  battle-field4           99      
99       99       99       99    ,the   
efforts for the prevention of suffering 
and sickness are first in  order of     
time1 and possibly first in importance4 
,when this war  commenced1 we had no    
wounded and we had no sick4 ,what we did
 have was a  crowd of men full of       
untrained courage1 but who knew little  
or nothing  about military discipline1  
and as little in regard to what was     
necessary  for the preservation of their
 health4 ,what we did have was hundreds 
and  thousands of officers1 taken from  

every walk of life1 who were1 for the   
most part1 men of great natural         
intelligence1 but who did not at all    
comprehend that it was their duty not   
only to lead their men in battle1  but  
to care for their health and their      
habits1 and who had never dreamed  that 
such homely considerations as what are  
the best modes of cooking  food1 what   
are the most healthy localities in which
 to pitch tents1 what  is the right     
position for drains1 had anything to do 
with the art of  war4 ,what we did have 
was surgeons1 many of whom had achieved 
an  honorable reputation in the walks of
 civil life1 but who1 on this new       
field1 were alike inexperienced and     
untried4 ,the manifest danger was1  that
 this mass of living valor and embodied 
patriotism would simply be              
squandered1--that1 as in the terrible   
,walcheren ,expedition1 or in the       
,crimea1 the men whose strength and     
courage might decide a campaign would   
only furnish food for the hospital and  

the grave4    ,who should avert this    
danger8 ,the ,government could not4 ,it 
had no time  to sit down and study      
sanitary science4 ,it was bringing      
together  everything1 where it          
found--nothing4 ,out of farmers and     
merchants and  students it was          
organizing the most efficient of armies4
 ,it was sending  its agents all over   
the world to buy guns and munitions of  
war4 ,it was  tasking our factories to  
produce blankets and overcoats1         
knapsacks and  haversacks1 wagons and   
tents1 and all that goes to make up the 
multifarious equipment of an army4 ,it  
was peering into our dock-yards to  find
 steamers and sailing-vessels out of    
which to gather makeshift  navies1 until
 it could find leisure to build stancher
 ships4 ,manifestly  the ,government had
 no time for such a work4 ,the existing 
,medical ,bureau  was hardly equal to   
the task4 ,organized to take charge of  
an army of ten  thousand men1 in the    
twinkling of an eye that army became    

five hundred  thousand4 ,at the         
beginning of the war the medical staff  
must have been  very busy and very      
heavily burdened4 ,with great hospitals 
to build1 with  troops of willing1 but  
young and inexperienced surgeons to     
train to a  knowledge of their duties   
and to send east and west and north and 
south1  with every department of medical
 science to be enlarged at once to the  
proportions of the war1 it had little   
leisure for excursions into fresh       
fields of inquiry4 ,that it brought     
order so quickly out of chaos1 that  it 
was able to extemporize a good working  
system1 is a sufficient  testimony to   
its general fidelity and efficiency4 ,it
 was the ,sanitary  ,commission which   
undertook this special duty4 ,it        
undertook to find out  some of the laws 
of health which apply to army life1 and 
then to scatter  the knowledge of those 
laws broadcast4    ,prevention1         
therefore1 effort not so much to comfort
 and cure the sick  soldier as to keep  

him from being sick at all1 was1 in     
order of time1  properly the first work4
 ,and it is doubtful whether at the     
outset  anything more was contemplated4 
,the memorial to the ,war ,department in
  ,may1 #ahfa1 says explicitly that the 
object of the ,commission is to  bring  
to bear upon the health1 comfort1 and   
morale of our troops the  fullest and   
ripest teachings of sanitary science4   
,how many of the  contributors to the   
funds of the ,society are aware what an 
immense work  in this direction has been
 undertaken1 and how much has been      
accomplished to prevent sickness and the
 consequent depletion and  perhaps      
defeat of our armies8 ,as ,i have       
already indicated1 at the  commencement 
of the war we knew little or nothing    
about what was  necessary to keep men in
 military service well1--what food1 what
  clothing1 what tents1 what camps1 what
 recreations1 what everything1 ,i  may  
say4 ,now the ,sanitary ,commission has 
made searching inquiries  touching every

 point of camp and soldier              
life1--gathering in facts from  all     
quarters1 and seeking to attain to some 
fixed sanitary principles4  ,it has sent
 the most eminent medical men on tours  
of inspection to all  our camps1 who    
have put questions and given hints to   
the very men to  whom they were of the  
most direct importance4 ,as a result1 we
 have a  mass of facts1 which1 in the   
breadth of the field which they cover1  
in  the number of vital questions which 
they settle1 and in the fulness and     
accuracy of the testimony by which they 
are sustained1 are worth more  than all 
the sanitary statistics of all other    
nations put together4    ,and we are to 
consider that these inquiries were from 
the beginning  turned to practical use4 
,if you look over your pile of dusty    
pamphlets1  very likely you will find a 
little ,sanitary tract entitled1 ,rules 
for  ,preserving the ,health of the     
,soldier4 ,this was issued almost before
 the  war had seriously begun4 ,or you  

will come across paper containing the   
last results of the last foreign        
investigations4 ,so early was the good  
seed of sanitary knowledge sown4 ,we    
must remember1 too1 how many  mooted1   
yet vital questions have now been put to
 rest4 ,take an  example1--,quinine4    
,everybody had a general notion that    
quinine was as  valuable as a preventive
 of disease as a cure4 ,but how definite
 was our  knowledge8 ,how many knew when
 and in what positions and to what      
extent  it was valuable8 ,as early as   
#ahfa the ,commission prepared and      
published  what has been justly termed  
an exhaustive monograph on the whole    
subject1 collecting into a brief space  
all the best testimony bearing  upon the
 question4 ,this was the beginning of an
 investigation which1  pursued through a
 vast number of cases1 has demonstrated1
 that1 in  peculiar localities and under
 certain circumstances1 quinine in full 
doses is an almost absolute necessity4  
,and in such localities1 and under  such

 circumstances1 ,government issues now a
 daily ration to every  man1 saving who 
can tell how many valuable lives8 ,one  
more  illustration1--,camps4 ,suppose   
you were to lead a thousand men into the
  ,southern country4 ,would you know    
where to encamp them8 whether with a    
southern or a northern exposure8 on a   
breezy hill1 or in a sheltered  valley8 
beneath the shade of groves1 or out in  
the broad sunshine8 ,could  you tell    
what kind of soil was healthiest1 or how
 near to each other you  could safely   
pitch your tents1 or whether it would be
 best for your men  to sleep on the bare
 ground or on straw or on pine boughs8  
,yet1 if you  inquire1 you will find    
that all these questions and countless  
others are  definitely settled1--thanks 
in a great measure to the ,sanitary     
,commission1 which has gladly given its 
ounce of prevention1 that it may  spare 
its pound of cure4    ,if you imagine   
that the need of this work of prevention
 has ceased1 you  are greatly mistaken4 

,only last summer1 in the single month  
of ,june1 the  ,commission distributed1 
in the ,army of the ,potomac alone1 over
 a hundred  tons of canned fruits and   
tomatoes1 and not less than five        
thousand  barrels of pickles and fresh  
vegetables4 ,it is hardly too much to   
say  that what the ,commission did in   
this respect has gone far towards       
enabling our gallant army to disappoint 
the hopes of the enemy1 and to  hold1   
amid the deadly assaults of malaria1 the
 vantage-ground which it  has won before
 ,petersburg and ,richmond4 ,all through
 the spring and  summer1 too1 at        
,chattanooga1 on the very soil which war
 had ploughed and  desolated1 invalid   
soldiers have been cultivating hundreds 
of acres of  vegetables4 ,and on the    
rugged sides of ,missionary ,ridge1 and 
along the  sunny slopes of ,central     
,tennessee1 the same forethought has    
brought to  perfection1 in many a       
deserted vineyard1 the purple glory of  
the grape4  ,and this not merely to     

cure1 but to prevent1 to keep up the    
strength and  vigor of the brave men who
 have marched victoriously from the     
banks of  the ,ohio to ,atlanta4    ,nor
 is it likely that the value of this    
office will cease so long as the  war   
lasts4 ,in the future1 as in the past1  
new conditions1 new  exigencies1 and new
 dangers will arise4 ,and to the end the
 foresight  which guards will be as true
 a friend to the soldier as the kindness
  which assuages his pains4 ,looking    
back1 therefore1 upon the whole field1  
and speaking with a full understanding  
of the meaning of the language1 ,i  am  
ready to affirm1 that1 if the ,sanitary 
,commission had undertaken  nothing but 
the work of preventing sickness1 and had
 accomplished  nothing in any other     
direction1 the army and the country     
would have  received in that alone an   
ample return for all the money which has
 been  lavished4           99       99  
99       99       99    ,i come now to  
the ,special ,relief ,department4 ,i    

should call this a sort  of             
philanthropic drag-net1 differing from  
that mentioned in the ,gospel  in that  
it seems to gather up nothing bad which 
needs to be thrown away4  ,in other     
words1 it appeared to me as though any  
and every kind of  ,sanitary good which 
ought to be done1 and yet was not large 
enough or  distinct enough to constitute
 a separate branch1 was set down as     
,special  ,relief4 ,the whole system of 
homes and lodges to feed the hungry and 
shelter the homeless comes directly     
under the head of ,special ,relief4     
,the immense collection of back pay1    
bounties1 pensions1 and prize-money1    
which is made gratuitously by the       
,commission1 is ,special ,relief4       
,visits  to the hospitals are under the 
direction of this same department4 ,and 
even the ,directory and the vast work   
done at the front perhaps  legitimately 
belong to it4 ,we can readily conceive1 
therefore1 that the  ,commission has no 
department which is larger or more      

important1 or which  covers so wide and 
diversified a field of activity4 ,let us
 survey that  field a little closer4    
,sanitary homes and lodges1--what are   
they8 ,a soldier is discharged1 or  he  
has a furlough4 ,he is not well and     
strong1--and he has no money1  certainly
 none to spare4 ,he ought not to sleep  
on the ground1 and he  ought not to go  
hungry4 ,but what is everybody's        
business is apt to be  nobody's         
business4 ,fortunately the ,commission  
has seen and met this  want4 ,in        
,washington1 on ,h ,street1 there is a  
block of rough1 but  comfortable        
one-story wooden buildings1 erected for 
various purposes of  ,special ,relief1  
and1 amongst others1 for the very one   
which ,i have  mentioned4 ,in the first 
place1 there is a large room containing 
ninety-six berths1 where any soldier1   
having proper claims1 can obtain  decent
 lodging free of expense4 ,in the second
 place1 there is a kitchen1  and a neat1
 cheerful dining-room1 with seats for a 

hundred and fifty4  ,here plain and     
substantial meals are furnished to all  
comers4 ,this table  of one hundred and 
fifty has often1 and indeed usually1 to 
be spread  three times2 so that the     
,commission feeds daily at this place   
alone some  four hundred soldiers1 and  
lodges ninety to a hundred more4 ,the   
home  which ,i have now described is    
simply for transient calls4    ,near the
 depot there is a home of a more        
permanent character4 ,when a  soldier is
 discharged from the service1 the       
,government has1 in the  nature of the  
case1 no further charge of him4 ,suppose
 now that he is  taken sick1 with1 no   
money in his purse and no friends1 near4
 ,can you  imagine a position more      
forlorn8 ,and forlorn indeed it would1  
be1 were  it not for the ,commission4   
,the sick home is a large three-story   
building1 with three or four one-story  
buildings added on each side4  ,here    
there is furnished food for all2 then   
one hundred and fifty beds  for those   

