The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-10-27
THE REVIEW.

THE REVIEW.
Almost Heroine By the autho, Of Charles Auches-
| ier1 "Couuterpar;s" &C., &c Boston: Teknor &
| Fields 1882
This is almost an interesting book-in-
deed, it is quite one in spite of style artificial,
stilted, and absolutely fatiguing. If people
have a given number of verbs, nouns, and ad.
jectives, to put together, why won't they "take
it the natural way" as people do the fever and
ague " out West7r Let us have one sentence
ended before the next is begun. But in the
volume before US sentences are continually be-
ing cleft, that other sentences or clauses may
be inte,5ecfed into the assure. 1t is literary
re-enaeting of the drama Of creation.-trap rock
and granite. 1t is like sliding down hill when
the hill is shaggy and stony, and the snow not
deep. You go smoothly second or two, and
then fetch up against gnarled root---another
second, and you slew round against birch
stump-extricated third time, you pitch head
foremost over pile of stones and by the time
you reach the foot of the hill, you have discov-
cred that your descensus AUernunr is not so
facilis as Virgil found his.
| Take few examples selected at random:
"He never reflected for an instant on the
fact that his own medical researches and the
extraordinary wisdom he had gathered from
them, and acted upon independently, we're quite
as much literary facts as (how much more last
ing and useful than) the ephemera of literary
| facts in general"
! 81 am not ashamed to confess that, in that
young time of mine, (no spring, although so
young,) / believed all authors to be exceptional
beings"
"The boy went to the couch, and the reading
continued but, oh, mot to prose,) under what
circumstances
"This valuable document II did not cut it
out, and have never seen it since) appeared a
! fortnight after my book"
| 81 observed just now that Arnold Major had
vast number more letters (by post, not print
er's imp) than he had received before, also (sit-
ting in the same room much, l cosld not
| help seeing) he replied to them in very scraps
| Of shortness-about four lines apiece"
! For in it there was neither rant for decla.
nation, nor for expression cant; albeit through
its medium outdowed passion, pure as its own
source, in perfect freedom such freedom with
such purity of expression, perchance was never
heard.
Not at al SO and IN her very Esso lutte In,
mistakable fatigue-to amuse others who were
incapable OF delight or pleasure, and 10 humor
those who had not even mind to be amused a
fine temper and generous impulse were dis-
| played and wasted, which could have fed, oh,
what purposes and endsI None could have
been too lofty, too great"
! Being no angel, neat as heaven.imported,
but very (sometimes) foolish woman, and,
fear, never wise, do not object to cast myself
on your mercy"
Between that last station and Uglyville,
| 1.-THE hatless gentleman had not changed his
carriage, but disappeared through the shed of
stations door, / literally had to hold her
down, or she would have burst, believe, the
door open, so impatient had the fresh air and
motion made her, and, OH so strongl"
| Then, knew at the bottom that the intense
| vigilance of the huS6dnl-not the patient
| (awakening in revenge for its sick suspension
ten-fold strong) wore him more than all the
other causes, and kept him low"
But we have quoted enough TO show that
italics and parentheses are at discount with
our author. We certainly have no objection to
modicum of these but we don't like to have
them marshalled up and down every page like
sentries on guard. THAT smile is not intend
ed to indicate in the remotest degree any dis.
approval Of those patriotic heroes who daily
and nightly patrol our streets, preserving our
worthy citizens from the murderous attack of
over twentyone savage foes without, and the
still more murderous sallies Of the fierce bandits
engaged in conducting the National Era, who
may be expected any night to rush from their
office, sword in hand, and armed to the teeth,
seize the guns at the Navy Yard, demolish the
Capitol, besiege the Presidents House, burn
the Washington Monument, set the Potomac
on fire, and by its lurid light massacre our I'M
offending men, women, and children, and bear
our seat of government away on their sacrile-
gious shoulders, to Oberlin, Ohio-no postpone
ment on account of the weather.)
There is great deal of character. painting in
the book, much of which, we cannot help think
ing, is refined gold carefully gilded, and snowy
lilies deliberately painted white. There may be
q world in which such people are the natives"
but it doesn't look at all like the one in which We
live, and move, and have our being. The hero,
and heroine--we must call her the heroine,
though the title of the book seems to indicate
vulgar fraction-and many of the subordinate
actors are refined down and up to the extreme
point of tenuosity. The description is often de-
tailed till it becomes melodramatic, and the
plot shares the faults Of both characters and
description.
For the good qualities of the book, the tone
and sentiments are always pure, noble, and ex
allied. 1t is written in thoughtful, earnest
spirit, and throws out many ideas respecting
the ways and workings of the human heart, to
which wicked and peryerse, money-grasp-
ing, ofice-seeking, world-encrusted, shallow,
tickle, and perverse generation would do well
to take heed. In its psychology limited at
rather than developed, we may not believe, or,
on the other hand, we may believe-but it is
not obtrusive. A certain shrewdness and
hamor, perceptible sense of the ridiculous, en-.
livens the gravity and relieves the intensity
which might otherwise be too painful. The
book needs only to be rewritten and simpli6ed.
to make it very entertaining as well as very
useful.
TIE RICHMOND ENQUIRER BACKING DowN.-
The Richmond Enquirer, few weeks ago, de-
clared that the doctrines of Douglas were in.
cendiary, and that Douglas was worse than
Seward" But it now declares, according to
the New York Times, that as between Doug.