New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-05-19
MIR. LOWELL ON CoLERIDGE.
HIS ADDRESS IN WESTMINSTER ABBEY.
tue OCCASION, THE UNWILLING OLA BUST OF THE
POET
From me London TimeSs Report
"a Lnforo [ hnvn had fne honor OF speak-

POET
From me London TiiaeSs Report.
Twice before | have had the honor OF speak
ng within the precincts of this structure the eouoo
sanctuary religion and renown surely the 9oSt EG
araie of pcclesastcal buildings to men OF
blood Once again silent spectator while his lbs
body was laa here 10 's Modern times had pene-
trated with the fernent OF his Thought the InAis %
mankind an event deep significance as the pI9cSns
let us hope the fOrerunner oil their ultimate en-
m mem of personal friends, one OF them
tho late Dean Stanley, dear TO an , wno n"o all
who sneak the English tongue 1t is TO commemorate
another friend that come here today for VINO so worthy
of the name who was our companion ana teacneg
In The happest hours Of our youth hade uOuOy haPIy
by the of his genius and VINO to our ou age ois
back, II not the presence, at least lhe r,a' ,r ~
the youth have lost Surely there are no lhus
constant as The poets ana doOs a6 TO- have share
IN this reparaon OF long iiyustce loo W. te5 IN
ask ms Cavacantc del Cavacantl did OF Dante II these
are here through loltness OF genius, wheie is nc ~
SCISSOR OF an American reprint Of Galgnanfs edition OF
Coeridge, Shelley aud Keats ia one v4iune ~ Wv, m d
f"bf haG in H. take comfort from the thought that
there must be many scottish minister ana aird nov NJ
MD no trbute TO the House OF Hanover nave healu
Ills trinity of poets taxed with incongrnty AS tor me
WAS grateful such Infinite riches III httlc Iuo'
and never thought OF looking Pegasus III me mouth
whose triple burden proved stronger , ICh tn n h"t
even of tie Templars traditional steed MueI iate puC
sttn long ago / read tne Friend" the "Biographa
$1,000 aud other prose works of Coerdge. In what
may he yen me TO say shall be obliged 10 trust chiefly
- memory which at my time of life is gradually be
cominS ore of her own "reminiscences and forced 10
Command "a best she may with her inexora6ie creditor
OBLIVION. But perhaps she VIII serve NE an thc
for the matter in hand Tor what proper mere az mos
rapid generalization rather than demonstration IN
detail of his claims TO grateful remempT"nce tb @
naturally trust myself TO judge nun 10y ms hory ,t
than By bis metaphy sical achievement III me iatte
region cannot help being reminded sn S III 1 ri e his own
words, "makng the shifting clouds seem whaI S"u
inhT@Sgh cIoudiand gorgeous land" Or sometimes
j think OF him rs an alchemlst III Sedroh "a oI
only from his roof but from that parish chrch
itself TO quench fiery thirst OF alembc he seems
never to have gwen up the hope OF ndng IN the las
nation some universal solvent some ndg,StTium ""ItS.
by which the lead Of scepticsm should be tansnueu
into the pure gold of faith, at least persuaded 10 DC
iieve itself SO. But should not forget that many
earnest and superior minds found MS cloud castles o
hatations nor that alchemy the nursing mother oil
chemistry He certainly was main Influence IN snow
ing the English mind now conc of eo@mon sense and
teaching it TO recognize Ill the maglnatO, an % ~
factor not only in the happiness but In the destiny OF
man In crlticism he was indeed teacher and inter
prefer whose service was incaculaDle lie owen muGn
Younger sehegel but he owed much to his own sympa-
thetc and penetratiye maginaton inns wv, was h t9e
lifted TO borrow his own words AGAIN. thI Date
the starry walls OF passages Inc o"rn most intelii
gent reader. sparkle with lustre' latent In IA
them be but not all their own As Johnson saH
of Burke ne wound into his subject ike serpent MS
not have been except virtue OF the processes OF
constructive and philosophical criticism thal nu sVno
long IN his mind as TO make Jus suote @
seem an instinct As he was the hrst 10 oDserNe SUM-
De
nature so he was also noting some of the more
occult phenomena OF thought and emotion IL cri
lessly In obiter Gicta but not bringing OF the
brick specimen OF the Whole mouse e,tc ~
from single bone reconstructs the entire living
organism Many Of his hints ana hs ny. Sn
the wit of Hudbras is the wit OF Thought but What
