New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-08-06
BOSTON LITERARY NOTES.

"TIE WICKED WOODS OF ToBEREEvn"-TH STORY
OLA CURSE AND PROPHECY, SHOWING HOW
AN EVIL EXPECTATION FULFIIIs ITSELF.
IRON REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRiBUSEl
Boston, July 2s.-" The Wicked Woods OF
Tobereev is the singular title of strange and grew
some ta;e about to be added by ]. T. Osgood Co. TO
their Library Of Select Novels. The story must have
been written by some firm believer in the severost theo
logical dognas; for IL is the story Of curse handed
down TO the third and fourth generations and beyend
them The lands Of Tobereevil lie in remote part
OF the West OF Ireland. One Paul Finsten came into
this district when as the legend runs the country was
prosperous the people well housed and well Clad he
had bought the estate Of decayed old family but his
vauting PRIDE was not content with merely stepping
into other peoples shoes He would not live under their
roof tread their paths nor even lock out upon the
same scenes that had been beautiful in their eyes, So
he pulled down their house, plowed up their gar
dens, aud planted trees in the spaces they had
cleared. He built new abode 10 his
own taste and furnished 1t in style of unprecedented
splendor His servants were a small army, and bis
stables would have furnished mounts for half cavalry
regiment He had wines over which an Emperor might
have gOred and whatever else OF luxury taste could
suggest or money could buy If he had stopped there it
would have been we'll He might have lived his life OF
ease and Measure and his descendants after him have
prospeyed. But in his passion for celebrating the
landmarks Of his predecessors, he conceived
the idea of planting great woods over the land
In pursuit of this purpose he must needs sweep away
the people and their farms He wanted trees instead OF
tenants and he rooted out the tenants carelessly
he would have pulled up weeds from his garden In one
white desolate week Of Winter hundred families stood
houseless upon They had looked on helpless
and without resource while the work Of desoation went
forward; and when the night came down with storm
and they not where TO turn and chung crying
Some Of the strong set FORTH across
the mOors, to lind elsewhere work or pity; but the
aged persons and the women and children re-
manned behind, utterly helpless At last a pit
iul band of them mustered the hills and started 10
seek their piess landlord il peradventure their woes
might at last his frozen heart On the outskirts Of
the wood terrible overlook them, their strength
gave way and they lay down 10 de deep well
II was not until the next day-when he came by acct
dent to the piece and saw the eOrpses lying round him
that the wicked landlord felt pangs Of but
1t too late then for repentance too late to avert the
curse which had been pronounced. or this some
old Irish tell the tale 1t uttered by in
FAINT:
Thee dreadful DAYS since first it saw the hight:
And she dead and cold the mornings dawn
Then mp and sat that awful babe Of death.
4Od Al DE people stared o hear .peas.
Even The dy,ng Iased Their heaes to hear. ~, ~,
should yield them pleasure. They should
l;h Win cold ana DC goa~ed ey hunger Their Lands
should never live past chdhoOd and those Of
their sons who gentle hearts should become hard
ened by possession of the gold Of the Emissions. The
curse should urk for them in the cornerstone OF the
wall in the beam under the rOof-tree, in the log upon
the hearth-stone, IN the meat upon the dish:
- In ever bad and blade Of grass that grows
sy yc s n5 TP fsa. iS,, 9 .aty tT fsu
.. In every pleasant word that negbbOrs SPEAK"
the IN family be freed from the til one Of them
be murdered by knsman of his own
And n fol Si away from 81 ii %oiRe. Sest
Hers arms and cold beneath the SNOW,
After such dire event, banefu spirit was of course
said to haunt the well and from this the Of the
property took its rise. The old name was forgotten
and the estate was known as ToDereeyl The Banshees
Well"
The curse began at TO work it's VICE. The fear OF
want took possession Of the master OF TobereeV He
rerenehed his expenses Servants went away, and no
others took their places; horses sold, and the
stables they went out of stood empty. His two
grew up Wild and half savage instructed in nothing but
the curse and their fathers theory Of the by
which it was 10 be avoided. These were the perpetual
saving OF money, stinting themselves and their |
dependents Of the necessaries Of life, and Sc
cret hOaSdng Of treasure. With these lessons |
constantly handed down from father to son, it re-
CURED no supernatural agency to hand down with them
the curse since each new inhertor cursed himself |
afresh 1t went on thus from generation to generation
curse and cold being together delivered over from
father No daughter Of the family attained
womanhood. But the wicked woods grew, out OF the |
hearthplaces OF vanished homes, and spread for miles
ana miles the country growing thicker and darker
and grander with every melancholy year.
Six accursed generations had passed away when the |
actors the present upon the stage The tale
tells how the pursued them, and how at last II was
literally fulled-tbe last misery master OF Tobereev
being slain by Of his kin, halt idiot boy, who
also set the wicked woods on fire. Then to the
wasted lands new master, another Paul Finiston, |
gentle aud generous and true; blessed with q
happy love. Out Of the long, murky night |
rose the OF hope OF promise, But |
this sunburst is only the final illumination. |
The story is sad aud unpleasant Only three fonr OF
the numerous characters IN the least lovabe. In
the others the base side Of human nature lie displayed
almost unmitigaed by any CLEAN Of light The style
good the tale bad. II is as IL one who might have
gathered roses aud lines had chosen 10 Irvine his wreath
from suen thistle and the berries the deadly night
shade bears. L. c.h.
Ncm Duhlifltion6