New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-03-13

verse circumstances, surveying her Surroundings
not alwaps wisely but with skill and subnety'
She is struggling however, everywhere, sometimes
bindly sometimes with insight, TO regain her lost
Kingdom TO fulfil her destiny, and herein IFS the
significance and the profundity OF these mastery
studies.
Balzac did not stop short of the contamination
of his splendid ideal of Womnnhood. 10 quoH
Miss Wormclcy: In the figure Of Serephita We
behold the final efi.orescence Of such endeaVor,
during which the dominant impulse has been
uniformly spiritual, and through which the
carnal elements have been gradually suDdned
until at length they suffice only to give inc
mated force consistency, and to supply the physl-
cal means of that inevitable agency OF tempta-
ton which is the price of translation to the
Divine This is the rounding ont Of the circle,
the attainment of that far-on, divine event to
which the whole creation moves" Could poet
or a philosopher conceive a nobler and ioitier
process Of evolution than the author Of the Come
die Humane embraced in his scheme OF Thought
But listen to Miss Wormeey again. The true
reason why women are and always nave peeh
friends TO Balzac, whether readers and students
or in actual life, is because he has perceived and
asserted their righful place in humanity. lie
has endcavored to inspire them with SENSE
through awful and revolving pictures. 1t Is true
of the consequences of falling away from H. lie
breaches through facts, never dldactlcaly g't'
women have seen, more or less CONSCIOUSLY lin o
meaning, and, inspired BY hidden sense WITHIN
them they have heard his call to bring about
possible Better world This is reason which
escapes male critics. But il would he quite UNI
true to assert that such critics are wrong when
they say that the women of thirty or forty or
any indefinite age are won BY the eA'ehsion
which Balzsc gives TO their period OF chnrm,
and by the Importance which he assigns to their
place In life. On the contrary, all that maSnl-
iies their influence and lifts 1t from tue more
material places of youth and beauty, where so
many OF their perils lie, is justly welcome to
Miss Wormley's discussion of the subject is
of value in many ways and 1t has long beea
nee,led as O help 10 comprehension Of his life ana
Personally, he lived up TO his theory.
His life was, In fact. austere ANY detailed aG-
count of the conditions under which ne WORKED
such as are given in this volume. Will show that
this must have been the case, and NE Iacr
strongly reinforces the doctrine. Miss Wormiey
in arranging her account OF his career las, almost
memoir published by Balzacs sister. Madame
Surville. She has also. whenever 1t would serve
the purpose Of illustration better. quoted from
the sketches Of him By his contemporaries Wisely
rejecting the trivialites and frivolites by The
which many OF his first chronlclefs
seemed bent upon giving the great author
kind of opera bouile aspect 10 Judge rom spinc
of these accounts, he was Eighty. irresponsible.
possibly little mad. prone TO lose touch OF actu,
alitics by the dominance of his imagination. fond
Of wild and inpracticable schemes ana t
difficult 10 prove that Balzac was quite uli-
fcrcnt character that he possessed marvellous
power of intellectual organization; thnt We was
the most mcthOdlca and ndciatlgaDie OF workcIs
that he was man Of most delicate sense
Df humor; that his life was not simply devoted
to literary ambition, but was martyrdom 10 OBJ |
legations which were his misfortune, buy not Ills
fault. ,
All this Miss Wormlcy has well set forth, and
in doing so she has certainly relieved BalZac OF
much unmcritcd odium, and has enabled tho7e
who have not made a study OF his character and |
work to Understand how high the place ~ III
any estimate of the helpers of modern progress ana
TO which lis genius and the lQlu- |
ness Of his aims cnttle him. THIS memoir Is |
very modest biography though a very good one |
The author has eifaced herself AZ much rs posi- |
bic and has relied upon documents whenever |
before no one can now hope 70 discover any linpor
ant fresh material whereby 20 illustrate ltalzac
ife, unless by some happy Arrangement the lei
ers and papers at present IN thc p)s-'7'Gn 81 'ie
truth France has little reason 10 be proud OF the |
manner in which the memory OF her great son |
bwed him for yvar. lib precious popcs'
abandoned in deserted house, were left 10 com
mon pillage. and but for the, eXcriions OF NJ
le Louenjouel no trace Of them would have
been left His home, too. was suffered 10 decay,
and was finally left 10 destruction, and his coun-
rymen appear 70 have been unaware that one
" their most distinguished cOUlpa'IlolN li'u phH
way Yet we may he thankful that through his
the memoir written by his sister.
md the Comcdic lInmanc,7 we still possess
documents from which it is possible 10 construct
IN intelligent and apprecative estimate.
What would this world. which - growing more
md more 10 admire ana respect Falzac, give now
or some such close and intimate record OF his per
onalitv as Boswell created for johnson Miss
has illustrated his character well and
ruly. she has also shown how loyal, how ai"c,
onafe how attractive and genial ne was; and
low sad For there Is mystery in his life which
,vcrshadowed it. not his debts, which stirred
lim 10 new cXcr'i0ns. hut an early love which
.nded tragcally. and of which no part lculars were
.vcr known 10 his most intimate friends. Once or
wice-as in the conclusion Of the Pran de
haQrin" he has made dim and yelled allusion
@ this great sorrow: hut he held IL sacred and
maintained silence upon il apparently even 10 his
alter love Madame Hansla. AZ frontispccc to
his volume apnears n print OF the beautiful sketch
# Bazac which WIS taken Ivy Eugene Grand an
lour after death. II is no wonder that Madame
le Bplzac considered histhe best Likeness Of her
lnshand for II 10 marked by nobility. power. re-
inenent and rcposc. The toll and the Dnin Of life
ire effaced Only the traits remain which speak
II spirituality and high intellect. and accomplished
work II is q N picture 70 accompany biography
which is also sincere endca vor TO clear away the
,recuring traces Of vulgar misapprehension from
lis memory and 10 show him as he was.