Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1848-12-02


heaIer.
"No doubt this pomp of sounds and of ephe would, in
any other orator. appear studied his figures of speech too
poeca this dcon of his dazzling, his closes of sentences
moduated but listening him, seeing him, one soon
feel that in his of genius he could not express
himself otherwise that TO him the sublimity OF his language
natural is vuganty petiogger and that all these
fine phrases those fine sentiments which would at first
take be the work of the head and got by roe, come only
from his heart"
Thus goes on our character-painter, in style of
praise which is either most wicked banter Qor how
could any thing be worse in parliamentary elo-
quence than all this y or else debate and taste, in
the French Chambers must be the most udicrous
things ever beheld Yet GuHoT, always a most
able speaker for business mastery debater, whe-
ther for attack or defence, luminous, lofty, and
strong, is there; so is his great practical rival,
THEIRS, a man of great resources; so is ODILoN
BARRoT, man approaching, for commanding VI
gor and simplicity, to the antique models +; so is
BERRYER, probably the greatest European speaker
of the age. Alongside OF such, how must all this
poetcal splendor appear, that may delight or sur
prise, but can never enlighten nor convince, can
only captivate the car and the imagination, and is,
i'll weghty affairs, merely fit TO be wondered at,
not listened to We cannot think the dlscrlmlnat-
ing, the acute Cormenin serious in all this or that
he means, by thus extolling LAMARTINE as poet
orator. TO intend any thing else than the insdious
praise that, for fine words, with nothing in them,
Monsieur ALPHoNsE DE LAaARTINE is little the
most surprising orator ever SEEM glorious piece OF
hnery, transccndant nothing.
We have thus far given the most striking parts of
this portrait, the freshest which he has drawn of
LAMARrISE and answering perfectly, as it seems
to us, to that last aspect in which he has shown
himself; where, action being the question, not
words he proved himself as poor in that as rich
IN these. Could talk, which may make revolutions,
conduct them he was man to sit on such clouds |
and direct the storm but the seat gave way, and
master Alphonse fell through.
But we must 90 ON with the close of this picture,
the traits OF which, though growing yet more enco-
miastic, still consonant with the meaning which
we suppose them designed to convey for, to the
last he gives him not one quality Of the able man
or real deliberative speaker. Yet he assigns him
very generous qualities; for example; thus, in his
"lfili your pleasure that Lamarne shall always be the
same, shall be Eighty the Frenchman would have
sad had they equivalent word in their lanRuage) hen
hang yourself to his feet and hold down earth those sublime
wings which bear him into space, the real worlds Of
Gods csang and the fantastic which Of tie poets
II he has been legm, then socialist, and afterwards
and if he be to-day liberal and
publican what's that to me Shall be so taseless as to
exact trtm such poet the fixed opinions of fool
Even the wild bee gathers his honey alike from the
oy cedar and the humble violet from the petals Of the
and the bitter cup Of the cytissus Lamarne that
Dee Of politics. in fitting through them, has gathered only
and purest in each plant flower of party
whether socialism, cpubcansm, legitimacy, conservatism
in this that he has belonged each Of them by
urn and perhaps still belongs to them ALL without ceasng
o be himself
This, for the moment, (he presently makes some
amends, must decidedly again be ironica for of
what value are, in the statesman, all these extracts,
hese quintessences, this ambrosa of systems and
parties mere drone is he, al last, who carries |
TOT home honey for the hive. A poetical bee, only
xpatiating like Monsieur Alphonse, for his own
title bag, is mere butterfly
Let sprg Of nobility, that has shot up his starry
cad between the benches Of the Chamber, the t
une and unless told his name, shall be able to
whether be be duke dresser Of hair bet il La
rises from his seat by his lofty gesture, the
words he lets fall each stranger will have recognised
he high manners the elegant bearing the polished Of
be old French chevaIiers II said, believe Of Cato
no, of Cassius by Bru,us in Putach that he the
the Romans WELL taking him altogether by the air, the
istncon Of his person, public and private Lamarine the
rs, Of the great lords.
al have often asked myself what Lamatne would have
one upon the benches Of the Convention [ah, indeed
long with Mabeau, Danon, and those fiery geniuses and
that he would, by his touching appeals have
moved than Of those savage hearts the socnngs
mercy ard pity what he would have been under Napo-
con, and have answered, magnificent ambassador Of the
emperor and great nation what he would now be- he
made Minister and it seemed that be would walk
nto his cabinet with all the nsf enthusiasm Of good man
nd that three months afterwards tired Of his own impotence
rfeiled with dsgusts he would hand hack his
red portfolio and go breathe in the shades Of his loved
courts"
Not bad guess, this last. II has all happened,
except that voluntary surrender Of the red portfolio
and that glad withdrawal to the beloved shades. |
No: people SO little fit for supreme power are al
ways the most reluctant to quit it. We might point
TO some Presidential and Ministerial examples at
home but We won't.
No ono, either in the Constituent Assembly or in Con-
venon, or IN dminutives Of them, had near
or far orsoreal physiognomy equal to his Were such
TO disappear from the Chamber his place there would be
empty forever, and looks If should leave with
him the superb eoquence Of imagery the poetry Of public
business, the annaled defence Of social theses. conectures
the generosity Of popular theories such generosity wants
10 help ITSELF and the chivalry Of high sentiments"
As TO that same chvalry we have had some Of
II in our own country; and the chevaliers were,