New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-12-08
!. When Mr. Charming removed to England, he

adopted some clerical details Of dress, which he
| had eschewed at home he used pulpit; and he
| preached in a gown. Although he intense
| patriot there was something in the life of Eng
land. in its clerical life, which especially suit
ed him. "1hc heavy background of history, the
ancient order. the venerable institutions the iipc.
mellow scholarship, the accumulated treasures OF
literature and art, served a make weight TO his
fiery earnestncss while its magnificent libraries,
schools, societies Of learning and charity. min
istered sumptuously TO his mind, and its finished
society warmed and fed his heart
The truth is that he had too keen an apprccia-
ton of all refined and beautiful things to be
comfortable or Mt peace except IN
| the hest company. At the age Of thirty-onc he
exposed his scheme of life to Margaret Fuller, and
it is the explanation OF much of his later course.
| ITO live content with small means; to seek ele-
| gance rather than luxury, and refinement
| rather than fashion; to be worthy, not re-
srectable: and wealthy, not rich to study hard
| think quietly, talk gently act frankly; TO
listen to stars and buds, to babes and sages WIN
open heart to bear all cheerfuly, do all bravely,
await occasions, Hurry never; in word, TO
| let the spiritual, unbiddcn and unconscious grow
up through the common. This is to be my sym
| phony" But such life as ne said. needed still
| sunshine The crude reformers who made long
| hair a mark Of intellectual emancipation, and who
held that the twin foes of humanity were the New
Testament and wheaton bread, were q sad trial TO
| him but at home they werc too much concerned
with the causes he had at heart to be easily
| avoided Perhaps too MIR. Claiming lacked the
strong fibre of pioneer lie was not q pruning
knife, says Mr. rockingham, but razor. His
fine temper was little suited for the work he found
TO do and although he made profound impress
sion, alike in New-Ensland. New-iork and the
koe otl tlo ccnfio
to which he successfully ministered were exter-
nally prosperous under his care. Even his abound
ing charity could not make him successful city
missionary In New-YorlS. He came home from
Ensland at the beginning OF the war burning to
devote himself TO the Union cause and his service
as chaplain in the Washington hospitals and on
the battle fields Of Virginia of the noblest
episodes II his career Here the illustrfos orator
and fsstidious scholar discharged duty which
engaged his whole heart and aroused all his p.ac-
| tical capacity But after the war over no
place seemed open to him at home, and he returned
| to England where he passed the lest of his life
| happy and beloved.
| Mr. FrothinEham gives a good account Of MIR
| Channing's connection with the principal moral
and social reform movements of his time Natur-
ally they formed large part OF the scheme OF the
| humanitarian church The causes OF anti-savery,
| Temperance and woman's rights occupied q great
deal Of his energy. and he ardent apostle
| Of social SIN at least in some of its forms lie re-
garded the Brook Farm enterprise in which many
| Of his personal friends were engaged, with deep
interest. but he never approved of its management
and never tempted to Join it. He wanted
something spiritual. He preached Fourier
ism enthus astically, but with some qualifications
Of the plans OF the French philosopher In all
| schemes for the imprOyemeut Of society wished
| il TO be kept in mind that this life is ony
| preparation for the life to come He had great
confidence in the experiment Of phalansteries and
unitary homes. and he was for some time eager TO
join an establishment of this kind in New-Jersey
| When these day-dreams he did not lose
| faith in the idea from which they arose. His
| obsery atoms in ENGLAND made him, he said, more
of socialist than ever The old order Of things
seemed to him to be rapidly nearing its end and to
be wholly past saving. The best energies OF the
age he wrote in 1871 are COM crying towards
| 1.-THE System Of Graduated Distribution in Uni
vcIsal Unity, by the method Of develoT mcnt The
| basis Of this somewhat vaguely indicated revolu-
ton seems to be cooperative industry. lie would
not have in America waste our force in any
| further isolated efforts like that Of Brook Farm
but should prepare for the glorious morrow
when 1.-The great civilized world will apply its
organized methods Of Joint stock ownership an1
enterprise to industry, education. home life,
| aesthetic refinement, ETC.
| The doctrine now to be preached throughout
the length and breadth Of the United States is
this: Organize your townships they not yet
| organized, though Providence long since pointed
out the way Begin the great work of real refor-
nation Organize your townships in all depart
ments and functions. Fist, distribute your ian S
so as TO insure the highest culture of the best
roots grains fruits. stock. and animals. etc. of all
kinls. Second. arrange a graduated system OF
cooperative industry in oil branches dstribut-
ing the returns Justly TO labor skill and capital.
Third, methodize your schools: gymnastic. ar
tiStic, industrial, scientific. historic. philosophic,
economic, ethical etc..-so as to ensure the bnest
culture for every kind and degree Of genius, etc,
rciterating in a word all sublime scheme. so
simple strong, and common sensical. for ha' e
no time to expand it. There is where we ought
to have begun twenty-five years ago That simple
| phrase "Orgsnize your TOWNSHIPS" would by this
time have reccncrated the Republic
The study OF Mr.. Channng's personal character.
| which Mr. rockingham presents in wcl1-freio hted
supplementary chapter, Is delightful We have
pretty clear sketch OF Channny's best traits in
the narrative and letters, but here the charmnr
iicturc is completed Ardent pety, heroic moral
courage supreme unselflshncss, tenderness in the
domestic circle, attachment to friends. the
conspicuous virtues which accompanied AMI
adorned his subtlety of intellect and his rich
| variety Of accomplishment. 1t is related that
Emerson hesitated to have his children christcned
because he could think Of no clergyman as pure
as they were but Claiming was suggested, and
Charming did it. Whittier paid of the most
complete tributes to his merit when he thanked
God, In letter to Channing's niece, for the gift
to humanity of such pure and noble life' "1hc
world seems Ioorer." wrote the poet Stacking his
benign and beautiful presence. / know not
where l can look for another combining all the
gifts and graccs which made him emphatcally a
Christian gentleman"