The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-12-19

tending her circle of thought and life yet in this
direction lies her greatest danger-for every ma
ture has its bounds, and too generous and sus-
ceptible genius often responds TO every call, until
the love for variety becomes the thirst for mental
excitement, and in series of commissions to push
out boundaries, the central power is weakened
and the intellectual life collapses
This sympathetic energy appears on every page
of the books now before us, and modifes every
development of their authors mind. 1t is the
finest quality in her humor. In her lighter
moods she is always the great-hearted woman,
and her shafts of wit, though swiftly sped, are
never poisoned She can laugh merrily over the
ridiculous features of things she loves, and still
hold TO them with genuine reverence and faith.
1t is this superabundsnce of good nature that
makes her mirth SO contagious, and even disarms
criticism before her pnnS; for we would rather
accept the worst Of them than lose the laugh and
twinkle of the eye with which it comes to us
The same quality is apparent in her criticism.
Without being a critic, she often writes better
things Of books, persons, and art than those who
sit " the reviewers chair. Her susceptibility TO
impressions from all sides quickly brings her Into
contact with beauty and truth, and she writes of
what has moved her out Of full heart. or
course, the minglug of herself with what has
pleased her destroys the value OF such essays as
criticism ; for criticism is the accurate representa-
ton of another's nature, not the outpouring OF
affection for it, Yet we would spare these pages
of her books reluctantly, for they abound in those
happy intuitions which offer to the critic his
choicest materials.
But it is in her poems and a few of her tales
that we feel this power most decidedly. She
writes of friendship and love as few others can.
All the generous sentiments are here represented
with force and beauty at times almost overmas-
tering. Her joy could force laugh upon the
most care-worn cheek, and her pathos drench the
sunniest face with tears. Yet she never reaches
the summit of her power until inspired by great
religious sentiment. Freedom, among the Chris
es.,ey. ifa, 30 i.s GS..S ceSeSe-1 ~
mind and rarely are we 90 moved as by her elo-
quent denunciations of public sin, and her fear
less advocacy Of the great reforms 'of the CAV
This deep Righteousness Is the highest manifess.-
ton of her genius aud assures us OF her future
advancement No woman can live content with
what she has done, whom God has so often led up
to those high places where faith abides, and the
anomalies of Providence are resolved into an all
embracing harmony.
This central power in our authors nature Is
greatly aided in it's expression by vivid repre-
sentative imagination. OF the possession Of
imagination in some of its forms she has yet given
little evidence. She fails in the delineation OF
character Harry Grove and Kate Richmond are
all of her offspring who have not lodged us
Neither is she prominently an artist. She has
not the Tennysonian power OF holding subject
in an intense mood of contemplation till every
thought or image which belongs to it has moved
to its own place Her best productions fail in COM
peteness, and are but fine fragments Great in
thought, and glowing with passion, they are but
hints of the vision she saw, and stimulate rather
than satisfy the reader. But she is richly en-
dowed with that form Of Imagination which in
some Undesirable way imparts vitality to the
mind. She is alive in every part, and cannot
write otherwise than entertainingly upon the
most trivial subject. And her power Of descrip-
ton is great. Nature aud life arrange themselves
into pictures which spring to her page with all
the characteristics of reality. Yet her eye is
oftener turned upon life than nature, and her de-
scriptive power has hitherto been most favorably
shown in vivid representations of manners, men
tai states, and moral impressions. No one can
write better of manners and social life. A late
series of letters from Washington, published in
the Philadelphia Saturday EUsaing Post, bears
ample testimony to this Some of her Congress
sional portraits IN these models Of their kind.
The best of her poems are those in which her re-
ligious sympathies unite with her descriptive
powers, as in ARNOLD de Winkleried,o where a
grand picture is wrought out under the inspira-
ton of an elevated moral sentiment. She has yet
to do greater things in this direction. We know
Of no American writer excepting Whittier,
whom she may not hope to excel in ballad wri-
ting.
But the action of both these faculties of which
we have now spoken is greatly modified in this
writer by other peculiaries Of spiritual conform
alton. Endowed, beyond her sex, with quick eye
for incopgruties, and n manly strength Of will
and heroism of thought, her Affections and I'm
agnation work under the incessant and almost
skeptical gaze Of her Intellect. Much Of her Pc
culiar power and her weakness arises from this
combination By it her sympathies are kept from
passing over into sentimentalism, and her lmagi
nation is restrained within due bounds. A strong
and healthy Intellectual atmosphere envelopes her
prose and verse. Thus her best words always
give life and power and in her loftiest flights we
feel assured that her eye has measured the dis
lance before her wings were spread. in CON-
plete state of mental discipline her intellect and
fancy would be permeated with passion, and her
feeling always respond to vigorous thought.
But so il is not always in the pages before us.
Her faculties are sometimes out Of harmony with
each other. Her Intellect often stands sneering
at her heart, and her Imagination writhes in self
imposed chains. Thus painful impression is
produced We are conscious Of the presence Of
great energies in state Of conflict. She has not
yet emerged from the sphere Of passion The
action of all her faculties is slightly feversh and
spasmodic. And while in this condition We can
hardly look for that harmony of action which is
the result of clearly defined aims and rigorous
mental discipline, and long repose of soul Her
faults in this direction are such as she could not
easily have avoided; and they are to be overcome
by no halfdespairing, halfinspired, occasional
efforts. The niche in Fame's temple that awaits
her is not to be reached by one magnificent leap
but by a winding stair. When we consider how
many obstacles must be conquered, how many dis
turbing influences forgotten, how much Of the ex-
perience Of life brought within reach Of the intel
lect how many efforts made for expression, how
many vanishing munitions clutched and held fast
on the verge of the mental horizon, before one
true poem Can be written, we can only be sur
prised at such uniform excellence as we find
in this series of articles written 10 answer the
emergencies of magazine literature, and can
prophecy any degree Of success to one who has
wrought no persistently aud with such uniformly
elevated purposes as our author.
We had intended to speak Of the style Of these
voiumes-especaliy- that Of the prose articles,
which is in many respects original and admirable.
But the length of our remarks must be an excuse
for so meager reference TO 1t.
We are aware Of the imperfection Of this at
tempt at Analysing the mind Of writer whose
rapidly increasing popularity Is the best proof OF
her genius We do not pretend to have indicated
with perfect accuracy the secret sources of her
power These lie beyond analysis. Criticism
can never explain the effect which books like
hers produce upon Us. And after all, the whole
business Of criticism is somewhat farcical We
tie an author into bis chair and paint his portrait,
and, while congrs,ulating ourselves upon our ad-
mirabc success, a change of expression in the
face shows our picture to be only csricature.
Neither do we presume to decide In what direc-
ton this writer will best succeed. Genius knows
its own resources better than those who have been
only spectators of its occasional efforts. There
are people enough to tell Grace Greenwood what
she must or must not do we will only thank her
for what she has done, apd speak word OF en-.
A. IL affafnnfa Ihat abe will