, 1880-07-03
LITERATURE AND SCIENCE.
William Cowper-The Roman
Empirc-Two Great
Artists.
The Ballet. t.Dancer's Husband-Life o!
Hancock-1he encyclopaedia
Britannica,
Theological Works-Tay1or's Essays
Neutrality-suspicious. Kcccivetl-I.it-
crary and Scientific
Notes.
LITERATURE.

Literature.
WILLIAM CONv1'Ef..
0ollwln Rtnlth considers CUwpnr "tho most
important Eng11sh poet Of tho period between
1'npo and tho tlustrtous group headed by
Wordsworth, byron, md Shelley" Reviewing
tho crcunstances.of hts life, It ls almost t,,ur-
volnus Tint hc should have attained rnnk OF
any kind M II poet. lfe Wns a prey to sickness
md 10 bodily !ntlrmity; he WIS ronr IN this
worlds gt,oda; his religious enthusiasm, nImost
drove him crazy; his morbid feelings lch him oil
more than ono occnslon to attempt suicide. md
yet he holds his placo In English literature
by vtrtuo Of his bright fancy, play
fitness Of feeling, and finish Of thought.
southcy bud alrcl.dy lnado US familiar with
Cowpcr'A lie before Mr.. Smith undertook tho
task, md, In fact, tho lattcr has borrowed lit,er-
ally from tho former. We were nlrcally familiar
with tho poets "long retirement, bis simplo
hablts, his favurit spaniel, bis taMo hnrcs ha
devotion TO Mrs. Unwii1. ind bis intervals OF
mclancholin." D1r. Smith has repeated and
elaborated all TINT WAS previously known ntlout
tho author Of tho Task In IN pleasant and uracc
full manor. There Is something very striking
in tho contrast between the poets primitive
ead-colorrd tnstrs and mnnotonous life and tho
gracc antl plRyfulncta OF his style which, In tho
opinion OF the Spectator, "has mover been STR
pusspd In English litcratutc."
Dir. Smiths cstl1nnto or CDwper Is summed up
fl tho following passage, with which he closcs
Ills cssny: "Any one whose lot It Is to write
upon tho tifc and works Of Cowpcr rnslst feel
that there Is nm Immense difference hetween tho
interest which attaches to him md that which
attnches to any one among tho fur creator poets
Of tho succeeding age. Still, thero is something
ahout him SO attractive, h!s voico hns such ALL
tcr tone, ho retains, even In his nshes, such a
faculty of winning frlcnds, that his biographer
and critic Inay 10 easily bcgrlcd into giving
him to1 htgh nlnee. lio bcIonxs to p4rslcu..
which tho Interest of grcat part OF hts
works has deltartedt or, IL dcpirting. stu
npernt s%paassy se.e ys aSS opn Il Il c.ass s o
hava been tho survivor, ,by nona.,arnt prucess of
yesssi of onor ~ II TIC shictJ @ whlei for eist e T.
cen centuries Christ by His teaching and Ills
death bus sprGn!l over the weak things of this
como tho title to existenco unl tho uc,lsuro Ut
worth, cowpcr will be cast asIdg ns specimen
Of d!SsennlS ~ rnty' nnd I'LL wo ay1 saa t
With this cst!lnnto wo do not holtcvo tho ma
@ s1nytnE e .ho strona rosIous fea!nx Tint s per-:
vndes tho poeta wDrhH: even admitting that i,ls
hos MtS vas vsxs s!ode Cd by BIZ stsken
trpcing tho Influence Of religious xeul, actlny
on siipcr- r-sonsttiye tonperaMont, a,ld colorinK
ear,n aioat III s pootr oately nean'Ient
Ut its religious tone. nn1 ho displays shsewd-
1seEa Of Judgment md capacity for sharp sA.
olemont. As another writer hl.s aail: " Ite
possessed 4 onsumt1late art aa Il writer; he sHl,
Il t9e @ 1qsest @ s,as SSS' sae s e5ssntn e. a ms m sss
!hey Npra = esst,ry IT,. Tsko thase txo i
thoush Tic y torn '6 s @ bocr iD 80 abiseI Us Is to
amount often to 4 nlisnoInGr.- tho jnatico Of