The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-20 00:00:00

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LITERATURE.
EDINBURGH REVIEW.—No. CXL VI:
Lbngman, London, 1841.
The life of the celebrated Ger-
Schiller, whom the Rev
nently the fay,-
fortustl-
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...ewer asserts to be etni-
. ....rite poet of his conotryNt
subject of a delightful article in the pre-
lent Edinburgh kw. The early disappoint-
ilueeuts of this highly-gifted man; the struggle
iolig maintained against poverty, and the
f i.,tghts to which it gives rise ; the calm seir.eon-
tnce he showed under circumstances calculated
check the glowing aspirations of genius; and
the full and perfect triumph over prejudice arta
neglect to which this well-regulated Self-con-
lerace led ;—all these marked features in Schil-
s literary career are exhibited with giant
and minuteness, and offer a useful ihoral to
..enseious worth and talent wilts) languishing
'_urclier the heavy pressure'
L'ell'ilYd• Frederick contempt and pe-
SI-eililler was, it seems, the
life ev?f pour Int deserving parents, and early in
Pro,. 'tiFet)-i.a decided predilection for the Church.
Icto7 41s Inother he appears, says his Reviewer,
t, -iaVe inherited his pious, earnest, enthusiastic,
OPerament, his mild and loving disposition, and
. „4'. early taste for poetry. Even in face and tbrm
kl likeness was Conspicuous ;in the tall and
figure, the light hair, weak eyes, broad
forehead, 'and melancholy expression which was
't
sal
to him." His predilection for the
grch, however, soon gave way to his passion
r the drama, which was elicited by his first visit
to
010 theatre at Ludwigsburg, when a boy.
kt'ekteforth, he would" frequently shut himself
wilyo his room, and rehearse long scenes, in
oLich paper-puppets were the performers, while
to ,s of tragedies, sanguinary and terrific, began
float across his mind." The extraordinary play
,f
whthe " Robbers" was the consequence—a play
teich once read, is never forgotten. We our-
b2ves have not met with it since our school-days,
ut the chief incidents are still as fresh in our
Ytuory, as though we had perused then) but
tterday. This striking drama, which excited
4t enthusiasm of all Germany, and whose fame
witt't spread throughout Europe, was written
it 4Schiller was barely twenty-one years old :
eon,,,,,_grew into shape under obstacles of every kind ; being
r‘Ntt secretly, at such hours as Schiller could steal from
feiterVor the studios of the academy. Sometimes he would •
this 4,1 illness, in order to obtain a light in his bedroom ; but
sep wb,s soon detected by the teachers, who forthwith
(kit him long tasks to be performed, until he should again be
it.? to attend the usual courses. Once he had a narrow escape
11 :,ne of the domiciliary visits of the Duke, who, in mak-
ithis rounds at night, entered the room so hastily, that
iettfiller had scarcely time to -throw the manuscript under
al table, and to replace it by some medical work. To en-
: iorne,ehtlirnmetso, bear these nightly laboUrs, he had recourse to wine ;
it insinuated, not without detriment to the steadi- -
t of' his step next morning.
(tOita popular to an unprecedented degree as
e " Robbers" was, it did little towards improv-
.
g author's worldly circumstances. Poverty,
la its worst shape, still dogged his footsteps ; and
ewas even denounced to the Duke of Wurtem-
' Itt4rg, in whose dominions he resided, as a " .fac-
ti:3tis and dangerous spirit" in consequence of
revolutionary principles developed in his
'43% He was compelled, therefore, to fly se-
tretly from the Duke's territories, " with some
twenty florins, raised by the sale of his whole
earthlyiv goods, in Isis pocket," and presented
,!llself at Mannheim, before the stage-director
ot
e!the theatre there, with a new play which he
7d written, entitled " Fiesco." Strange to say, '
;:.! read this play so villainously, that the ma-
'l4ger told him point blank that it was a mi-
trahle failure; but on perusing the MSS. him- •
Tit. discovered all its excellences, and promised
to forward its representation on the stage. But
before this could be accomplished, the -Duke of
wurtemberv's displeasure—for he had sent einis-
"after
es him to Mannheim—forced the poet
seek shelter at Frankfort. The
_following pic-
t is deeply affecting :
he journey must be performed on foot, for the trifle which
16..uuter had brought to Mannheim could not last above ten
days longer, and to hit father he could not apply, since
ktY communication with the fugitive might involve him in his
e• The faithful.Streicher would not forsake his companion,
It;.Procured about thirty florins from his mother, and, with
''scanty exchequer, the friends started. The journey was
and to Schiller, unused to such excursions, exhausting.
7Lehirs,a Darmstadt after a twelve hours' walk, his sleep had
1 unpleasantly broken by the reveille of the drums—a sound
4"th, after his recollections .of his own position in a military
Picky in the Wirtemberg service, he could not help asso-
,ing with danger. The following picture given by Hoff-
Oster is interesting :—" It was a bright, cheerful morning,
Zen the travellers, wearied with their yesterday's walk, re-
ed their journey. They moved forward slowly, stopping,
'ler a league, to refresh themselves with a little
k kirschen-
ker in a draught of water. At noon they entered a small
less for the sake of food than to allow Schiller, who had
• o ill before starting, and was very tired, the refreshment
a little repose ; but the inn was so noisy, and the
4aple so rude, that they left' it in a quarter of an hour.
