New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-01-22
TIE MAGAZINES.
THE CENTURY.

The most notable article in this number of The
! CeRfarg which is otherwise of even and remarkable
! excellence, is naturally Mr.. EmcIsOn's essay on
! The SuperlatIvc' 1t is IA cheerful and manly
plea for the simplicity of absolute truth, for the
grace Of exactnrss There is a superlatve tempera-
ment, he complains, which has 10 medium range.
but swiftly oscillates from the freezing to the boil
lng point ana which affects the manners of those
who share ii with a certain desperation
Their aspect Is Crlmace. They 90 tearing con-
va scd through life-wailng, praying, eAclaIming
swearing. We talk sometimes with people whose
| conversation would lead you to suppose mat they
had lived IN museum, "hcrI an Ihe oOJeCtS were
! monsters and extremes. Their good people are
| phGnlXes; their naughty are Ike the prophet
| hg% They Use the superaIlve OF grammar most
perfect "mOst exquisite most HORRIBLE Lilac
The French they are enchanted, theS are desolate
because ,Uu have got OF have not got ShOcstTing
or wafer yOu happen to want-not peTceiVlng
that superalvcs are dlminutlNe and weaken mat
the positive Is the s.new OF speech the slperlatlve
the lat. If the taiker lose tooth, lie thinks the
universal thaw aud dissolution of things has come
CUntrovert lbs opinion ana lie crle'" Persecution.
and reckOnS himself with SAINT Bdrnabas who was
All this comes of poverty. We unSkilfu,
denneis. From want of skill to convey quaIty we
hone TO move admiration Oy quantity. Language
should aim to describe the fact. 1t Is not enough TO
suggest II and magnify i. Sharper sight would
Indicate the true line lis very wearisOme, this
etraiulug ak. these experiences ali exquisite, in
tense and tremendous" The best ever saw y; "
never in my life" One wishes these terms cazetted
and iOTOiuden. Every iaYOrlte Il not "a CntIub nor
every cat griffin; nor each uuplea~Ing person
dark, dldbolcdl utigueT; nor agOnes excrucla-
tons nor ecstasles, our daily bread.
The speculative is as good as the positive if it be
alive. Ii man loves thr conditioned, man ais" loves
| the unconditional We don't wish To SIN on the
other SIDE and TO be puri,ls, nor TO check the III
| VentiOn OF wit or the sally of hnmOr. Els very
| different, this weak and weaTsOme lie. tIom the
! stimulus to the fancy which is given by romano
Ing aIkcr VINO does not mean to be exactly taken,
! like the gallant skipper who complained 10 ms
owners that he had pumped the Atlantic Ocean
tuIee times through his ship On the passage, and
twas common 10 strike seals and porpOse~ in the
hold. Or what similarly asserted OF the late
Lord jeffrey at the scottish har,-an attentive
auditor declaring, on one OCCASION, atier an
ment of three hours. that lac had spoken the whole
| English language three times over IN has speech
All rests at last IN the simplicity of nature, or
real beng. NOthug Is IOr the most part less
esteemed We are lOud OF dress, OF ornament, of
accom- hshnIents, OF talents, but dstrustiul of
health, of sounducNs, OF pure innocence. Yet
nature measures her greatness 10y what she can
sparc-by what remains when all superiluIty and
accessories are sh0rn of.
Nor ls there in nature itself any swell, any brag,
any strain or shucA, but a firm common sense
through all her elephants and lions. through all
her ducks and geese-l true proportion bet weeD
her means and her performance. hempo stJi sRtiis.
You shall not catch her III any anomalies, nor
swagyeIug INTO any monsters. In all the years
that | have sat III town ana forest. never saw
winged dragon, dying man, or a talking fish, but
the stIlCest regard to rule. ana AN absence OF
all surprises. No; nature encourages no IOoSeness.
pafdOns errors; freezes punctually at BY, bols
punctuaily at 2l2O; cryStaillLes IN water at one
invarlable angle, diamond ~ one. III granite at
one; and if you omit the smallest condition the ex-
pertinent will not succeed. Her communication
Obrys the gospel rule, yea or nay She never tx
pdtiateS, never goes into the reasons Plant beech
mast and IT comes up. OF 1t does not come up. sow
gram, aud il does not come up: put lime into the
soil and try again and this time she SAYS yed. To
every question an abstemious hut absolute reply.
The like staIduess Is III her dealings with us. Ma
ture is al WaYs seriOus-dOes not Jest with
Where we have begun III folly, we are brought
quickly To plain dealing. Life could not be car, led
on except by tideluy and good earnest and she
brings the most heartiess trier TO determined pur-
pose presently. The men whom she admits to her
confidence. the simple and great characters, are
uniformly marked by absence of pretensiOn and by
undeTstat ement. The Old aud the modern sages of
clearest insight are plain men. who have held
themselves hard To the poverty Of nature.
The tirnest and noblest ground which people
can live is truth the real with the real: ground
ON which nothing is assumed but where they speak
and think and do what they must, because they are
30 and not otherwise
The late Dean Stanlev's article on Frederick W.
Robertson defines the famous preachers excellence
ID the substantial and not too graceful manner
In which the Dean ever wrote. In truth the good
man will he remembered more for the beauty on his
character than for harmonious verse or ielicitous
prose. Mr.. Longfellows poem. 4" llermes Trlsme-
gistns," is interesting as the work of one crowned
with years as we'll honors and il has the atnos-
phere of poetry and All elusive melody. Neverthe-
less one might with Justice quote concerning it a
fsvosite phrase of the late J. !. Fields: 1T is
unimpOrtant If true"
THE ATLANTIC.
Mr.. Henry Cabot Lodge Ill, several pages Of The
Il "a uisgfg IA