The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1889-07-11
NY FAvoRITE AUTHOR.
BY MISS KFFIE N. TINKER.

nv Fayorite Author was very
tall and strongly built man, with
broad shoulders, deep chest, black
hair, and large dark eyes. It hal
been said that The looked like q man
who might have held the stroke oar
in university boat" He Is called
the Great Subtle-minded Nathaniel
Hawthorne.
He was born at Salem, Mass, in
1904. of an old colonial family, some
OF whose members had taken part in
the prosecutions which made the
early history Of that town SO famous.
On account OF ill-health, Nathaniel
was sent. at an early age. to live on a
farm belonging to his family in Ray
mond, on the borders OF the Selago
lake. in Maine. While here, he went
to the best Of acknowledgements be-
ing one of his teachers-after which
he graduated at Bowdoin college in
1926, being a classmate Of Henry w.
Longfellow and great friend OF
Franklin Pierce, a member Of the
higher class.
He resided at Salem a few years,
where he studied medicine and liter
ature, walked out by night, passed
the day alone in his room, writing
wild tales most of which he burned.
After this he was appointed weigher
and guager in the custom house,
where he fulfilled his duties well and
was great favorite with the sailors
He held this Office until the inaugur-
alton OF President Harrison, 1S41,
when. being Democrat, he was dis
placed to make room for Wing.
While living in the old manse at
Concord. where he wrote his book
entitled Moses from an old Manse, =
he mingled little with the society Of
the village, but sought solitude in
the woodland walks around 1t, or in
his boat on the beautiful Assabet, of
which, in his ''Mosses,' he says: "A
more lovely stream than this, for q
mile above it's junction with the Con-
cord, has never flowed on earth-no-
where. indeed, except to lave the in
terror of a poets imagination
In 1913, Mr.. Hawthorne was ap-
pointed surveyor Of the port Of Sa-
lem. While here in this decayed old
custom house, he gave satirical
sketch of its inmates, in the introduce
ton to his Scarlet Letter, powerful
romance of early New England life,
which at once became popular, and
established for it's author WIDE
spread reputation. After completing
this book. Hawthorne wrote to q
friend: Il finished my book only yes
terday. one end being in the press at
Boston, while the other was in my
head here in Salem, SO that, as you
see, the story is at least fourteen
miles long. The introduction, which
gives a sketch Of my Custom House
life, will, perhaps, be more attractive
than the main narrative, as the latter
lacks sunshine.
He published q life of Franklin
Pierce. and was rewarded on the fol.
lowing year by the appointment Of
consul to Liverpool, which he held
until 1857, when he resigned and
travelled in France and Italy, the
latter being the scene Of his Marble
Faun.
This book seems to teach that sin
is necessary in order to convert man
to moral agent Donatellc, very
interesting character supposed to be
descended from an ancient Faun,
falls in love with Miriam, a highly
gifted artist. Hilda, the silver lin
ing to the cloud is q very sweet and
lovable girl, who seems to have been
sent by God to help those in trouble.
In this work, Hawthorne shows his
great descriptive and imaginative
power in the following passage:
Lifting their eyes. Hilda and her
companion gazed westward and saw,
beyond the invisible Tiber, the Castle
Of st. Angelo, that immense tomb Of
q Pagan emperor, with the Archangel
at its summit.
..Still farther of appeared mighty
pile of buildings, surrounded by the
vast dome, which all of US have
shaped and swelled outward like q
huge bubble, to the utmost scope Of
our imaginations, long before we see
it floating over the worship Of the
city. Ii may be most worthily seen
from precisely the point where our
two friends were now standing. At
any nearer view the grandeur Of st.
Peters hides itself behind the iln-
mensity of its separate parts,
SO that we see only the front, only
the sides. only the pillared length
and holiness OF the portico, and not
the mighty whole. But at this dis
lance the entire outline of the world
cathedral, as well as that Of the pal
ace of the worlds chief priest, is TAX
en- in at once. In such remoteness,
moreover, the imagination is not de-
barred from lending its assistance,
even while we have the reality be-
fore our eyes, and helping the weak
ness OF human sense to do justice to
SO gaand an object. 1t requires both
faith and fancy to enable us to feel,
what is nevertheless SO true, that
wonder, in front Of the purple outline
OF the hills, is the grandest edifice
ever built by man, painted against
Gods loveliest sky
AS Mr.. Hawthorne's health began
to fail, he left Concord, and set out
on q journey through New Hamp-
shire with ex-President Pierce. He
reached the hotel in the town OF Ply
mouth, where he stopped for the
~,;@,l,< and IN the morning Nav 10.