The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1899-06-16
WAS BY HIMSELF.
Strong Identity Of The Great Move
list TlaGEGTdY.
STUDENT AND TRAVELLER
Lawyer Journalist-Pa uter- Early Life aus
Struggles - In America IS
Lecturer.

(Review of one of the Professor Rolfe
University Extension lectures at the
High School. Honolulu. season OF
1891
Fiction ia his hands WIS not simply
u profession. like dHGfh,r. but u constant
reflection ~ the lchOlc surface ~ life: "a
repeated echo Of us laughter aud its cont
pldiHt. with his IrhOi. Icid"
lrOrid Of tops and fools, If good IrpHcH
and bTdrc men, Of honest abSurditicS aud
chceYH ddr,gtUrcTS, he must SWriTc Irih
Shakespeare and CcFCdHtCS iH The memo
~ and affection Of men,"
II is not n sufficient account Ut
Thackeray 10 call him n great novelist,
or a keen satiriSt, or a humorist. He
IS all three combined. and something
more. Among English writers he must
be classed by himself, as one OF the
most penetrating Of all observers and
delineators OF human life. and ut the
same zine one OF the greatest OF liter
airy artists.
The surroundings and experiences Of
his early years were varied. and eX
ceptionally favorable to the acquisi-
ton OF wide knowledge OF mankind.
He was born in India July Is. lSlD,
where he lived long enough TO gain an
insight into the life Of the European
residents there. Then he was taken to
England. At the age Of eleven he was
! placed in the famous Charterhouse
School. IN London Cths Grey Friars OF
i"PendenniS' and The Newcomes')
He remained there SIX years, and then
spent n year or more at Cambridge
University. where he gained part of
the material for "Pendennis. After
| leaving Cambridge he Travelled on the
continent and studied art. He soon
returned 10 London and began reading
| law in the Temple. Within a year or
so he was tempted into politics. and
then into journalism. He invested a
| part of his small fortune in two news
| papers, which failed. Then he began
the serious study OF painting, in Paris.
/ But before long ne was absorbed in
journalism again, writing foreign cor
| respondsnce, art criticism. reviews.
! ballads, and stories, for various news
papers and for FFdS,TS NdgdSiHe.
| In 1886. when bs was twenty-five. he
married. He made his home in Lon
don. and supported his family by his
pen. After a few years of great happi-
ness his wife's health failed. Her dis
/ ease soon developed into a sort of mild
insanity. II became necessary for him
20 find a quiet hone for her. and to
send his daughters 20 his mother in
Paris and return himself 70 his tache-
Tor life. He never fully recovered
from this blow.
His writing nov began 20 gain in
power. Within = few years he pro-
duced Vanity Fair" uS47-s). At first
it attracted but little attention. But
gradually the public came TO realize
that il was = great book. and that
Thackeray was one o.! the foremost
writers of the time.
Vanity Fair was soon followed by
"Pendennis" iS4S-5Jl Then came the
lectures on the English Humorists
1S5D. In these TaaCkeray described
the literary Ete Of the age OF Queen
Anne. I; VAS natural for him to- de-
pict. in his next book. the whole life
of that time. thus producing his great
historical novel. Henry Esnond'
1S52D. \ few months after ''Es'
mond's' publication ae visited Ameri.
ca. on lec;urins ;CGr. This was sc
successful tina. ;h-es years later
two visits The Ns.weomes'' appeared
1S53-5). In 1857 4. attempted TO enter
Parliament. but vas defeated. Soor
after he became The first editor OF the
C0THhU Wdsdsis". :Or which he wrote
the charming "RoI1da bout Papers
He was now only a little over fifty
But sorrow and hard work had made
MIN old before his time. His friends
saw that MS strength was falling. ant
none OF them We're --eatly surprised a
his sudden and comparatively early
death. which occurred on the day be
fore Christmas. 1856.
SUBJECTS FOR ESSAYS AND
CLASS.
Tho rtj'rt ~ ''s>. questions i 4
Guido h, students Co cCliniH Clearly SPc
|sT.F ..4t.F Tr.4rff.F r.a4g.r..