Southern standard., 1852-11-06
S0utheTn LADIES' Book.

periodical, published at New Orleans, at Three Dol
lars per annum Invariably in adUanee. The Book is
conducted by Mss L. VIRGINIA SMITH, of Memphis,
and w. T. LEONARD, NJ. D., of N. o. 1t contains Ga
pages, is beautiful in its Typography and possesses
the requisites to commend it to an intelligent and ap-
preciating public The principal editor, Miss L. v.
Smith, has a wide reputation an authoress her
poetic productions have been much admired throughout
the South, for their harmony and brilGancy. She is
gifted with the true spirit of poetry and we have met
with many of her productions which, without atery
may be pronounced equal to any in our language both
in conception and expression. Her taste is exquisite
her inauguration glowing, and her power of express
ion remarkably pure and chaste. In slight degree
she resembles the lamented Mrs. Welby, possessing
her richness of language without those occasional
bemshes that marred some of that writers very best
productions. In style and spirit, Miss Smith approx-
mates nearer to Mrs. Hemans than any American wr-
ter with whose productions We have any acquaintance
With DR.. Leonard we have no acquaintance We |
do not remember to have met with any thing from his
pen, and can only commend him on the Judgment of
others whom we regard as much more capable of CIV
ing opinion on these matters than we are. The |
press of n. Orleans, have united in commencing him
to public patronage, gentleman of fine literary
capacity, and being eminenty fitted discharge the
duties he has assumed with credit to himself and USE
funess to the work. the destiny of which, he in part
controls. So much for the editorial management of
the Southern Ladies' Book.
Our readers will recolect that n July last, we sent
out an article deprecang in terms mo lenency, the
system which has obtained a wide influence in the
South werefer to the Southern support of Northern
periodicals. and we designated Godey's Ladies' Book
! G. o:,,s.o
works. 1t is true, that for about two years. we have
these periodicals but seldom but they have fallen
into hands frequent enough keep advised that
they have improved either in taste or stvle from
what they were when we were in the habit of exam
ning them regularly. We endeavored to show in the
paper noticed that the tendency of these periodicals
was calculated to weaken opinion, effeminate the
mind, and debauch and deprave public taste Their
teachings in general, too fancifu, and their max
inns too loose, because the Northern mind of late
has yielded to the nroad that Socialism has made up
it, and the ingenious reasoning the French wri-
e ters such Sue, Paul de Kock i'd one Qenus has
taken root and the morals of the old Puritans
being hourly loosened and swept away by the soft
enng and destructive philosophy, that has rendered
France for than half century, very lazarhouse
of in6delity, debauchery and dissipation Those who
and philosophy have made in our Northern States =
those who have watched the gradual deveopement OF
their spirit widening in literature, and with what
an abandonedmanner they have been thrown in contact
with those old notions Of belief which, from their very
austerty commanded less of love than veneratiop be-
cause of their antiquity ;-those, we say, who have
= watched these Developments, need not be told that
private passions have increasingly warred On public
taste fhrou0h ton thoucapd u,h;l
with its tongue of iron, has constantly been spreading
it's poison throughout the land. In struggle like hi:
is silenced The passions ride old habits
and the fastenings heretofore securing society agans
the sudden changes of habits and manners gradually
cease to resist the potential influences which Fashion
brings to its ad by philosophy that strike:
down delicacy of thought and even employs the out
ward forms of pety and the language the ausere de
votee, to sanction its spread and shield from detec
ton. Such has been the general current of Northern
literature for the past few years. that it could have
Z capped the condemnation that its grossness demanded
but for the oosened tastes well as the depfaved ap
petite, to which it ministered And, as public though
- became daily more blunted from continued assaults
everywhere seen, that the trash of the press
stead of decreasing increased in obedience to the de
| tmand for it.
,v popular magazines. Under the guise of monthlies
devoted Fashion, they have found their way into tn
te paror of families, which, were it not for their minis
tering to vain and puere ambition, they would hay
a. been banished thence
ty But another objection to these Northern monthle
exists, not less serious than that named 1t this
1t has happened that through their pages the
of the South, her peculiar decyncrases and her inst
4
dom not in that spirit which should characterize me
er who desire to do Justice AS obliquy was aimed at
as odium desired, the readiest to subserv
the purpose and crafty the hatred of the South wer
found in satire the one hand, and poorly concea
he ed ridicue on the other. And yet, the South ha
meeky submitted while she has paid for these insults
is Who reads Southern periodical asks one Ye
to who? 1t may be said that there are but few Wei
lid that the Southern mind is welded to Narthern d.
ar riodical literature We do not believe it. In o,
ne opinion is the lack of real hearty Southern work
is the product Of Southern labor and mind This des
nd deratum has long been felt periodical literatu
that shall while it eleVates that shall presel
mt the manners of thought and the great elements
in ry difference between Northern Socialism on the or
eat hand and Southern equality and chvalry on the o
his er, is what is required We look with pride to IL
in Southern Quarterly Review, the Literary Messenge
as and to DeBow's Commercial Review. And we mn
say that fthe future numbers of the Southern Lade
Book comes up to the before US, in literary mel