who are not really sick1 but only ailing
 and worn-out2 then  bathing-rooms2 and1
 finally1 a reading-room4 ,there is     
here1 too1 a  hospital ward1 with the   
requisite nurses and medical attendance4
 ,in this  ward ,i saw a little boy1    
apparently not over twelve years of age1
 who  had strayed from his home1--if1   
alas1 he had one6--and followed to the  
field an ,ohio regiment of hundred-days'
 men1 and who had been taken sick  and  
left behind4 ,who he was or where from  
nobody knew4 ,tenderly cared  for1 but  
likely to die6 ,a sad sight to look     
upon6 ,one feature more4  ,every        
,tuesday1 ,thursday1 and ,saturday a    
physician goes from the home in         
,washington to ,new ,york1 taking charge
 of those who are too sick or too       
crippled to care for themselves2 while  
the relief agents procure for the  sick 
soldier the half-price ticket to which  
he is entitled1 or else give  him one1  
and such articles of clothing as are    
needful to send him in  comfort to his  

own home4    ,i must not fail to speak  
in this connection of another beautiful 
ministry1--the home for soldiers' wives 
and mothers4 ,a soldier is like  other  
human beings4 ,in his sickness he yearns
 for a sight of the  familiar faces1 and
 sends for wife or mother2 or wife or   
mother1 unable  to bear longer the      
uncertainty1 when she can get no tidings
 from the  absent1 starts for           
,washington4 ,there1 searching vainly   
for husband or  son1 she spends all or  
nearly all her money4 ,or if she finds  
him1 it may  well be that he has no     
funds with which to help her4 ,in the   
little  buildings on one side of the    
refuge for the sick are rooms where some
  sixty-five can receive decent lodging 
and nourishing food2 and if  actually   
penniless1 the ,commission will procure 
them tickets and send  them back to     
their friends4    ,we often hear people 
wondering1 almost in a skeptical tone1  
where all  the ,commission's money goes4
 ,when ,i was at ,washington and ,city  

,point1 ,i  only asked where it all came
 from4 ,consider what it must cost      
simply to  feed and lodge these soldiers
 and their wives at ,washington4 ,and   
then  remember that this is but one of  
many similar homes scattered            
everywhere3 at ,baltimore1 ,washington1 
and ,alexandria1 in the ,eastern        
,department2 at ,louisville1 ,nashville1
 ,chattanooga1 in the ,western2 at  ,new
 ,orleans and ,baton ,rouge1 in the     
,southwestern2 and at many another      
place beside4 ,and1 finally1 reflect    
that this whole system of homes is      
really but one portion of one branch of 
,sanitary work4    ,the collection of   
back pay1 bounties1 and pensions1--how  
many have a  definite idea of this work8
 ,not many1 ,i suspect4 ,yet it takes   
all the  time of many persons to        
accomplish it1 and it was the branch of 
,sanitary  work which awakened in my own
 mind the deepest regard2 for it has its
  foundation in a higher virtue than any
 mere sentimental charity1--yea1  in the

 highest virtue known in heaven or on   
earth1--justice4 ,however  impossible it
 may be to prevent such occurrences1    
certainly it is a  cruel and undeserved 
hardship to a soldier who has served    
faithfully and  fought for his country1 
and has perhaps been wounded and almost 
died at  the post of honor and duty1    
that he should be unable to obtain his  
hard-earned pittance1 when1 too1 he     
needs it for his own comfort1 or  when  
it may be that his family need it to    
keep them from absolute  suffering4     
,look at a single class of these        
collections1--the back pay of sick men4 
,government1 we all allow1 must have    
some system in its disbursements4 ,it   
should not pay money without a voucher1 
and the proper voucher of a  soldier is 
the pay-roll of the regiment or company 
of which he is a  member4 ,now a sick or
 wounded man drops out of the ranks4 ,he
 gets into a  field hospital to which he
 does not belong4 ,he is transferred    
from one  hospital to another1 from     

hospital to convalescent camp1 and      
finally1 it  may be1 is put on the list 
of men to be discharged for physical    
disability4 ,meanwhile his commanding   
officer does not know where he is1      
cannot trace him thinks it very likely  
that he is a deserter4 ,on pay-day  the 
man's name is not on the roll1 and1     
having no voucher1 he gets no  money4   
,you say that there ought to be a       
remedy4 ,there is none4 ,it would  be   
difficult to devise one4 ,what shall the
 soldier do8 ,he cannot go from  point  
to point to collect evidence1 for he is 
sick4 ,besides1 he is  utterly ignorant 
of the necessary forms4 ,if he applies  
to a lawyer1 it  costs him often from   
one half to three quarters of all he    
gets4 ,very  likely the lawyer cannot   
afford to take care of one or two petty 
cases  for a less price4 ,in this       
emergency the ,commission steps in1 and1
 with  its knowledge of routine and its 
credit in all quarters1 obtains for the 
poor fellow for nothing what he has in  

vain sought for in other ways4  ,take   
one single case1 and what they would    
call at the ,relief ,office an  easy    
case4 ,study it attentively1 and you    
will get an idea of all  cases1--and you
 will understand1 moreover1 how much    
work has to be done1  and how impossible
 it would be for a sick man to do it4   
,charles ,w4 ,j---- is a member of      
,company ,k1 ,one ,hundred and          
,twenty-,first  ,new ,york ,regiment1   
and he has been transferred to this     
company and  regiment from ,company ,f  
of the ,sixteenth ,new ,york4 ,he has   
been thus  transferred for the reason   
that the ,sixteenth ,new ,york is a two 
years'  regiment1 whose time has        
expired1 while he is a three years'     
recruit1  who has a year or two more to 
serve4 ,now he claims that pay is due   
him  from ,november #a1 #ahfc1 to       
,august #a1 #ahfd1 and that he needs his
 pay very  much to send home to his     
wife4 ,he represents that he was at     
,schuyler  ,hospital from the time he   

left the ranks until ,december #ag1     
#ahfc2 that  then he was sent to        
,convalescent ,camp1 ,new ,york ,harbor2
 and on ,december  #bi to ,camp of      
,distribution at ,alexandria2 whence1   
,february #h1 #ahfd1 he  was brought to 
,staunton ,hospital1 ,washington1 where 
he now is4 ,he has  never joined his new
 regiment1 has only been transferred    
with others to  its rolls4 ,his new     
officers have never seen him1 and do not
 know where  he is4 ,the relief agent   
hears the story and then sets about     
proving all  its details3 first1 that   
the man was a member of the ,sixteenth  
,new ,york  ,regiment2 second1 that he  
has been transferred to the ,one        
,hundred and  ,twenty-,first ,regiment2 
third1 that he has never been paid      
beyond  ,november #a1 #ahfc2 fourth1    
that he has really been in the various  
hospitals and camps which he mentions4  
,this evidence is procured by  writing  
to agents and surgeons at convalescent  
and distributing camps1  and at         

,hospital ,schuyler1 and by examining   
the rolls of the ,sixteenth  and ,one   
,hundred and ,twenty-,first ,regiments4 
,in a few days or weeks the  man's story
 is proved to be correct1 and he is put 
into a position to  receive his pay1--a 
satisfaction not simply in a pecuniary  
sense1 but  also to his soldierly pride1
 by removing an undeserved charge of    
desertion4    ,now ,i beg my readers not
 to imagine that this is a difficult    
case4 ,at  the ,relief ,rooms they      
treasure up and mysteriously display1   
much as ,i  suspect a soldier would     
flaunt a captured battle-flag1 a certain
 roll of  paper1 ,i dare not say how    
many yards long1 covered with           
certificates  from one end to the other1
 obtained from all parts of the country 
and  from all sorts of persons1 and all 
necessary in order to secure perhaps  a 
three or six months' pay of one sick    
soldier4 ,the correspondence of  the    
back-pay department is itself a burden4 
,from thirty to forty letters  on an    

average are received daily at one of its
 offices4 ,they are written  in all     
languages1--,english1 ,german1          
,french1--and must be read1  translated1
 and the ideas1 conveyed often in the   
blindest style1  ascertained and        
answered4    ,a new branch has been     
recently added1--the collection of pay  
for the  families of those who are      
prisoners in ,rebeldom4 ,but as this    
involves no  new principles or fresh    
details1 ,i pass it by4 ,another class  
of cases  should receive a moment's     
notice4 ,this includes the collection of
  bounties for discharged soldiers1 of  
pensions for wounded soldiers1 of       
bounty1 back pay1 and pensions for the  
families of deceased soldiers1  and of  
prize-money for sailors4 ,these cases   
are not1 as a general rule1  as         
intricate as those which ,i have already
 considered1 inasmuch as the  proper    
departments have a regular system of    
investigation1 and take up  and examine 
for themselves each case in its turn4   

,all that the  ,commission does is to   
put the soldier on the right track1 and 
to make  out and present for him the    
fitting application4 ,it undertook this 
because ,washington was infested with a 
horde of sharpers1 who1 by false        
representations1 defrauded the soldiers 
out of large sums4    ,i cannot more    
appropriately close this branch of my   
subject than by  stating the simple     
fact1 that during the months of ,july   
and ,august the  relief agents examined 
and brought to a successful issue #hji  
cases of  back pay and bounty-money1    
averaging #abe1--bjc cases of invalid   
pensions1 #cgh cases of widows'         
pensions1 and #aj cases of naval        
pensions1  averaging #h a month1--and   
#aba cases of prize-money1 averaging    
#hj4    ,i have only to add that the    
amount of good which can be done in this
  direction seems to be limited only by 
the capacity of those who  undertake to 
do it4 ,a relief agent said to me1 in   
conversation1 that in  one hospital in  

,philadelphia there were several        
hundreds who claimed1  but were unable  
to collect their just dues1--and that   
what was true of  this hospital was true
 to a less extent of all of them4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,the ,hospital ,directory is a most     
interesting branch of ,sanitary work4   
,not because it will compare with many  
other branches in extent of  usefulness1
 but because it shows what a            
wide-reaching philanthropy is at  work1 
seeking to furnish every possible       
alleviation to the inevitable  hardships
 of war4 ,whoever has at any time had a 
sick or wounded friend  in the army     
knows how difficult it often is to      
obtain any intelligence  about him4 ,i  
have in mind a poor woman1 who exhausted
 every resource in  seeking to ascertain
 the whereabouts of a sick son1 and who 
never  received any tidings of him1     
until one day1 months after1 he came    
home1  worn-out and broken1 to die4 ,the
 regiment is in active service and      

passes on1 while the sick man goes back4
 ,he has several transfers1  too1--first
 to the corps hospital on the field1    
then to the army  hospital at ,city     
,point1 then to ,washington1 and very   
possibly again to  some hospital in     
,baltimore1 ,philadelphia1 or other city
 or town farther  north1 and on that    
account believed to be more healthy4    
,meanwhile1 amid  all these changes1 the
 man may be delirious1 or from some     
other cause  unable to communicate with 
his friends4 ,how shall they get        
information8  ,the ,commission          
undertakes to keep a correct list of all
 the sick and  wounded men who are in   
regular hospitals4 ,they obtain their   
information  from the official returns  
of the surgeons4 ,i do not mean to say  
that  these lists are absolutely        
correct4 ,they approximate as nearly to 
correctness as they ever can1 until     
surgeons are perfectly prompt and       
careful in their reports4    ,the amount
 of work done is very great4 ,seven     

