Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1859-12-13
Book notice.

Heavens angels watch shout lOwly bed,
The grave wherein POIkDEETERs sWeetly sleeping.
hEz
Book Notice.
LIVE OF AKnREw JACKSON three Volumes bS PARTON
author Of Life Of Burr, Humorous Poetry Of The
English Language, &c, vol, L. New York Mason Brothers
This is work Astounding in faults but with the
great redeeming point that it is an honest book
throughout. Lives of great generals and states
mar have generally been devoted rather to the in
vestigation Of those political and military traasac
tons in which the hero may have been the central
figure than to the characteristics of the man; and
the very greatness Of the events has Obscured our
conceptions Of the hero as an individual. We are
made to see our great men playing conspicuous
part in splendid pageantry of military and poti-
cal achievements yet, only scanty glimpses OF
the maH. whose flesh and blood heart AMI brain, is
certainly to be found some where behird that uni
form. or those robes of state. Hence our biogra
pixies are not biography but history in disguise Our
great men are not treated of as men, but figures,
which go to make up some finely grouped historical
picture. ry
In quite an opposite spirit to this IS the present
biography written. The one object of tho writer
seems to have been, in his researches TO obtain a
clear and vivid conception of his hero at the differ
periods of his career, and in his writing to pre-
sent what he has seen graphically as practicable
to his reader. Instead of making the man a mere
pretext for relating the events the events themselves
are only treated of far they throw light upon
the character of the man. JACKSON is made to APP
pear as the central object of the book, as as
possible the counterpart of that ANDREW JACK
SON so familiar to his contemporaries the scape-
grace school boy of the Waxhaw settlements, the
wild law stddent of Salisbury, the keen and fear
less lawyer of young Nashville, the great frontier
chefain of the Greek war, the thrifty practical
farmer Of the Hermitage. This is the great object
of the book-to describe JACKSON exactly as he was
Nothing exsnuaie, nor aught set dom in malice
combination of Lycurgus and an Epaminondas, but
a plain matter of fact portra.ture of ANDREW JACK
SON of Tennessee, the effort being made much more
to distinguish him from all other men in the world
by salient characteristics of his own than to assm
ilate him to the great and good of by-gOne ages.
1t must be admitted that in his efforts after dis
tinctness of character, the character sometimes
verges upon caricature and that in his efforts de-
pcng the state of society in which the character of
JACKSON was formed he sometimes relies on rather
apocryphal authorities the Georgia Scenes, the
gossip of old negro wOmen, and the brag of old
bush warriors, pieeed together, and thei- def
ciences made up by the Imagination of the author.
till we get description of state of society which
possibly never existed and never will exist But
upon the whole, the author seems to deal honestly
yrha no fndS md Oulx m invp
when there is nothing else for him to do and where
there is historical evidence he deals honestly with
it; above all he abandons the hero worshipping
NEUROLOGICAL style of biography which has rendered
two great men of our republican history as myth
cal personages as Hercules and Theseus-a system
Of life-writing which proceeds the principle of
ignoring every thing which conflicts with the canon
zation of the hero. In biographies of this school,
the man must be a saint as well as a hero, or the
biography is at fault.
Now this book clearly makes out that whate yer
JACKSON was, he not saint, at leastnot in early
life that he swOre terribly, drank much whisky,
quarreled furiously, and carried out his quarrels
that yet, in spite of these draw
backs enough to damn the reputation of any ordina
~ man. he possessed positive virtues and great
heroic qualities, which deservedly render him the
object of admiration and love TO millions WHO have
profited by his heroism.
This is the way to write the life of hero; say
what good he has done, and frankly acknowledge
the evil and call it evil too invent euphemistc
palliative names for it, but set it down fairly and
set DOWN the good beside 1t, and have fear but
what the good will preponderate for otherwise your
hero would never have needed to have his life writ
ten.
Abstaining from evil though essential to perfec-
ton is not the greatest element IN human character.
There are plenty of men who have never sworn an
oath, never been drark-for that matter have never
been to 4 theatre or drank anything stronger than
water who viii make poor report Of themselves,
when it is asked what they have done with the talent
to them Christian morality does not con-
sist in not doing this or that, but in doing some
thing, in doing the utmost a man has the power to
To. The law says, - thou shalt not the gospel
slys, " thou shalt the law says, thou shat not
worship idols, the gospel says thou shalt lore God
with all thy heart :; the law says, thou Shds not
kill commit adultery, bear false witness &c, the
gospel says boa shalt love thy neighbor as thyselt
and do unto all men as you would that they should
10 unto you. We believe that we are Judging men
1y the Christian standard, when we look more to
he good they have done than to the vices they have
wooded; and that the man whose life is a mere
les of negatives is according to this standard the
most immoral of all men.
JACKSON committed great faults-so did David
md they both repented in after life, and both achieg
d acts of heroism which have exalted them TO the
highest place in the affections of their cOuntrymen.
The Bible extenuates nothing of David's wickedness,
md yet for his preponderating goodness styles him
man after Gods heart; and in the same spirit
hoDd JAcESoNS life be written, for if the worst be
honestly stated still the good Overtops the evil,
hat we recognize the hero the statesman, the idol
4 peoples love and veneration in spite of ALL and
hen read by the light of his subsequent repentance
he evil is perhaps even more instructive than the
God
We ought to mention that valuable merit in this
work is the extensive and cOpiOus photographed in
ex. pointing to abundant sources of nfOrmatonfOr
he use of those who desire to pursue their nvest
ations further than this book may carry them.
We anticipate that the book will have a larger |
ale in Nashville than in any city of the size through
ut the country. There is not one of the older fam
lies residing here who will not find the family name
\ it, At the commencement of the present centu- |
V, Nashville was peopled by RoBERTsoNs, DoNEL |
oNs MCNAIRYs SEWERS. FOSTERS, NICHOLS CARRoIS |
OFFICES. ANDFRsONs. CRlIGHEADs and here. or at |
EAST very near u.s. still live the representatives of
nose names, so that if JACKSON could return among
: he wouId find some one to answer to every name
5 he called the roll OF his old comrades. OF
ruth there is something good deal more perma-
ent in our Western society than many men give us
redit for and we rise in our own estimation as we
cad the annals of young Nashville associated with
lie early manhood of JACKSON.
Mr. WN H. PERRY has been appointed canyassing
gent for this city and county, for the Life Of JACK
On.
CLAIMS FOR THE PRESIDENCY.-A dispatch iom
iledgeville dated the 10th inst, says "The Demo
ratio State Convention. now in session here, has
lopted resolution recommending the claims of
DWELL COBB for the Presidency. A number of
le members of the Convention have withdrawn,
rging that the Convention is irregular and unau-
orized.