The Republican journal., 1886-11-18
Out with the Tide.

Dcu scenes ever Skctcncu ID! lnc master nanu
of Charles Dickens, is that of the old Bludder-
stone carrier, Barkis, in David Copperfcld,"
which, if not the most powerful of Dickens
creations, and occasionally little garrulous,
undoubtedly possessed Rembrandt prospec-
tive and felicity Of imaginative touch eN-
cecded by no other. From a boy of ten my
remembrance of the picture of the rough old
Yarmouth fisherman. whispering behind his
huge, horny, caoused. mcouth hand: Hes
going out with the tide" has possessed the pc
culiar reality of something actually remember
ed from visual, instead of the mere ViNilness
or less graphically described. If psychologists
are correct in ascribng to the retna of the eye
a memory of its own, independent of the mere
cerebral rccocctons of impressions, the eN-
planation of this fact is obvious. RecoIIections
of scenes faces or situations. which date from
previous visual impressions, and depend upon
the faculty of the retina for reproducing
images. are necessarily imburd by It certain
Photographic NiNldHcS> and fidelity. to which
the recollection of ideal pictures produced by
rrlieN action but dimly approNimateS. Biogra-
pliers say that GOthe and Shelley We're gifted
with rare faculty Of secondary vision. moi
shared by any common humanity, which en-
abCS at will by mere effort Of the memory to
reuroducr unon thr rr1iu. of tho rvn in,,irns-
Sims th.t hld onrn hanu ,rui,.rtnd -,1n.n tl,,t
,Iplirate membrane and Thence transinittad tn
the brain-d faculty whose influence can be
traced in their literature in Il certain pictorial
quality impaired 10 scenes purely Imaginary a>
well aS in Il certain graphic tone Of imaginary
and drs,riutiou
Not many handlers of pens. however, poets
or mere rol,iaur,I, Gifted Win secondary vision
DIR art h.Xe ever oruuirrd fine Iyilaf,lry az
tn,i.hio,r tb.r I...ri,tinn, win mo in,,ia anil
direct reality of optical impressions, Snrh
ma.sir of thr ueu prrt;lins only to masters. ana
to them only in the highest iuood,-momcnts
of ,uprtnlc command of plastic materials sIrh
AS the reader NAV wade through PAGES of COM
m0npIacc to discover in the best writers. All
the works of Dickens coutain scarcely u score.
of such pages: and no other British writer cy-
cent Nh Charles kingsley in ALTON Locke"
and George Eliot in ''>ilas Marncr." the least
of her creations in bulk. the finest and most ;,r
ti>tic in reality. has ever touched e\aue,crIt
glimpses even this supreme summit of dc,cril-
tive excellence
The simple direct, artistic pictureSqucncss
that appears in the narrative Of ihe death of
Barki>-a> if thr writer was describing from
lifc-is thus them due to his familiarity with a
Supcr>ttion common to maritime pouulation
that the souls of diving men pas, away with the
i,o-out-out-far our to sea. J'ht. touch Of
mystery with which the superstition i, inbued.
was of a kind to qaickcn the active. sVinpa-
thrtir ima~iuatiou of Dickens. auI thc result
appears in the wizard death-hed picture evoked
by the conjurc> with the pen.
But i this weird belief about the souls of
,lyiuu mru ,eoiu.c uut Win thu tiI,.-vI, I,i.h
find A. deem seated ana sfrnn,t with lhn >hrrvL
hard headed huruy-h,u.Ird formnr-tis sbo,iupn
of he old New Englandtuwu Niad>on, Conn..)
as Dickens did. no doubt with the bluaters
of Old Yarmouth merely a groundlcs>. but
very n1tlIr.I slncr.titinu of So, ,eoin,r races
or i il a farf fo, some reason nof yrt f51hnmri
Ly science. tine sick uII and euf,,ud ,,.,.,,,nr,.