hundred thousand names have  been       
recorded in this ,directory1 between    
,october1 #ahfb1 and ,july1 #ahfd4      
,from ten to twenty-five applications   
for information are made each day  by   
letter1 and from one hundred to two     
hundred and fifty personally or  through
 the various ,state agencies4 ,branch   
offices1 working upon a  similar plan1  
have been established at ,louisville and
 elsewhere4           99       99       
99       99       99    ,the subject of 
assistance to regular hospitals may be  
despatched in a  few words1--not because
 the gifts are insignificant1 but       
because the  method of giving is so     
regular and easy to explain4 ,whenever  
the surgeon  of any hospital needs      
articles which are extras1 and so not   
supplied by  the ,government1 or which1 
if allowed1 the ,government is deficient
 in at  the time1 he makes a requisition
 upon the ,commission2 and if his       
requisition is deemed to be a reasonable
 one1 it is approved1 and the  goods    

delivered on his receipt for the same4  
,as to the amount given1 ,i  can only   
say that something is sent almost every 
day even to the  hospitals near         
,washington and the great cities1 and   
that the amount  bestowed increases just
 in proportion to the distance of the   
hospital  from the great ,government    
centres of supply4 ,this is a noiseless 
and  unostentatious charity1--sometimes1
 ,i am tempted to think1 too  noiseless 
and unostentatious4 ,a few weeks ago1 a 
lady friend visited one  of the         
hospitals near ,washington1 carrying    
with her for distribution  some         
,sanitary goods4 ,she gave a            
handkerchief to one of the sick men4 ,he
  took it1 looked at it1 read the mark  
in the corner1 paused as if he had      
received a new idea1 and then spoke out 
his mind thus3--,i have been in  this   
hospital six months1 and this is the    
first thing ,i ever received  from the  
,sanitary ,commission4--,but1 she       
replied1 have you not had  this and     

that8 mentioning several luxuries       
supplied to this very  hospital for     
extra diet4--,oh1 yes1 often6--,well1   
every one of these  articles came from  
the ,sanitary ,commission4    ,just now 
the ,sanitary is seeking to enter into  
closer relations with the  hospitals    
through the agency of regular visitors4 
,the advantages of such  a policy are   
manifest4 ,the reports of the visitors  
will enable the  directors to see more  
clearly the real wants of the sick2 and 
the  frequent presence and inquiries of 
such visitors will tend to repress  the 
undue appropriation of hospital stores  
by attendants4 ,but the  highest benefit
 will be the change and cheer it will   
introduce into the  monotony of hospital
 life4 ,if you are sick at home1 you are
 glad to have  your neighbor step in and
 bring the healthy bracing air of       
out-door life  into the dimness and     
languor of your invalid existence4 ,much
 more does  the sick soldier like       
it1--for ennui1 far more than pain1 is  

his great  burden4 ,when ,i was at      
,washington1 ,i accepted with great     
satisfaction an  invitation to go with a
 ,sanitary visitor on her round of duty4
 ,when we  came to the hospital1 ,i     
asked the ward-master if he would like  
to have  me distribute among his        
patients the articles ,i had brought4   
,he said  that he should1 for he thought
 it would do the poor fellows good to   
see  me and receive the gifts from my   
own hands4 ,the moment ,i entered there 
was a stir4 ,those who could hobble     
about stumped up to me to see what  was 
going on2 some others sat up in bed1    
full of alertness2 while the  sickest   
greeted me with a languid smile4 ,as ,i 
went from cot to cot1 the  politeness of
 la belle ,france1 with which a little  
,frenchman in the  corner touched the   
tassel of his variegated nightcap at me1
 and the  untranslatable gutturals1 full
 of honest satisfaction1 with which his 
,german neighbors saluted me1 and the   
,god bless your honor1 which a  cheery  

son of ,old ,erin showered down upon me1
 and the simple ,thank you1  ,sir1 which
 came up on all sides from our          
true-hearted ,new ,england boys1  were  
alike refreshing to my soul4 ,no doubt  
the single peach or two which  with     
hearty good-will were given to them were
 as good as a feast2 and it  may be that
 the little comforts which ,i left      
behind me1 and which had  been borne    
thither on the wings of this divine     
charity1 perhaps from  some village     
nestling among the rocky hills of ,new  
,england1 or from some  hamlet basking  
in the sunlight on the broad prairies of
 the ,west1 had  magic power to bring to
 that place of suffering some breath of 
the  atmosphere of home to cheer the    
sinking heart1 or some fragrant memory  
of far-off home-affection to make it    
better4 ,i came away with the  feeling  
that visits from sunny-hearted people1  
and gifts from friendly  hands1 must be 
a positive blessing to these sick and   
wounded people4           99       99   

99       99       99    ,of course the  
deepest throb of interest is given to   
the work at the  front of battle4 ,that 
is natural4 ,it is work done on the very
 spots  where the fortunes of our nation
 are being decided1--on the spots       
whither all eyes are turned1 and towards
 which all our hopes and prayers  go    
forth4 ,it is work surrounded by every  
element of pathos and tragic  interest4 
,the wavering fortunes of the fight1 the
 heroic courage which  sustains a       
doubtful conflict1 the masterly skill   
that turns disaster  into triumph1 the  
awful carnage1 the terrible suffering1  
the manly  patience of the wounded1 all 
combine to fix the attention there and  
upon  everything1 which is transacted   
there4 ,the question is constantly      
asked1--,what is the ,sanitary doing at 
the front8 what at ,city ,point8  what  
at ,winchester8 are natural questions4  
,let me state first the  general plan   
and method of what ,i may call a        
,sanitary campaign1 and  afterwards add 

what ,i saw with my own eyes at ,city   
,point and before  ,petersburg1 and what
 ,i heard from those who had themselves 
been actors  in the scenes which they   
described4    ,when the army moves out  
from its encampment to the field of     
active  warfare1 two or three ,sanitary 
wagons1 loaded with hospital stores of  
all sorts1 and accompanied by a         
sufficient number of relief agents1 move
  with each army corps4 ,these are for  
the supply of present need1 and for  use
 during the march1 or after such        
skirmishes and fights as may occur      
before the ,commission can establish a  
new base4 ,in this way some of the      
,commission agents have followed        
,general ,grant's army all the way from 
the ,rapidan1 through the ,wilderness1  
across the ,mattapony1 over the  ,james1
 on to the very last advance towards the
 ,southside  ,railroad1--refilling their
 wagons with stores as opportunity has  
occurred4 ,as soon now as the march     
commences and the campaign opens1       

preparations upon an extensive scale are
 made at ,washington for the  great     
probable demand4 ,steamers are          
chartered1 loaded1 and sent with a      
large force of relief agents to the     
vicinity of the probable  battle-fields2
 or if the campaign is away from water  
communication1  loaded wagons are held  
in readiness4 ,the moment the locality  
of the  struggle is determined1 then1   
under the orders of the ,provost        
,marshal1  an empty house is seized and 
made the ,sanitary head-quarters or     
general  storehouse2 or else some       
canal-barge is moored at the crazy      
,virginia  wharf1 and used for the same 
purpose4 ,this storehouse is kept       
constantly  full from ,washington1 or   
else from ,baltimore and ,new ,york2 and
 the  branch depots which are now       
established in each army corps are fed  
from  it1 while the hospitals in their  
turn make requisitions for all needful  
supplies on these branch depots4 ,that  
is to say1 the arrangements1  though    

rougher and less permanent in their     
character1 approximate very  nearly to  
the arrangements at ,washington4    ,a  
few details need to be added4 ,where the
 distance from the battle-field  to the 
base of supplies is great1 what are     
called feeding-stations are  established
 every few miles1 and here the wounded  
on foot or in  ambulances can stop and  
take the refreshments or stimulants     
necessary to  sustain them on their     
painful journey4 ,at the                
steamboat-landing the  ,commission has a
 lodge and agents1 with crackers and    
beef-tea1 coffee  and tea1 ice-water and
 stimulants1 ready to be administered to
 such as  need4 ,relief agents go up on 
the boats to help care for the wounded2 
and  at ,washington the same scene of   
active kindness is often enacted on     
their arrival as at their departure4    
,this is the general plan of action     
everywhere1 modified to suit            
circumstances1 but always essentially   
the  same4 ,it will apply just as well  

,west as ,east1--only for the names     
,baltimore1 ,washington1 and ,city      
,point1 you must put ,louisville1       
,nashville1 and ,chattanooga4    ,when  
,i was at ,city ,point1 the base of     
operations had been established  there  
more than two months2 and though there  
was much sickness1 and the  wounded were
 being brought in daily by hundreds from
 the prolonged  struggle for the ,weldon
 ,road1 everything moved on with the    
regularity of  clock-work4 ,as you      
neared the landing1 coming up the       
,james1 you saw1 a  little farther up   
the river1 the red flag of the ,sanitary
 ,commission  floating over the three   
barges which were its office1 its       
storehouse1  and its distributing store 
for the whole ,army of the ,potomac4    
,climbing  up the steep road to the top 
of the bluff1 and advancing over the    
undulating plain a mile1 you come to a  
city1--the city of hospitals4 ,the      
white tents are arranged in lines of    
almost mathematical accuracy4 ,the  camp

 is intersected by roads broad and      
clean4 ,every corps1 and every  division
 of every corps1 has its allotted       
square4 ,somewhere in these  larger     
squares your eye will be sure to catch  
sight of the ,sanitary  flag1 and       
beneath it a tent1 where is the corps   
station4 ,you enter1 and  you find      
within1 if not as great an amount1 at   
least as varied a supply1  of hospital  
stores as you would find anywhere1      
waiting for surgeons'  orders4 ,to a    
very great extent1 the extra diet for   
all the sick and  wounded is furnished  
from these stores2 and very largely the 
cooking of  it is overseen by ladies    
connected with the ,commission4 ,in     
every corps  there are from five to     
fifteen relief agents1 whose duty it is 
to go  through the wards once1 twice1   
three times in each day1 to see what the
  sick need for their comfort1 to       
ascertain that they really get what is  
ordered1 and in every way to alleviate  
suffering and to promote  cheerfulness  

and health4    ,i shall never forget a  
tour which ,i made with a relief agent  
through the  wards for the blacks1 both 
because it showed me what a watchful    
supervision a really faithful person can
 exercise1 and because it gave  such an 
opportunity to observe closely the      
conduct of these people4 ,the  demeanor 
of the colored patients is really       
beautiful1--so gentle1 so  polite1 so   
grateful for the least kindness4 ,and   
then the evidences of a  desire for     
mental improvement and religious life   
which meet you  everywhere are very     
touching4 ,go from bed to bed1 and you  
see in their  hands primers1            
spelling-books1 and ,bibles1 and the    
poor1 worn1 sick  creatures1 the moment 
they feel one throb of returning health1
 striving  to master their alphabet or  
spell out their ,bible4 ,in the evening1
 or  rather in the fading twilight1 some
 two hundred of them crept from the     
wards1 and seated themselves in a circle
 around a black exhorter4  ,religion to 

them was a real thing2 and so their     
worship had the beauty  of sincerity1   
while ,i ought to add that it was not   
marked by that  grotesque extravagance  
sometimes attributed to it4 ,one cannot 
but think  better of the whole race     
after the experience of such a ,sabbath4
 ,the  only drawback to your            
satisfaction is1 that they die quicker  
and from  less cause than the whites4   
,they have not the same stubborn        
hopefulness  and hilarity4 ,why1 indeed1
 should they have8    ,speaking of the  
white soldiers1 everybody who goes into 
their hospitals  is happily             
disappointed1--you see so much order and
 cheerfulness1 and so  little evidence  
of pain and misery4 ,the soldier is     
quite as much a hero  in the hospital as
 on the battle-field4 ,give him anything
 to be cheerful  about1 and he will     
improve the opportunity4 ,you see men   
who have lost an  arm or a leg1 or whose
 heads have been bruised almost out of  
likeness to  humanity1 as jolly as they 

