The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-10-15

and reputable looking mask Of flesh. We have
some knowledge Of his inmost thoughts, moro
than We shall tell, part OF which We shall in
einuate, not over clearly though, 80 that we
| may keep something enigmatical always before
! you. Where IL the Judge now Within dingv,
darkening room In yJndGr house with the seven
! gables. whv does he stag t1ere so long? The
! time appointed for that most important meet
/ ing l. AT hand. Tho browning Of hii ambition
! depends upon his presence there. His i.iebds
are waiting. why does he not come out2 Why
| does he sit hour after hour in the huge arm
| chair with his watch in his hani7 why gaze.
he 80 ste ldily IN the direction Of its dial though
the darkness long since made II invisiblc7 AM
all THIS Won shall know. hut rather dimi., nv
and by. Wait TIL we shall have laughed ut him
and mockcd him an issred At MIN and reviled
MIN through a whole long ch ipter of some
eizhieen octave pages. There IA mystery about
biz delay at least such mystery as an author can
make by exciting and not gratifying your curl
osity. Hut while your curiosity il active YOU
viii be attentive; aud while you are attentive
wo VIII preach to you, In our own way how
ever. TO be our way IL somewhat ike
thai OF man whose enemy IL at last In
his power. and who can now smelly waQ
us Tongue against him. Hut the sermon IL
good FOR all that. though ia lec pvnchcon has
not heard a word of 1t. At any rate he has not
repiiej, or cha ed his posture. or made a mo-
ton even to wipe away the bloDd-red stain that
from somewhere has come upon his hitherto
immaculate bosom. You NAV think thera &.
kind VI slvigerg In our treatment OF this emf.
nent parsonage; that our discourse, while ne is
50 pas.sively sitting there, batter BELTS n bar
barrie triumph than Christian pulpit or the tr-
bunal Of amOrdli-t. But-anl now we will par
tially lit the mystery that, at last, we
have got the criminal, hypocrtical ! ldge down:
at any rate lac is down. lie can be hyppcritich
no more. lie Is dead; that Is all there waa OF il:
dead by rush Of blood and apoplexy. Is there
not reason for a triumph
The kind Of fictitious mystery wrought about
and exhibited In the case Of Judge Pyncheon Ia
one Of Hawthorne's peculiar and his most char
acieri-tic means Of exciting his readers imagi-
nation. aud his own alsj. The method Is akin
20 that with which children terrify Themselves
and one another. lie @rips sheet about some
parsonage, makes him hold It ai1ft with IN
stretched arms to give the appearance Of ghost
" height, causes him to elpber and squeak.
Does not your hair rise and your neah creep
littleY His does. Like child, for tho time
being, he half believes In the actutlity Of the
phantom he has pieced out; and he wins
enough OF your credence to make You wonder
AZ II. Then. like child, he tears IN his work,
perhaps derdes 1t; for he Is not without cyni-
cism. though II Il generally held in check by
more generous feelings. Mr.. Hig ,inbotham-
has he been murdercdf Was II really he that
passed the toll-gate just now on horsebackY
lie did not stop u shake hands and chat a little
as usual; he grAyeiy nodded, as one who should
say, Charge my toll" aud went on. a. never
saw a man look 40 yellow and thin as the squire
does continued the toll-gathercr. SAYS to
myself to night, he's more liks ghost or an
old mummy than good flesh and blood The
peddlcr strained his eyes through the twilight,
and could Just discern the horseman now far
ahead on the village road. He seemed to reco.-
nize the rear Il MIR. Higsnbotham; but through
the evening shld and amid the dust from
the horses feet the figure appeared dim and un.
substantial, rs II the shape Of the mysterious
OH man were family moulded Of darkness ani
gray light. Dominicus shycred." You do not
quite SILVER Admit, however. that you are In
doubt Skep;ical. according to reason. you yet
dare not positively assert that this figure " Mr.
Higeinbotham himself In a sheet woven of dust
and twilight. aud not Mr. Higginbothiin's ghost:
especially since YOU have been told that, wher-
ever lie goes, this gentleman must always be at
home by a certain hour
Achieving Kind Of effect. Ike that which T.
Produced 10y supernatural beings without the
actual use of such existences. is this authors
most noticeable speciality. His method OF accom-
pllshlng tis ingenious. lie conrives to associate
with some chara lterI certain feature orquahty,
or 10 subject a parsonage TO some law which
superstituton has made for such unearthly
entities, or with which 1t has endowed them
\ ghost must be home at given time so must
Mr.. HiRginootham. though, when the truth is
known, II is but TO mind his business. Me-
phistopheles Is sharp-faced aud hump-shoul-
dered; so IS Mr.. Chillngworth. Phantoms are
dim and not clearly defined so Is the Spectre
OF the c ttacombs. Ana 90 on. To be plaln
about 1t. this manner Of treatment produces,
not mystery but mistiness. seen through which
objects appear o have unnatIril size, or unnatu.
raj parts. Clear the fog away, so that their out
lines can he plainly discerned and they will as
sumo normal proportions. Or.ifyou still choose
10 consiierlt mystery, II Is very different from
TINT which Shakespeare and Bunvan created.
When Bunyan wished to make u "a, or a Mend,
when Shakespeare wished T. bring up a witch
or a ghost. they left no chance Tor a question a.
10 what the thing was. In their hands enigma
took shape and individuality; 1t WAS dramatic.
Hawthorne max it only the atric. something
analogous to II, as emplofol by HIM, may be
seen in places whore melodrdnas are repre-.
stuted. snug. the Joiner, a Instructed by Bot
iJa, burlesqlel 1t: III You think come
hliNtf hS a luns IL were PITY OF my He. no. /
am no such thing; am a man as other mcn
are: and then, indeed, let him name his name:
ana tell them plainly he is Snuy the Joiuer."
L.. II be said, however. that lawthorne's
melodramatic incident and appurtenancei are
much more deeply impressive than are those
seen AT the the ttre. Prepared for the imlgiaa.
ton rather than for thu senses. they are not
belittlod. rendered ineffective, or reduced 20 AZ
surdty by attempts TO make them tangible
lliA characters act in ideal scenes; and. with
imaginary adJuucts, they present to fancy this
kind OF theatric effect in its utmost refinement
II f., Indeed, the very sublmation Of nelo.
drama. hut II Is none the less meodramatic as
contTadstingulsnod from dramatic. That thi,
author might not have been a dram attic poet is
too much too afnrm; that he was not Is plain.
lie failed to manifest the most essential qu Iii
ties OF such au artist. Dramatic juxtaDositions
such as may be found In THE Scarlet Letter"
for instance, do not constitute a dramatic work.
Tho form, the complication, the proper action
are wanting. Or, II the complication be there
1t lacks closeness, what may be called contem-
porariness, progression, a climacteric and salts
factory undoing. 1t needs motive power and
Its resultant movement. 1t Is rather passive
than active. 1t Ia the product of "A meditative