LITERARY RECORD.
Reading edition
Greenwood Cemetery.—A desideratum is timely supplied by a small pamphlet before us, containing the rules, regulations, etc., of the Greenwood Cemetery, on the beautiful Heights of Gowanus, near this city. It contains the names of the officers of the corporation, the trustees, terms of subscription, rules concerning improvements, interments, graves, tombs, visitors to the grounds, etc., with a description of some of the principal monuments already erected. It is to be regretted that the person who furnished the inscription for the monument to the beautiful Indian wife, Do-hum-me, did not quote the admirable verse of Bryant more correctly. In riding through the grounds the other day, we observed that two words were added to the last line, which entirely destroy its measure and melody. The four lines in question are from that exquisite poem, 'The Indian Girl's Lament' at the grave of her lover. We cannot resist the inclination to preserve the following stanzas in these pages, for the admiration of our readers:
'I've pulled away the shrubs that grew Too close above thy sleeping head, And broke the forest boughs that threw Their shadows o'er thy bed, That shining from the sweet southwest The sunbeams might rejoice thy rest. It was a weary, weary road That led thee to the pleasant coast, Where thou, in his serene abode. Hast met thy father's ghost: Where everlasting autumn lies On yellow woods and sunny skies. 'Twas I the broidered mocsen made, That shod thee for that distant land; 'Twas I thy bow and arrows laid Beside thy still, cold hand: Thy bow in many a battle bent, Thy arrows never vainly sent. With wampum belts I crossed thy breast, And wrapped thee in the bison's hide, And laid the food that pleased thee best, In plenty, by thy side, And decked thee bravely, as became A warrior of illustrious name. Thou'rt happy now, for thou hast passed The long dark journey of the grave, And in the land of light, at last, Hast joined the good and brave; Amid the flushed and balmy air, The bravest and the loveliest there. Yet, oft to thine own Indian maid Even there thy thoughts will earthward stray, To her who sits where thou wert laid. And weeps the hours away, Yet almost can her grief forget, To think that thou dost love her yet. And thou, by one of those still lakes That in a shining cluster lie, On which the south wind scarcely breaks The image of the sky, A bower for thee and me hast made Beneath the many-colored shade. And thou dost wait and watch to meet My spirit sent to join the blessed, And, wondering what detains my feet From the bright land of rest, Dost seem, in every sound, to hear The rustling of my footsteps near.'
In the fourth line of the fifth stanza, thus far transferred to the marble, the words 'the fair' have been interpolated, in the inscription to which we have referred. The error is attributable to one of two causes; an ambition to 'gild refined gold,' or unpardonable carelessness.
'The Sleep Rider, or The Old Boy in the Omnibus.'—If the 'Man in the Claret-colored Coat' had kept his promise, we should not have been compelled to dismiss this amusing work with a few words of commendation; but it is 'all along of him,' and we wash our hands of any thing 'short-coming' in the way of duty. We have read enough to know that there is an abundant sprinkling of lively, sententious wit, and shrewd observation of men and things in the volume, and that it is as replete with contrasts and abruptions as any thing of Lawrence Sterne's. Lieutenant White, one of the Mesmerised tale-tellers of the Omnibus, unwinds an exceedingly graphic 'yarn' which was once 'reeled off' in these pages by a lamented and most gifted kinsman of the 'Man in the Claret-colored Coat;' and there are sundry 'scenes, events, and things' recorded in a way peculiar to the writer, whose productions our readers have often laughed at, with the fullest exercise of their cachinnatory powers. The terse hieroglyphical epigraphs at the heads of the chapters have a world of meaning, most likely; but they require study! Buy the little book, and read it. It is both 'cheap and good.'
The Use of Classical Literature.—We have only space to commend warmly to the acceptance of our readers a little pamphlet from the press of Messrs. James Munroe and Company, Boston, containing an Address delivered before the United Literary Societies of Dartmouth College in July last, by Andrew P. Peabody, Esq. It is a spirited defence of classical literature against the attacks of those short-sighted persons, the utilitarian or other 'reformers' of the time, who undervalue the advantages for which they offer no equivalent. The writer's remarks upon the tendency of modern literature, and of the taste for which it caters, are worthy of heedful note.
