San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-08-31
THE AGE OF INSPIRATION.
Why the First Work of Many an
Author Is His Best.

why the "OEh Va ~'
Author is His Best.
New Orleans Picayune.
The great names in the history OF
literature are found for the most part
associated in widely separated groups.
The manifestation of literary genius
has been neither continuous nor soli-
tary. The sources of inspiration, pc
euliar to the fortunate age, awake
tae creative impulse in q few active
and powerful minds, which react up
on and stimulate each other until
,ch has produced its best, and then
follows long interval of mere imita-
ton and criticism. 1t is so with the
mind of the individual thinker. No
one mind is continuously creative
through long series OF years. A few
writer's have achieved emience in ear.
y life, al for lustrum or decade
have produced works of exceptional
merit in swift succession and then
have either become altogether mac
tive Cr nave bet aged an obvious loss
of originality and force. Occasionally
an authors first effort Is his only
successful one. But sooner or later
in every mind the lead is exhausted
by constan working. The health,
the exhuberant vitality, the abound
ing hopefulness of youth, are In them
selves springs of inspirations; but later
on, when the physique has lost it's
recuperative energy, when the intel
lect is jaded, and when the imagina-
ton has grown blase, the most reso-
lutte industry Is poor substitute for
enthusiasm. The writer Is as smooth
as ever; he has perhaps, a better mas
terry over the technique of his art; but
his inventiveness and his old gift of
discovery are gone. He would have
been more prudent had he turned his
back upon his publishers at the first
symptoms of fatigue and failing eles-
ITCHY. To keep the mind productive
i is necessary TO indulge it with sea-
sons of repose, and sometimes 1t may
be best to let it lie fallow for years
though-to take another hint from
the farmer 1T may be better plan
TO resort to a rotation of crops. 1t is
certain at least that every harvest.
aust be preceded by seed-time.
The youthful stock of ideas is used up
the freshness of fret impressions Is
speedily worn off, and then the mind
requires time t. acquire new interests
time to take up and assimllate new
material. The world is full of sugges-
ton, but it is impossible to force or
hurry the discovery. We refer only
to creative work, for man may 60 on
making shoes indemnity. The mind
OF mankind, considered as a unit, is
like the mind of the individual auth
or in his respect. 1t began without
model and without a school, and at
the dawn of its development it was
perforce original. 1t was thus, more
over, sprightly and alert; for there
was nothing anywhere trite or COM
monplace, and fancy was borne by
her every flight to a fairy land. But
after so long q time, the genius OF
antiquity lay exhausted, prone and
powerless, amid the splendOr of its
own creation. It had worked out its
own lead, and the human mind could
do nothing more until 1t had found
a fresh inspiration from new point
of view. That happened with the re-
naissance. There ancient art was
brought to light under altered cOndi-
lions. Christianity had succeeded pa
gsnism, and painting, sculpture and
architecture prospered under a revi-
val of faith. The old love of beauty
returned to life in service which fur
nished it with new ideals and new
enthusiasm, and the fallow field re-
sponded once more to culture. The
old art inspired the new, but could
not have done so had not the world
attained a new point of view. Other
periods succeeded, each after an In
terval. Christianity, chivalry, loyal
ty ecclesiastical, civil and political re-
volution have each replenished the
human mind with creative conditions
and changed the color and course of
human thought. We have now en-
tered upon q new era, but creative
ness is not one of its characteristic
traits, The spirit of the age is posi-
tive, analytical and critical, rather
than intuitive, idealistic and imagin-
alive.