The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-02-26

-
that belongs a. much to our literature - to our juFs
Iiudense. Other contemporaneous American works
there were now less read Paul Aliens poem Of Noah"
was inst laid on the counters Of the booksellers Arden
pub shed ut the time In this city TRANSLATION OF
ovids "Trsts T. heroic verse; in which the complaints
Of the ttennate omsn poet rendered with great
fidelity to the oii Insl, and sometimes not without
beauty. II mey peak Of myself It was In that year
that tmidly entrusted to the winds and Of pub
lilo opinion small cargo Of my own-a poem entitled
"The Ages and half dozen shorter ones In thin duo
decline volume printed at Cambridge
We bad, OF the eame time works Of elegant literature,
reth from the press Of Great Britain, which are still
read and admired Barry Cornwall then young sutton
fer fame published in tho year his Marcia Colon
ps: Byron in the full strength and fertility Of his
genius, gave tho readers Of English his tragedy Of
Marno Faliero' snd in the midst Of his spirited
conrcyey with Bovles concerning the poetry Of Pope.
The spy had TO sustain q comparison with Sootts
/" Antiqusry" published simultaneously with It, and
With Lockharts yaleius" which seems to one
OF the most remarkable works Of action composed
In 1923 and in his thirty fourth year. Cooper brought
cut his novel OF the Poneersn the Of which
laid on the borders Of bis beautiful lake. In
cent tITsey OF MI Coopers works, BY ono OF his ad-
mirers It is ntmated that the reputation OF this
may have been In some degree Fictitious. Acannot
think 20; cannot see how such work could pf be-
coming sooner or later favoTite. 1t sen years
after its first appesr that read the Pioneersn
and ! read 1t with delighted astonishment Here,
eaid l TO myself Is the poet of rural life In this
country-our Hssod our Theocritus, except that he
writes without the restraint Of numbers and greater
poet than they. In the Pioneersn in moving pic
ture are made to before the hardy occupations
and spirited amusements Of prosperous settlement in
fertile region cncompsed for leagues around with the
primeval wilderness Of woods the In their diff
ferent aspects, bringing with them their erent EN-.
Payments forests falling before the the cheerful
popuston with the first mild day of spring. engaged In
the sugar orchards the chase Of the deer through
deep woods and into the lake turkey shootngs during
the Christmas holidays in which the Indian marksman
Wed Tor the prize Of skill with the white swift
eigh rides under the bright winter sum- and perilou
encounters with wild animals in the orests-these an
draw them in the bright and heahu colering of which
he was master are interviewer with regular narrative
Of human fortunes not unskifuly oonsructed and how
could tuch work be otherwise than popular
In the Pioneers' Leathertockng is fest introduce
"a philosopher OF the woods, ignorant Of books, bu
instructed in all that nature without aid Of science
could reveal to tho man Of quick and inqurins
intellect, whose life has been passed under tho open
sky, and In coDpanionshp with whose animal
there 10 any example But Legtheretocking has highec
quslties in him there's genial blending Of the genes
aboriginal tribes all that in them is noble, generous and
ideal e adopted into his kindly character, and all
that is evil is rejected But why should attempt to
aDayze character familiar Misunderstanding il ac-
knowedged on ell hands, to be Of the noblest
well most strkirg and original creations Of fiction In
soms Of his subsequent novels Cooper-for he had not
YET attained to the full maturity Of his powersheght
and ENROLLED his frat conception Of the character
but In the "Pioneers 1t dazzled tho world with the
sI lie ndor Of novelty
His next work was the " Pilotn in which he showed
how from the vcisstudes OF life at sea- its perils aud
etcaps from the beauty and terrors Of the great Deep
II the working Of vessel on long voyage and from
the frank brave and generous but peculiar character
of the seaman may be drawn materials Of romance by
which the minds Of ~ be deeply moved Is BY
any thing in the power Of romance to prefent In this
walk Cooper has had many Disciples but rival. All
no have since written romances Of the have been
but travellers in country of which he the great
dRcover, and none Of them all seem to have loved
ship Cooper loved It, or have been able strongly to
other personages drawn with great strength in the
pilot IL the general favorite, Tom Coffin, the
thorough seaman, with sli tho virtues and two
Of the nfrmites, Of his profession sup.rsttious as
seamen are apt to BIO, yet whose supersttions strike
us - but an irregular growth Of his devout resog-
Si Of the Power who holds the ocean in tn.
resources collected In Danger and at last calmly per-
ishirg at the post Of duty with the vessel he has long
Csath His rougher and companion Botrope is
drawn with scarcely sfs SKILL and with no less vigorous
hand.
