New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-10-15
sideratiOn.

LEIIIhS.
The indIscretlon Of Mrs ELEPHANTS bIographer
in perpetuatlng remark made by Mr.. Andrew
Lang in the presumed sanctity Of private talk
has caused that gentleman 10 utter plaintive
protest against tho viola ton Of condolences eps-
tolarv and onyersational Let rs. he says.
.'leave orr mallson on those who publish our
Iivns and Letters" and in the light Of the reck-
less revelations often made In i'll edited memoirs
the advice Is plausible But when. I'm support of
his plea. he adures us 10 think what letters
are hasty indscrcct. inaccurate.' we make
hold TO observe that that is just why we cannot
believe that authors. or laymen. Ought to write
nothing and burn everything in the way OF let
tiers" Byron thought that a hearty prejudice
was a virtue In m historian Something very
Ike II is inscparable from the really good letter
writer Al all events, it Is essential That he
should no himself and not a tacit s'ppIan' for
the approval Of anybody, even Of his CORE
spondont' II no fulhs this condition he Is not
only good letter writer but. pace Mr.. Lang, no
oueht to be printed.
II Is the fashion TO weep the dccadence or the
cpistoary art So long as It is considered an arr
Lot us homo with Mr. Lang that there VIII be
fewer Lives and Letters" 1t IS not simply the
thought Of future publication which Is depre-
Gated Such an attitude speedily brings It's own
reward IF much Of the Stevenson correspond
cnce recently printed IN "Scribners' casts the
, "Valima Letters" in the shade il Is because the
writing Of the latter was done with half mn eye
on the publisher Far more inimical than ths'
however is the curious superstition which mas
grown no about the great letters Of the past
that ~ write letters we'll ono must take pains,
,olish odorn do all that Is involved in n literary
exercise. Certain famous letters have beauty
Of form rrgO emulate tho writer's OF them he
form IS an accident. Walpoe had Il, hut we
read him for the elegance and original traits OF
his personality. " hlch push through the veneer
Of his most elaborate epiStles. Nine. y"
S6vign6 who was the mistress of fascinating
STYLE and wrote letters that are lnduhfahly III
orature is nevertheless immortal no more Tor
her form and artfce than for that passloha'"
devotion to her daughter which links her graveSt
fichts Of thought 10 the everyday sweetness OF
domestic affection. The commonplace lady 10
whom those marvellous letters were addressed
* almost exasperating In her prim inferlority 10
the woman Of intellect and esprit who was hrr
mother: but we could not spare the salt OF nu-
man feeling which we owe 70 the tie or Dood
between them and 70 nothing else. Form Is
purely incidental element in Nine De Sevlgne
charm. point ndefensible n all literature save
IN the literature Of letters.
NJ Castor RoiSslcr. I'm his delightful volnme on
Cicero. explains the attraction we feel for the
history OF the last years of the Roman kepupnc
nv The fact that Cicero narrates II IN his letters
But he admits that If the history Is there II IS
not through the intention Of the writer. Inc
corresnondence is most precious for the reason
imolled I'm a sentence Of Ciceros brother i
sow vour own self in your letter" be says. and.
however much we may 60 10 Cicero for hghl Oh
his time We 20 more frequently for Intercourse
with the man himself. "Epstolary matter
saws Lamb. casually compriseth three topics
nous sentiment and puns" but the purpose or
letter ia more Justly expressed by Dome In MS
metr,cel ppistle 10 Sir Henry Wotton Slr-
More than kisses, letters mingle souls Be
cause they do this and because that IS their first
mission there is no need to write letters with
tho fear Of Cicero or Gibhon, Nalpole or Sc
vignh Cowper or Chesterfield in ones Mind
When Thackerny used to take MontalGne
ESSAYS" and Ilowells "Famihar Letters 10
bed with him We may be sure Il was not because
no was concerned overmuch with either the PM
losophv Of 1.-THE Perigourdn gentleman or the
travellers tales and homely observations OF the
nrlrclsh little clerk Of King Charless 'ouncll.
He loved those dear old friends because ne
saws 'qf wake at night have one or other OF
"thern n prattlc me 70 sleep again. They talk
f "ahont themselves forever. and don't weary me.
In short. "Out OF the fulneSs 81 the heart the
mouth speaketh." and we need not fear the deca-
donce Of good letter writing until people inter-
I est,no in themselves die ont. There IL no pros
noe, ~ that II the good letters familiar 70 us all
at one time or another In private HE oher any
cr,terion The busy life we lead. the multiple
,tr ~ nevspaners. the substitution ~ the typo
writer for the pen Of dictated FOR autograph
,ettorS-ou these things irrelevant II the iot-
ter writer has Individuality. brains and the dis
position 10 put himself on paper In n natural
fashion The orator and writer whose stateli-
moss left us what we call tho "Ciccronan man
nor was wont 70 dictate letters 10 his score
taries while he dined, and when the desire 10
write came suddenly upon him he would say
81 take the first pen find and use II as II II
were good There IS a story OF two tngllsh
actors in the last century who had quarrelled
inst hefore ono Of them left London and the
other undertook to manage theatre there The
ehsent one. hoplng that bygoncs might be by
cones. and that he might secure an engagement
wrote 10 his old comrade thus: "pear Rich-l
am AZ Bath Yours. !. Qu.n. The reply was
prompt: Dear Quin-Stay there and be damned.
yours 7 Rich" In the whole range Of old let
ters Is there anything more eloquent: Yet TINS
corresnondence might have been carried on over
the telegraph wires that are supposed TO haVo
stopped the writing Of good letters