The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-03-05

command OF our mOtQer tongue, uoHeFet, iuu u
chaste, easy diction are not to be despised Aknow
edge of life and society also very important ad-
juyants to the novelist nay, they may be consid-
| cred postulates but of themselves they do not
constitute an adequate qualification to master Of
the art. Learning, the knowledge Of sciences and
of languages, Of history sr,d philosophy, may be
useful aids, though of this we somewhat doubt
full, An encyclopaedia, the ozani sctble Of human
learning, is quite different thing from readable
work Of fiction indeed the two are seldom more
than tangents to each other. Wit and humor,
though 80 often underrated by the lady novelists
Of the day, in our opinion, constitute an important
requisite in the modern novel; but in themselves
also are insufficient.
| The close observer of inanimate nature,-th
possessor Of a rare faculty,-has wealth Of re-
source which, If properly used, lends one Of the
greatest charms to work of fiction. But WORDS
WORTH, perhaps, the greatest of modern masters
Of this art, never wrote novel, and from whit we
know Of his wri :ngs We have reason to infer that
he would not have met with distinguished success
had bo assayed creative work Of this kind.
No, the several qualifications above enumerated,
sn6 many more are all needed for the arnaamaenta-
rum of the great novelist Of the present day. But
something more besides is requisite. There must
be imagination to create, and fancy to embellish;
| the masters hand to bestow strength and vigor,
| and the Light of genius to kndle flame Of
| beauty.
few come up to such measure Of excellence. It is
all important, however, now that the novel is fast
becoming the universal text book that serious con-
sideration, more than heretofore, should be given
| to an improvement, both moral and intellectual Of
this branch Of letters.
The great majority road for amusement t-some
few for instruction. Tho chief desideratum fer the
reading world, therefore, is something that will
satisfy both Ghese demands; and the novel processes
to do this--hence the wide popularity enjoyed by
this species Of literature. History, travels, biog-
raphy, morals, works on science or philosophy, in
days of yore, were considered the proper pabulum
for the nascent intellect and systematic nstruc-
ton in these several branches Of knowledge deem
ed Ct the first Importance. Works of fiction lay
under the ban parental, magisteria and ecclesias-
tic; romance could only be read by the sentiment
tai boarding school miss, with locked doors and q
shifting conscience. But those were the days Of
old fogyiam Uni 7ersal emancipation Is The watch
word now: We have story books for tho babe in
the cradle-not your nursery tales abyu5 Mother
Goose, Cock Robi7, and Little Re: litliL:; Hood.
Young America would not brook sucn an iosult to
his understanding. No; there ere regular stories,
with ssplotsn and al IT. children Of every age, and
the whole curriculum of art, literature, science
and philosophy is to be taught-we beg pardon,
that Is not the -insinuated, by these pleasing
creations Of the fancy. Who again shall say that
there is no royal road to earning-hat the path Of
knowledge is not strewn with flowers? 60
That an evil Like this must bring it's own cor
rective, ia, in measure, true; and the wide-felt
demand for reading Of this kind has developed
most brilliant array Of talent, such as, We fear,
can be marshalled by no other branch Of literature.
In Germany iRE1TAa, AuERBAoH NERrrz, GER
sTEKEn and SP1cLHAaEN, at the head of their
craft, have their pre-eminence called in question
by host Of lesser lights. LAMARTNE, VIoToR
HUGO, DUMAS, and GEORGE SAND are the Grand
Marshals Of France, looked up to and initiated by
thousands Of lMerateurs and feuiletonists less
known to fame. Russia, Sweden, Hungary and
Denmark Italy and Spain, all now have their regu-
lar writer's Of fiction.
But England thus far has held the pre-eminence
in this department Of belles-ettres. SPnDLER,
HAuFF, CAROLINE P1omER, and LOUISA MuHI-
BACH have written many historical novels, and
some among them master pieces Of creative art;
but all Of these are more or less imitators OF the
Great Wizard Of the North, the pioneer of the His
toricai Romance WALTER SCOTT is the canon by
which their excellence is measured FIELDING,
SMoLIETT, RICHARDSON, GOLDSMITH, Madame
D'ARBLAY and Mrs. RADCLIFFE, each opened O new
vein IN this rich mine years before fiction hs;d at
tanned to the dignity Of fine art in any otEer coun
try; and although fashion, manners, and taste have
changed much since then, their. works are still
read and to this day stand unequalled in the
points in which they severaIy excel. Tom Jones,
Humphrey Clinker. Sir Charles Grandson, DR..
Primrose, Evelina, and the Mysteries Of Udolpho,
are universally acknowledged as guide posts in the
history of life and manners in Great Britain dur
| ing the past century.
JANE AUSTEN, Miss EpaEwoRTH, BuLwER DICE
EMS THAcKERAY, CHARLOTTE BRoNTr, and GEORGE
ELIOT, these may be set down as the great mas
ters who have brought to perfection the modern
novel. They are widely read, and have contribu-
ted moro in giving true representations Of men
and things in England du g the past fifty years,
than has been derived fro the sum total Of all the
labors Of all the other eotemporary writer's. We
have singled out these as being the foremost and
the best. There are others equally unobectiona-
bic, but as they are all more or less modelled upon
those airsady named, they need not be specially
enumerated here.
+, Unfortunately, however, there are many who
possess either not sufficient intelligence or cult-
vstion to appreciate all or any Of the foregoing
and who nevertheless crave the mental excite
ment produced BY the perusal Of highly wrought
romance or tale; and to minister to these morbid
appetites We have the flash and the sensation
novel. Bigamy, murder and poisoning is their
chief stock in trade. All such novels we consider
unmitigated evils. There can be no possible bene-
| fit derived from them. They excite the imagina-
ton, deprave the taste, dry up our sympathes,
and make us crave for dishes more and more spicy,
to say nothing Of the danger OF such familiarity
with scenes of vice and crime. These books more
over are usually written by tifth-rate authors,-of
late daysmore generally authoresses who scorn to
use the homely accessories OF good English, choice
diction, or even general information. Their OBJ
ject is solely to concoct story Of blood and
thunder,-and this they do; and, we are sorry to
know, for this they are well paid
-
TIE Savannah Ne,os and Herald Of the 4th, in
alluding to the murder Of Mr.. GEORGE C. Hey
WARD, says:
RuMoRED HOMICIDE report has been preva-
lent in city TO: the last few days to the effect
that Mr.. George @. Hayward, gentleman of ex-
tensive acquaintance in this city, and one of the
most respected planters in Beaufort District,
South Carolina, had been brutally murdered by q
negro who was formerly in his employ, The r11-
conflicting; the only definite information we havc
was, that when last seen he was crossing Bucking-
hams Ferry on his way to the plantation which
he was cultivating. A short time afterwards his
son heard the report Of firearms, but at the time,
thought nothing of it, Fills long and unusual abb
sence, together with the report Of the firearms