The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1847-12-11

lsOSc WIZ HcIc uCiucclNcs Oul Vi SullS " III
fortune. Better, we would think, that al
were iron-hesred alike. But the positiv,
inconvenience Of living in a world when
rich people could in no way be blsd, mus
strike every body so lorcibly, that IT is scarce
ly necessary thus to dilste upon the subject
A world without heat, or light, or water, o
some other Of the great physical element
Of existence, can be contemplated witt
some degree OF patience, but not worl'
without relation, or friend susceptible o
being squeezed.
Ii seems TO me also very clear that tn
actual character Of our relatives and asso
ciates in the world is greatly superior Il
what the novelists would give US. In tn,
actual world, one often has decent enougl
sort of uncle-perhaps half father to one
supposing real fathers 10 be wanting-al
ways sure to have an exhibition of lamI
and sherry at his nephews' service on Sun
day afternoons, and pretty sure to hell
handsomely in the outfit of nieces for mar
risge at home, or for expeditions to 60 anC
reside with married sisters in India. Nov
this the novelist would entirely deprive us OF
giving us, instead, some rascally old dos
who conceals wills in our favor, and treat
us with all sorts Of gross cruelties. Step
mothers of actual life are often exceedingly
worthy creatures. | have known man,
who were a blessing TO their adopted chill
dren. But the stepmothers of the novel
ist-what atrocious wretches they always
are That, too, were a bad exchange
Then as to persons connected with us il
our affairs. Did anybody ever know novel
lists steward or agent turn out aught Blu
a rogue' Only imagine us obliged Il
commit our property to such persons a
fiction can furnish for that purpose, what ;
beggarly reckoning should we have Of il il
few years Beyond a doubt every es
tate in the country would, in & novelist
world, shift owners each generation.-
Ii must be owned that, in the ideal creation
we should probably have some small conso
lation in one of those exceedingly faithful
and attached old servants who always insis
upon sharing their ruined masters or mistress
fortunes without wages or perquisites. Thi
may, however, be allowed, and still tn,
balance will be vastly in favor Of the rea
world. seeing that the stewards Of that crea
ton are usually worthy persons, doing thei
best for their employers interest, and thu
saving them from all occasions to evok,
the disinterestedness Of their inferior domes
tics.
There are few features of the novelist,
creation that | am not quite sure about
For instance, that certainty Of murder com
ing OUT One some how feels il 10 be ar
unpleasant peculiarly Of the actual world
that throat may be cut, and the doer o.
the deed escape detection. 1t seems much
preferable that the guilty man should be
sure 10 be exposed by some bloody handker
chief, or some mark Of his feet on the floor
or some bone discovered in digging well
as is the common case in novels; 50 thai
he is sure TO be punished for his crime. On
the other hand, there are so many things Il
give US general assurance Of the good man
agement Of Providence, that we may perhap:
be allowed to doubt if certainty in the
detection Of murder would be an improve
ment Il is Just possible that the tightening
Of this apparently loose screw might lead tC
the christening Of some other Of greater i'm.
portance, in which case We might wish that
murder was once more concealable. Since
there is a doubt, however, | am willing
that the novelists should have the benefit Of
it. 1t will not serve them much.
Finally, in one grand particular the nov.
elist's world is so much inferior to that
which actually exists, that even the most
determined lovers Of excitement may be
happy to think that there is no fear Of tie
one being exchanged for the other. | al
Jude to the infinitely higher strain of TO
nance attaching to the character Of the
persons and events of the actual world
Not that the novelist would not willingly
give us as much romance in character and
incident as We chose TO have; but then We
do not choose to have much from him, al
ways demanding that he shall consult proba-
bility, OF our notion Of the average Of
things, and refusing to him whatever seems
to trespass in the least upon upon the domain
Of extravaganza For this reason, the fc-
tion-world is necessarily a tame, equable
sort of world. Very different is the world
of actuality, where one day Bonaparte
rises TO astonish mankind, and another day
ships take upon themselves to sail against
wind and tide, and men begin to journey
from London to Edinburg between break
fast and supper. Men, too, do such
strange things in the actual world-things
come about in such odd ways-life is so
full Of whimsical surprises, and happy CO.
medicines, and entirely original trains of
events, thai there is no end to our enter
tainment. In the progress Of science a
liberal mind can never be without some
thing like a continual feast. Even the
newspaper Of the day presents in general
such wonderous doings in some part or 9TH
er Of the world, in public or in private affairs,
that the best romances are apt to appear
tame in comparison.
| return, then, to the expression OF
thsnkfulnesS with which started-that we
live in the actual, and not in a fictitious
world.