4,a,nt they started for Frankfort, Schier walking ore
nY, and the paleness of his countenanllce visibly inermeas-
-441 tr
When they reached a little wood by the road-side, he
bed he was unable to proceed further, but would try
Y means of a few hours' rest, he could still reach
rankfort that night. He lay dosin• to sleep on the grass
4Older a shadowy thicket, Streicher sitting near him on the
~
of a felled tree, and watching • with anxiety his unfor-
tunate friend. There lay one of the noblest of poets, who
Was soon to be the glory of his country, poor, helpless, ex-
hausted, without home, without prospects. Sleep took pity
rk him—his strength partially recruited, and, with nightfall,
the wanderers reached Frankfort."
Arrived at Frankfort, Schiller's active mind,
talamped by his adverse circumstances, was in-
'tantly at work with new creations. "He
balked," observes the Reviewer, " during the
!turnings, passing through the crowded streets,
in a !dream ; in the evening he shut himself
in his apartment, walking up and. down, as
„7.as- his custom, while engaged in composition ;
.."(v and then pausing to commit some lines to
Dit: Per, apparently even unconscious of the pre-
sence of his humble friend, who, during these
Illoinents of inspiration, was careful to preserve
religious silence." After some hesitation,
rhiller, having ascertained that the Duke had
I•73iven his flight, decided on returning to Mann-
"elm, where he was fortunate enough to get an
tao.
isagement for a year as dramatic poet. Here
:`te produced his play of " Court Intrigue and
ve," which awakened " a tumult of enthu-
Nast,
Schiller was himself present during the first night of its
rteforritix,:e. He sat with his eyes rivetted on the stage ; the
ion of his lips and the knitting of his eye-brows
'hen anything in the acting went amiss, while the
hi.vtarkling of his eye denoted his delight when same favourite
,l,"'ge produced its effect. Not a word escaped him during
•7' whole of the first act ; and only at its close he seemed to
"lieve himself by the words, " That goes well !" The second
,t:t was played with such captivating warmth and truth, that
when the curtain fell, the whole audience rose, and broke
'qrtli into a general shout of applause. Schiller was so over-
-1
'uwered that he rose in return and bowed- to the public, his
tjte and bearing expressive at once of just self-estimation, gra-
titude, and satisfaction. .Such a-glorious moment repaid bins
c't the annoyances of many a weary year.
Prom this period Schiller's prospects gradually
I'llglitenefl. The German Society conferred
:Nil him admission to their body; and the
lake of Weimar bestowed on him the honour-
;Mc title of Councillor. He soon afterwards re-
",loved to Dresden, where he wrote • his " Don
-1-arlos," and the singular romance of the
Cshost Seer." Thence lie Went to Wei-
-I;tr, and ultimately fixed his abode at
.
Pla, having been appointed, through the in-
Ilitence of Goethe, to the Professorship of His-
tory in that University. About this time lie
'Harried, and, unlike most poet's marriages, his
l'its a fortunate one, for his wife appreciated iris
talents and encouraged hills in their exercise. He
11W studied and composed with more painstaking
assiduity than ever, and, among other able works,
Produced his " History of the Thirty Years' War"
his magnificent play of " Wallenstein,"
r'iliels Coleridge has so finely translated. But
is end was now drawing nigh. Early sorrow
it.,101 privations, together with the exhaustion pro-
by the incessant strain on his mental fa-
tOlties, had enfeebled Isis constitution, never
vigorous, and lie was seized, at Berlin,
1!110 witnessing the representation of Isis " Wil-
:4lli Tell," with an illness which in a few months '
i'roved fatal :
41e had been delirious in the morning- of the day on which
died (the 9th of May, 11305), but about four o'clock he fell
soft slee_p, from which he awoke in the full possession of
ill:13es: tie knew that his end was at hand, took farewell
family.and friends, and gave directions for his funeral.
1,,L.7 le‘ inquiring bow he felt,' the answer was—" calmer and
!"- Once he looked up with a gleam of animation, and
'Many things are growing plain 'and Blear to me.'
into a,72_ after be sank again slumber, which gradually deep-
ii.7l into the sleep of death. He died at the age of forty-five,
41? his faculties were in their full vigour and a long and
hiL. 'ant course of intellectual activity apparently. lay before
,3
" Beaumont and Fletcher, and their Contem-
poraries" is—as may be surmised from the title—
s -ritical notice of some of the principal drama-
tists of the Elizabethan age. The Reviewer
tltotnences with some remarks on the Greek
irgedians, wherein he speaks of Euripides as
h;l.V„ing " been seduced by false taste and unsound
4'iosophy." Of' this great writer's philosophy
th Otherwise, we say nothing, but we demur to
cc ; charge that his plays are distinguished by
21,44,18 e taste." His Alcestes, and still more his
this "ea) are perfectly free from any blemish of
sort. Indeed, the taste, as well as the pa-
A's°B2 displayed throughout them, are exquisite.
ao,,regards the Reviewer's opinions of Beaumont
th_"! Pletcher, and Webster, we think he rates
• rather too highly. There is certainly a ster-
thr,. •
. tw,3 Poetical spirit displayed in the dramas! of the
exa. former; but they are constantly guilty of
ggeration of character ; their pathos is apt to
t;;generate into a sort of flowery, maudlin pret-
ess oL!. .
Reflui sentiment ; and their huniour, though
artifi 1.1e4 is still oftener coarse, strained, and
We nothing of tl • Ave • • . say
taiBB for't •- v. • -4- the • • ) was the age ; bur we main-
tht opposition to their numerous admirers,
In the delineation of their characters' they
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