The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1871-10-11

SIS on Scotch" This principle Scott applied in a
somewhat larger spirit His Scotch characters,
Highland and Lowland, tinted With al the delicate
shades of local and social color gentle and simple
good and bad, are all emphatically Scotch. It is
not for scOtehman to say whether our great painter
has or has not been
"TO all our virtues very kind.
To all our faults little blind"
but We certainly ought to be well content with the
national portalture and do each what In ms lies TO
pcrpetuate It's nobler features (Cheers.) Amid
moral and intellectual benefits must not forget the
important contributions Of Scott to the material
prosperity Of his native land. The dead poet whom
we celebrate is distinctly an employer Of laboras
any of those captains Of industry whose looms whir
/ By the Tweed, or whose furnaces fame along the
Clyde. Here, there, everywhere, pilgrims are flock
ing TO the shrnes which he has built for himself and
his eosntry; aud trades and occupations OF all kinds
flourish by the brain which lies in Dryburgh as they
formerly aourished by the brain of st. Thomas.
When land to be sold In any district of the Scott
countries, his scenes and his characters Herewith
connected, and his passing allusous. are care
fully chronieed among other attractions in the ad-
vertsement, and duly inventoried among the title
deeds of the estate. 1t would be hard to say how
many years purchase Scott has added to the value
]
is doubt that the touch of his pen does in many
places form an important element of that unearned
increment of value-that, believe, is the scientific
term-which Mr. Stuart Mill and friends propose
shortly transfer from the lords Of the soil to the
Lords of the Treasury.
Referring to the ease and rapidity with which
Scott WROTE Sir William Stirling Maxwell proceed
ed: Two acute and by no means superstitous OBJ
servers solved the mystery by aseribing to him
something of supernatural power. "There was"
says HaZlitt "a degree Of capacity in that huge
double forehead which superseded all effort, and
made everything come iututively and almost me-
chauicaly." Captain Basil Hall was at first much
exercised by the phenomenon but as he himself
kept very coplous Journal and discovered that 10
one Of his visits TO Abbotsford he had written In
one day about as much as Scott considered fair
/ days work, he considered that his wonder was mis-
applied. In fact, among his intimate friends, the
marvellous faculty and fecundity of the ceased
to excite any surprise. Even the faithful aud affec
tionate Laidlaw, his amanueusis in times of sick
ness used to forget himself and everything else in
the interest Of the tale he writing down. If the
dictation tagged, he would say "Come, Sir get on,
get on and would receive the Characteristic reply,
Houtl Willie, you forget / have to invent the
story" 1t is natural at first sight to regret all this
headlong haste, aud to regret that four five Of the
novels had not been compressed into perfect work
of art into "a gem Of purest ray serene, altogether
worthy of the mind whence it came; but the
genius of Scott was in many points exceptional,
it is possible that it may have worked under special
laws Of its own, and that something of the charm Of
his works may belong to their rapid and spontaneous
low like the rush Of river, or the melody from the
throats of birds,
That carol their secret pleasure to the spring.
/ (Cheers.) The influence of Scott upon literature,
both at home and abroad, was immense Whatever
he did, whatever attire he chose assume, at once
became the fashion. The apparent Of bis verse,
the fatal facility of the octo-syllabie measure, pro-
cured him large poetic following, in which there
were, no doubt, many figures strange to see; but
his school likewise boast Of several disciples of
rare genius. His presence may be felt in some Of
the earlier tales of Byron; from his shrine comes
some Of the fire that burns In hTy and the AFHada,
and the Roman Lays of Macaulay, and in the Cav
alier ballads of our Aytoun. OF the historical
romance in prose he may be called the father, and
never had literary sire a goodly offspring TO
the second generation. (Cheers.) In France, Hugo,
de Vigny, the elder Dumas; in SPAIN Fernan Cabal-
lero; in Italy, Manzoni and d'Azeglio in Germany,
Zsehokke and Alexis in America, Cooper; at home,
I
Of the writers well known to fame who have es-
ssyed to bend the bow Of Scott If the words that
Scott wrote in 1880, were somewhat overcharged
then they are more near the truth in 1871. 1.-THE
fact is'' he wrote, "I have taught hundred gentle
men TO write nearly, If not altogether, as well as
myselLn In truth Seott's art using the word In its
largest SENSE was like that of Falsta who witty
himself and the cause of wit in other (Cheers)
Even in fields less peculiarly his own than fiction
his influence was very great his writings stimula-
ted historical research in hundred directions and
he the founder ofthe Bannstyne Club, parent Of
many similar societies In his romances the delight
ed reader had found himself brought face to face
with personages whom be had before seen only as 10
4 glass darkly Historians began to take leaf out
Of the great novelists book; to style more
dramatic and pietorial to deyelope individual cha
racter and bestcw unwonted pains on accessories Of
time and place. Is it too much to say that pro-
baby owe TO the example OF Scott some Of the most
graceful digressions Of Hallam, something Of the
splendid scene painting OF MacaulaY, something Of
the electric light flashed over many famous men and
into many dark places from the pen Of Carlyle? OF
all the legacies which Scott has bequeathed to
kind, believe more precious than his own
character and life. Happy in many things, unhappy
in a few, he was singulary happy in a biographer.
1 doubt whether the world has ever been told so
much about any one man by any single biographer,
and whether the whole Biographis Unirerssls can
furnish single other name which would show so
fair If the whole life which belonged TO it were
rolled, like that of Scott year by year. almost day
BY day, before the gaze Of his fellow (Cheers
Sir William Stirling Maxwell then referred to the
varied character of those who, differing from one
another many things, agreed to love and honour
Scott He proceeded to ssy:-Wifh the intellectual
life Of bis time seotts relations were as genial as
those which bound him to its social life His career
adds no incident to The 'Quarres Of Authors" His
high appreciation Of the writings ofhis contempora-
ries ofthe most noticeable Of bis many plea
sant traits OF character Washington Irving, after
passing few days at Abbotsford in 1917, was con
vinced that his host was the author ofthe Waverley
novels because they the only important works
OF the day he had never quoted How characteris-
tic is scoits "reminiscences to Burns and his pride In
having, boy helped the poet to the authorship
Of some lines By Langhome. and having received
grateful look from him in return. From this, which
probably bis first meeting with any distinguish
ed Of letters the the record Of bis reia-
tioBs with his brethren Of the pen is q record Of
brOiherly kindness, encouragement, furthennce, /
earnest sympathy 10 success disappointment. Of 4