Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1839-09-26
from Tie New England Mag
REV. MIR. TAYLOR.
ORATOR NAsCITUR.

II is hard to describe such a character; ]
had given it up in despair, not because the
waters are not clear, but because they are
too deep. Yet have been a frequent hear.
| er of Mr.. Taylor, and if without advantage il
is the fault of the soil, not Of the seed.
II Mr.. Taylor is prodigy--but he is q worl
Of nature only; art can claim no credit in
him. The senses supply him with the mos
rapid and definite perceptions, and his affec.
tons embrace all mankind his imagination
is easily moved by the beautiful or sublime,
and his heart is even more accessible to what
is good and true; his sense OF natural law is
above all treatises of sages, and his spirit is
devout to mnrtyrdom.
His productions have not the revision and
polish of after thought, nor are they dug out
OF the quarry of n perfect language, like the
Greek, or even Of a simple one, which is so
favorable to the uneduca,ed improvsotori of
other nations. The English language, with
heterogeneous elements, is complicated by
the terms of many arts and sciences, and by
still greater authorizations made by affecta-
ton, pedantry, ranks, and cotcries. No NOR
tai man, whose library Of education did not
include grammar and dictionary, can Of him
self classify and arrange in his mind this
discordant mass. 1t would then be miracle
for Mr.. Taylor TO use language with the per-
fcction of Milton or Shakespeare. But the
language, as presented to Mr.. Tnylor's mind,
is words only in their naked values MS ex.
prcsslve Of things sensible and spiritual,
without the stamp Of any standard author to
direct him in his choice great is his
| power over it. His rare and powerful CON-
binations Of new words, his very mistakes
which are generally founded OH principle
of philosophy, his evidence Of musical ear
reveal the very operations Of mind creating
language out Of a chaos OF words. In nI
earlier era in the history Of our language
instead Of smiling at his mistakes in gram
mar and logic, we should admire his creation
II Of o standard dalect,-his clear perception
of things, his intuition of the unalogics o.
sound and sense, his combination of the forms
and colors OF creation with spiritual subjects
Tor, as Brown would say, his natural associa
tons OF relative Suggesiion) and his ear foI
music guiding him to distlnctness, express
sivencss, picturesqueness, and force.
II But he has deeper fountain Of cloqucnce
than clearness OF perception or splcndor oI
Imagination, in his natural sentiments. lie
has loved, rcJolced, and sorrowed in the vari
Gus relations OF social life, in his own person
aud hardly less in the persons Of others. IIc
has not contemplated men through other
mems perceptions and imaginations, spread
ont in o book, but he has studied them as
they actually love, hate, sin, sorrow, and re-
pent. The pageant Of human life passes d..
recty before his eyes, and the actors are
near to his heart. He studies metaphysics.
in sympathy, which is rs good school mas.
ter as experience, for he feels for others
quite ~ much rs for HIMSELF
u he pictures human beings 10 tho coarse.
incss oi their actual state, lac never leaves