Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-01-29

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once and reads in often afterwards Ne have to thank
the publishers Of the present edition for the opportunity
they have afforded of reading :. in it, at least
otener than would otherwise haze been pleasure We
have pictorial editions Of this favorite bookthe
French have noted one-but while there is no work
which affords richer series Of comic situations for the
pencil of Hogarth n Cruikshanks, there is
which stands in less need of such mirh moving embel
lishments We not quite that Master Dickens
does somewhat Of his reputation for waggey and
humor to the bizarre portratures with which his novels
are always garnshed But the reader of Don Qaxcte,
after the single yerusal of which Coeridgc speaks has
his nnd turned into very chamber of imagery" and
as memory masters up the doughty achievements and
moving accidents of the valorous knight and his trusy
squire the Fancy is ready to spread her canvass and
lend her peEc whether it be to depict the perous COM
of the Don with windmills Sanchos unecky blan-
ketng by the jolly coth-workers of Segoya- As King
Philip III. of Spain day standing in a balcony,
it is said and viewing the country in the distance he OBJ
served student the banks Of the river Manzanares
reading in book and from time to time breaking oil and
knocking his forehead with the palm OF his hand with
great tokens of pleasure and delight, upon which the
King remarked those about him. that scholars either
mad orreading Don ouxote The anccdote is interest
ing illustrating the estimation in which the work was
held by the sovereign who contemporary with Ger
vantes and still further illustrates the suggestive vivid
ness Of pictorial pages for who doubt but that the
student if actually reading the exploits OF the Manche
gan Knight, going through the motions of some act
in the Don's grand drama
No question has been oftener earnestly mooted
by the critical fraternity than that which inquiries into
object proposed himself by Cervantes in the COM
position his To assert that it written in
ricule of knghterranry is manestly absurd for this
custom and institution had long become extinct On this
Lna vc,I
hero for the task which in this he himself
quite imaginary any of those undertaken by the de-
nented Knight. His real aim and end, doubt not,
were directed not to discourage the practice Of knight
hood which longer existed but to expose and rdcue
its influence the popular literature Of Spain 1t is
well known that books of chivary composed the greater
part of the Spanish popular literature until the times Of
Ceramics 1t this fact which gives all its epgramma
tic point the witty saying of Montesqueu, often
quoted and false that the Spanish have good book
which written prove all the rest good for nothing
But there is setof critics who satisfied with
easy and solution of any literary question Their
acumen is so keen that it resembles working
deceitfuy" their optics too sharp that they
see :" what is to be seem they discern more
through stone than other persons through the
transparent medium These critics have appealed from
established decision of the question thus mooted and
have moved for verdict. Coleridge was one Of
those who sometimes allow their get the bet
ter Of their good As specimen Of the hyper
criticism on which we animadyert, we may allude to
such profundities the following, quoted from
Coleridge:
..Rabelais was a wonderful writer Pantacrue is the
Reason Panurge the Understanding pollarded man.
the with every faculty the scarcely
know an example illustrative of the difference be-
tween the two. Some Of the commentators talk about
his book being all political there contemporary po-
htcs in IT of course, but The real scope is much higher
and more philosophical The morality of the work is Of
the most refined and exalted kind
81 think Swift adopted the name of Stella which is
mans name with feminine termination to denote the
mysterious epcene relation in which poor Miss johnson
stood to him.
"An genius is mehphy sical because the ultimate end
Of genius is IDEAL however il may be actuaized by Incl
i dental and accidental circumstances. Don
Quixote is not man out of his senses, but in
whom the imaginaen and the pure so power
full to make him disregard the evidence of sense when
it opposed their conclusions sancho the
Of the social man ANIMAL unenghtened and unsanctifed
by the Yousee how he reverences his master at
the very time he is cheating him."
Now, over all such refnements Of criticism such fine
spun gossamers Of genious fancy we feel to
excaim with honesHorato in the play, Twerc to con-
slider too curously consider So" These suhtletes alb
soutely tease We enter cur humble protest when
Bouterwek in his QuixoGc criticism would have be-
eye that the idea Of man Of elevated character, ex
cited by heroic and enthusiastic feelings the extrava
CANT degree Of wishing to restore the age of chvary
must be regarded the seed Of inspiration whence the
whole work originated Others again have pretended
to believe that it the purpose Of Cervantes embody
in Don Quixote the whole Of the endless between
the poetcal and the prosac in natures between
herosm and generosity side, if they mere
illusions, and cold sehshness the other as If were
the truth and reality Of lifef Mr. Hallam in few Of
his renchen sentences ceaves away the very body and
soul Of all this tumid verbiage SO far from the knight
being held up as the representative Of those men
Of elevated soul who propose themselves as the OBJ
ject Of their m the accomplishment Of impractcabites
il can be clearly shown that the knight as Cervantes
draws his picture, has Independent character at all
and If this is W. Sismonds idea OF perfect man."
such be says Don Quixoe illustrates we must beg to
differ with him, in all humility, in our type Of "Hn Aor1mt
accompl" as he entities the Don.
cit is to be Observed says Halam in relation TO the
nobleness Of soul ascrbed Don Quixote that every
sentiment he utters borrowed with puncuious ripor
from the Of his library he to them on
every occasion for precedents IL he is ntrepdly brave
il is because his vanity and madness have made him be-
eve himself unconquerable If he bestows kingdoms IL
is because Amads would have done tho same IL he is
honorable courteous redresser Of wrongs il is in pur
suance Of bis prototype"
Is this the model gentleman the homns dcconph If
Cervantes is not the artist had forly deemed him.
is there any humor in the droll story as we had al
ways thought IT, Of the redoubtbe champion Of Dulcinea
del Toboso for great part Of the bumor and iroery
Of the narrative is based the admirable imitation Of
the old romances Of chvay which underie the whole Of
y me kufOl s - a.