The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-01-16
University Extension Lecture.

! The firstlecture in the University Exten
sion course. English Writers of the Mod
ern Era, was delivered in the Cour
House on Thursday evening by DR.. Fred
erick H. Sykes. Despite the extreme in
clemency of the weather, quite a large
audience was present.
DR.. Francis n Thorpe introduced the
lecturer to the audience. Dr.. Sykes re
piled briefly and opened his topic. The
complete mastery of his subject was man
ifest from the beginning, and united with
a strong and attractive personality to win
him the close and sympathetic attention
of his listeners.
DR.. Sykes spoke first of the strong infiu-
ence exerted on the boy Carlyle by the
physical characteristics of the country in
which he lived, rough, billy, Scotland: by
his descent from the fighting mason of
Ecclefechan: scanty of speech, full of wis
dom, and though passionate. hard to
rouse.
Carlyle was always apart from his fell
lows In school, college and in later life
he found himself opposed to the current
life. Proud and shy he knew no friends,
and it needed only an unrequited love for
Margaret Gordon to make him, as he call
ed himself, Bedouin This is a striking
characteristic, Carlyle's loneliness. The
second mark is his strong religious nature
Foremost in Carlyle's word is Mans rela-
ton to the Divine System. His breach
from Calvinism was crucial in its results,
and added to the main loneliness, but he
never lost the Calvinistic mind His
spiritual rebirth, which came to him in
the streets of Edinburgh is told in Sartor
Resartus.
The third striking characteristic of
Thomas Carlyle is his love of fact which
may be traced to the simple ways of his
peasant parents. He preached the gospel
of work, s'the men who act and are silent.
Sartor Resartus sums up Carlyle to his
thirty year. In it he adopts Fuchle's
view of the universe, an appearance, or
vesture, with the Divine idea beneath,
which few ever see. 1t is the reestablish-
ment of the young man in his lost faith.
Among the limitations of Carlyle are
his dislike of aesthetics, and his hatred for
democracy Yet he believed well of men,
and the death of man capable of edu-
cation was to him tragedy. Hero wor-
ship was his political doctrine. History
to him was composed of the lives of great
men,
Bethanis Utifitarianism he fought bitter
ly, but while constantly arrayed against
current thought, he forced himself into
recognition as the chief intellectual slim
illus of his time.
Carlyle is the dramatist first, and the
historian later. His work abounds in
vivid detailed description. The image he
creates is never lost.
He had two styles, the first direct and
simple admired by Matthew Arnold; the
second what Gosse calls Carlyles love of
strange structure, Astounding in forceful
expressions until its force wearies the
reader, but sometimes rising to sublime
heights.
A magnificent series of lantern slides
was then shown which added greatly to
the general interest. This collection was
prepared by Patrick of Edinburgh, him
self friend of Carlyle and Carlyle en-
He speaks of the collection as
the finest ever made. The scenes of Car
lyle's life were shown, accompanied by a
running narrative and comment from Dr.
Sykes. The places where the "dour Scot
lived and worked his friends, and fine
series of portraits of Carlyle himself APP
peared on the screen, and formed a fitting
climax to a thoroughly enjoyable lecture