The weekly Panola star. [volume] (Panola, Miss.) 1857-1881, 1881-06-04
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The man NJ penltnis Glleh lhd
himself VI hla Wits end. whila III,
"fcady writer" Ia mii Il
oveHlowing, " the pfofounl
thinker, ~ even the graceful wi
tof could be- found without mof,
" less of this impedIment II
though, and expression, he would
be- M exception to Il general
law. Washington Irving had
spells Of dullncss. Charles Lamb
was the first to discover and nd.
NIT his wcakncss--ihe habit Of re-.
peaIing himself and genial and
facinatinatlng and incompatible
rs was his style, Ella hadthc good
sense to drop his pen with the
lhfcadbarc witicism. Oliver
Wendell Holmes has often declined
the opportunities Of the boarding
school miss who lancied rhymes
could be turned out with felicity
and facility Of nm acrobat turning
a handspring.
OF the making OF books there
is no end, rs the displays of our
bookstores attest. Books in MUS
lin, guilt and beveled, rival their
imposing conircrcs Of n few yeasS
ago in calf and morocco. The
expertncss Of writing books is
surpassed by the fine art of max
ing, and very properly the two
should keep pace with each 9TH
or.
But among the new faces we
miss some of the old familiar
friends--that is. if one can FORUM
ately go back fifteen or twenty
years to revise the list. Where is
the author of "Pencilings by the
wayi" The "Sketch Book" is
here in all the pomp and circum-
stance of the book trade---but we
miss the the gay and brilliant inn
itator who could write at all times
upon the slcnderest theme Of So
ciety gossip, andspin out col
umn of Idlewild notes--irresistibly
charming though they were--of
the mercst gossamer nothings of
elegant and petted favorites. Sir
Walter Scott possessed the art Of
turning out volumes with such ra-
pidity as to astonish the literary
world Dickens could write q
Christmas story before breakfast,
il he liked, and always had one on
hand in season. The fertile fancy
of Mrs. Southworth is barely
worth mentioning, except to mar
vel why some writers never weary
of their own commonplace. When
Martin Farquahar Tupper
was the fashion in books, young
misses grew wise on proverbial
philosophy. But the author is
forgotten or unknown to the
daughters and grand-daughters Of
the admiring misses Of forty years
ago, and read Earnest 1'riHes"
in ecstacy, and relish the cham
payne flavor Of the artful
book-maker if it only sparkle and
intoxicate after the manner Of
books written by genuine inspira-
ton.
As an instance Of enervescent
style in book writing, we have
nothing Tupperian (thank for
tune) in our day, although there
is abundance Of the line art Of dis
sembling.
In company with a host OF
pleasing writers, young or new il
literature, whose musings 1t Is
profitable to read, in season or ouI
Of season, thanks to the goot
sense Of publishers, we still have
Tenyson aud Longfellow, Bryan
and Irving, along with Miss Nit
ford's "Village," Whites "Sel
bourne" and hundreds OF other
worth reading over and owe
again. Tricked out Of the vantic
OF the trade, while we know the,
can neither gid refined gold no
pant the imperishable flowers Q
rhetoric or fancy, il is still pleas
ing to sec our friends in ne,
giise not a whit less handsome, !
outward appearance. than III
coxcombs oil the day who hay
7 only acquired a superficial know