Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1886-02-12
SOME RECENT AUTOBIOGRA-
Plies,


in the February Century, we quote the
following II have with me the autobi-
ographical works of Carlyle. edited by
Froude, which have attracted so much
attention. There are two periods in the
history of the worlds state of mind to-
wards almost every clever and successful
man. One of these is when he is recog-
niZed: the other is when he is found out.
At the former period his distinctions and
peculiar abilities are perceived. The
world sees what he is. He may then be
said to have been recognized. But along
with this recognition the world is apt to
bestow a vague and tacit credit for super
iority in those qualities in which he has
not been tried. There comes time. how
ever. when his limitations are under
stood. The world sees what he is not
out. That man is fortunate who
is recognized early and found out late
The latter period was much deferred in
Carlyle's case. owing to the vigor of the
/
the time came for the public to be unde-
ceived with regard to the character of
this great and good man. it certainly did
not judge him fairly. The Miniature of
these writings of Carlyle is not profound.
Carlyle had the presumptuous discOn-
tent of a spoiled child. 1t was his in
stinct and habit to sass" right and left.
And the public itself was mainly to
blame for the spelling. The fault in
such cases is mainly the public's, on ac-
count of the queer exceptions they accord
people who are able to sling ink partic-
ularly we'll. Authors are spoiled because
of the weak superstition of the public
that they are as good as they profess to
be. The public will not insist upon re-
membering that great authors are like
other people. Has not an author hands,
organs. dimensions. senses, affections,
passions; if you prick them do they not
| bleed: if you tickle them do they not
! laugh? of course. the book reveals Car
| lyle as an egOtist. But are not nearly all
recent autobiographers cyclists: \ num-
Der of such works have appeared during
the last ten years. and the position of the
autobiOgrapher has been in nearly every
case the same, namely, that God did Il
good thing when he made him: but that
he should have made anybody else, and
should have taken an interest in the 9TH
er individual equal to that which he man
Tested in the autobiographer, i propo-
sition which he cannot bring himself for
a moment To consider
Two books in which this view is con-
/ spicuous are the autobiographieS of John
/ Quincy Adams and Miss Harriet Martini
eau. Carlyle is mild egoti,t beside
| these writer's. Adams does not speak of
/ himself a. AN individual. hut a. a cause
which he has espouSed. OF the two, Miss
Martneau i, the more naive. She is for
arranging the world entirely from her
own point of view. For instance. she at
tackled the late Lord Iytton because he
did not carry an ear-trumpet. Lord Lyt-
ton was deaf, and preferred not to carry
an ear-trumpet. Miss Martineau was
deaf also. and did carry one. She did not
believe in the immortality of the soul,
and was very hard upon any one who
was of a contrary opinion. Her heaven,
had her belief permitted her to have one,
would have been place where they all
sat round with ear-trumpets and derided
Il. II. Il.
soul"