asest cSarn is the perpetual presence magma
lion, constant quality win nun as ldho! WIN I
over his shoulders whispering in his yet
within easy call, like the Aorsot CoinhsS Oiien'"i
Abra was with him ere he spoke name
And if he called another Abra came
II was she that gave that power OF sympathy when
made his Waenstein what may call the most original
translation language unless some oil the rare eI
@ IAN chSnnsn Tile molten material OF his mind
TOO abundant Tor the capacity Of the mould, oYernowed
a. in CUISINES OF fiery excess. But the main oRJect
~ iransation he accomplished Poetry is reproduced
as poetry, and genius shows tse as genius, plCe Gu
in the march of the As poet !he impression ne
made upon his contemporaries Will DsoSes po ~ hun
innate verdict OF criticism Ihey an Ia % ouTces
what Scott said Of him, NO man mas an Ic & Az
OF poetry such prOiusion. hls fancy i 9 hi uiv
temporares had they been naer se t Loe ~
Judgment aud a steady Will" NO doubt we nave IN
re, .v,us given in trust to nervcess will and fit
full purpose But think the secret OF hS uVi'e io l
I'm poetry is found in the fact that tAe 50
lar nom heIng absent, grew to be there IN excess
his critical like foroidding hIlatiSS
in the pain OF his poetic production have heard OF
, iiii.y M he no"I nryer build one IL certainly
not wholly Incidence that was u blame IN CVerluSe
case. for though he used 10 say carry III ny th"V NC ~
no inner ys c ne Tst arc Generally long But
do not discuss question the answer 10 "ilcn
must be left mainly conjecture or to the instinct OF
inaiyiduaI temperament 1t is enough FOR MS here that
he written of the most poeuca poetry IN I1e
language aud one poem. the AHclSpt MaIiGa no
only unparalleled but nnapproaehed IN lts Khu anu
that kind OF the rarcs IL Is maIveoms IN ~ In t
delightfully."- fOrtnltolS lheohSequcoo H - -
adanianliDe logic OF dreamand Coieridye mas taken
the Old ballad measure and given 10 IL Oy an lhue
fin able charm wholly his own an tne s%e VIZ h
all the melody and compass OF a symphony; Anu now
picturesque 1t is in the proper sense OF the word
know nothing like it, There is not description IN ~
II is all picture Descriptive poets geheIay confuse Us
with multiplicity of detail We cannot see ther i9reSt
for their trees Colerdge in this way WIN
instructive he touches the right chOrd OF asoea
hard TO explain the singular charm Of mis- dlclon lhere
is much nicely OF art and purpose III H. whstnef ior
for we all feel IL. The words seem common words
enough but in ;he order OF them, IN te cn0ce
The most decrepit yOcable IN inc language
icannot think il personal popularity but matter of
universal experience, that more DTS OF Coluse nave
inbedded themselves in my memory than OF any other
noet VINO delighted my youth-uness should except
the sonnets Shakespeare This argues 2erectness OF
sxpres slOn. Let me cite an example or two;
The suns rim dips The stars rash ou,
AT stride comes the dark .,.r
on shot the spectre barque
Or take this as a bit of landscape:
Beneath yon birch with silver bark
And bOughs 50 pendul01s anu IaI,
The brook falls scattered down the rock,
And all Is messy there.
,a perFect little picture and SO easily DONE But try
TO do something like ColeridGe words have the I'M
ashamed nakedness OF Scripture OF the Eden OF dcton
ere the Volube serpent had entered 1t. This
felicity of speech in Colerdge best Is more re-
mmkable because IL acquisition. His Garner
poems are apt TO turgd and in his there is too
often languor Of proiuseuess and there are pages
where he seems be talking 10 himself and not TO US as
have heard guide do in tOrtuous cayerns OF the cata-
combs wnen doubtful # he had not lost his way
But when his genius runs freely aud full In his prose.
the STYLE said of Pascal, sis garment OF night
composition. When he is well inspired, as in his
best poetry he commonly is, he gives us the very
OF perception the clearly cystazed pre-:
cipitaon OF all that is most precious IN the fernent OF
presson after all the impcrtneHt and Obrusiye par
tlcnIars have eyapOrated from the memory IL Is the
pre visual ecstacy disengaged from the confused ana
confusing material that gave IL BIRTH II seems the very
beatude Of simplicity, and is the most nnshed
linz fAerfn nfl I'M