can be over little comforts and         
pleasures  which ordinary eyes can      
hardly see with a magnifying-glass4 ,so 
it  happens that a camp of six thousand 
sick and wounded1 which seems at a      
distance a concentration of human misery
 that you cannot bear to behold1  when  
near does not look half so lugubrious as
 you expected2 and you are  tempted to  
accuse the sick men of having entered   
into a conspiracy to  look unnaturally  
happy4    ,if you go back now six or    
thirteen miles to the field hospitals1  
you  find nothing essentially different4
 ,the system and its practical  workings
 are the same4 ,but it is a perpetual   
astonishment to find that  here1 near to
 the banks of a river that has not a    
respectable village on  its shores from 
,fortress ,monroe to ,richmond1--here1  
in a houseless and  desolate land which 
can be reached only by roads which are  
intersected  by gullies1 which plunge   
into sloughs of despond1 which lose     
themselves  in the ridges of what were  

once cornfields1 or meander amid stumps 
of  what so lately stood a forest1--that
 here you have every comfort for the    
sick3 all needed articles of clothing1  
the shirts and drawers1 the socks  and  
slippers2 and all the delicacies1 too1  
the farinas1 the jellies1 the  canned   
meats and fruits1 the concentrated milk1
 the palatable drinks and  stimulants1  
and even fresh fruits and vegetables4   
,and in such profusion1  too6 ,i asked  
the chief agent of the ,commission in   
the ,ninth ,corps how  many orders he   
filled in a day4 ,look for yourself4 ,i 
took down the  orders2 and there they   
were1 one hundred and twenty strong1    
some for  little and some for much1 some
 for a single article and some for a    
dozen  articles4    ,but it is not in   
camps of long standing that the wounded 
and sick suffer  for want of care or    
lack of comforts4 ,it is when the base  
is suddenly  changed1 when all order is 
broken up1 when there are no tents at   
hand1  when the stores are scattered1   

nobody knows where1 after a great battle
  perhaps1 and the wounded are pouring  
in upon you like a flood1 and when  it  
seems as if no human energy and no      
mortal capacity of transportation  could
 supply the wants both of the well and  
the sick1 the almost  insatiable demands
 of the battle-field and the equally    
unfathomable  needs of the hospital1 it 
is then that the misery comes1 and it is
 then  that the ,commission does its    
grandest work4 ,after the ,battles of   
the  ,wilderness and ,spottsylvania1    
twenty-five thousand wounded were       
crowded  into ,fredericksburg1 where but
 ten thousand were expected4 ,for a time
  supplies of all kinds seemed to be    
literally exhausted4 ,there were no     
beds4 ,there was not even straw4 ,there 
were not surgeons enough nor  attendants
 enough4 ,there was hardly a supply of  
food4 ,some found it  difficult to get a
 drop of cold water4 ,poor1 wounded men1
 who had  wearily trudged from the      
battle-field and taken refuge in a      

deserted  house1 remained hours and a   
day without care1 and without seeing the
  face of any but their wounded         
comrades4 ,then the ,sanitary           
,commission  sent its hundred and fifty 
agents to help the overburdened         
surgeons4  ,then every morning it       
despatched its steamer down the ,potomac
 crowded  with necessaries and comforts4
 ,then with ceaseless industry its      
twenty  wagons1 groaning under their    
burden1 went to and fro over the        
wretched  road from ,belle ,plain to    
,fredericksburg4 ,a credible witness    
says that  for several days nearly all  
the bandages and a large proportion of  
the  hospital supplies came from its    
treasury4 ,no mind can discern and no   
tongue can declare what valuable lives  
it saved and what sufferings it         
alleviated4 ,who shall say that         
,christian charity has not its triumphs 
proud as were ever won on battle-field8 
,if the ,commission could boast  only of
 its first twenty-four hours at         

,antietam and ,gettysburg and its       
forty-eight hours at ,fredericksburg1 it
 would have earned the  everlasting     
gratitude and praise of all true men4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,but is there not a reverse to this     
picture8 ,are there no drawbacks to     
this success8 ,is there no chapter of   
abortive plans1 of unfaithful  agents1  
of surgeons and attendants appropriating
 or squandering  charitable gifts8      
,these are questions which are often    
honestly asked1  and the doubts which   
they express or awaken have cooled the  
zeal and  slackened the industry of many
 an earnest worker4 ,there is no end to 
the  stories which have been put in     
circulation4 ,i remember a certain      
mythical blanket which figured in the   
early part of the war1 and which1       
though despatched to the soldier1 was   
found a few weeks after by its  owner   
adorning the best bed of a hotel in     
,washington4 ,to be sure1 it  seemed to 
have pursued a wandering life1--for now 

it was sent from the  full stores of a  
lady in ,lexington1 and now it was      
stripped perhaps by a  poor widow from  
the bed of her children1 and then it was
 heard from far  off in the ,west1 ever 
seeking1 but never reaching1 its true   
destination4  ,without heeding any such 
stories1 although they have done        
infinite  mischief1 ,i answer to honest 
queries1 that ,i have no doubt that     
sometimes the stores of the ,commission 
are both squandered and                 
misappropriated4 ,i do not positively   
know it2 but ,i am sure that it  would  
be a miracle1 if they were not4 ,it     
would be the first time in  human       
history that so large and varied a      
business1 and extending over  such a    
breadth of country and such a period of 
time1 was transacted  without waste4    
,look at the facts4 ,here are thousands 
of ,united ,states  surgeons and        
attendants of all ages and characters   
through whose hands  many of these gifts
 must necessarily go4 ,what wonder1 if  

here and there  one should be found     
whose principles were weaker than his   
appetites8  ,consider also the          
temptations4 ,these men are hard-worked1
 often scantily  fed4 ,every nerve is   
tried by the constant presence of       
suffering1 and  every sense by fetid    
odors4 ,would it be surprising1 if they 
sometimes  craved the luxuries which    
were so close at hand8 ,moreover1 the   
,commission mission employs hundreds of 
men1 the very best it can get1  but it  
would be too much to ask that all should
 be models of prudence1  watchfulness1  
and integrity4    ,i allow1 then1 that  
some misappropriation is not improbable4
 ,at the same  time ,i do say1 that     
every department is vigilantly watched1 
and that the  losses are trivial1       
compared with the immense benefits4 ,i  
do say1  emphatically1 that to bring a  
wholesale charge against whole classes1 
whose members are generally as          
high-minded and honorable as any other1 
to accuse them as a body of wretched    

peculations1 is simply false and        
slanderous4 ,i maintain that fidelity is
 the rule1 and that its reverse  is the 
petty exception2 and that it would be in
 opposition to all rules  by which men  
conduct their lives to suffer such      
exceptions to influence  our conduct1 or
 diminish our contributions to a good   
cause4 ,in business  how often we are   
harassed by petty dishonesty or great   
frauds6  ,nevertheless1 the tide of     
business sweeps on4 ,why8 ,because the  
good so  outweighs the evil4 ,the       
railroad employee is negligent1 and some
  terrible accident occurs4 ,but the    
railroad keeps on running all the  same2
 for the public convenience and welfare 
are the law of its life1  and private   
peril and loss but an occasional        
episode4 ,by the same rule1  we support1
 without misgiving1 the ,commission1    
because the good which it  certainly    
does1 and the suffering it relieves1 in 
their immensity cover  up and put out of
 sight mistakes1 which are incident to  

all human  enterprise1 and which are    
guarded against with all possible       
vigilance4           99       99        
99       99       99    ,but allow all  
the good which is claimed1 and that the 
good far  transcends any possible evil1 
and then we are met by these further    
questions3 ,is such an organization     
necessary8 ,cannot ,government do the   
work8 ,and if so1 ought not ,government 
to do it8    ,i might with propriety    
answer3 ,suppose that ,government ought 
to do the  work and does not1 shall we  
fold our hands and let our soldiers     
suffer8  ,but the truth is1 ,government 
does do its duty4 ,some persons         
foolishly  exaggerate the work of the   
,commission4 ,they talk as though it    
were the  only salvation of the wounded1
 as though the ,government let          
everything  go1 and that1 if the        
,commission and kindred societies did   
not step in1  there would not be so much
 as a wreck of our army left4 ,such talk
 is  simply preposterous4 ,the          

,commission1 considered as a free1      
spontaneous  offering of a loyal people 
to the cause of our common country1 is a
  wonderful enterprise4 ,the            
,commission1 standing ready to supply   
any  deficiency1 to remedy any defect1  
and to meet any unforeseen emergency1   
has done a good work that cannot be     
forgotten4 ,but1 compared with what     
,government expends upon the sick1 its  
resources are nothing4 ,i have not  the 
figures at hand1 though ,i have seen    
them2 and it is hardly too much  to say1
 that1 where the society has doled out a
 penny1 the ,government  has lavished a 
pound4    ,no sane defender1 therefore1 
of this charity supports it on any such 
ground as that it is the principal      
benefactor of the soldier4 ,the         
,commission alone could no more support 
our hospitals than it could the         
universe4 ,but the homely adage1 ,it is 
best to have two strings to your  bow1  
applies wonderfully to the case4 ,in    
practical life men act upon  this maxim4

 ,they like to have an adjunct to the   
best-working machinery1  a sort of      
reserved power4 ,every sensible person  
sees that our mail  arrangements furnish
 to the whole people admirable          
facilities4  ,nevertheless1 we like to  
have an express1 and occasionally to    
send  letters and packages by it4 ,when 
the children are sick1 there is nothing 
so good as the advice of the trusted    
family physician and the unwearied  care
 of the mother4 ,yet when the physician 
has done his work and gone  his way1 and
 when the mother is worn out by days of 
anxiety and nights  of watching1 we deem
 it a great blessing1 if there is a kind
 neighbor  who will come in1 not to     
assume the work1 but to help it on a    
little4  ,the ,commission1 looking at   
the hospitals and the armies from a     
different  point of view1 sees much that
 another overlooks1 and in an emergency1
  when all help is too little1 brings   
fresh aid that is a priceless  blessing4
 ,to the plain1 substantial volume of   

public appropriations it  adds the      
beautiful supplement of private         
benefactions4 ,that is all that  it     
pretends to do4    ,there are some      
special reflections that bear upon the  
point which we are  considering4 ,this  
war was sprung upon an unwarlike people4
 ,the officers  of ,government1 when    
they entered upon their work1 had no    
thought of the  gigantic burdens which  
have fallen upon their shoulders4 ,since
 the war  began1 ,government1 like      
everybody else1 has had to learn new    
duties1 and  to learn them amid the     
stress and perplexity of a great        
conflict4 ,and  among other things1 it  
has been obliged1 in some respects1 to  
recast its  medical regulations to meet 
the prodigious enlargement of its       
medical  work4 ,beyond a doubt1 much    
help1 which1 on account of this         
imperfection  of the medical code       
itself1 or of the inexperience of many  
who  administered it1 was needed by our 
hospitals at the commencement of the    

war1 is not needed now1 and much help   
that is needed now may not1 if the  war 
lasts1 be needed in the future4 ,but it 
takes time to move the  machinery of a  
great state4 ,and when any change is to 
become the  permanent law of public     
action1 it ought to take both time and  
thought  to effect it4 ,you do not wish 
to alter and re-alter the framework of a
  state or of a state's activity as you 
would patch up a ruinous old  house4 ,if
 you work at all in any department1 you 
should wish to work on  a massive1      
well-considered plan1 so that what you  
do may last4 ,it is not  likely1        
therefore1 that1 in the great field of  
suffering which the war  has laid open  
to us1 the public ministries will either
 be so quickly or  so perfectly adjusted
 as to make private ministries a        
superfluity4    ,neither do we reflect  
enough upon the limitations of human    
power4 ,we  think sometimes of          
,government as a great living organism  
of boundless  resources4 ,but1 after    

