The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-04-20
HInt 20 NOVEL Readers.

We extract this admirable passage
concerning novel reading from one of
the hitherto uncollected papers in the
fifth and fnal volume Of the House
hold Edition Of Thackeray's Mis-
cellanies. just issued by Fields. Os-
good & Go.
x spect TO the reading of novels
Of the present day, | would be glad
To suggest to the lovers of these in
structIve works the simple plan ofsal-
ways looking at the end of romance
To see what becomes Of the persona
ges, before they venture on the whole
work, and become interested in the
characters described in it. Why in
terest ones self in a parsonage who
you know must, ut tho end of the
third volume, die a miserable death?
What Is the use of making ones self
unhappy needlessly, watching the
eonsumptive symptoms Of Leonora
as they manifest themselves, or trac-
ing Antonio to his inevitable assas
sination?
Formerly, whenever / came to one
of these fatally virtuous characters
ia romance (ladies are very fond of
inventing such suffering angels in
their novels, pale, pious, pulmonary,
crossed in love, of course; hence | do
not care to read ladies' novels, except
those Of Mesdames Gore and Troll
lope)-whenever 1 came to one of
those predestined creatures, and saw
from the complexion of the story
that the parsonage in question was
about to occupy q good deal of the
readers attention, [ always closed
the book at once, and in disgust, for
my feelings are much too precious to
be agitated at three pence per volume.
Even then it was often too late. One
may have got through half a volume
before the ultimate fate of
Miss Trevanion was made clear
to one. In that half volume, one
may have grown to be exceedingly in
terested In Trevanion; and hence one
has all the paugs of parting with her,
which were not worth mourning for
the brief pleasure Of her acquaintance.
lie fla nc UalaH pas Ia chdrdelle. 1t
is we'll to say / never loved young
gaelic to glad me with his dark blue
eye, but when he came to know me
we'll he was sure to die; and to add,
that | never love a tree or flower, but
twas the first to fade away. Is it not
better, instead OF making yourself un-
happy, as you inevitably must be, to
spare yourself the trouble of this
bootless affection2 Do not let us
give up our affections rashly to young
gazelles, or trees. or flowers; and
coufine our tenderness 10 creatures
that arc more long lived.
Therefore. /. say it is much better
to look at the end Of novel; and
when / read There is a fresh green
mound in Brentford churchyard, and
an humble stone on which is inscribed
the name Of Anna Maria; or liz
jour apres on r0yait sur les dalles
humides do la terrible Norge lei
corps virginia. ct ruisselanE de Ba
thilde; or sentence to that effect
/ shut the book az once, declining Il
agitate my feelings needlessly; for a.
that stage | do not care a fig for Anna
Maria's consumption or Bathilde'.
suicide; have not the honor of Their
acquaintance, nor will make il. L
you had the gift of prophecy. and peo
pie proposed to introduce you to ,
man who you knew would borrow
money OF you, or would be inevitably
hanged, or would subject you to som,
other annoyance, would you not de
cline the proposed introduction2
So with novels. The Book of Fat
Of the heroes and heroines is to b.
found at the end of Volume III. On
has but to turn TO it to know Whethe
one shall mako their acquaintance o
not. For my part j heartily pardoi
the man who brought Cordelia to lif
twas it Cibber or Strenhold aud Hop
kins2). / would have the stomach
pump brought for Romeo at the fiftI
act; for Mrs. Macbeth am not in tn
least sorry; but, as for the General,
would have him destroy that swag
geriDg MaodufF (who always look
as if he had just slipped off
snuff shop, or, if not, cut him il
pieces, disarm him, pink him certain