The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-10-24
4 ,ruiug Star and Catholic Messenger.
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ADELAIDE ANNE PROCTOR.
A GREAT CATHOLIC PoETEss.
Catholic World
1C.,nl-Aolk

Tn quitting D0E poems OF tnOuRnt, ~
] ,erhaps be well to pretermit our long course of
i Kraise, and speak Of the faults Of her writing,
most of which are strongest in these very
poems. In verbal correctness, she is far above
tha average; for SO voluminous writer,
s;nuularly free from them. Still, by G. WASH
in aton- Moon light, we can discover certain
4 errors, principally of accent or oollocation.
S Fo Beyond baptism is made trisyllable;
4 enough, standing where it does, an appeal
might well be taken to the higher equity of
Law Of orthoepy. Also, we doubt if perfected"
Homeless" In the expression,
Of S. d Ssst fair oos
Il might, with all respect for the intelligence
80 the race at large, and, above all, for the
prcdigioas latent capabilities of all ladies' dogs
lit might be seriously questioned whether the
1.-The relative " who" We feel quite sure that
The original idea was to reserve this particular
4pronoun for selfish mankind, aDd we fear that
the slow science OF grammar Is sun t th
kind, by the trammeiing traditions OF compare
they do at rare intervals, in q very large
humber Of verees, written young, and crowded
Into tho compass of few years. Many of
Them were mere passing contributions to the.
periodical press of the day, and, taken as
whole, compare to advantage with the hasty
Examinations of almost any author.
In metro Miss Proctor achieves no high
effects, and attempts none. With very fair
aste in selection of metre, she is by no means
IN artist in rhythm, and appears to aim at
little or nothing beyond passable metrical cor
tally melodious. Once or twice she tries some
bort Of irregular or lyric measure, and it ap.
bears rather to impede than aid her accustomed
clear flow of thought.
great faults. One is her refinement. She is 30
Refined that it would, even had she reached the
full promise of her life, have prevented her, in
popular. Her field is too high and narrow she
heals mainly with sentiments and sympathies
(which interest only those who have not only
praise in itself. The other is more of a
feal fault. Miss Proctor tempts US to be-
aieve that the diffuseness which We have
Attributed chiefly to their education has some
foundati in womau's nature ITSELF Different
Vas she is from. the ordinary type, her woman.
hood vindcates itself, though still in way of
her own. The effect on her style is not " hat
we spoke of-dilution-but application:
Sometimes she is led away by her fertility of
illustration to illustrate too much. She holds
mp the idea in too many lights, more than are
this even in "Incompleteness," before cited,
but the illustrations are 30 happy that the
etfsct 10 not perceived; 1t Ia seldom we are
troubled with too many goods things in 2
ramifyiDg thoughts into 30 many applications
--one natural rssplt Of her thorough thinking
S1ereatly ipjores the whole. and almost al
ways, where there is much of this application,
il passes beyond the strict limits Of the
strongest effect.
There are, furthermore, some few poems
liable to cavil which seem to have been mere
e1eEciaes or experiments, and call for other
criticism than her finished performances.
Others suffer from their authors inveterate
habit Of Selling on every day subjects -, Now .H
charm of her manner cannot mend it. The
result is like pebble se&in iligree.
The only grave artistic fault we ever found
In her poems occurs in the Legend of Provence
Zone of her best narrative pieces, founded on the
Exquisite Legion of the Virgin Mary's assuming
the personality and filling the place of a nun
swho has proved false to her vows and fled her
convent. Repeutant at last, she returns, q
worn-out beggar, to die where her religion
died, meets her semblance, recognizes it as
what she might have been, aud implores Mary's
aid.
fHAnd Mary Dswered: " From thy bitter past,
Welcome. my child oh welcome home at last!
For ali Thy daily duties s f have done; n''
jaihered thy flowers and prayed and sung and slept
Oidst thou not know, poor child thy place WAS kept T.
This strikes us as a tremendous blunder. For
he nun to know that her place was kept would
mock the bottom out of the entire legend.
Who wouldn't sin with his pardon drawn up
advance, aid entire secrecy and perfect
les grafton awaiting the fret active twinge of
epentancef We cannot imagine for an instant
bow Miss Proctor could overlook this unless
We have made some equally egregious error in
We End, or fancy we find, in her writings, q
made Of resemblance to the taste and tact of
her father, Barry Cornwall" Perhaps it was
because she feared her generic tendencies OF
lyle, that she has written few or no songs, and
hone at all like his sort. If her object was TO
eVoid Suspicious resemblance, she has sue
eeded. The likeness is utterly intangible, and
here is not . trace anywhere of an Imitation
noet natural to her relations with him, and
hefs.
Another noteworthy fact about her is also
lnded TO by Mr.. DiOkens 1t is the total
osenee of humor, and the sober and shaded
lyle OF what she has written. He takes occa-
ion' while speaking of this prevailing serious
- An one SO young. expressly to bar the in
renee that she was Of the melancholy moonlit
"a ane mentions her abundant wit, and keen
S OF tne ludicrous, and the joyous quality
1er laugh. We do not think an observant
aoet would misconceive her, as her kind
SS 1880 5.s olographer apptehended. She lacks
ue olstlnctive element of mOrbidness. There
soundness in her sadness. so to speak, that
makes us feel it to be the shadow of 9 soul