TIE "Poneersis not Coopers beet tale of the Amer-
can forest nor the Pet perhaps in all respects bis
best tale Of the sea- yet II he had ceased to write here
tie measure Of his fame would, possibly, have been
scarcely less ample Than It IT, Neither OF them Is
far below the best Of his productions and In them ap
pear the two most remarkable creations Of his mag
Dation-tNO OF the most remarkable characters in all
fiction
. II was about this time that my acquaint auce with
Cooper began, an acquaintance of than quarter
Of century, in which his department towards me
was th.t 81 UNMARRIED kindness He then resided q
isrsse Part OF the Ia this city, aud he
had fousded weekly club, to which many Of the
n est distinguished men OF the place belonged. or
Tie meHt hers who have srce passed away were Chan,e
or Kent the juri.t; Wiley, this intelligent and liberal
ookter; pry sedgsick always sctive in sche ne.
pf h.LevoIence jarvis. The psiuter a man Of iodu;te
1umo- wlose Jets swoke nsxtirgul.h sbe laughter;
De Kay the naturalist Sands the poet, Jacob Harvey
Whtes ne-n.ry Is chtr,hed by n.ary friends OF those
who ere virG We. More, the inrcntor Of the elects,
telegraph Durant tlsn Of the frat OF engravers
and now no lees iius'roua as painter; Henry James
Al deiton whese requirements might waken the envy
If he ii est 'chelss :. TIE cid world aeck the poet
and wit Nerplancs wRc las given the world the be
EDITION Ct shtkrlesre for general readers; DR.. King,
st the krsd OF Columbia College and his two imme
date PIE deceeeors in that sfice might enlarge the
M Lass disffn Tho
army and navy contributed their proportion members
whore names are on record in national history Coo
Icing struck with the nexhaust.ble vivacty Of his
conyertation, and the minuteness Of his knowledge Ia
ever, thing which depended upon acu,ene.s of oberva
ton ana txactness OF recollection l remainder, too,
being somewhat startled coming fresh did from the
seelusion OF country life, with certain emphatic
fransness In his manner which however came e. last
to like and admire The club met in the hotel called
Washington Hall the site of which is now occupied by
part Of the circuit Of Stewards msrbabe building.
successful productions Of Cooper published in 1925
and In the year following appeared the Last Of the Mo-
hicans whish more than recoEsred the ground lost BY
Its predeceeor In this work the construction of the
narrative has signal defects but it is the trumphs
q the authors genius that he makes unconscious Of
them while We read. IL IL only when have had time
to awake from the inteDe interest 10 which he held
"a by the vivid reality If his narrative and begun
to search for faults In cold blood that We able to
ind them, In the Last Of the Mohicaaen have
belder portrsiture Of Leathesrstockins than in the
" Pioneere.n
WOrk was puDIsnea IN 1910 and In the same year
Cooper sailed with his family for Europe He left New
York AZ one the vessels Of described In his
Of the ses goes out amidst the thunder part
ing salute from the big the batteries dinner
was given him just before bis departure attended by
Of the distinguished Of the city at which Peter
Jay presided. and Dr. King addressed him In terms
which some then thought too glowing but which would
now seem sufficiently temperate expressing the good
wifhes of his friends and dwelling the satisfaction
they promised themselves In possessing lustlious
preventative Of American literature in the old world
Cooper was scsrcey In France when he remembered his
friends OF the weekly club and sent frequent mssives
be read at Its meetings. but the club missed its founder
went into Decline and not long afterwards quietly
expired.
The first Of Coopcrs novels published after leaving
America, was The Praire,n which appeared early in
1927 . work, with the admirers OF which I wholly
bgiee. l read 1t with Q certain awe underlined
sente OF subimity such experiences entering,
for the first time those immense grassy deserts
from which the work takes Its The slus.tsr and
hs family brawny old man and his large lmhed
In SOFT Of primitive az pariarchia bar
baifm, siuggish on ordinary occasions, but terrible
wntn fouseo like the hurricane that sweeps the grand
hut minotonous wilder In which they dwell-seem
natural growth Of those ancient field; of the West.
I n