The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1883-07-13

1t Will be remembered how like q
sonquering hero Bret Harte came from
California in the summer of 1871. An
snterprising firm in Boston had caught
the CLEAN of new light, new Dickens
in verse and story, and with the most
magnificent offers they tempted him
East. His coming was like a royal
progress. Almost without hint from
these enterprising wise men OF the East,
all focked to welcome the new star.
And the star was wonderfully luminous,
equally brilliant in prose and verse.
When Bret Harte, after sojourn OF
many years III the mint and mines of
the mountains, told us of Miss and
Miggles, of Jim and Kentuck, and
Tennessee's Partner, of Jack Hamlin
and Culpepper Starbottle, of Poker
Flat, Sandy Bar, Smiths Pocket and
the Wingdnm Turnpike, we began to
see the elements Of life in their coarser
forms. Here was passion both OF the
angelic and the demonic sort in its
original, . natural conditions, released
from the decencies of social restraint,
and subject only to the instructive law
of the heart. The material was abso-
lutely new-a new phase of life, and
every individual specialized by the
novelty of the conditions. Power of
contrast in Characterization, skill In
heightenipg effects, the perception OF
oddly, combined with happy faculty
of ENGRAVING it upon the recognized
human types, the keen sense of humor
of new sort-a kind of devils humor
| 1 l. g ri
ings, tender feeling for the essential
goodness of the human heart, running
over with the gospel of grace into the
very mouth of the pit-these were the
chief qualities of the new writer. They
were all Dickensy; yet original observ'
alton, impressibility and q fine power
of imitation, had given them an individu
atty that was helped out by the wholly
new atmosphere of the mining slopes
For the first three years, it was evident
that Bret Harte was reproducing what
he had seen, and had seen what he re
roduced-always, of course, with him
of his own personal equation. The
scenes and men stood out wildly, anC
made as distinct an impression on the
mind as anything in the English novel
list. The mind could trace the indi
vidual features of each person. There
was in the writer the same dizziness o
hand which we to-day see in the
Russian novelist Tourguenef-t
power of painting grim, strong scene
in a few words. There was kindly
humor playing over the scenes, and th'
bright light of nature flashed upon TIL,
l..
artistic center, as he seldom missed thu
happy climax of a humorous situation
However much he might lose the moral
lists point of view, he was unerring a
to the artists. But he was not al
analytic writer; he was as far from
Henry James methods as man coulC
we'll be. He never analysed, or re
fected, or differentiated nicely, bu
simply laid on color. He had seen hi
effects in nature, and felicitous gift
enabled him to select the fortunate
pigments; a swift journalistic iudg
ment, fearless of consequences, told hin
when he had done enough for his pur
pose, and there he stopped. But alas
the habit of bringing about Gilman
quickly, soon became trick, and some
thing-was it the necessity of frequen
production, or intellectual Incidence, o
what ?-something soon left on the pub
lie the impression of an exhausted mine
Certain it is that the best things wer
done in these early years. AS tn
author left California behind him, an,
the scenes of 40" grew less vivid i
his mind, they became less valuable a
novelistic material. Yet what was al
ready produced will always remain
vigorous, brilliant, original contribu
ton to American romance.-Th
Century.