New-York tribune., 1876-02-29
HARPER

"T The Ideal and the Real"
HARPER
The remainder of Mr. f. p. Whippe's essay
on American Literature" which is given in this num-
ber not OF grave character the preceding por
ton aboundipg in puncent epigrammatc sentences In
which blancy OF expression Ia no less conspicuous IMAM
boldness criticism Mr.. whpple's cordial estimate OF
Bayard Taylor and G. w. Curtis will meet with ready
sympathy while his comments Bancroft VIII be taken
with large deductions by the many admirers OF inc great
American historian His rema, ks on Taylor and Curtis
are as follows Bayard Taylor In Justly esteemed as
one Of the eminent OF American men OF letters
graduate of no university, he has mastered many IAN
guages born Pennsylvania village, he may Dc SAID
to have been everywhere and 10 have seen everybody
and that ne has achieved due to his own persistent
energy and tranquil solfreance Journalist, traveller,
essays critic novelist scholar and poet he has ever
preserved the simplicity OF nature which marked his
nrst book OF travels and the simplicity Of style which
the knowledge of many lands and many tongues has
never tempted him To abandon His books of voyages
and charming hut their charm consists In the
austee of the words he to the facts he
records scenery he depicts and the adventures he
naGtes The simplicity OF style chaTactorizes his
poems his few novels and stories. The rich
ness Of his vocabulary mpels him TO sacrice
truth of representation 10 the transient effectiveness
which is readily secured by indulgence In defamation
One sometimes that the master OF 30 many Ian
guages should be content TO express himself With such
rigid economy of word and phrase In the one he learned
at his mothers knee. Among Taylors minor poems IL Il
dcut to select those which exhibit his genius at It's
topmost point. Perhaps 'Camadeva may be instanced
as best showing his power OF blending exquisite melody
with serene, satisfying uplifting thought Tile song
which begins with the invocation, Daughter OF
Egypt, vail thine eyesP is as good as could
he selected from his many pieces to Indicate
the energy and heahincsS OF his lyric impulse Ills
of them il Tho Masque OF the Gods "a poem conpre
hensive in conception noble in purpose, and admirable
in style Taylor has also done great WORK III trans'a
ing rather transiusing tho two parts OF Gocthe's
Faust into various English meters corresponding tO the
original German verse, literal not only in REPRODUCING
IDEAS hut in reproducing melodies. This long labor
could only have undertaken by American man Of
letters whose Of ucre entirely subordinate To
his love of literature Another American writer vino ha'
made literature profession is George William CuTtis
Mr. Curtis opened vein Of satiric fiction In Tie
Potip ar Papers, Prue and and Trumrs; but proba
bly, the great extent OF his popularity is due to his papers
in this Magazine, under the general title OF tire Edtors
Easy Chair In these he developed every faculty Of
his mind and every felicity OF his disposition; tho large
of the topics he has treated would alone be SUI
cient 10 prove the generous breadth Of his culture but
it in the treatment OF hts topics that his peculiarly al
tracye genius Ia displayed in all its abundant resources
OF sense knowledge, wit fancy, reason, and sentiment
His tone is not only manly, but gontlemany: his per
sasyencss is an important element OF his influence; and
no reforIncr eQualed him in the art Of insuuatng
sound principles into preudiced ntelccs by putting
them the guse Of plcisautrios. He can ON occasion
send forth sentences Of ringing invcctve; hut In the
Easy Chair he generally prefers the attitude Of urbaniy
which the tito OF his department suggests His style In
addition to ite other merits. s thmical that hiS
thoughts Slide It were Into the readers mind In
strain of music Not the least remarkable OF his char
aclerstics is the undimnlshed vigor and elasticity
Of his intelligence in spite of the incessant
draughts he has for years been making upon It."
Mr. Whipple does not hesitate to give what he deem
their true place Walt Whitman and Joaquin Miller
without regard 10 the popular estimate OF tdoSe
erratc aboriginal productions OF the American soil =;
every different from all these ffhoreau, Bronson
Alcott and Othcrsl is Walt Whitman, who origin
ally burst upon the literary world 'one OF the
roughs' and whose 'barbaric yawp' was considered
Nv particular class OF English critics the first Orig
nal note which had been struck IN American poetry, an
a. good Indian war-whoop. Wordsworth speaks of
Chaterton the marvellous boy; Walt whitman, III
his first Of Grass, might have been styled the
marvellous bhoy.' Walt protested against all eonven
lion even all forms Of conventional he seemed To
start up from the ground earthbOrn OF the soil
and put TO all cultivated peop the startling qneetion
What do you think OF Me1' They generally thought
highly Of him original Nothing Il more acceptable
to minds faded with reading works Of culture than the
sudden appearance OF strong rough book expressing
the habits ideas and ideals Of the uncuyated but un-
fortunately Whitman declined listen 10 the suggestion
that his daring disregard OF convention should have on
except that he must modify his frank expression 0t
the relations Of the Tho author refused ana the
completed edition OF the Leaves Of Grass fc!l dead
from the press Since that period he has undergone nes
experiences his latest books not open To objections
urged against his earliest but still the Leaves oi
Grass II thoroughly cleaned, would now DO CON
| sidered h's abest and most original work But when
first astonshnent subsidies of such an Innovation rs
Walt whtman the innoyator the penalty OF undue
admiration by unjust neglect This is true also OF Joaquin
Miller whose first poems seemed TO threaten all our
established regulations. Each succeeding volume WAS
more cody received and though the energy aud glow
VI his the same. the pablo, In ns calinei
mood found that he richness Of the matter was not u
! 70 tho rush of the inspraOn."-A curious and very
readable paper confederate Makeslfts presents
strange picture OF the domestic life OF tine South during
| tho Civil War;
In the last days OF the Confederacy yard OF calico
brought forty dollars in Confederate currency spool OF
sewing cotton twenty dollars ana other dry goods Were
roportiona:ely dear Flour To twelve hundred
dollars bAiTel ham o. bacon cost hundred d m ana
| black pepper three hundred dollars. Every
household became q nest OF domestic manufactures
ever farm had its cotton piich and its sorghum hed
| stunning wheels and looms, hch IN former days hai
been used for clothing the slaves on large plantations
but which during the OF cheap dry goods werec M
parativcly idle were ag1ln set gong IAllcs whosr
white hands were AL unused 10 such labor learned 70
card, tO spin, aud tO weave hnliiug became AZ ISL
ionabe Southern pariors as l. Is ~ German nom =.
HOmesun dresses by the hrst ihdies Ia inc
land, and she who was ceVeiest 10 cOhVe dnu
TO execute had highest praise from her ass0ciaes For
egn dyes well nigh unattiinabe, and the woods at
nome we're ransckod the of cOlJfng the home
grown fax wool and cotton. Black walnut bark fnr-
| niahed "A rich broWn varying III 1ly WIN the
strcnrb OF the dye; swamp maple, clear PURPLE poke
,erres solferino, bright but not durable; wild indigo
cave tOcYabe blue and edcrbogres unsatisfactory
MACK Indeed no experiment with bark, root Ief. or
berry ever resulted ia any substitute Tor ogwOOd; dnd rs
b.r was fbe dive most needed Southern garments in
those dark days, the bockaderncTs learned t0 MAKE
| il part OF their regular cargo. COlne.
| aaIl,tn ef,iuve1 and for which rye or