Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-06-05

DE. ~ AtReR8p0Onss Aectttks.
Considering the incleinency of the
weather on Saturday evening last,
DR.. Witherspoon had a considera-
BILE audience, certainly an intelli-
gent and appreciative one, to hear
his lecture on the "Vale of Cha
mount" Assuredly this editor gave
himself credit for disinterested self
sacrifice as he trudged his way to
the college with the aid of umbrella
and lantern; but before he returned
his self-complacency gave way a
good deal, and he frankly acknowl-
edged that he had his reward, for
never has he heard more graphic
language used in the description of
sublime natural scenery.
The singular merit of this admir-
able lecture is the absence of gush
the lecturer did not exhaust his vo-
cabulary and the patience of his
audience in piling up epithet upon
epithet and supplying the defcien-
cy of true description by copious
array of superlatiyes. He appealed
purely to the conceptive faculty,
and aimed simply to make his au-
dience see what he sees and as he
sees it. Too many men, when they
undertake to describe scenes, make
it their effort to excite the raptures
of their audience by pouring out
their own while they leave their
hearers In perfect fog Of coIjec-
ture as to what 1t was which excit-
ed those raptures. DIR. Wither-
spoons method Is widely different
from this; he describes infinitely
and accurately every feature Of the
scene he desires his hearers to real.
lie, leaving no phenomenon I'M
touched that can give reality to the
conception, and then, provided he
makes them see what he sees
leaves the raptures to follow if they
willard they never fail.
His description of sunset, as seer
from an elevated point on thu
mountains. He made US see frs
the valley filed with glowing sun
shine, with the ice-peaks cleaning
like Jewels in the distance while thu
spots of pasture land on the noun
: tain TANKS look like little greer
!, specks on the darker-colOred rocks
Then, as the sun declines westward
, he makes US see the cool gray shad
ows creep over the valley, Will
the mountains still bask in tn
!, warm sunlight. Gradually we Sc
the shadows creep upwards, whil
the sunshine fees before them un
+ til only the. peaks are illumined
/, except that few beams make thei
, way through riffs in the mountains
Then, as the eyes are withdraw
from the splendors above, the shad
, ows in the valley are intensified
into darkness, and looking up again
nothing is seen but few of tn
: highest peaks cleaning with tn
! radiance of ruby and amethyst ant
topaz, insulated in the surrounding
darkness, and as we look, these to-
fade away, till they show like thiI
clouds tinted with rose and purple
which grow fainter and fainter, til
they top are lost to view, and moth
ing but the stars are visible in tn
darkness.
This is description, and if afte
, it either the lecturer or his audienc
go into raptures, at least they know
what the raptures are about.
We have heard and read descrip
, tions OF ChamOuni by the hundred
including COleridge's excellent pc
. EN-, but almost all the describer
. seemed to us to be intent on describ
ing their own feelings rather thai
the scenes which excited them, ant
. DIR. WitherspOon is about the frs
r who has given us distinct concep
: ton what sort OF place the cele
brated valley is. We thank hin
for an unwonted pleasure.