The spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1840-1844, 1843-04-28


poin, nearer 10 the sky than all surrounding OBJ
jccts down TO the earth, and into the dark wet soil,
or neither is Of use The poet must not only con-
verse with pure thought, but he must demonstrate
lures, his verses must be spheres and cubes, 10 he
seen, and smelled, and handled Ills fable must
be good story, and It's meaning Must hold rs pure
truth In debates on The Copyright Bill, in tho
English Parliament, Mr. Sergeant WakoIy, the
Coroner, quoted Wordsworlh's poetry in dcrisIon,
ind asked tho roaring House Of Commons what
that meant and whether man should have
public reward for writing such stn0, Homer tIor-
ace, Milton and Chauccr would defy the Coroner,
Willie they hive wisdom to the wise, he would
see, that 10 tho external. they have external mean
ing. Coleridge eXccen'Iy said of poetry, that
poetry must first be good sense, as II palace
might vel. be magnificent, but first it mus, be
house,
Wordsworth j. open to riiiaule Of this hind
And vet Wordsworth, though satisfied if he can
suggest 10 n sympathetic mind his own mood and
ihough setting private and exaggerated value on
his compositions, though coniGunding his accdcn-
tai with the universal consciousness, and taking
the public 10 task for not admirng his poclrv,-is
really Il superior master Of the English language,
and his poems cYince power Of dcrion that is no
more rivaed by his co,cmporares than is his po-
etc insight, But the capital merit Of " Ordsworth
Il, that he has done for the sanity Of this gen
GRAFTON than any other wliicr. Ealy in life, al II
c.is it Is sad, in his private affairs, he made his
election between assuming aud defending some Ie-
gaI rights with The chances ofwcalth and posi-
ton in the word-aud the inward prorpngs Of
his heavenly genius; he took lis part; he accept
cd the call TO be II poet, and sal down, far from
cltles with coarse clothing and plain fare 10 obey
the heavenly ,i,iun The choice he had made in
his will, manifested itself in every line 10 he real
We have poets who write the poetry Of society, of
the pa,rican aud conventional Europe, as Scott
aud Moore, and others who like Byron or Dulwcr,
wrhc the poetry Of vice aud disease. Hul Words
worth threw himself into his place, made no re-
serves or slipNluons; man and writer were not to
be divided. lie sat at the foo, Of lclveIlyn aud
on the margin Of Winandcrmerc, and took their
ustrnus mornings aud their sublime midnghts for
his theme, and not NARROW, nor N'nssinger, MOI
Horace, nor Milton, nor Dante. lie once for all
(orsook the styles, and standards, and modes of
thinking of London and Paris, and the books read
there. and the aims pursucd, and wrote IInlyeyn
and Winandcrmorc and the dim spirits which these
haunt3 harborcd. There was not the lcus, attempt
to reconcile these with the spirit Of fashion and
sel3hoe's, nor 10 show with great Difference 10
the superior judgcmcn, Of Dukes and Eurs, that
although London was the home for men of great
pars, yet Wcsimorcland had these consultations
for such as Fate had condemned to The country
life; bu, with a complete satisfaction, he picd
and robuked their false lives, md celebrated his
own VIVA the religion Of a irac priest. Hence the
anlagonism which was Immediately felt between
his poetry and the spri, Of the age lha, here no,
only criticism, bat conscience aud will were par
ties; the spirit OF literature, and the modes Of liv-
ing, and the conventional theories Of the conduct
Of if. were called in question on wholly new
grounds,-no' nom ih'Hn'sm """ ''"~' '''''""-
g." "' '''" lessons "I''ch Inc country muse
Taught stout pedestrian climbing mountain, and
III ''"o""5 "'"e' rom It's parent fII down to the
~" me O"hhi"g' ana JcII'cys Of tho Capital,
we oo''' '"urhh'' ana Literary Ga2eilcs were not
"'" Pva'''' ana voted the poet borc. But,
,''' ""''" rose IN h'm SO high sio the 'p', rose
1" ."'y o'''r' aa h'sI MS to The heart VIVA, he
'"'' '"'y were prepared To hcar and confirm. The
.n"0'"'' WAS III Inc mr., and WAS waited Up pnd
uoN" l''o zone ana mo popnIous places, resisting
'"' popular TASTE inoo'I! ING opinions which it did
"o' cn''s'' ana soon c''ne to be 'ei IN poetry, in
c"'ciin' n plans OF life, and at last in legislation