Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1881-02-12
THOmAs CARLYLE.


On last Saturday, the 9Th inst,
died, at the advanced age Of eighty
six, Thomas Carlyle.
Only very old men can remember
the commencement of CarIyle's lit
erary career. He was first known
By his still classic translations of
works by the great German writers,
his immediate Predecessors, and ar
ticles in the English magazines and
reviews, which forced that powerful
literature upon the attention of
English and American readers. His
name had been established by these
among the greater lights of English
letters before the appearance OF his
"Sartor Resartus" as a serial in Fra
ser's Magazine placed his claims in
an entirely new light. This extra
ordinary work established for the
forty years following the peculiar
train of thought, and even the pecu-
liar phraseology, which is now SO
well known, and which has been so
fondly idolized and so mercilessly
criticised as the CarlyIean philosO-
ply and style-a style which has
not only had its idolaters but its
imitators, the fate of the latter being
that of ignominious failure.
The enquiry is naturally suggest
ed, what are the principles of that
philosophy, the characteristics OF
that style which so many have
praised, so many decried and nc
one successfully initiated? Alas,
the space allowed for this article
renders any adequate answer to the
question utterly hopeless-a volu
minous analysis of Carlyle and his
works might be attempted, briei
one is simply impossible.
Thesecondary appellation of "Sar-
tor Resartus," 'The Philosophy oil
Clothes,'' probably suggests the
most salient feature of his intellect
ual method. 1t describes his pro.
pensity to strip everything OF its
clothes, as he would say; that is, OF
everything adventitious, and pene-
trate through all that to what is
essential, as the central fact of his
subject. Thus a religious or polit.
zeal opinion is first stripped of all
the partisan favor or disfavOr it has
been judged by; an individual
character is Invested of the encomi.
ums of friends and the obloquy o.
enemies, anil his work is scrutinized
in the light of its abiding results
and, if these are good, the principle
from which they issued is approved
if otherwise, it is condemned.
Perhaps the best illustration O
his mode of treatment for historical
subjects may be derived from thai
wonderful work, ''The French Rev
olution." Previously to the appear
ance of this work, none but a parti
san treatment of this vast convulsioT
had been attempted. One class o
writers had dwelt upon the ehival
ric gallantry and the graceful bear
ing of the old n06LeSse and the 1eroc
ity of the sdnS-cutOtteS; the Other
sees nothing but grinding tyranny
and revolving profiigacy in the no
bles, priests and kings of the Older
dispensation, nothing but just re
venge in the horrors of the reign o
terror. 1t was reserved for Carlyle
to show that both of these were true
as partial differences from a narrow
and restricted point of view and tC
penetrate to the central fact of which
both these theories were partia
manifestations. He showed that SC
long as the kings and mobiles really
led the people and guided them fol
their good, so long as the church
men really enlightened and instruct
ed the people, it was well with all
but that these days had long beer
gone by that, at the eve of the rev
olution, mobiles and priests alike
looked upon the people simply az
existing for their profit and pleas
ure, having no rights of their own
no claims on their superiors, while
their superiOrs had no duties to
wards them. Such an aristocracy
and priesthood, he contends, pro
nounced its own condemnation, ex.
ecuted its own death-warrant
And when it was swept away before
the rage of a people tortured beyond
endurance, there was no govern,
ment, no organization of society
Then all the malignity of passion
which a long reign of malignant
tyranny had engendered, all the
corruption and protligacy which ages
of corrupt and profligate govern.
ment had fostered, came to the sur.
face and produced chaos of muir.
der, lust and tyranny before which
the world still stands aghast. Those
who had sOwn the storm now reaped
the whirlwind, and when the worst
was said, the people might retort
with Shylock
1.-THE evil that you teach me, that I'll exc
cute, and it shall go hard but what ] III better
my instruction"
No atrOcity is disguised, no cru
city extenuated, no horror, however
sickening, is yelled. Indeed, the
horrors of revolutionized Paris have
nowhere been realized with SO
frightfully faithful a portraiture
but nowhere is the central fact lost
sight of that these are the baleful
ingredients existing in all societies,
which can only be restrained by
just and enlightened government
and pure and holy religious teach
ing, and that, where they do break
forth and tear society to pieces,
those are responsible whose system
of government has been inspired by
the greed of self-aggrandizement,
and whose example has been an ex-
ample of corruption and cruelty.
M; x,,oc Al noxr nav of xuritipo