Mr. Hillard's Discourse.—We have before us, from the publishers, Messrs. Little and Brown, Boston, 'The Relation of the Poet to his Age: a Discourse delivered before the Phi Beta Kappa Society of Harvard University,' in August last, by George S. Hillard. We agree in the main with the verdict of the North-American Review upon this discourse. Its diction is soft and beautiful, the style nicely polished, and marked by pictured words, glowing images, and fanciful expressions; yet, as a whole, the discourse 'lacks precision and definiteness, in the statement of the leading idea in the mind of the speaker, and a consequent defect of unity and method.' We would go as far as Mr. Hillard, or any other American, in inculcating a love of, and reverence for, the poetical in our country; its early struggles, its scenery, and its history as a nation; but with deference, it seems to us that the Merimac may fail to kindle the emotions, in ever so patriotic a heart, which the associations connected with the Tiber might naturally inspire; nor are 'Westminster Abbey, the Alps, or the Vatican,' to be excluded from a kindred place in the mind of the true poet. We must be permitted also to doubt whether 'Srumfry Davy,' as Mr. Yellowplush terms the great scientific discoverer, could have 'chosen' to be equally distinguished as a poet; or whether 'the whistle of a locomotive' has in it, per se, much poetry! The 'Discourse' is executed with great neatness, whether we regard it in a literary or external point of view, and will be found richly to reward the perusal to which we cordially commend it.
North-American Review.—The last issue of this 'ancient and honorable' Quarterly is a very good one, although less various in the style of its papers than one or two of its immediate predecessors. The 'articles' proper are nine in number, and are upon the following themes: 'The Military Academy' at West-Point; 'Our Commercial History and Policy;' 'Talfourd's Miscellaneous Writings;' 'Early Laws of Massachusetts;' 'Raczynski's Modern Art in Germany;' 'The Independence of the Judiciary;' 'Autobiography of Steffens;' 'Despatches of Hernando Cortes;' and 'Dr. Olin's Travels in the Holy Land.' The closing article contains the usual collection of brief notices of new publications, and opens with a review of Mr. Parson's translation of Dante's 'Inferno.' We are glad to find our own opinion of this excellent performance confirmed by the liberal praise of the North-American. Passages are given from Cary's version, in contrast with that of Mr. Parsons, and the palm of superiority, in poetical merit, awarded to our countryman. The poems of Friend Whittier are noticed with approbation; and also, in one or two instances, rather hypercritically, as it strikes us. The praise, however, is not scant: 'Mr. Whittier commands a vigorous and manly style. His expression is generally simple and to the point. Some passages in his poems are highly picturesque; and at times his imagery is bold and striking.' 'The Norsemen,' written for this Magazine, 'Raphael,' and 'Massachusetts to Virginia,' are pronounced 'musical, almost without fault; and the imagery and expression noble and spirit-stirring.'
'Cock-a-doodle-doo!'—Poultry merchants and 'cultivators' will have occasion to thank Mr. Micajah R. Cock (nom de plume) for his 'American Poultry Book,' a practical treatise on the management of domestic poultry. It bears the high commendation of the Board of Agriculture of the American Institute, as 'a work supplying a deficiency which has long been felt in this department of the agricultural library, and which should find a place in every farm-house.' The book originated in an attempt, for the compiler's behoof, to collect and embody in a methodical form all the various notices respecting the treatment of poultry in America, scattered through our various periodical publications. Scarcely any thing pays the farmer a better profit than poultry, fowls requiring little attention save at a season of the year when he has comparatively little to do; they are 'amenable' also to the attention of women, their best protectors indeed, in case the 'men-folk' are employed. Harper and Brothers, publishers.
The 'Illustrated Common-Prayer.'—Mr. H. W. Hewet has brought these excellent numbers to a close, and a very beautiful volume will be the result. The deserved success which has attended the work, we may presume, has led the publisher to commence an 'Illustrated Sacred History of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as recorded in the Four Gospels; arranged in chronological order; with an appendix and explanatory notes.' The whole will be embellished with numerous engravings on wood, illustrating the principal events from the Annunciation to the Ascension. So far as the internal character of the work is concerned, it is only necessary to say, that it is confided to the competent care of the Rev. Dr. Wainwright, while the previous publications of Mr. Hewet give assurance that his own department will not be neglected.
FOOTNOTES:
Transcriber's note:
Minor typographical and punctuation errors have been corrected without note. Irregularities and inconsistencies in the text have been retained as printed.
Mismatched quotes are not fixed if it's not sufficiently clear where the missing quote should be placed.
Page 452: "If it's deep glories prove untrue"-the transcriber has changed "it's" to "its".
Page 469: "limitless in it's application"-"it's" changed to "its".
The cover for the eBook version of this book was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.