all1 in any department of state1 what   
plans1 what  overlooks1 what vitalizes1 
is one single human mind4 ,and it is not
 easy  to get minds anywhere clear      
enough and capacious enough for the     
large  duties4 ,it is easy to obtain men
 who can command a company well4 ,it is 
not difficult to find those who can     
control efficiently a regiment4  ,there 
are many to whom the care of five       
thousand men is no burden2 a few  who   
are adequate to an army corps4 ,but the 
generals who can handle with  skill a   
hundred thousand men1 and make these    
giant masses do their  bidding1 are the 
rare jewels in war's diadem4 ,even so is
 it in every  department of life4 ,it is
 perhaps impossible to find a mind which
 can  sweep over the whole field of our 
medical operations1 and prepare for     
every emergency and avoid every mistake2
 not because all men are  unfaithful or 
incapable1 but because there must be a  
limit to the most  capacious intellect4 
,looking simply at the structure of the 

human mind1  we might have foreseen1    
what facts have amply demonstrated1 that
 in a  war of such magnitude as that    
which we are now waging there always    
must  be room for an organization like  
the ,sanitary ,commission to do its     
largest and noblest work4    ,but1 above
 and beyond all such reflections1 there 
are great national and  patriotic       
considerations which more than justify1 
yea1 demand1 the  existence of our war  
charities4 ,allowing that the outward   
comfort of the  soldier 7and who would  
grant it87 might be accomplished just as
 well in  some other way1--allowing that
 in a merely sanitary aspect the        
,government could have done all that    
voluntary organizations have            
undertaken1 and have done it as well as 
they or better than they1--even  then we
 do not allow for a moment that what has
 been spent has been  wasted4 ,what is  
the ,sanitary ,commission1 and what are 
kindred  associations1 but so many bonds
 of love and kindness to bind the       

soldier  to his home1 and to keep him   
always a loyal citizen in every hope and
 in  every heart-throb8 ,this is the    
influence which we can least of all     
afford to lose4 ,he must have been blind
 who did not see at the outset of  the  
war1 that1 beyond the immediate danger  
of the hour1 there were other  perils4  
,we were trying the most tremendous     
experiment that was ever  tried by any  
people4 ,out of the most peaceful of    
races we were creating  a nation of     
soldiers4 ,in a few months1 where there 
seemed to be scarcely  the elements of  
martial strength1 we were organizing an 
army which was  to be at once gigantic  
and efficient4 ,who could calculate the 
effect of  such a swift change8 ,the    
questions many a patriotic heart might  
have  asked were these3 ,when this      
wicked ,rebellion is ended1--when these 
myriads of our brethren whose lives have
 been bound up in that wondrous         
collective life1 the life of a great    
army1 shall return to their quiet  homes

 by the hills and streams of ,new       
,england or on the rolling prairies  of 
the ,west1 will they be able to merge   
their life again in the simple  life of 
the community out of which they came8   
,will they find content at  the plough1 
by the loom1 in the workshop1 in the    
tranquil labors of  civil life8 ,can    
they1 in short1 put off the harness of  
the soldier1 and  resume the robe of the
 citizen8 ,many a one could have wished 
to say to  every soldier1 as he went    
forth to the war1 ,remember1 that1 if   
,god  spares your life1 in a few months 
or a few years you will come back1 not  
officers1 not privates1 but sons and    
husbands and brothers1 for whom  some   
home is waiting and some human heart    
throbbing4 ,never forget that  your true
 home is not in that fort beside those  
frowning cannon1 not on  that tented    
field amid the glory and power of       
military array1 but that  it nestles    
beneath yonder hill1 or stands out in   
sunshine on some  fertile plain4        

,remember that you are a citizen yet1   
with every instinct1  with every        
sympathy1 with every interest1 and with 
every duty of a  citizen4    ,can we    
overestimate the influence of these     
associations1 of these  ,soldiers'-,aid 
,societies1 rising up in every city and 
village1 in  producing just such a state
 of mind1 in keeping the soldier one of 
us1  one of the people8 ,five hundred   
thousand hearts following with deep     
interest his fortunes1--twice five      
hundred thousand hands laboring for  his
 comfort1--millions of dollars freely   
lavished to relieve his                 
sufferings1--millions more of tokens of 
kindness and good-will going  forth1    
every one of them a message from the    
home to the camp3 what is  all this but 
weaving a strong network of alliance    
between civil and  military life1       
between the citizen at home and the     
citizen soldier8 ,if  our army is a     
remarkable body1 more pure1 more        
clement1 more patriotic  than other     

armies1--if our soldier is everywhere   
and always a  true-hearted citizen1--it 
is because the army and soldier have not
 been  cast off from public sympathy1   
but cherished and bound to every free   
institution and every peaceful          
association by golden cords of love4    
,the  good our ,commissions have done in
 this respect cannot be exaggerated2 it 
is incalculable4    ,nor should we      
forget the influence they have had on   
ourselves1--the  reflex influence which 
they have been pouring back into the    
hearts of  our people at home1 to       
quicken their patriotism1 ,we often say 
that the  sons and brothers are what the
 mothers and sisters make them4 ,can you
  estimate the electric force which runs
 like an irresistible moral  contagion  
from heart to heart in a community all  
of whose mothers and  daughters are     
sparing that they may spend1 and        
learning the value of  liberty and      
country by laboring for them8 ,it does  
not seem possible1  that1 amid the      

divers interests and selfish schemes of 
men1 we ever  could have sustained this 
war1 and carried it to a successful     
issue1 had  it not been for the moral   
cement which these wide-spread          
philanthropic  enterprises have         
supplied4 ,every man who has given      
liberally to support  the ,commission   
has become a missionary of patriotism2  
every woman who  has cut and made the   
garments and rolled the bandages and    
knit the socks  has become a missionary4
 ,and so the country has been full of   
missionaries1 true-hearted and loyal1   
pleading1 ,be patient1 put up with      
inconveniences1 suffer exactions1 bear  
anything1 rather than sacrifice  the    
nationality our fathers bequeathed to   
us6 ,and if our country is  saved1 it   
will be in no small degree because so   
many have been prompted  by their       
benevolent activity to take a deep      
personal interest in the  struggle and  
in the men who are carrying on the      
struggle4    ,these national and        

patriotic influences are the crowning   
blessings which  come in the train of   
the charities of the war2 and they      
constitute one  of their highest claims 
to our affection and respect4 ,the      
unpatriotic  utterances which in these  
latter days so often pain our ears1 the 
weariness of burdens which tempt so many
 to be ready to accept anything  and to 
sacrifice anything to be rid of them1   
admonish us that we need  another       
uprising of the people and another      
re-birth of patriotism2 and  they show  
us that we should cherish more and more 
everything which  fosters noble and     
national sentiments4 ,and when this war 
is over1 and  the land is redeemed1 and 
we come to ask what things have         
strengthened  us to meet and overcome   
our common peril1 may we not prophesy   
that high  among the instrumentalities  
which have husbanded our strength1 and  
fed  our patriotism1 and knit more      
closely the distant parts of our land   
and  its divided interests1 will be     

placed the ,united ,states ,sanitary    
,commission8          ,,art4            
,,harriet ,,hosmer',s ,,zenobia4        
,it took a long while for artists to    
understand that the ,greek face was  the
 ideal face merely to ,greek sculptors4 
,during the baser ages of the           
sculpturesque art1 7how far towards our 
own day the epicycle inclusive  of those
 ages extended it would be invidious for
 us to say17 sculpture  consisted of the
 nearest imitation of ,greek models     
which was possible of  attainment by    
talents1 with an occasional intercalated
 genius1  hampered by prevailing modes4 
,that the ,greek face was beautiful1    
none  could doubt4 ,that in the         
sovereign points of intellect it was the
  absolute beau-ideal is open to great  
doubt4 ,apart from all such  questions1 
the fact of subservience exists4 ,even  
,benjamin ,robert ,haydon1  the man who 
thought himself called to be the sthetic
 saviour of the  age1 knew no other1 no 
better way of making himself master of  

solid form  than by lying down in the   
cold with a candle before the ,elgin    
marbles4  ,let not this be mistaken as a
 slur upon one of the most devoted men  
in  history1--a man who surely lived1   
and who1 aside from the pangs of        
poverty1 probably died1 for the         
regeneration of ,art4 ,we only mean to  
select an instance preminent over all   
that can be mentioned1 to show  that    
until a very late date even the most    
learned men in the ,art-world  had not  
cut loose from the fascination of old   
models1 considered not as  suggestive1  
but as dominant4 ,there is nothing in   
the sculptors of  ,haydon's period to   
prove that their view differed          
essentially from that  of the most      
self-devoted theorist among painters4   
,we hold that it has been left for      
,america to complete the sthetic1 as    
well as the social and political        
emancipation of the world4 ,the fact    
that pre-,raphaelism began in ,england  
7we refer to the new saints  standing on

 their toe-nails1 not the old ones7     
proves nothing  respecting the          
origination of ,art's highest liberty4  
,in the first place1  the man who was   
selected by the ,elisha to be the       
,elijah of the school  would under no   
circumstances have chosen a fiery       
chariot to go up in1  but would have    
taken the ,lord ,mayor's coach1 7if he  
could have got it  without paying17 and1
 like a true ,englishman1 been preceded 
by heralds1  and after-run by lackeys4  
,the idea of ,turner en martyre is to a 
calm  spectator simply amusing4 ,if a   
neglected disciple of ,truth had met him
  out a-sketching1 and asked him for    
help1 or a peep1 he would have shut  up 
his book with a slap1 and said1 like the
 celebrated laird1 ,puir  bodie6 fin' a 
penny for yer ain sel'4 ,in the second  
place1 this ,elijah  never dropped his  
mantle on the soi-disant ,elisha4       
,search over the  whole range of walls  
where 7with their color somewhat the    
worse for  time7 ,turner's pictures are 

preserved1 and if any critic but        
,ruskin's  self can find the qualities  
which unite ,turner with modern         
pre-,raphaelism1 we will buy the view of
 ,kln and make it a present to  him4 ,in
 the third place1 apart from all        
ancestry or indorsement1 we  regard     
modern pre-,raphaelism1 as a school full
 of vital mistakes4 ,it  refuses to     
acknowledge this preminent1 eternal fact
 of ,art1 that the  entire truth of     
,nature cannot be copied3 in other words
 and larger1  that the artist must      
select between the major and the minor  
facts of the  outer world2 that1 before 
he executes1 he must pronounce whether  
he will  embody the essential effect1   
that which steals on the soul and       
possesses  it without painful analysis1 
or the separate details which belong to 
the  geometrician and destroy the       
effect1--still further1 whether he will 
make us feel what ,nature says1 or      
examine below her voice into the        
vibration of the chord vocales4    ,we  

have not touched on pre-,raphaelism with
 the idea of attacking it1  still less  
of defending it1 and not at all of      
discussing it4 ,our view  has been      
simply to excuse the assertion that with
 ,america has begun1  must necessarily  
begin and belong1 the enfranchisement of
 ,art from  subservience to a type1--the
 opening of its doors into the open air 
of  sthetic catholicity4    ,years ago1 
the writer in several places presented  
to the consideration  of ,american      
,art-lovers the plaster bust of ,the    
,old ,trapper1 as one of  the foremost  
things which up to that period had been 
done by any man for  such               
enfranchisement as that referred to     
above4 ,palmer1 the noble master  and   
teacher of the sculptor who created this
 bust1 had done many things  entirely   
outside of the old ring-fence1 had made 
himself famous by them2  but this1 on   
some accounts1 seemed to us the chief1  
because the most  audacious of all4     
,what did it represent8 ,simply an old1 

