Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-05-25
THE BRONTE FAMILY.

The London Literary Journal, in a notice of
Mrs. Gaskells new volume, gives the following
sketch of the Bronte family, it's history, its sur
roundings, and all the personages of which it
was composed
The father, the Rev. Patrick Bronte, was.
and is, the incumbent of Haworth, a parish
which, rs we have said, lies in the widest part
Of the Yorkshire hills. The picture which
Mrs. Gaskell draws of the population of the
West Riding is not a very admirable one. Dis
tinguished rather for the Joytitsr than the sMa-
ritsT are and have been Mr.. Cobden's late
constituents She gives them credit indeed
for - strong sagacity" and strong and deep
Affection" but then their accost is curt, there
is little display Of any of the amenities of life
among this wild, rough population" They
are - sleuth hounds in pursuit Of money" 1t
is maxim among them-'' Keep a stone in thy
pocket seven year; turn it, and keep it seven
year longer, that it may be ever ready to thy
hand when thine enemy draws near"
So isolated are they, that all persons not be-
longing to that part of the country are termed
" foreigners" Mrs. Gaskell lays very deep
coloring upon the picture by more anecdotes of
their lawless proceedings, of their treatment of
their ministers of religion of their up and down
fights, their q pawsing," gouging" and biting
than we care to quote. Suffice it to observe
that the character of the West Riding man has
been powerfully drawn from the life, by Emily
BrOnte herself, in Wuthering Heights" and
by Anne, in :. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall ="
For the present we interested in this analysis
of social character only because it was among
such scenes, and such perSOnges that the three
Brontes who were destined to become celebra-
ted derived that force Of character which some
have called unfeminine.
But, ere We proceed, let US devote few
words to describing the personnel of this GER
tainly not ordinary family. And first the aged
father. He is the only one of them all who is
ol. l. i
his tender saplings and his clinging beauty
giving vine that wound so fondly round his bark
have all been laid low by the storm. So we
would speak gently of this widowed old man
and respect his greatd tdesslatiOn. Mrs. Gaskell,
however, gives no very amiable picture Of him
as he was in his younger days. An Irishman
from the county Down, very tall, and gifted
with great physical strength; stern man, how
ever, and mOrose at that; when angry he would
not scOld, or vent his displeasure in a common
way, but would fire pistols out of the back door
and smash the furniture to pieces. He would
eat alone and walk alone. Such a Puritan was
he that when he happened to get hold of n
smart silk dress which some one had presented
to his wife, he cut it into shreds with his own
hands; and again, when he saw some pretty
boots lying before the fire, in anticipation of
his children 'sreturn from q wet walk, he threw
the comfortable vanities behind the fire.
To the last, indeed, (accOrding to Mrs. Gas
kell) he seems to have preserved unloyely
corners in his heart; for, when Charlotte was
left alone to him, and good loving man came
to claim her for his wife, this stern old man.
though he knew that her life had been one long
sacrifice to duty, and how much she deserved
one gleam Of sunshine to warm and revive her
heart turned deafear to the request, pretened
TO have bad opinion of matrmony, and would
only be prevailed upon to consent when ii was
understood that the young couple were to con-
tinue to take care of him. Surely something Of
old Turveydrop in this And even when the
wedding morning arrived, and all was hope and
joyousness, Mr.. Bronte suddenly threw every
thing into disorder and gloom by " announcing
his intention of not going to the church,
Vi Maria Bronte, the mother, we have less in
formation; she died in 1921, after giving birth
to the youngest child, Anne. She was the
daughter of a Mr.. Branwell, a merchant of
PenZance, and seems to have been frai bodied
little parsonage, elegant, clear-spirited, very
meek and submissive to the Rev. Patrick, very
plouS, and n good manager. Tho latter she
needed to be, for with their large family and
limited means, it must have been hard work to
provide.
The eldest child of this extraordinary couple
was daughter, Maria, who died in her twelfth
year; then another daughter, Elizabeth, who
died in her eleventh; then two more daughters
Charlotte and Emily Jane; then a son, Patrick
Branwell; and finally, Anne. The three youn-
ger daughters, Charlotte, Emily, J ane and Anne,
are those whom the world knows Of-are Currer
Ellis, and Acton Bell. Such were the Brontes