New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-12-01
OLJgER WENDELL HOLMES.


The friends Of Dr.Holmes will recognize in Boston
on Wednesday next his 10th birthday. which really
occurred on the Goth Of August last He has added
another TO the brief list of those whose later work
has kept the promise OF their precocity and whose
life brilliant in the first beginning, has reached the
limit fixed by the Psalniist He is seventy years
Old vet his latest productions are as full of eias-
ITCHY and chcerfulness and spontaneous humor as
the verses which. half a century ago, PROVOKED
alike the laughter of grave Faculties and OF hight
hearted undergraduates. Something. indeed, OF
serious earnestness has been added to the intellectual
characteristics Of his youth; and he has shown him
self an equal master OF pathos Yet we like TO think
of him III those far away days. the cleyercst OF the
Harvard boys. almost too small 70 march IN col
lcge procession, vet still marching with academic
dignity, and defiant air which made every
body respectful Who that then heard IL
has forgotten lis Metrical Essay on Poetry
given before the Phi Beta Kappa Society
in 1896, when he twenty-7even years
od-the easy mastery of the deeasylabic metre. the
fresh bucyant elocution, the weight, picturesque
ness, philosophy. gentle humOr and tender senti-
meDt of many Of the well baanccd lines ! No other
American had then written anything OF the kind so
good though DR.. Holmes has produced much that IS
better and more important since. Long ere that,
however he had done clever things in tho estimate OF
which no allowance for youth seemed to be necessary
He had been rather prolific magazine contributor
before he walked The hospitals of Paris; aud his
papers IN BuctirgkGn's Bdgd-ne-among them the
germ OF " The Autocrat Of the Breakfast Table
were far more meritOrous in their way than the aver
age Of periodical writing in those days. HIS comedy
them a now. to use Wttters words, made broader
the face of a caIe-rdden generation Very Hit
crate people sang his - Tall Young Oysterman,"
o,,J al. lor 10 commodity
In which that unfortunate lover was dealer
Whenever the Thermometer went up 70 500 many
newspapers were sure to quote from his lyric on
Hot Weather. All these verses were easy 10 remem-
ber-to put the thing logically-because they were
hard to forget. II is not strange that the author
was in demand upon all festive occasions. and that
nc anniversary dnner-;able, academic OF medical,
was considered complete without him, at least In
England.
In 4 good-natured review Of DIR. Holmess poems.
The London AtheaGun. moro than twenty years ago.
called attention to their "AuguStln sorority and
neatness of versfcation." THIS expresses made
auately the manner of the work. 1t is great
credit to an author in this careless age and particu
larry in this careless country thar he is not above
taking pains and has no contempt To- correctness
and finish. Few writers OF the time have done as
many things and done them perfectly as Dr.
Holmes Nothing sloyenly from his pen has ever
insuted long-suffering public. Everything
which he has printed-pOem, essay, novel.
medical treatise-has been as good as he
could make it, aud almost always he has
made 1t good indeed. IL is unnecessary TO
inquire whether he has a happy facility for turning
out poem or other piece ter,s dtque roiundas. at
stroke II is unncce ssary. because we do not be-
leve in any such facility at ALL Patient care is the
inexorable condition Of the best. Whatever is
worth DONG at all is worth doing well. and il mnst
have been great comfort TO DIR. Holmes upon his
seventeen birthday to know that he had printed
nothing bad With Yankee shrewdness he has kept
the world from all knowledge of his failures.
But ii il far from purpose to attempt critical
estimate of Dr.. Holiness work. We have intended
merely to offer on. congratulations to the public
upon an occasion in which the pubiic-the reading
portion of it, at east-cannot fail to be
Interested. Upon the whole. we think that
American letters have been sngularly fortunate in
the length of life vOuchsafed TO so many of their
votaries Bryant and Dana have gone full of years
and honor, but LongfellOw aud Whittier aud
Holmes remain in the full possession of
abated genius ana it is noteworthy fact that all
these are popular in the best sense of tho word
that they have hold upon the hearts of the readers
They have done more than satisfy rigid critical
Judgment They have rather kindled affection than
extor;ed reverence. They have done double work.
They have won tho public heart, and elevated the
public taste, and made good thought and great de-
sire more general writer who does this may lose
his fame, as the years go by. but, in the highest
sense. he is sure of immortality. since nothing really
precious can perish forever.
There are significant indications that the Demo-
crafts arc preparinp for a general attack mon the