The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-06-22
Emerson.
THE BURDEN OF THE JULY MAGA-
ZINES.
His sincerity.
1Curtis in Harper'sl

[Curtis in HaTper's1
The sincerity and serenity of Emerson's
character were unsurpassed. The freshness
and glow of his interest in life were perennial.
With sober tenderness of regret he said to
friend who congratulated him upon his sew
entieth birthday, "Yes, it is a little sad to me,
for count to-day the end Of youth" In no
other sense than the lapse of years, however,
was it true. That auroral freshness of soul
which is the distinctive charm of youth lin
gered when even memory somewhat failed.
Chow long it is since have seen youp' he
said at Longfellow's funeral to friend whom
he had accosted Just before. But he said it
with all that heartiness of sympathy and ex-
pectation which, in the golden prime OF his
life, when he was in many ways the most
striking and original figure in his country,
made him greet every conner as if he expected
to hear from him wiser word than had yet
been spoken. A youth, fascinated by this SIM
pie graciousness of manner, declared that
Emerson greeted the most ordinary persons
like king of Spain receiving an ambassador
from the Great Mogul. The expectancy OF his
manner implied that every man had some mes
sage to deliver, and he bent himself to hear.
But his shrewdness OF perception was ex-
qusite. He did not take dross because he
hoped for gold. His reproof was as sure and
lQClSlfc aS bGo 6btOh0 VI OOliOoOO i(anooSuo
blade. When young man, hearing Emerson
say that everybody ought to read Plato, fol-
lowed his advice and read, he thought with
the audacity of youth, that he detected faults
in Plato, and wrote an essay to set them forth.
He asked Emerson 10 read it, and when he re-
turned it to the youth Emerson said pleasant
ly, "My boy, when you strike at the king, you
must kill him. One day he sat at dinner
with distinguished company of statesmen.
He was by far the most famous man at the
C1lI al.
ton, turning from each guest who spoke to the
next, with the old sweet gravity OF earnest ex-
pectation. When all the notable company
had gone, a guest who remained said to him
81 saw you talking with the English Minister.
He is brilliant man, and hope that you
found him agreeable" "a very pleasant gem
tleman," replied Emerson; "but he does not
represent the England that know"
Despite this sharp apprehension, however,
Emerson was sometimes unable to lind any
charm in writings which have apparently
taken permanent place in literature. He
could see nothing interesting or valuable in
Shelley. "When I read Shelley" he once
said, 81 am like man who thinks that he
sees gold at the bottom OF stream. He
reaches for it, but his hands come up cold,
with little common sand in them" The
waywardness and disorder of Shelley's life
may have troubled him. But this would not
have affected his intellectual Judgment. His
acute intellect was supremacy independent and
absolutely courageous HE must embrace
solitude as BRIDE" he said of the scholar; che
must have his glees and his glooms alone"
When as young man he quietly closed his
pulpit door, and declined to preach any more,
because he no longer felt any value in certain
religious rites there was no protest, nor osten-
tation, nor newspaper sensation" 1t was
simply the closing of book he had read, and
the amazement and censure and grief of others
could not possibly persuade him to do or to say,
or to affect, the thing that was not true.
Emerson's moral and intellectual integrity was
simple, but it was sublime. 1t
was not expressed in stormy self-assertion nor
cynical contempt. 1t spoke in tranquil and
beautiful affirmation, perfectly courteous, but
sincere.