New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-11-12
HANS BREITMANN.
AN AUTONOGRAPHICAL VOLUME BY
CHARLES G.. LELAND.

MEMOIRS. BY Charles Godfrey Leland 1 Ga
Bretmann). PIP. x, i39. d. Appleton q w.
There is in Mr.. Leland. as in all men OF
varied attachments in language who are a'so
men of genius. a certain delight in mys'i"ca-
ton. This peeps out even through the iranhheS'
Of the confessions in this volume. Not that ne h"'
cvaded any of the real problems of his life speak
ing Of the peculiarities of the autobiographies
written by Rousseau and Casanova-he mish'' III
deed. have named a long list of which Rousseau
was merely the beginning-he remarks that 'ne
world asks too much in the way of franKhesS'
1T Is no more necessary" he adds, Ito describe
everything cyncally than 1t is to set for'h all
orr petty diseases in detail" That is luii
and an honest and an adequate reason LOT io'
carving the autobiogra phic fad into the Realm
of disgust Mr. Leland has no occasion 10 pe
mysterious in those cases where mystery Is pe'-
ter than publicity.
His justification is one in when ne ieaHy
shares the wonder of his readers he - hNc
George Borrow and Sir Richard burton 'ho"s"
his wondor at himself does not lead him to the
ill-tempered arrogance of which the iorme' WAS
capabIe nor to the persistent ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
that marked the latters career But MS lai'h
In himself is colored by the same faint uhge OF
superstition that was noticeable IT. the hlhs
of (fypSyiSm, ana IN lhe udilH6 Pi'Si'' w
Mecca. He may not be thankful for this COM
parison for he was dubious as to the merits OF
Borrow with whom he was as familiar as
ordinary people get to be. 1t was MS
habit of reading almost daily in the British
Museum while in London in 1870, that brought
him into contact with Borrow. He found him
a tall large fine-looking man, who must have
been handsome in his youth, but he decided
after some experience that this fine-looking per-
son was not prescriptions in his conduct
toward others. Borrow was certainly not as
chivalrous toward Leland as he might nave
been 1T came TO pass, says the latter, that
after awhile wrote my book on The English
Gypsies and Their Language and sent note
to Mr. Borrow in which | asked permission TO
dedicate it to him. l sent it to the care OF
MIR Murray, who subsequently assured me that
Mr. Borrow had actually received 1t. Now Mr.
Borrow had written. thirty years before. some
sketches and fragments on the same subject
which would am very certain. have remained
unpublished to this day but for me. He receivep
my note on Saturday-never answered it-and on
Monday morning advertised in all the journals
his own forthcoming work on the same subject
Mr.. Leland even doubts whether Borrows work
had been so long in allegiance as was asserted
What / believe is says he that Mr.. Borrow
had by him a vocabulary and few loose
sketches which he pitchforked together but
that the book itself was made and cemented
into one with additions for the first time, after
he received my note" Nevertheless he calls
Borrow the "Nestor of Gypsyism" and points
out merely that the eccentric author was not
satisfied with the great learning which he
actually possessed and with the reputation
which it gave him but hungered for notoriety
in fields of which he knew little. If he had been
endued with the bravado Of Burton or the
Astounding humor of Leland himself he could
have borne himself better.
1t is n trait Of Leland to eXaggerate rather
than to lessen the difficulties which he found in
acquiring languages. But. there was trap
for the boastfu Borrow, there is one also for
the too modest Leland. 1t is all very well when
he tells how hard it to learn German; for
he means that he acquired an elaborate form of
speech with a vast vocabulary and innumerabe
peculiarities as to converse in it readily But
when he seems TO intimate that the collection
of few Indian phrases and the nlemorizing of
them for immediate a matter OF Infinite
labor and pains then one begins to penetrate
the humor Of the thing. Leland has a somewhat
different scale Of difficulties in study to that
which ordinary mortals would set up. For eX-
ample, he might consider IL a downright hard
ship TO labor Il week over a thing which woul!
absorb the attention of another for quarter O;
a year This must be taken into account at
every STEP otherwise the reader will find that 4
the autobiogra pher is really laughing at him
from the very pages of the book before his
eyes The nsurmountable difficulties of Indian
languages for Leland is an idea all the more
humorous because he is convinced that he has
certain vivid Indian characteristics. He OBJ
serves that many things which he did almost
ynfi
did from hereditary habit. One of these tricks
Is the raking together Of a small heap Of in
flammable material and setting it on fire. He
found with delight wherever he went among the
Redmen in North America that they instantly
put confidence in him. Among the Kaws. on
one occasion, some white visitors were purchas.
ing curiosites. The Indians. after carefully
looking everybody over chose Leland as the one
whom they would consult to the genuine
ness of the bank bills with which they were
paid. He was still more delighted when he
found that others observed the affection Of the
savages for him, end drew mysterious. one
might almost say superstitious, differences from
1t. On one of his Western expeditions 1t hap
pened that he saw Lieutenant Hesselberger the
young officer who rescued Mrs. Box and her
daughters from the Apaches. He naturally
praised the bravery of Hesseberger This was
done in the hearing of a wagon driver, TO whom
Mr.. Leland had taken great liking. The man
had lived as trader among wild indians. was
fuen: I'm Spanish as in his native English and
'knew the whole Western frontier like his
pocket" When he heard Mr.. Lelands remark,
he burst out:
ut isn't all bravery at all. He's brave as q
panther. but there's more In it than that. There
is about one man in hundred and not more,
who can go among the most God-forsaken devils
Of Injuns and never get hurt. The Injuns take
to them at a glance and love EN- I'm such &
man. and I've proved il often enough. God
knows. Lieutenant Hesselberger is one and"
ne added abruptly. "Mr. Leland you're another"
What makes you think so?" said Mr.. Leland.
"'Cause I've watched you. You've got Injun
ways that YOU don't know of. Didn't l notice
the other day. when the gentlemen were buying
hins from the Kaxs thai hmm took