worn1  peril-tried1 battle-scarred man1 
who had fought grislies and             
,indians1--walked leagues with his canoe
 on his back1--camped under             
snow-peaks1--dined on his rifle's       
market1--had nothing but his heroic     
pluck1 patience1 and ,american          
individuality1 to fascinate people1--and
  now1 under a rough fur cap of his own 
making1 showed a face without a  line   
that was ,greek in it1 and said to      
,launt ,thompson1 ,make me1 if you      
dare6    ,what we then admired in ,the  
,old ,trapper we now admire in ,miss    
,hosmer's  ,zenobia4           99       
99       99       99       99    ,there 
now stands on exhibition in this country
 one of the finest  examples of the     
spirit which animates our best ,american
 artists in their  selection of ideals1 
and their execution of them on the      
catholic  principle4    ,miss ,hosmer   
has not thought it necessary to color   
her statue1 because  she knew that the  
utmost capability of sculpture is the   

expression of  form1--that1 had she     
colored it1 she would have brought it   
into  competition with a ,nature        
entirely beyond her in mere details1 and
 made  it a doll instead of a statue4   
,neither has she made it a              
travel-stained  woman with a carpet-bag1
 because in history all mean details    
melt away1  and we see its actors at    
great distances like the ,athen1 and    
because  our whole idea of ,zenobia is  
this3--        ,a ,queen led in ,chains4
    ,neither has she made her ,zenobia a
 ,greek woman1 because she was a        
,palmyrene4 ,what she has made her is   
this3--        ,our idea of ,zenobia won
 from ,romance and ,history4    ,this   
,zenobia is a queen4 ,she is proud as   
she was when she sat in  pillared state1
 under gorgeous canopies1 with a hundred
 slaves at her  beck1 and a devoted     
people within reach of her couriers4    
,she does not  tremble or swerve1 though
 she has her head down4 ,that head is   
bowed only  because she is a woman1 and 

she will not give the look of love to   
the  man who has forced her after him4  
,her lip has no weakness in it4 ,she is 
a lady1 and knows that there is         
something higher than joy or pain4      
,miss ,hosmer has evidently believed    
nothing of the legends to the effect    
that she did swerve afterward1 else she 
could not have put that noble  soul in  
her heroine's mouth4 ,or did she believe
 the swerving1 she must  have felt that 
,aurelian had the right1 after all pain 
and wrong1 to come  and claim the       
queen1--to say1--    ,i did all this    
wrong for you1 and you were worth it4   
,the face 7perhaps1 with the present    
necessities of a catholicized ,art1  its
 most important excellence7 is not a    
,greek face1 but a much farther         
,oriental4    ,the bas-reliefs of       
,layard's ,nineveh are not more         
characteristic1  national1 faithful to  
the probable facts in that best aspect  
of facts  with which ,art has to do4    
,as for the figure1 none of those who   

from ,roman studios have hitherto  sent 
us their work have ever given a juster  
idea of their advancement in  the       
understanding of the human anatomy4 ,the
 bones of the right  metatarsus show as 
they would under the flesh of a queenly 
foot4 ,the  right foot is the one flexed
 in ,zenobia's walking1 and that foot   
has  never been used to support the     
weight of burdens2 it has gone bare     
without being soiled4 ,the shoulders    
perfectly carry the head1 and no        
anatomist could suggest a place where   
they might be bent or erected in  truer 
relative proportion to either of the    
feet4 ,the dejection of the  right arm  
is a wonderful compromise between the   
valor of a queen who has  fought her    
last and best1 and the grief of a woman 
who has no further  resource left to her
 womanliness4    ,both arms1 in their   
anatomy1 in their truthfulness to the   
queenly  circumstances1 may equally     
delight and challenge criticism4 ,the   
chains  which the queen carries are     

smaller than we suspect a ,roman        
conqueror  put even upon a woman and a  
queen2 but let that pass1--for they do  
not  hurt the harmony of the idea1 and  
are simply a matter of detail1 which    
womanly sympathy might well have erred  
in since chivalric days1 though  their  
adherence to actual truth would not have
 blemished the idea4 ,at  all events1   
,zenobia holds them like a queen1 so as 
not to hurt her4 ,she  will remember her
 glory4    ,the drapery of the statue is
 a subordinate matter2 but that has been
  attended to as true artists attend to 
even the least things which wait  on a  
great idea4 ,the tassels of the robe    
have been chiselled by ,miss  ,hosmer's 
marble-cutter with a care which shows   
that the last as well as  the first part
 of the work went on under her womanly  
supervision4 ,every  fold of the robe1  
which must have been copied from the    
cast1 falls and  swings before our eyes 
as the position demands4 ,grace and     
truth lie in  the least wrinkle of a    

garment which needs no after-cast of the
  anatomist's cloak of charity to hide a
 sin4    ,in many respects1 we regard   
,miss ,hosmer's ,zenobia as one of the  
very  highest honors paid by ,american  
,art to our earliest assertions of its  
dominant destiny4          ,,reviews    
,,and ,,literary ,,notices4             
,patriotism in ,poetry and ,prose4      
,being ,selected ,passages from         
,lectures and ,patriotic ,readings4 ,by 
,,james ,e4 ,,murdoch4                  
,philadelphia3 ,j4,b4 ,lippincott  ,co4 
#abmo4    ,this volume1 published in aid
 of the funds of the ,sanitary          
,commission1  is one of the indications 
of the patriotism of the time4 ,mr4     
,murdoch1 an  eminent and estimable     
actor and elocutionist1 has been        
engaged1 ever  since the war began1 in  
doing his part towards rousing and      
sustaining  the enthusiasm of the       
people1 by scattering the burning words 
of  patriotic poets in our ,western     
camps and towns4 ,the volume contains   

specimens of lyric poetry which have    
stood the test of actual delivery       
before soldiers who were facing the grim
 realities of war4 ,sometimes the       
elocutionist has been so near the enemy 
as to have a shell come into  whizzing  
or screaming competition with the clear 
and ringing tones of  his voice2 at     
other times1 he has cheered with ,the   
,american ,flag1 ,old  ,ironsides1 or   
,the ,union1 audiences shivering with   
cold and famishing  on a short allowance
 of hard-tack4 ,he has seen the         
,american soldier  under all            
circumstances1 and practically          
understands all the avenues to  his     
heart and brain4 ,many of the poems in  
the volume which have obtained  a       
national popularity were originally     
written at his suggestion4 ,this is     
especially true of the sounding lyrics  
of ,boker1 ,read1 and ,janvier4 ,his    
own hearty and well-considered words1 so
 full of manly feeling and  genuine     
patriotism1 are none the worse for      

catching a little of that  inflation    
which the sights of the hospital and the
 battle-field1 and a  sympathy with the 
average sentiment of sensitive crowds1  
are so sure to  provoke in an earnest   
and ardent mind4 ,the poets who are     
represented in  this volume have cause  
for gratification in the assurance that 
they have  been more generally read than
 any of their ,american contemporaries4 
,it  is estimated that ,mr4 ,murdoch has
 recited their pieces to a quarter of   
million of people during the last four  
years4 ,in the hospital1 in the  camp1  
before the lyceum audience1 they have   
been made to do their good  work of     
comforting1 rousing1 or inflaming their 
auditors4 ,they have sent  many a       
volunteer to the front1 and nerved him  
afterwards at the moment  of danger4    
,and certainly the friends of the       
soldiers will desire to read  what      
soldiers have so heartily applauded1    
especially as the money they  give for  
the book goes to sustain the most       

popular and beneficent of all           
charities4           ,philosophy as     
,absolute ,science1 founded in the      
,universal ,laws       of ,being1 and   
including ,ontology1 ,theology1 and     
,psychology made       one1 as ,spirit1 
,soul1 and ,body4 ,by ,e4 ,l4 and ,a4   
,l4       ,,frothingham4 ,volume ,i4    
,boston3 ,walker1 ,wise1  ,co4    ,we   
must go back to the time when a certain 
father and son of ,crete  stretched     
their waxen wings and soared boldly into
 space1 to discover  any external       
representation of the sublime attempt of
 the authors of  this volume4 ,yet it   
may reasonably be objected that in the  
,ddalian  legend we can detect but a    
partial and deceptive correspondence2   
for1  whereas we read that one of the   
ancient voyagers1 having ventured too   
near the sun1 met his end by a          
distressing casualty1 it is certain1    
that1 when the reader loses sight of    
this modern family-excursion in the     
metaphysical ether1 both parties are    

pushing vigorously on1 wings in  capital
 condition1 wind never better1 and the  
grand tour of the universe  in process  
of most happy accomplishment4 ,and let  
it here be mentioned  that the senior of
 the gentlemen whose names are given    
upon the  title-page is understood to   
resemble the classical artificer in     
being  inventor and manufacturer of     
pinions for the two4 ,mr4 ,e4 ,l4       
,frothingham  is to be regarded as      
substantially the author of the volume  
before us4    ,and so ,philosophy is not
 dead1 after all6 ,mr4 ,lewes's rather  
handsome  resolutions1 of which copies  
have been forwarded to the friends of   
the  supposed deceased1 turn out to be  
premature2 ,dr4 ,mansel's pious obituary
  is an impertinence2 ,comte and        
,buckle1 ,mill and ,spencer1 are not the
  spendthrift heirs of her homestead    
estate in ,dreamland4 ,the ,positive    
,mrs4 ,gamp may continue to assure us   
that the bantling never breathed to     
speak on in this wale1 but the perennial

 showman persists in depicting  it quite
 contrairy in a livin' state1 and       
performing beautiful upon the  'arp4 ,we
 play with metaphors1 hesitating to     
characterize this latest                
,minerva-birth4 ,for it is either that  
new sensation demanded by the ,sir      
,charles ,coldstream who has used up all
 religions and all philosophies1  or1   
being a reductio ad absurdum of         
speculative pretension1 it fulfils  the 
promise of a recent quack advertisement1
 and is in very truth ,the              
,metaphysical ,cure4    ,perhaps it were
 better to cancel the preceding         
paragraphs4 ,is not any  savor of banter
 out of place in the reception we are   
bound to accord to  an alleged solution 
of the unthinkable problem which        
underlies creation  and man's position  
therein8 ,if the impulse which first    
controlled us is  not denied expression1
 it is because it implies at once the   
worst that  can be said of a very       
extraordinary performance4 ,let this    

worst be  written roughly1 and in a     
single sentence4 ,to the vast majority  
of  upright and thoughtful men who are  
at present living and laboring in the   
world1 ,mr4 ,frothingham's ,philosophy  
as ,absolute ,science can be saved  from
 being infinitely repulsive only by     
being infinitely ridiculous4 ,but  to   
stop with this assertion would give no  
adequate impression of an  earnest and  
most conscientious work4 ,a remarkable  
mind1 even if a  misdirected one1 has   
mounted upon the battlements of its     
system1 and  proclaimed victory over all
 things4 ,of all tellers of marvels1    
,swedenborg alone is so absolutely free 
from a vulgar fanaticism1 and so        
innocent of any appeal to passion1      
prejudice1 or taste4 ,with an  equipoise
 of disposition which is almost         
provoking1 ,mr4 ,frothingham  announces 
as dogmas speculations from whose sweep 
and immensity the  human mind recoils4  
,having posited his principles1 he      
confidently  proceeds to deduce a system

