The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1852-06-09


ancc | rctreated. uncertain what to do,
and waited outside until the shop was
clear
Three words explained the nature of
my visit aud Jasmin received me with
a species Of warm courtesy. which was
very peculiar and very charming-dash-
ing at once with the most gathering vol
lubility and fiery speed of tongue. into
sort Of 1hapsodical discourse upon poet
ry IN general and his own IN particular
Upon the French language in general
aad Che pafojs Of it spoken in Languo-
doc Provence and Gascony in particu-
lar Jasmin is 4 well-built and strong
ly limbed man. cfabout fifty. with large,
massive head and broad pile of fore
head, overhanging two picrc,ngly bright
black eyes and features which would be
heavy were they allowed a moments re-
pose from the continual play Of the "a.
c.a! muscles which we're continually send
ing series OF varying expressions across
the swar;hy visagc. Two sentences OF
his conversation were quite sufficient to
stamp his individuality The first thing
which struck me was the utter absence
Of all the mock-modcsty, and the pretend
ed sclf-underrating, conventionally as
sumed by persons expecting to be COM
plimented upon their sayings or doings
Jasmin seemed thoroughly to despise
all such fimsy hypocrisy "God only
made four Fronchmcn poets !" he burst
out with and their names are Corncille.
Lafontaine, Bcranger and Jasmin !"
Talking with the most impassioncd vehc-
mcncc. and the most redundant energy
of gestures, he went on to dcclaim IL
gainst the influences Of civilization upon
language and manners as being fatal to
all real poetry. If the true inspiration
yet existed upon earth. il burned in the
hearts and brains Of men far removed
from cities. Sa/0jiS. and the clash and din
of social influences Your only true poets
were the unlcttered peasants, who pour
ed forth their hearts in song not because
they wished to make poetry. but because
they were joyous and true. Col
leges, academies, schools of learning,
schools of literature and all such
institutions. Jasmin denounced as
the curse and the bane of true poetry.
They had spoiled, he said, the very
French language You could no more
write poetry in French now, than you
could in arithmetical figures The lang
uage had been licked. and kneaded. and
trickcd out, and plumed, and dandifcd
and scented, and minced and ruled square
and chipped-(I am trying to give an
idea of the strange flood of cpithets he
uscd)-and pranked out, polished, and
muscadincd, until, for all honest purposes
of true high poetry. it was mere unavail
able and contemplate jargon. 1t might
do for cheating agents de chaagc on the
Boursc-for squabbling politicians in the
Chambcrs-for mincing dandics in tho
Sa/1nS-for the sarcasm of Scribcsl
comedies. or the coarse drollorics Of Pal
ais Royal farccs but for poetry tht
French language was extinct All mod
era poets who used it were mere taiSeNrs
/ dc ptraSe-,hiul,ing about words. ans
not feeling. No NJ my rroubadour
continued to write poetry, you mus
get the language of rural people;
language talked among fields and tree,
and By rivers and momtains-a lang
uage never minced or disfgured by acad
, cm.es, and, dictiOnary-ma6ers and jour
nalists You must have language lik
| that which your own Burns (wh0m rca,
of in Chateaubriand) used or like tn
J brave old mellow tongue unchanged fo
centuries stuffed with the strangest
quainttst rich st rlcicst idoms. an
odd, solemn words full OF shifting mean
I ings and associations, at once patheti
, and familiar homely and graceful-th
| language which | write in, and whc
has never yet been defiled by calculatin
? men of science or jack-a-daudy Hte,
0tcurcS.''
! The above sentences may be taken a
a specimen of the ideas with which ia,
min seemed to be actually overnowin
f at every pore in his body, so rapid, vehl
ment, and loud was his enuncation &
them Warming more and more as h
! went on, he began to sketch the outline
ofhis fayoritc pieces every now and the
plunging into recitation, jumping frol
/ French to oputoiS & from patois to Frencl
and sometimes spluttering them on
mixed up poll-mell together. iIardl
lausirg to take breath he rushed abou
the shop as he discoursed, Juggling on
! from old chests and drawers, piles {
= old newspapers and reviews pointing m
out a passage here in which the ostmat
Of tbcwritcr pleased him. passage ther
which showed how perfectly the criti
, had mistaken the scope of his poetic phi
, losophy. and exclaiming. with the mos
, perfect n0iccie how mortifying it wa
for men of original and profound geniu
to be miscOnceived and misrcprescntc
by pigmy whipper-srapper scamps c
journalists There was one review Q
: his works, published in a London "Rc
cneii" as he called it, to which Jasmi
70 referred with great pleasure \ PORTO
Of it had been translated, he said, in til
, preface 20 Il French edition of his works
f and he had most of the highly compl
, mentary phrases by heart The Englis
critic. he said, wrote in the IWfiRunl
B. aud he looked obviously at me when
, confessed that / had never heard of tn
} organ in question = PoUyta,t,n % he saic
Je cons le ferai roir:'" and | soon pen
t ceived that Jasmin's IiRtiRunl was II
r other than the AtheHGHDh
C In the little back drawing-room be
f hind the shop, to which the poet speedil
r introduced me, his sister, meek, sini
f ing woman, whose eyes never left he
brother, following him as he moved wit
a beautiful expression of love and prid
. in his plnrv receiveh me with sinlnln cnI