The times., 1897-12-12
McCarthy,s "rrench Revolution .

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tNew York: Charles scribner's Sons.
Washington. ALI Booksellers. 81 .25.)
McCarthy's "French Revolution "
Sex en- years ago Justin H. Mccarthy
gave ont the first volume OF his History
OF the French Revolution" Searching
for point whence TO start, he gave il up.
as 80 many other historians have had 10
DO in respect 10 its causes. Bat the
revolution ccncreteiy hegan TO be in 1899
and thence Mr.. Mccarthy started bis mar
rauve, and closed his volume with the
significant event Of the fall Of the Bas-
tile Since the appearance of this vol
unie the historian has been blsy with many
political ard otl4er literary occupations,
bat he has found time Ia complete his sec
oud volume, which cofupa sses the whale
| series Of events embraced in the remainder
OF The famous period. The work is one
which stamps him as an historian OF lit
erary attainment, scholarship and fairness.
With the advent OF any new work on the
French Revolution the mind at once re-
verts To Carl yle's masterpiece, and hest
tates 70 even consider the possibilities Of
another writer dipping his pen in the
inks OF that period. Bot CARLYLE stands
unique and alone; unapproachable. His
is not history in the broad sense OF the
wo:d. II is an epic: a rhaps0dic CONNER
tary. 1t preSupposes Il large knowledge, not
merely Cf the STRONG lines, but the minu.
tae of the shading of the great struggle.
One mist ilnow the history before reading
Carlyle. From him we inhale the at.
mospher-, ANA catch the color, and becom,
| Infused with the spirft. Even Michelet
rad not THE transporting powers of car
lyle. Ee felt the terrors and triumphs the
wrongs and righrines, of the terrible times.
and he told what he knew and felt. But
Carlyle draws one into the midst OF things.
Reading his marvellous pa yes is as near
as we can approach to the actual sensa-
tions OF the tremendous turmoil. Mccarthy
has none of the qualities OF Carlyle His
nara tive is \ record; anamial; a composite
and recassing Of ali the most reliable, avail
able material n study In facts, and their
inception anG sequence and culnina ton.
Only occasionally does he permit himself
the las NY of rising out OF these circum-
scnptions into broad distractions; gTowths
| OF inspiration. Careful ana conservative
| he stands for authority; whereas Carlyle
win always stand alone and sequestered.
toweringly, magnificently, for the spirit
OF the revolution. Mccarthy IS a student.
Carlyle was philosopher.
Justin II. Mccarthy is favorably gifted
80 write history OF the French Revolution
FOR readers OF the common English tongue
Carlyle is unsatisfactory as a chronicler
one signs for what the world might have
| possessed in the realization of Mills Ire an.
An Anglo-SaNon is pre-eminently destined
to be the historian Of this great social and
political fact. 4 German cannot view
French situation dlspassionateiy. The
Latips 10 the south have not the poise ;or
accurate gauge, for they are either ar
deptiy royal or flightIly coInnunistic. A
FTebchmaniS out of the question. Witness
the attempts dHericault, Jean Bernard
Lacl eteile, Louis Blanc, Mignet, Timers,
| Martin, Micheet, Lamartine, Taine, lie
| ToquevilIe, and Sorel. 1t is a subject re-
| quiring perspective. A Frenchman seems in
| capable of commanding it, Returning to
| Mccarthy, he is logically MS strong In the
DRY as his work Confirms him in fact he
! has the conservatism OF a Brlton, the wit
| and perceptiveness of an Irishrnan, a per-
spect;ve admirably gauged by sufficient re-
moteTess on position of entire diSinterest-
edness.
We cannot doubt the appreciative trepi-
| dation with which he anticipated his work
after reading from an early portion of the
| first volume this confession of the .iifficul-
Ties in impartality and judiciousness:
The whole affair is SO dramatic the
daring creeds appeal 50 directly to the
/ emotions, the central figures are so fasci-
! mating and so fatal, that ii is difficult
! to keep cool in such conflict, and TO hold
! one's reason from running TO seed in hatred
| in one direction, CT bloSsoming into rank
! luNuriance OF an exaggerated hero worship
/ in the other. The secret lies in remern F,eI-
| ing that ali the figures of the French
Revolution were men and women like
ourselves, animated by like Passions plr-
! poses, virtues, ratings, hopes and fears;
! that mob Temainsa mob, whetherit raves
bustting with pixies and capped with
! Crimson, around an iron lantern or over
| throws the ratings OF a park; that we
can All turn TO ocontenporarles OF our own,
/ who, under slightly differing conditions
| might very well have pla yed the parts
or d Danton or a Lafayette, Vergniaud
! or La Rochejaquelin. Let us
! always remember that we are deal
4 ing Win men and Women-Some of
! them commonplace men and women; that
no fresh race of beings, either fiends or
| angels, were invented for the reYolll-
tionary period, and we shall do fairly We'll,
| ana come out in the end with more
! human S well as a more humane ap-
/! probation OF perhaps tue greatest pages Of
| history.
| Here i confess IDLY the key to Mccarthy S
| point of view. which he denotes appreciably
1 through Eis work-the remembrance Of the
| humanity of the event But it is only The
temper of his method and not at all bis
| motive That seems not to have been other
| than the voice OF the historian seeking ex-
| preston, or more especially the irresist
ihle attraction which the subject has fof
I any student who dares launch on the peril