 which shall include every spiritual and
  material fact of which man can take   
cognizance4 ,and he is too genuine a    
philosopher to be troubled at the       
practical application of his            
discoveries4 ,he repudiates with        
contempt whatever expression has been   
found for the energy of the purest and  
noblest leaders of modern  society4     
,esculapius is not accommodated with the
 sacrifice of so much as  a ,february   
chicken4 ,the manly works of            
,wilberforce and ,garrison1 the         
gracious influence of ,channing1 the    
stalwart conviction of ,parker1 the     
deep perception of ,emerson1--all these 
must be beaten down under our  feet as  
the incarnate ,satan of the ,litany4    
,but if this is rather rough  treatment 
for the advance-guard of civilization1  
the brethren in the  rear rank are      
prevented from taking the comfort to    
which they seem to be  justly entitled4 
,for we are utterly unable to understand
 what a recent  reviewer means in       

commending this work to conservatives as
 a noble  text-book and grand summary of
 arguments in favor of their positions4 
,the truth is1 that no conservative can 
possibly accept the system4 ,for  it is 
constantly shown that what may be called
 a progressive  bouleversement is to    
every individual a necessary advance1   
securing to  him experiences which are  
essential to the realization of that    
spiritual  consciousness which is alone 
capable of receiving the ,absolute      
,philosophy4 ,the editor of the         
,richmond ,examiner must become as he of
  the ,liberator1 and the ,bishop of    
,vermont must meditate a ,john ,brown   
raid1 before either of them can receive 
the ultimate redemption now  published  
to the world4    ,from what ,mr4        
,frothingham calls an internal-natural  
point of  observation1 which we         
understand to be that of a great        
majority of the  most intelligent and   
gifted people at present on the earth1  
the results  of this scheme appear so   

false and contradictory as to furnish   
its very  adequate refutation4          
,nevertheless1 there doubtless exists a 
class of  spiritually minded1           
cultivated1 unsatisfied men and women   
who will feel  that the sober sincerity 
of this voice crying in the commercial  
wilderness must challenge a respectful  
hearing4 ,such persons will find  no    
difficulty in accepting the statement1  
that a system of ,absolute  ,truth must 
be contrary to the natural conceptions  
of the mind1 to the  facts of the       
natural consciousness1 and to the       
inclinations of the  natural heart4     
,their past experiences have told them  
that no precision  of human speech can  
reveal a spiritual condition1 or even   
render  intelligible the highest mental 
operations4 ,instead of the             
this-will-never-do dictum of superficial
 and carnal criticism1 they  will offer 
patient study1 and be content that much 
shall appear foolish  and meaningless   
until a change in the interior being can

 interpret it  aright4 ,it is just to   
mention that a very few persons of the  
character  described have already       
received ,mr4 ,frothingham's philosophy1
 and  profess to find it full of        
instruction and delight4 ,and let it not
 be  concealed that no one who did not  
possess the very abundant leisure       
necessary for investigation and         
meditation1 and had not passed through  
mental states represented by ,romanism1 
,protestantism1 ,unitarianism1 and      
,transcendentalism1 could be accepted by
 the veriest neophyte as a  competent   
reviewer4 ,we attempt nothing more than 
a very humble notice  which may bring   
the existence of this latest salvation  
before some of  the scattered fellowship
 who are ready for it4 ,we despair of   
making any  statement concerning it     
which believers would not consider      
ludicrously  inadequate or absolutely   
false4 ,all and singular are accordingly
 warned  that what is here printed comes
 from a mental point of view totally    

opposed to the alleged ,truth1 as well  
as from that limited amount of          
application which a regular calling in  
the week and customary  church-going on 
,sunday has left at our disposal4       
,mr4 ,frothingham claims to have        
obtained cognizance of certain laws     
which  govern the relations of the      
,universe4 ,he maintains that the       
natural  understanding of man is led    
through various educative processes to  
that  vague and variously interpreted   
condition known as ,transcendentalism4  
,this final manifestation1 although no  
other than ,antichrist and the ,man  of 
,sin in person1 is a necessary          
forerunner of our possible redemption   
through acceptance of the ultimate      
,gospel4 ,for external philosophy has   
here reached its lowest form1 which is  
necessarily self-destructive2 and  so   
ends what may be called the natural     
development of the human  consciousness4
 ,the personal principle has achieved   
its utmost might of  self-assertion     

against that which is universal4        
,selfishness now appears  in its most   
destructive form1 demanding the liberty 
instead of the  subjection of men4      
,sympathy usurps the seat of ,justice1  
the individual  is cruel under pretence 
of being kind1 and fanaticism and       
mischief are  baptized as ,duty4 ,the   
divinely ordained institutions of       
society are  sacrificed1 and ruin and   
chaos inevitably result4 ,having shown  
that  ,philosophy1 developed in its     
natural form1 can produce nothing better
  than ,pantheism1 ,atheism1            
,anthropomorphism1 and ,skepticism1     
there arises  an inquiry for the causes 
which have produced these seemingly     
unhappy  results4 ,and now it appears   
that the ,consciousness must be         
developed in  its natural form from a   
natural point of view before its        
spiritual form  can be developed2 and   
therefore that ,philosophy must be      
developed as a  natural production in   
three spheres before it can be realized 

as a  ,universal ,spiritual ,science4   
,again1 the ,cause of ,all has hitherto 
been  conceived from a pagan1           
,unitarian1 and naturalistic point of   
view4 ,for1  if we understand ,mr4      
,frothingham1 the ,pope is not a whit   
sounder than ,m4  ,renan1--the ,head of 
the ,church being unable to consciously 
appropriate  his own theological        
formularies1 until1 governed by a       
,unitarian and  naturalistic law1 they  
are contradicted in being incarnated4   
,philosophy1  then1 hitherto demanding  
that everything should be realized from 
one  ,universal ,cause or ,substance1   
has failed to explain the nature of ,god
  and the nature of man from any        
rational point of view4 ,it has been    
obliged to recognize necessity as the   
universal law of life1 and to  conceive 
the production of the phenomenal from   
the absolute1--therefore  of man from   
,god2 and also the production of the    
finite from the  infinite1--therefore of
 diversity from unity1 of evil from     

good1 and of  death from life2 which is 
the greatest violation of rationality   
that can  possibly be supposed4 ,but it 
is now time to state1 or rather faintly 
to  adumbrate1 the grand assumption of  
this singular work4 ,there are held to  
be two ,spiritual ,causes1 whose union  
is the condition of all existence4      
,each of these ,causes1 represented     
under the terms of ,infinite and ,finite
  ,law1 are conceived to be threefold   
principles which act and operate        
together as ,death and ,life4 ,neither  
the ,infinite nor the ,finite           
,principle can obtain definite          
manifestation without the aid of the    
other2 but there is a capacity in the   
latter for becoming receptive and       
productive from the former4 ,and from   
this august union come all the  works of
 creation1 where death is still made    
productive from life1 evil  from good1  
the natural from the spiritual1--this   
last happy  productiveness never taking 
place by any development of the natural1

 but  only by means of a spiritual      
conception and birth4 ,every individual 
must  commence his existence as a       
dualistic substance necessarily         
discordant  and unreal4 ,through various
 appearances1 representing an experience
 of  opposing spiritual laws1 he reaches
 a position where true spiritual life   
becomes possible through presentation to
 the consciousness of the  opposing     
,spiritual ,laws already noticed4 ,the  
solemn moment of choice1  when for the  
first and only time man can be said to  
be a free agent1 has  now arrived4      
,affinities for the ,laws of ,death and 
,life are felt within  him4 ,he may     
become productive from the ,infinite for
 universal ends1 or  from the ,finite   
for those which are personal4 ,he is    
saved or lost at his  own election4     
,within the limits to which we are      
restricted1 it is impossible to give    
any account of the multiplex and        
abstruse details into which the system  
is carried4 ,the present volume contains

 an ontology constructed upon the  new  
basis4 ,it shows varied study1 and      
abounds in ponderous quotations  and    
laborious analyses4 ,it will be         
profoundly interesting to the few who   
are able to accept as axioms the        
teacher's assumptions1 and to trace a   
vigorous deduction in the changes which 
are rung upon a small set of  words4 ,by
 a legitimate course of reasoning from  
his primal conception1  ,mr4            
,frothingham claims to have demonstrated
 the fact of ,tripersonality  in the    
,deity4 ,he finds the universal law of  
spiritual life through  ,marriage or the
 union of opposites through voluntary   
sacrifice4 ,it is  likewise maintained  
that all the important statements of    
,absolute  ,science are represented in  
,philosophy1 the ,scriptures1 and the   
,church1--each abounding in poetic      
symbols of absolute facts now for the   
first time revealed4 ,the ,bible is held
 to be of supernatural origin and       
universal application1--though of course

 its real significance has  hitherto    
been hidden from men4 ,an exgesis of the
 ,book of ,job is given in  the appendix
 as a specimen of what may be disclosed 
in the sacred  records from this        
ultimate position of belief4    ,mr4    
,frothingham's claims are in some       
measure those of a seer4 ,his  immense  
show of philosophical apparatus1 his    
prodigality of logical  balance-wheels  
and escapements1 resemble the           
superfluous clock-work of  the automaton
 which plays its game as the gentleman  
concealed inside  shall judge expedient4
 ,it is of course impossible to probe   
the ,two  ,absolutes1 or the wonderful  
marriage which takes place between them4
 ,mr4  ,frothingham sees that so it is4 
,men of aspirations as high1 and of     
intellect as cultivated1 will think that
 they have no difficulty in  seeing     
quite as distinctly that so it is not4  
,others1 lovers of ,truth1  zealous for 
human welfare1 may look up a moment from
 their patient study  of phenomena in   

their coexistences and successions1 and 
humbly confess  their inability to see  
into the matter at all4 ,but it is to be
 observed  that the most distinguished  
representatives of the two classes of   
the  world's instructors have at present
 come to nearly identical conclusions   
as to what should be the aims of human  
society4 ,mr4 ,henry ,james and ,mr4    
,herbert ,spencer1 ,mr4 ,emerson and    
,dr4 ,draper1 would find little         
difficulty in working together in a     
state cabinet or on a legislative       
committee4 ,without discussing the      
breadth or character of their several   
knowledges or intuitions1 they would    
probably approve the same measures1  and
 agree in the routine which1 under      
existing circumstances1 it was  best to 
pursue4 ,but unless ,mr4 ,frothingham   
should be wrecked upon a  desolate      
island1 and there be visited by picnics 
of ,transcendentalists  from whom he    
might occasionally reclaim a ,caucasian 
,man ,friday1 we  cannot see what       

practical parturition can come of his   
mighty labor4 ,he  offers nothing which 
is capable of becoming incorporated with
 the  existing intelligence of the age4 
,he furnishes no acceptable basis for   
the caution of maturity or the generous 
vision of youth4 ,charles ,lamb's       
recipe for witnessing with any quietude 
of conscience the artificial  comedy of 
the last century was1 to regard the     
whole as a passing  pageant1 and to     
accept with cheerful unconcern its      
issues for life and  death4 ,some such  
state of mind must be commended to the  
student of this  ,philosophy4 ,let him  
be indifferent to that great act of     
political  justice which ,abraham       
,lincoln was constrained to do4 ,let him
 have no  glow of satisfaction in the   
improved condition of woman1 allowed to 
own  herself and to hold the property   
which her labor accumulates4 ,let him   
not remember how she has repaid every   
effort made in her behalf by  marking   
the gauge upon the thermometer of       

