The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-07-21

| mr.. Thackcray'S Lectures.
| Sterne and Goldsmith were the subjects Of
Yesterdays lecture, the last Of NJ. 1hackeray's
series
He began by akeiching the facts of Sterne's
life. lie was the of an officer in a marching
regiment, who died from wound in a duel--a
rough, good fellow, who marched on till he met
with the fatal goose who put termination to
his existence. Young Lawrence went to school
at Halifax TO Jesus College, Cambridge; and
ultimately got the living ofSutton, in Yorkshire
Mr.. Thackeray's first comments on his ctsrac-
ter were founded on his love affairs He was
found addressing the lady whom he married
with the most sentimental passion. He spoke
of her us flower. But such il fountain rs Mr.
Sterne's love WAS not for 0ne rose only. No.
When years Ind passed over he wrote, in a let
ter to friend, in dog latin, and very sad dog
latin, that he wished his wife was dead. She
bored him. it would seem. And he wrote
letters Full of sentiment to Eliza" his g dear
child and SO on---a Mrs. Draper, the wife of an
Indian official, much respected in that quarter of
the globe yet scarcely had she sailed from Do
YER, in 1867, than the worn-out old scamp was
offering his heart TO somebody else. Soon after
wards his cadaverous body was consigned to
Pluto To be sure there were signs of grace
in his last letters---those to bis daughter his
letters 10 whom usually breathed love and kind
ness.
II was always, the lecturer went on, a peril
Gus ease, that of man who had TO bring his in
ner life his tears his smiles, his hopcs, his fears,
before the public for morey. Did be fegn in
dignaton, Did he assume! Did he pretend
Could he trust himself! Was he not tempted
to cant? How much was true sensibility--how
much false Where did the truth end and the
lies beging He (the ecturer) had some time
before passed the evening with French singer.
This man, after singing for long time, to The
pain OF many OF his hearers chansons of 4 ques-
tionable character-sang sentimental one. He
did it charmingly; everybody was moved, and
nobody more than the singer himself Now,
Sterne had something like that about him. He
blubbered over his paper he had lucrative
art of weeping; he utilised his anguish. Sterne
often, Mr.. Thackeray confessed, disguised hin.
He looks his reader in the face; he watches
what effect he has on him; he seems to say Do
cry" Great humorists laughed naturally out
of their great manly hearts, but this man never
let his reader alone. Sterne was a great jester,
not great humorist. You could fancy you saw
him laying down his carpet before beginning to
perform on it.
For instance. let us look at his " Sentimental
Journey" Did not he seem to go deliberately
prepared to make matter of it all He had no
sooner landed than he began to make, as the
actor says, business" Could ANYBODY be-
Iieve all the sentiment genuine He whimp-
cred over dead donkey. over which anvbcdy
(said Mr.. Thackeray) may cry "who likes"
That dead donkey was cooked in pquant sauce
10 fact, the donkey had a fine funeral-an
elegant hearse, the mourner with white pocket
handkerchief and all got up for purposes Of
scenic effect That do key had been used be-
Al III
corning it it Tristram Shandy.') The critic
Che resumed) who could not see in this des-
cription, sentiment, humor and wit, must be hard
to please. And the peasant life in the south
was excelently described by him-a man of the
keenest enjoyment and sensibity. But it was
painful fact that scarcely one page OF Sterne
was perfectly pure; there was latent corrup-
ton in what he did a faint of bad. You saw
the satyr eyes glaring through the leaves How
different this from the pure sunny pages of one
of his successors of TODAY man for whose
books one was grateful-the author Of David
Copperfedm
With this allusion to Charles Dickens
which drew forth loud applause from the au-
dence, the lecturer passed from Sterne to
Goldsmith.
What fortune had Goldsmith had in our his
tory To be the most beloved Of English
authors, what lot was that The pleasant,
gentle, wandering mnstrel-t was delightful to
see how, through all his career, he afectionately
turned his eyes to home. He peopled his books
with the figures of home. The charm of his
works was in the fact they contained his
character, his simple honest regrets, his love
and sympathy. "Our love for him is half pity"
Whom did he ever hurt? He bears no weapon
but his harp; with that he passed into every
palace and cottage delights all ranks and classes.
Goldsmith, not less than Fielding, had the |
merit Of preserving his cheerful goodness and
love of truth through distress and difficulty. He |
was never so friendess but he could have n
friend somewhere if he had " his flute he |
could delight the poor with that was never so
poor but he could spare something to poorer
he could pawn bis trousers to save his landlord |
from goal. He certainly endured great distress
and pain; one could scarcely bear to read Of il ;
you felt an anger when you heard of his being
hurt, such as you felt at hearing of cruelty ex-
ercised towards woman or child.
Mr.. Thackerav then mentioned the various
well-known anecdotes of Goldsmith, and referred
with respect to his biographers to the industry of
Prior the eloouence of Forster, and the love of
Washington Irving. He also quoted some Of
the finest lines in the " Deserted Village" and re-
ferred with delicate tenderness to his love for
luded to the extravaganza of his latter life, but
called on his hearers to remember how con-
stantly he shared what he had with his numer-
Gus dependents, and appealed TO their sympathy I
and pity "Thuk," he exclaimed" of the pen
sioner weeping at his grave--thnk of the righte-
Gus pen that wrote his epitaph :" How well the
world has paid back all the love he had for it (!
His figure seems to be with us still, and pleading
to us in favor of the poor
=,
Having announced that this was the last Of
his discourses, Mr.. Thackerav took occasion to
declare his opinions on a subject which he is
known to entertain strong ones---the relation of
men of letters to society" He protested |
markedly against the complaint that il sometimes
made of their being neglected. "We do" he |
said, "meet with Kindness" He urged that
no laws or regulations could have saved the men |
he had been treating of from the troubles which |
they brought upon themselves He maintained |
that society treated u man with due regard TO |