The New York herald., 1845-08-14

: morning delectable specimen OF a new and rathe
curious species Of literature, which has recent
sprung up in this country. The other day we CAV
another specimen of the same school OF literature
written by Grant Thorburn, highly respectabl
florist in this city, who cultvates the bellies iettrs
and prize dahlias with equal ZEAL if not with exactl
similar success
Mr.. Willis and Mr.. Thorburn are, indeed. proba
bly, the very first of that class of Hterateurs VIII
have taken the the various trades and mechanics
professions under their especial patronage and pro
lection. Kohl, the jouneyman tailor, who pub
llshed, not long since, notes of his journeying
throughout various portions of Europe, rathe
"sinks the Shop in his lucubrations, but Willis ane
Ihorburn take quite an opposite course, and tn,
hatter shoemaker, carpenter, tailor nailer barber
hair-dresser, restamrateMr and tavern. keeper, are
the chosen heroes of all their epistles. Thorburr
appears to have an especis liking to the carpenter
Willis willing to 60 the death the taors. The
style OF these two distinguished hteai has, by the
by great deal in common, and it is really very
Interesting subject in the sublime science of cri:i-
csm, to take up and dissec the pecnlartes of these
two contemporary writers. In the works OF both,
egotism, sense, twaddle, folly, poetry, wit and old
co' philosophy, mix and mngle. constantly, in
amazingly varied proportions In this hot weather,
tn singular meiange makes most tolerable reading,
and after dinner, as you sit at the open window and
smoke one Of Henriques' mild Havanas, you may
doze quite comfortably over one of these letters TO
"my dear Morris" or "m my excellent Bumble-bee -
The similarity between the style Of Thorburn and
Willis, is really rather curious. We think, however,
we can explain il. Grant Thorbun commenced life
as an interchangeable mailer. He had been blessed with
good practical Scottish education, and being of a
trail and diminuIive stature, the precious time
which might otherwise have been given the sports
Of boyhood, the vanies of the world, was de-
voted to the acquisition of knowledge. In this way,
Grant grew up "pawke chel," shrewd, intelligi-
gent, and well-read, far beyond his station in So
ciety. In an evil hour, however, one John Gait, a
no, est of great genius and humor, got hold OF poor
Grant, and beholding in him, with the eye ofa prac
tsed observer, materials which might be turned to
some profitable account, and the manufacture of
story, converted literary mailer into hero and
a hon, under the soAbrtquet OF "Laurie Todd -
Grant, alias s'Laurie Todd" at once found himself
elevated like the Prophets asa into the seventeenth
heaven, and ever since, he has been hugging the
lions skin. Occasionally, some scraps of his orig-
ma. good sense break forth-like little isets in an
ocean Of twaddle but the whole, we may safe
ly say that Gait killed poor Grant Thorburn. Just
so with Willis. When lad at College, he
wrote passabe verses, and dashed off a very, very
readable sketches of scenery, society, and man.
ners But one day he sailed for England, and found
himself, thanks to the good-nature of patronlzing
iherGi and lonZing 'nobodles," amongst the Eng
lish nobility, admitted into fashionable society in
The British metropolis. Here he figured in a small
way for some months, and became so thoroughly
lmbued with the convennonalisms and affectatons
of that state of society to lose almost every trace
of his original character. Ever SINCE his writings
have exhibited silly and ridiculous hankering after
he society which he encountered during the season
OF his sojourn in London, and genius that ought to
give us original, philosophical views of society,
now contents itself with remarks on coats, vests,
and pantaloons-canes, hats, and 'imperals, y
which are really the very drlbbings of twaddling
lmbecillty.
Such is bref and accurate view of the natural
history of two Of the most distinguished tape-and-
ribbon hterateus of the day. Both are certainly
genuses IN their line. But II is very small line
a line with which the public mas last gul picuy
thoroughly disguised, and which is rapidly merging
into the plquan and practical lschoo of the ad-
vertlsing tailors and haters. Even Willis and Thor
burn must yield to the original and power
fu genius of the school which devotes itself to the
eucidaton Of the lncomparablewrters of the"ltalan
Medcated Soap" and the " soulnvigorating root
beer"