New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-03-04
DICKENS.
A Charxning Lecture by One Of His Fe-
n,alc Admirer~-Niss Kate Field al
the Temple.

The st. Louis Democrat Oi Wednesday
cont;0ns the following report:
Miss Kate Field, of Boston, delivered !,
lecture last night at Ncholson's Temple, on
the life and works Of Charles Dickens. She
reviewed the illustrious Englshman as
"..uthor. Actor and Man" The lecture WAS
ar elegant composition. put together with
lretcntious style, without any attempt at
those lofty lunges Of eloquence which mar
the discourses OF SO many OF onr female lee
| tslrers.
| The audience was one of the most intel
! lectual that has ever assembled in Il lecture
| hall in this city. Among them we noticed
such men Judge Treat. Hon. John b.
Henderson, Judge kruln, NJ. l.. Gray,
Chester Ii. krum, Edward Wyman. The
/ ophile Papin, Waylnan Crow, James T..
! leatman. and numerous others of equal
calibre. The ladies turned ont in consider
/ able numbers-not the strong minded y
exclusively, but many who absolutely set
their handsome faces against the sO-called
hcresy of womans rights" One OF these
ladies remarked TO another: 20, dear me,
would not have thought of coming if |
| hadn't known il was not wOmans Sltira ge
affair"
Miss Field is a daughter of the late Jos
eph NJ. Field, who, like Dickens, was au-
| thor, actor and editor. Years ago he was Il
member Of Ludlow & Smiths stock com
pany. which played here and at New Or
leans and Mobile, and ut that time was a
| contributor to the columns of the New Or
! leans Picdyuhe, and other journals. About
the year 1874 Mr.. Field, and his brother, NJ
| {. Field, in conjunction with Colonel Charles
keemle, established daily paper in this
! city called the RereiNc. Which was continued
! tor several years, and was eventually
merged into the organ. and atterward the
publication was discontinued. About the
! year 1851 the Varieties Theatre was opened
Oh Market street, with Mr.. J. N. Field
| as manager. He died a few years afterward
Miss Kate Field, we are told was born in
this city, about the time her father was
editing the Rereiile. and she must be some
thing over twenty-five years of age. Many
of the old friends Of her father, who had
Known her as q curly headed child, went to
near her last night and renewed her ac-
Nuaintance. Possessing an intellectual and
| animated countenance. the lady is vet far
from beautiful. Her face is oval Aer nose
high, irregular and compressed at the nos
trils; her eyes blue and bright, and her hair
a light brown, and was worn last night
down over and behind her ears, hanging
behind her head in ringlets-
On top of her head was u rosette, or arti-
fetal rose, from which hung little sill1en
tags. tipped with steel, and mingling with
hair. Her robe was of fine material, deli
cate pink in color, and ornamented with an
abundance of wavy tiounces and putfs, and
a full skirt. without trail: cut rather low in
the neck; sleeves open half way to the
elbows, and Erimmcd with lace. On her
neck she wore a small black velvet band,
from which hung a brilliant shaped some
thing like a heart or il triangle. Her wrists
We're clasped by bracelets OF different pat
terms, resting upon broad black velvet
bands. The make up was very becom-
ing, and the lady made a good impression
upon the critics of female attire.
The voice Of the lectureS> is neither strong
nor remarkably melodious. but sufficiently
SO for the occasion. Her forte evidently is
the delineation of humorous characters,
and her brief readings from her favorite
author created IL good deal OF merriment
She was introduced to the audience by
Mr.. Wayman Grow. and spoke from the
front of the stage. holding in her hand hat
appeared to be book of ordinary size. but
which proved to be the manuscript of her
lecture. Judge krum and Mr.. Crow occu-
pied chairs on the stage, and by their quick
perceptions and ready smiles and mods fur
nished the audience with the cues for
laughter or applause.
THE LECTURE.
A synopsis OF the lecture is all our space
will admit OF. She was not such an admireT
OF Dickens az to wish to black his shoes as
one had sad of Shakespeare. In analyzing
the dramatic talent of Dickens she said:
What varnish is to an oil painting
Dickens delivery was TO his text. When,
OF the fifteenth of last March, he vanished
from st. James Hall, England lost her
greatest actor. l doubt whether Shake
speare himself loved the theatre more than
Dickens. She declared that Dickens was
not only a great genius, but a great ex-
ample. and spoke of his great industry and
enterprise especially in his reportorial ex-
perience. While at the head of eighty or
ninety reporters in Parliament. said she, he |
acquired great reputation for clearness and |
accuracy, and Lord Derby paid him the |
compliment of sending for him to report a |
speech Of the greatest importance. He |
never forgot the profession. and was ever |
ready to break lance in its defense. When |
he became editor OF the DAILY ter.. Re |
employed large stat OF editors and re- !,
porters, and paid the most liberal saaries: |
ana she trusted that whichever a new spapnr |
fund was created it woGld be baptized N |
honor of that king OF all reporters. Charles |
Dickens.
In speaking OF the faults Of Nr Dickens as |
an author, Miss Field said:
Dickens is not perfect. He has manner !
islns, he has faults OIL style; there is even au |
occasional slip in grammar; bat, after all. |
what Is the best style Is not Its definition
that OF a straight lIne-tLe shortest distance |
between two points Try TO cut down !
Dickens. and see how you will succeed |
With him words were made for ideas. not |
ideas for words. In description, he is fre-
quently elaborate, but it is the elaboration |
of a rich mind Kidding itself OF suggestions
in the tersest OF language. 1t seems to me
that Dickens style belongs essentially to
Dickens genius, that they are one and in
separable, and those who would have had
him turn himself into latter-day essayist
fail TO appreciate his real greatness, for style
is but a frame for thought tits the second
ary consideration, not the first; the servant,
not the master The failing OF to-day's wor-
shippers of style appears to be a dedication
of the servant, the result of which is d series
of beautiful frames setting off very inditfer-
ent paintings. Which is preferable, Dickens
pictures, or the frames OF his critics
Amt that Boz tip-top fcllows Boz
writes well, but he writes Weller.
Miss Field touched briefly on Dickens
views on temperance, and his illusions to
the subject in his writings. From this she
passed to the discussion of the poetic
quality of the authors writings, and, after
his principal productions in
verse, recited with fine expression "The
Hymn Of the Wiltshire Laborers:" Then
she described his love for animated nature,
illustrating her description with quotations
and anecdotes.
As to the female characters drawn by
Dickens, she said:
- But Dickens never yet drew woman
/ have often heard that Shakespeare has
never done justice to woman. Without in
comparisons where there should le
none, it seems to me that the two charges