New-York tribune., 1894-04-08

OF WESTMINSTER. by hoWdnnu Tainvs Fl of All Souls
College oxford. With the coIopediin,o' Ipodie y d. d.
sanction Of the HsTy NN Win portraits mus
!,eah itinns Us Two Volumes. PIP. i3s-1H. CharieS
Scribners Sons.
This memoir Is. perhaps, sohie"Nd' '' ~
and vet 1T is TO be remembered that persons "''
arc truly interested In any particular o""'"'
rarely tire Of reading about II; ana i -
., no observed that this narrative Z" '"e '''
Of Dean Stanley is marked. IN every P'' W -
- &C. Intelligence. deep affection and pure
taste The essenc, Of Stanleys chH".'V' "''
on,dness He lived for the service Of others,
ord the purpose of his life was the promoI'h "'
,.,r,ro That ideal Of him has been presented pE
49,. ,.,.o-ro,bar and these records Of beauiliul
snir,t and a useful career will be read by thou-
-. orsors all over the world. and VIII
e,rorgtben every reader in reverence Tor rlgh'
"a :, devotion TO Guty. The common ldet 81
/ ood,ess con fuses it with inspidity; whereas J"
.bo t-ua sense of that word, goodness. oi'a
north or consequence implies great strength %
character and indeed is impossible without IT,
Stanley's character possessed not "nly "'' al
strength but intellectual authority ana personal
charm. ,
In carly bovhood his associates recognized nm
az an unusual person. and that distinction ''une
ebout him till the last. Creative genius ne "n
nnt manifest but his talents We're eXtraoTd!hdIF
he acquired extensive learning. and as an ms
torian he displayed a remarkable lacui'S i'' ''''
r,ra,,al Of character and for the preservation
/ g honorable actions and events in the rugged
s,rerqth Of massive simplicity and. at the same
time with thorough fidelity of essential de'aH
and rare loveliness Of delicate color. lie HN'u
amid surroundings which were always beau'iu'
and sometimes majestic.-at Alderley Nor"'ch'
/ Canterbury. oxford and Northumberland MS
spirit imbibed their serenity, majesty ana august
renoso His Memorials OF Canterbury ana "e''-
minister Abbey abound with life-ke historic hg-
ures while for elevation Of mind gen'leness "l
erirtt breadth Of view. and charity Of judgment,
/ tbev are among the noblest books Of our century
Recl<et and the Black Prince are more fully and
clearly drawn in the Canterbury book man III
any other historical composition. Neither the
too,,,os ~ Nature nor the creations Of Art were
half so Interesting 10 the mind OF Stanley as
typcs of humanity were, whether heroic or pa
thetic.
He saw many impressive pageants.--such as the
/ coronation Of Queen Victoria, the burial OF the
| Tuke of Wellington, and the opening Of the Sy-
denham Palace-while, Dean OF Westminster
! he was personally associated with some OF the
/ most memorable scenes in modern Enghsh MS
tory He ofIicated at the burial OF Dickens
/ Palmerston, and man. worthless Of his timo-not
infreouently preaching their funeral sermons IN
| the Abbey At ST. Petersburg. in 1874. he marr1ed
| in a scene Of prodigous magnihcence' the DUKE
! of Edinburgh and the Princess Marie of Russia
He read the service over Motley, at Kensal
Green. The more important aspects of his HE
were of course his relations with essentially pro
gressive movements in the church,-all or which
he favored and helped. because he was man o'
liberal mind and truly and exactly Christian
IF Is however. in his association with Westmin'
ster Abbey, In the picturesque relations OF MS
career. that most American readers will consider
him. Each essential portion Of that career has
been minutely delneated by Mr.. Prothero ir
these two ample and handsome volumes, and has
been further ilumincd by judcious extract:
from his letters.
In what manner Stanley wrought as an hstor
ian may be inferred from his record that, on ar
anniversary OF the murder OF Beckett he went tf
the scene Of II. in Canterbury Cathedral. alone
at the selfsame hour when II occurred, ana II
the sad twilight OF a December day conJured W
the whole awful tragedy. His feeling for th'
poetic romantic, imaginative elements of history
was deep and acute. and he was able TO convey
them into his works and make them actual. liz
was a great traveller viewing mankind. how
ever rather than scenery. His mental activity
was incessant He abored TO make men better
and thus to extend the boundaries OF rationa
freedom. His Affections were the loss Of hi
parents and his wife. These blows he felt deep
iy, but he bore them with patience. His inhu
ence whether man or writer was helpful ant
cheerful and the story OF his life affords ampl
confirnat ton that he most entirely deserved tn
reverence and love that have followed him 10 hi
grave
Mrs Coates, writing in the current Century
concerning Matthew Arnolds democracy, says tha
during his visit to this country there were feV
things in which he manifested so eager an interes
as in the conversation OF our aboring men as over
heard by him from time TO time. Frequently h
repeated to me sentences which had reached hin
Aho rnIr al