The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1852-11-18

once. of great size and rare architectural beau
ty; but it is now complete ruin-broken
everywhere desolated and ivy-grown-the most
mournful lonely, shadowy and solemn place l
ever beheld. Yet is the spot lovely with a
calm, still religious loneliness. The deep ST.
lence here 10 not drear and awful, but reyeren-
tial. prayerful the loneliness is not sad, or
oppressive: you feel that the present familiar
world is only shut out--that the far, strange
past NAV be brought near, and that the pres
ence of Him who is from everlasting to ever
lasting" may be more deeply felt
Oh! of all places in the wide world, this sure
ly is the one most meet for the last long rest
of a poet, who in the midst of his glory had
suffered and sorrowed deeply. AS ! stood by
the simple tomb of Sc tt, felt that it was well
that he should slumber there, with his loved
ones beside him, in that lonely and quiet spot,
where the moss and ivy creep over the moul-
dering wall, and the winds sigh through the
broken arches and sweep down the desolate
aisles Had he died in his most happy and
glorious days, in all the vigor and splendor OF
lis powers | would have sald-let him he IN
| a gorgeous mausoleum in some stately min
ster, in the heart of great town But he
| shrank YEARLY away from the world in his
last days so should his grave be lonely. With
his noble intellect in ruins and the shadow of
deep sorrow on his spirit he fell asleep. So
| should ho rest among the ruins, where the an
cient shadows lie.
At Melrose my friend Mr. N was obliged
| to leave us, and from thence Miss N and
myself pursued our way toward London in the
interesting character of unprotected females"
We spent the first night at Newcastle-upon-
Tyne stopping at very quiet home-like hotel,
where we were exceedingly comfortable. On
entering the town, in the evening, had been
much struck by brief view of sombre old
castle, which lowered over the railway-bullt
the guard told U.S. in the time of William the
Conqueror-and, Immediately after supper, as
| the night was clear, proposed to my friend
visit to an object of 80 much interest. The
distance was trifling, and our kind landlady
gave us very careful directions yet as the
streets were crooked and not very brilliantly
lighted, we were obliged to arrest several er
rand girls in mid career and press them into
our service, as guides, before we attained to
| the lonely dark square, surrounding on three
sides the massive and venerable old strong
hold. Under pale, uncertain moonlight in
that shadowy spot the effect was awfully
grand. The height of the great tower seemed
tupendous-certainly not less than five hun
dred feet
After this bit of romance and grandeur
hunting we took fancy to see something of
the better and business part of the town. For
this purpose we captured small boy, and
were by him safely pioted down swift Satur-
daylight tides, and amid cross-currents of
hurryng people, through several handsome
streets, and past innumerable tempting shops
Our ostensble object was to obtain print of
the old castle, whose black shadows yet haunt
ed us.
On the following day, as we were leaving at
a very early hour, for York We were aston
ished, and little taken aback, to find that the
morning light had battered down that mighty
tower to about third of the altitude which
had 80 imposed upon us under the wan, weird
light of misty moon.
Immediately on breakfasting at York, we
went up to the Minister to attend morning
service. At first became awed and bewilder-
ed By the vast beigh: and extent tho indescri-
bable, almost inconceivable grandeur of this
edifice, this "mOuntain Of architecture" and
felt glad to solace my oppressed senses within
sic of the organ and the chant. The other
ceremonials of the service were trifing to me,
the discourse which followed nothing. had
monizing. 1t seemed to me an impertinence,
piece of objectionable presumption, for any
man to preach in this solemn, mighty, ma estic
temple, fit alone for music and prayer.
After service, we long wandered through
ourselves to its exceeding grandeur Oh for
a mastery of vivid thought for wealth of
picturing words, that might give you my
dear NJ, noble and clear idea of the
greatness, beauty, and magnifcence, of this
wondrous structure. But a stray bird futter
ing bewildered among its gigantic columns
and richly wrought arches were scarcely less
capable of repeating the organ notes swelling
there, than of worthily painting the inner or
outer glories of it's architecture.
As the day was exceedingly beautiful, my
friend and took long walk on the old wall
of the city, and an outside survey of the castle,
the most ancient portion of which is so fear
fully memorable as the scene of the selfde-
struction of thousands Of besieged and perse-
cuted Jews, in the dark days Of old After
visiting the beautiful ruins of ST Mary's Alb
bey, we returned to the Minister for afternoon
service This time we did not enter the choir,
but remained in the nave, wandering slowly
through the solemn aisles, under the glory Of
the gorgeous stained windows leaning against
the majestic pillars and letting the full flood of
grand organ Music and swelling anthem sweep
over our souls, as it surg the vaulted
roof, and rolled down Instances.
Music, architecture, a, pemed to
me beautiful one sOuf1 he, no that
the sound of the first wddid ~ one blind
true ideal vision Of the unseen splendors around
him and the sight of the two last triumph
over the sealed sense of the deaf, and translate
melody by beauty II seemed that could that
grand organ-harmony and that glorious sing
ing take silent form, and pass into visible beau
ty-such majestic, lofty forms, and such radi-
ant, religious coloring they would wear-or
could those soft splendors and rich glooms
fade suddenly from sight into such mellow
seraphic strains, they would melt-or if those
solemn arches and towering columns could dis
solve into sound in pillows of such sublime mu-
sic as rolled from that grand organ, they would
pour themselves away.
Nowhere is the sense of antiquity 40 solemn
ly impressive a. in an old minister like this
As gazed around me, thought of the royal
splendor, the magnificent array of the beaut-
full Phillippa's marriage procession, which once
swept over where | now stood and of the war
like pomp of the Third Richards coronation,
when there was a sken surge of banners un.
der these solemn arches, and the clang of armor
and tramp of mailed feet resounded through
these aisles thought how generation after
generation had wondered and worshipped
here-how many centuries of Suns had been
gloriied in those gorgeous windows-through
what countless days had the full-volumed swell
Of holy sound been here succeeded by awe
struck silence-the ebb and flow of melodious
adoration-and how, while generation after
generation of men had been swept from the
earth, kingdoms wasted, dynasties destroyed
religions overturned-this grand type of hu-
man aspiration toward the vastness and ma