civilization1 and by raising  man as he 
raises her4 ,in short1 let him          
provisionally stand upon such a         
platform as might be constructed by a   
committee of which ,legree was  chairman
 and ,bluebeard the rest of it1 and if  
he does not accept  ,absolute ,science1 
he will at least be patient in reading  
what may be  said in its behalf4 ,but   
if1 in justice to ourselves1 we present 
the  obvious objections of the general  
reader1 in justice to ,mr4 ,frothingham1
  we are bound to confess that they     
shrivel in the blaze of special         
illumination with which he has been     
favored4 ,he grants the value of  effort
 as it appears in the accepted channels 
of the day1 but contends  that its value
 is confined to the development and     
growth of the  individual who exercises 
it4 ,it furnishes a groundwork which at 
the  right time shall provide the       
material suggestive of supernatural     
thought4 ,it prepares the sacrifice that
 will be necessary in view of the  new  

order of spiritual experiences now      
presented for the first time to  the    
consciousness of man4    ,it scarcely   
need be said that ,mr4 ,frothingham does
 not expect to make  many proselytes4   
,he is well aware that his stupendous   
gift of a supreme  and ultimate         
,philosophy will produce no perceptible 
effect upon the  public4 ,a complaint of
 taxes and a gossip of stocks continue  
audible2  but no neighbor drops in to   
tell us that the ,mystery of ,mysteries 
has  received elucidation1 and that a   
man may know even as he is known4 ,it is
  fortunate that the lofty aim of a     
sincere and earnest thinker is its own  
sufficient recompense4 ,the quality of  
mind which struggles out of the         
easy-going electicism which at present  
contents the majority of  cultivated    
men1 and achieves a position where our  
poor half-truths  combine in a grand    
organic whole1 is beyond the reach of   
human  congratulation4 ,and the results 
of such conscientious and arduous       

striving we are bound to receive with   
respect4 ,to the disciples of ,mr4      
,frothingham we shall doubtless seem to 
have uttered some superficial           
commonplaces about his creed1 and have  
displayed our total inability to        
penetrate to its true profundities4     
,they will probably say that his  theory
 can tolerate no partial statement1 and 
that the attempts of the  uninitiated   
can compass nothing but caricature and  
burlesque4 ,we  cordially give them the 
advantage of this supposed stricture1   
and as  cordially refer all earnest     
inquirers to this first instalment of   
the  heroic work4 ,we say heroic1 and   
would abate the adjective of no jot of  
meaning4 ,it requires the stuff of which
 heroes are made to promulgate a        
religious idea so unadapted to the      
conscious demands of any order or       
condition of men4 ,a few persons of     
redundant leisure1 touched with the     
restlessness in belief which is         
characteristic of the time1 may thread  

the mazes of ,absolute ,science until   
they awaken the desirable  perception of
 it coherency and strength4 ,we know    
that there is  somewhere a flock        
awaiting the leadership of any vigorous 
mind which  does not doubt its mission1 
and mocks at all question and           
compromise4  ,especially is it the duty 
of those who feel that they have        
attained the  necessary condition of    
transcendental imbecility to test the   
enormous  pretension of a doctrine of   
whose reception they alone are capable4 
,whether ,mr4 ,frothingham's book is    
wise and satisfying1 they only can  tell
 us4 ,it is our humbler duty to declare 
that we have found it  decidedly        
interesting1 and perfectly harmless4    
,the old charge of  corrupting youth    
cannot be preferred against this newest 
of  philosophers4 ,for as error is      
dangerous only in proportion to its     
plausibility1 the risk encountered by   
the reader is infinitesimal4            
,looking toward ,sunset4 ,by ,l4 ,,maria

 ,,child4 ,boston3 ,ticknor             
,fields4    ,for forty years it has been
 the good fortune of ,mrs4 ,child to    
achieve a  series of separate literary  
successes1 whose accumulated value      
justly  gives her a high claim to       
gratitude4 ,every one of her chief works
 has  been a separate venture in some   
new field1 always daring1 always        
successful1 always valuable4 ,her       
,juvenile ,miscellany was the delight   
of all ,american childhood1 when        
childish books were few4 ,her ,hobomok  
was one of the very first attempts to   
make this country the scene of          
historical fiction4 ,in the freshness of
 literary success1 she did not  hesitate
 to sacrifice all her newly won         
popularity1 for years1 by the           
publication of her remarkable ,appeal   
for the ,class of ,americans called     
,africans1 a book unsurpassed in ability
 and comprehensiveness by any of  the   
innumerable later works on the same     
subject1--works which would not  even   

now supersede it1 except that its facts 
and statistics have become  obsolete4   
,time and the progress of the community 
at length did her  justice once more1   
and her charming ,letters from ,new     
,york brought all  her popularity back4 
,turning away1 however1 from fame won by
 such light  labors1 she devoted years  
of her life to the compilation of her   
great  work on the ,progress of         
,religious ,ideas1 a book unequalled in 
the  ,english language as a magazine of 
the religious aspirations of the race4  
,and now1 still longing to look in some 
new direction1 she finds that  direction
 in ,sunset1--the only region towards   
which her name and her  nature have     
alike excused her from turning her gaze 
before4    ,this volume is a collection 
of essays and poems1 old and new1       
original  and selected1 but all bearing 
on the theme of old age4 ,her authors   
range  from ,cicero to ,dickens1 from   
,mrs4 ,barbauld to ,theodore ,parker4   
,the book  includes that unequalled     

essay by ,jean ,paul1 ,recollections of 
the ,best  ,hours of ,life for the ,hour
 of ,death2 and then makes easily the   
transition to that delicious scene of   
humor and pathos from ,cranford1  where 
dear ,miss ,matty meets again the lover 
of her youth4 ,some trifling  errors    
might be noticed here and there1 such as
 occur even in books  looking this side 
of ,sunset3 as when ,burns's line1 ,but 
now your brow  is beld1 ,john1 is       
needlessly translated into ,but now your
 head's  turned bald1 ,john1--where the 
version is balder than the head4 ,it is 
singular1 too1 how long it takes to     
convince the community that ,milton  did
 not write the verses1 ,i am old and    
blind1 and that ,mrs4 ,howell of        
,philadelphia did4 ,mrs4 ,child         
discreetly cites for them no author at  
all1  and thus escapes better than the  
editor of the new series of ,hymns for  
the ,ages1 who boldly appends to the    
poem1 ,milton1 #afjh-afgd4 ,yet ,mrs4   
,child's early ventures in the way of   

writing speeches for ,james ,otis and   
sermons for ,whitefield should have made
 her a sharper detective of the         
ingenuity of others4 ,those successful  
imitations1 published originally  in her
 novel of ,the ,rebels1 have hardly yet 
ceased to pass current in  the school   
elocution-books4    ,nothing occurs to  
us as being omitted from this           
collection1 which justly  belongs there1
 unless she could have rescued from the 
manuscript that  charming essay1 read by
 ,president ,quincy at a certain        
,cambridge dinner1  wherein that beloved
 veteran--,roscius sua arte--taught his 
academic  children to grow old4         
,the ,autobiography of a ,new ,england  
,farm-,house4 ,a ,book4 ,by ,n4         
,h4 ,,chamberlain4 ,new ,york3          
,carleton4    ,we have read this little 
book with some tenderness1 and have been
  interested in its calm1 homelike      
pictures4 ,the author appears to have   
been drawn by a sincere affinity towards
 the poet to whom he does  himself the  

honor to dedicate his story in words of 
simple and sincere  appreciation4       
,there is a pellucid stillness1 like    
that of a summer lake1 over the  pages  
wherein the story lies reflected4 ,and  
this perhaps we may consider  to be the 
charm and value of the book4 ,but the   
author does not remember  that only     
those things are read which must be     
said2 therefore the  simple incidents of
 his narrative are forced into a growth 
of many  instead of few chapters1 and   
the long-drawn cord becomes weak1 and   
will  not easily lead us to the end4 ,he
 also betrays his lack of art by        
printing verses which stick like deep   
sea-shells far below the  high-water    
mark of poetry4 ,nevertheless1 there is 
a fine ,new ,england  color and flavor  
in the book which attract us1 and a     
gentle1 high-minded  peace reigns       
throughout the volume4    ,is the author
 young8 we are tempted to ask4 ,then let
 him turn priest  straightway1 and enter
 the temple of ,art1 and let him weave  

his pictures  sacredly of the pure gold 
fibres of inspiration and thought4      
,lowell ,lectures4 ,the ,problem of     
,human ,destiny2 or1 ,the ,end of       
,providence in the ,world and ,man4 ,by 
,,orville ,,dewey1 ,d4,d4 ,new          
,york3 ,james ,miller4    ,the          
publication of a second edition of this 
thoughtful1 genial1 and  eloquent volume
 enables us to correct the omission of  
not noticing it on  its first appearance
 a few months ago4 ,originally prepared 
as a course  of lectures for the ,lowell
 ,institute1 and repeated with marked   
success  in various cities of the       
,union1 the mode of treatment is of     
course  popular rather than scientific4 
,the subject is necessarily complicated 
with the problem of evil2 but the design
 is not so much to attempt a new        
solution of the problem as to present1  
in a vivid and impressive form1  certain
 invigorating and consoling truths which
 relieve the weight of  its burden4 ,the
 most comprehensive definition of evil1 

to all minds  which are forced1 by the  
contradiction involved in the           
affirmation of  two ,infinites1 to deny 
its essential existence1 is that which  
declares  it to be imperfect good4 ,but 
as this definition implies that evil    
characterizes all grades of created     
being1 and includes the saint  singing  
in heaven as well as the savage prowling
 in the woods1 it  carries with it      
little help or satisfaction to the      
practical will and  conscience4 ,dr4    
,dewey takes up the problem at one or   
two removes from  its purely abstract   
essence1 and fastens on its concrete    
manifestations1  and the compensations  
for its existence in the system of the  
world4 ,the  leading ideas he aims to   
inculcate are these3 that the system of 
the  moral world is a system of         
spontaneous development1 having for its 
object human culture2 that man1 being   
free1 must do1 within the sphere  of his
 permitted activity1 what he will1 and  
therefore is free to do  what is wrong2 

that1 in order that his growth may be   
free and rational1  the system of       
treatment under which he lives must be  
one of general  laws1 and not of        
capricious expedients2 and that there   
are two  restraints on his wild or      
pernicious activity1--one inward1 from  
his  moral nature1 the other outward1   
from material ,nature4 ,after           
illustrating these at considerable1     
though by no means tedious length1  ,dr4
 ,dewey proceeds to exhibit the         
adaptation of the material world to     
human culture1--the physical and moral  
constitution of man1 and the  complexity
 of his being1--the mental and moral    
activity elicited by his  connection    
with ,nature and life1--the problems of 
pain1 hereditary evil1  and death1 which
 affect his individual existence1--the  
problems of bad  or defective           
institutions and usages1 religious1     
political1 and warlike1  which affect   
his social existence1--and the testimony
 of history to  human progress1 and to  

the principles of human spontaneity and 
divine  control which underlie it4      
,but this bare enumeration conveys no   
impression of the richness of the       
author's matter or the fineness of his  
spirit4 ,the volume is full of          
interesting facts1 gathered from a wide 
range of thoughtful reading1  literary1 
historical1 theological1 and scientific1
 and of facts1 too1  which are          
associated with thoughts and related to 
a plan4 ,the judgments  expressed on all
 the vital questions which come up in   
the discussion of  the theme bear the   
impress of genuine convictions4 ,they   
are not merely  the assent of the       
understanding to propositions1 but of   
the soul to  truths2 and many must have 
been subjected to the test of personal  
experience as well as mental scrutiny4  
,the first requisite of a work on  the  
problem of human destiny is1 that it    
should kindle the reader into  sympathy 
with human nature1 and lodge in his mind
 an abiding conviction  of the reality  

of human progress2 and this requisite   
,dr4 ,dewey's volume  satisfies better  
than many treatises of more scientific  
exactness and  more ambitious           
pretensions4