The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1861-03-16
Literary Criticism.

as much through his carcleSSneSs oil crlll-
cism land very frequent carelessness Of
style, he might say,) as through intrinsic
merit, and he tells young writers to never
look for any literary herald to announce
them, or any critic to approve them to
the public. In this Mr.. Bulwer exults
only by reason of his own success; he
docs not show that by pursuing his course,
independent Of any consideration for the
/ literary reviewers, interiors writers might
become Bulwers, or that superior ones
might become as successful as Bulwcr
A successful man has right to cxult over
his success, but to crown his exultatiOn
with the attempted encouragement Of say
ing that every person may attain equal, If
not greater, success in the same line Of
operation, is contemplate. There can be
no approach to the possibility Of cqualized
success in literature; writers who would
express themselves alike, and think and
aspire aIikc-having almost one tempera-
ncnt and all circumstances together
could not 60 up unseparatcd into great
public estimation; indeed their similarity
would prevent them from going singly to
eminence. The republic Of letters, like
other republics, does no more for man
than to give him bare chance and let
him alone to clothe il. If his chanc"
please him and he can array it finely, the
high coloring will attract high attention
and thereby he will ascend above the
plains of equality, not because Of the
equality below or the examples above
him, but because Of self power to rise. 1t
is fanciful to indicate that there is great
"rcpublic Of letters; it is inspiring to
patriotic and ennobling feeling to speak
of great political republic. In both in
stances the idea of independence and
equality makes the beauty and enjoy
ment of the allusion, but in both we may
be contradicted by the ever apparent GER
tainty Of inequality and dependence.
There is no substantial equality except
ing in general privilege, and general priv
ilcgc is always likely to contribute to the
advancement Of its votary when he has SO
strongly applied his own self power as
to start well and to go ahead, and it will
be likely to help him on to an arsto-
cratic and undeserved station rather than
to urge him to rest in his justly acquired
place.
The opinion Of Bulwer, that the public
and not the professional critics, arc the
proper judges, in the first instance, Of lit
erary work, is sound enough; but it does
not thwart the merit of criticism, for
there are rules of taste which will never
lose their value though the applier may
be less powerful than the popularity Of
an author to whose works the application
is made. Popular choice is seldom per-
feet one, for in that the impulses act too
briskly for the slower and better judg-
ment; the worth Of statesman should
be estimated by the influence he cXerts
in settling and systematizins public
opinion upon governmental practice and
theory; criticism upon books and au.
thors favorably affects public taste, no
matter if the critic is self constituted
censor, or very savage upon authors.
lie sees defects to point them out, so that
the author may mend his habits and
cease to overestimate himself; many Of
the same defects may be observed by
many readers, but neither the author nor
literature will profit from the reader who
does not read to publish his conclusions.
Self constituted critics are harsh fellows,
exacting and sometimes terrible; but
while we would not fatter them with all
Of the consideration which their temper
and pursuit houghtily demand, we think
that Bulwer's idea Of disregarding them
altogether would so help the tendency of
authorship to egotism as to degrade even
the writing Of pamphlet romances prac-
ticalize this idea with another of Mr.. Bull.
wer's that, writers should study older and
cotemporary writers for suggestions, and
literature would be reduced to fatulent
systems Of plagiarism, looseness, imita-
ton and vanity. With all of its arro-
gance and severity, criticism is indispen-
sable to order and improvement in every,
thing, for it will stir the undeveloped to,
ward means Of development and change
the pursuits of beginners who have in.
fatuation instead Of genius; in youth
there is q universal infatuation toward
pens and ink, and fear Of criticism alone
prevents q universal delugc Of an unas-
suagable, enervating and unrefining liter
ature. Bulwer may boast that he was
never frightened by critic; he is prob
ably too self sufficient to admit that il
thousands before him, and thousands in
his own time, had never been discouraged
by critics he would not have been able to
rise through the vast raft of little food
wood in the current Of literature and Sc
', cure place on the surface and in the
sunshine.
q SASS-
, SILvERLAND.-The San Andrcas Inde.
pendent, always comprehensive in its
finely expressed views on material pro-
gress, remarks that the immense wealth
Of Washoe is no longer q vague dream to
captivatc restless enthusiasts.
Silverland is rich in fact; capital turns TO-
ward it, and energetic labor is recOmpensed.
There is NO telling where the silverb belt begins
in the west or ends toward the east. Each
succeeding week turns up new discoveries.
5 The Adventures, at latest accounts had passed
beyond the Great Desert, aud found rich mines
on the Humboldt Another summer will
! dnnhfless carry the diScnX ereEa 70 the head