9I,t 10 die ~ chb tiir thon Mon ti,,. ti,I. i
rising: remember ;,rr0uo of thr fnraooino
the medical >uprriutcud,ut of one of the Ir,e,>t
am finest ns,-iIln, f,. th ir-.,u, j., iii. ,,t
try once remarked 10 me snrakin,. of th,.
ancient notion of the moon rxrrrisiu,r = nntrnt
influence, ON thr urrvoIIs system of man tIat
the ,yclp of racu}rent uh;i>,, thro,,yh Whjri
the min of lna,Ilnan Irriodir,lIy na,s,s >,.l-
dom or never varies from thr limit of on,
i. rnin,.iIrS Substantially. with III,
moons a,ucrts. The I,nrnrJ ry,,.it ,Iid mot
nrpt,.ll tn rxi,laiu vbv ur ho,, III. ,nnr .n,.,
orrIlrS only th9t such il llir fact and that fine
ancient, l.uotnJ II in 1hrir 4. l.ri,.iti,,,, uf th4
word mnatir. In 4 Similar manner ,urakin4
with a prolfinrut uhysi,iao in thi, ,.rtio,, Of
the state of krutnct \ vbns,. rirr,p,hr,cts
thc three. shore Town, of ,inilfnrd Nadi.nn
and Clifton. win j laryr ti,hin" And cn.st
poDulatiou. The old whim than mrn are prone
10 lIi. t ,.hl-tidp than nj other hour OF the dnI
t.ro1,s ont from a snurre th,- entities il to CON
si,ieration
..Fnr mar, tla, +ir+,. ,-.ar. v,il tIo ,rr.,-
bearded ,I Inrtor WHO ri;,yrIy v u.,J,, his ,1,,tr
ueut, as thp rp,Ilt Of hi. own ucrs1I,ii oIsrr-
yotinu II have Iiyn6 and obsorrnJ nrnon,e tb,
roU,h hardy sn,il, hrrnrhn,tt. .nI far Innrr
Hmm ijfty INV father brfnrr ,,,r ".thnrrd fart.
ana vision, from l,t.,rti, nffan .iln tl,irr,
mile, of a 3y lnu,r tb,. al(d h,yr stood
Inv bun,IroIc nf N.atIh,.,J. If ii. .I,nr,nnn md
f.r,nprs nlI ANA v,,II,le i,riu1+ fla l.,.t nrt,.
nf g. rr,1u,y h,t ,.au ha.lIl, rn..lI .ii,,,I. in
.t,,nrr of a 'er.,, ITin,lXf5 ii.I ',nt nsI.tyy,II
willie ti,c 1iIz,a, ,i,,iI1r In is. f1rt that i,
critical eases. never f,tI concerned Of ir;lino
the patient for I'M bnllr or two while thc ti,L. i
coming in; but when il i. rreediug. ual1jrulaI.
~ in the latter STAGES of fine elh IaIWHy. stand
nv If can untiI fh,. tt,l.u comes Won will
scarcely credit II ncrhau>. lut lho ,Iajly record
of ,h. Tides is th, most iIuuort3ut r3rt of thp
ain; ana,. 10 me in my prar1ier. If thn natirnf
\yL. is very low lives 10 see the ,iu.rrnt tIIrn
from cbh 10 flow know thr a>,. i, safe till fine.
chs set, in ayain. Then take ,arcI-ror death
wins You remember The. old say in I.li,,nc.
"M nen the tlde comes in, death want for dole;
NNe" 'h' 'i'' tb'S II takes 9onl-'
..{yrU if has also rrovoJ =. il, ,,,- ,,,.,,ti.,
t,f r.,,r. tL. ,,.,..tI,,.r .,t,, Iii ,ra,.+ iti,,
. ,Iid MT ,,-iSJ f.. Ia. nm, jrStl,nI ~ l,,ii,,'
tj,.t fla. tiii ,nn,.,,,l',tt it.If J. i, ,,1 ,,.,T
rn.,.,Y,,d il, l,i t.u,l,n,, Ia r,talit,. Mn WI.
M, il, nn.s,.sinn Of ,n,, 'lnt;,iito tIta,ry nf hi
avn r. +e1,nr.lI,. os.,,,.t..I I, tb, .i,,,
,f tI,, .aI,., a., ,..,., r., ,,-h, ,,,,.,. tl d.
served fatality Of Eli, in. !. ,I,,r