Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1878-12-05
rWO Ways of Using Vice as Lie
rary Bacterial.


When Bulwer was in the enjoyment
Of his young popularity as novel
writer, before Dickens had been heard
on this side of the Atlantic, he issued
his Ernest Maltravers.' The memo
Dry Of that book mas fingered with Us
during these forty years as a glaring
instance of an appeal, by powerful
popular author, TO the eOarser aud more
destructive passions of men and wo>
men. He pictured his lovers, brOUglt
them into association, and 50 gave di-
rectiOn to the reader imagination that
Itself, without his words, pictured the
fact and scene Of a seduction. 1t was
/ the theme of excited common talk
among the young men of the time, to
whom it became a delicious and pow
erful poison. We do not know wheth
er he repented of his terribles in, but We
know that he done incalculable harm
by ii. We do not know whether IL
stands in his later editions just as il
appeared in the first; but there are
elderly men in whose memory a GER
tain page Of that book, with convent
ent rows of asterisks, is fairly burned.
| The question naturally arises wheth-
er sins against social purity are legiti
mate literary material. a critic OF
Roxy in one OF the newspapers, OBJ
iects to the book OF account Of the re-
lations between Mark BOnamy and
Nance Kirtley. The condemnation is
quite sweeping, and the only inference
we can make is, that sins OF impurity
are not legitimate literary material
in the critics opinion. Why? we ask.
So -. hf,,, n, hof -, of
legitimate material? Why should the
novelist have the free handling OF
murder, of suicide, OF theft and rob-
berry, of SANDER, and thousand cruel
ties that need not be named, and be
forbidden to touch the abu-e that is
associated with the strongest ehd hOli-
est affections and passions of human
nature? If love has dangers, is it
wrong to point them out? Is virtue
very much nOurished nowadays in an
Atmosphere OF Ignorance? Is there any
such thing as an atmosphere Of igno-
rance in these days?
We can get fair conclusion upon
this matter by comparing the effect OF
these two books upon the mind. We
have noted the effect Of Bulwer's book.
[t-was the intention or the writer,
without question, to excite the pruri-
ant imaginatiOns of his readers, and
not tnplace the deed in its proper re.
lations to the peace and well being Oi
the parties and Of society. II any one
can rise from the perusal of Roxy
without reslizing that Mark Bon4my
went through h a terrific degradation, and
thata coarse pleasure was purchased
by him at prics too terrible to invite
imitation, he must De very singularly
constituted. One book leaves, or is
calculated to leave, the e-Teader in love
with vice; the OtherleaVes or is calCu-
lated to leave him Mortified by it, and
disgusted with 1t.
We might quote the freedom with
which the Bibie-a book intended for
universal use-emplUys material If this
sort; but as we de- not intend to appeal
to the Bible mOralitirs to make good
our position, we simply allude to the
matter and dropit We maintain that
all WhicE illustrates human history Is
legitimate literary material, the writer
being simply bOund-nOt as a mordlisf,
but rs literary man-t0 represent
Ieverything in its proper relation to the
scheme OF things which be finds estab-
lished, as itconcerns the f1a ppiness and
well being OF The individual and socie>
|ty. WheB a novelist represents vice
as a thing that in any way gays tie
lies, and is therefore untrue 20 his art.
When he So represents the sin Of social
impurity that it shIll appear more al
tractive than repulSive, more deiig htful
than blame worthy,-wh he repr ssnts
it shoru of its natural consequences half
harmless to- the guilty ones, and quite
venial in the eye OF society, he betrays
his untruth to literary art, and reduces
and vulgarizes the standard OF his own
work. This may be said, or plea aied in
the way of an C5rg,tnlejltltnl Gd hOnli'lem:
that it does not become an editor who
spreads before families of readers the
details of hundred adulteries and Sc
ductions and other crimes against sOci-
al purity every year, accompanied with
the usual amount OF reportoriai and
judicial jesting, to take 10 task a con-
scientious novelist who treats the
crime he depicts as God and nature
dictate.