New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1901-09-14

? FESSOR BRADLEY'S COMMENTARY ON
TENNYSON'S IN MEMORIAM"
From Longman's Magazine.

A1--N-N A0C-> = 1~S -hi-~1OAsA<1-'A-
From Longman's Magazine
Tennyson was not fond of people who kept
detecting unconscious borrowings" by himself
from other poets. He said something very
sharp about them. Scott did not care; no, not
when he found that he had unwittingly taken
a line from a poem by the valet of friend
In the preface TO a little collection of verses
from his novels he frankly declares that he
cannot pretend to be certain which Of his
own composition and which not En- re-
vanche, when he heard Cleveland's song in The
Pirate" sung he said: Pretty words. Are they
iByrons?' To take an example from the Level
at the foot of Parnassus, I once read, in an
american paper some lines ATTRIBUTED 10 MI
freely to a friend. But it proved on me that
the rhymes were my own! bard who forgets
his own verses may be pardoned for remember
ing those of other people and mistaking
half line of somebody's else's for his own. L dare
say that Tennyson did this occasionally but
ne could hardly say that the sun sets without
being accused of unconscious borrowing.
One does not feel certain that memory. rather
than invention, marked many of the passages
where memory gets the credit. Kingsley wrote
The harbor bar is moaning" and Tennyson
wrote, May there be moaning of the bar
BUT what can a bar do if it does not moan
was Iennyson to try to find another phrase
no yelping of the bar mo roaring of the
bar" no growing of the bar'-or what?
'Murrnur of the barr is not sad enough for the
purpose Bon Gaultier had used the moaning
OF the tide with picture of a bowling bull
dog. the moaning Of the tiedo Did Bon
Gaultier borrow from Kingsley Kingsley
from Bon Gaultier? Then both Coleridge and
Ieiliiy sun write OF the last red ied1, or the
one red leaf. the last of its clan" What else
i ask. was Tennyson to call the last red leaf?
yellow" would not scan; brown" would not
be so good a point of color. Had Tennyson
foreseen Mr.. Bradley, he might have lodged
him by writing the last dead leaf; but that
might have been reproved by some other COM
mentator as implying that there also liv-
ing leaves-which. on deciduous trees, at that
season there we're not Tennyson has drop
ping day and Virgil has ''solem cadentem."
The sun must get down somehow, but Tenny-
sons way OF phrasing the days descent must
be unconscious Renaissance. Seraphic
flame reminds of Millions flaming seraph.
and Pope's ''rapt seraph that adores and burns"
Well. 1 presume that there is Hebrew author
ity for this hamboyant character or seraphS'
and any poet may make them blaze, if he likes,
off his own bat. The lines in lxxXiv CTenny-
sons regret that he could never be Uncle Alfred
to Hallam's chdren) are quite natural, and de-
manded neither originality nor "reminiscences
Hallam going 10 marry the poets sister;
their male issue, If any, would have been the
poets nephews. Mr.. Bradley remarks: 1t IS
unfortunate thau the finest lines recall Lamb
exquisite Dream Children l do not feel the
misfortune. Cannot man be sorry that ms
friends possible sons. his own nepheWs' must
never "babble uncle on my knee, without pe-
ing indebted consciously or unconsclously, 10
Lamb? Tennyson talks of tender gloom and
so does James Thomson: and Tennyson may
have unconsciously remembered or may nay
INDEPENDENTLY invented, the phrase. NOBODY
can say which view is right, and what does IL
matter? Mr.. Bradley justly remarks that 10
doubt Tennysons originality In the creation "a
poetic phrases would be 10 snow the extreme y.
critical incapacity It would, indeed-or, not
quite The real extreme Of incapacity Is as
played in the ''construes' of Tennysonlan pas
sages which Mr.. Bradley quotes from some OF
the commentators. / think OF mlddIe class
mind intellectually middle class going at IN
Memorian' earnestly, aided by these unspeak-
able commentators, and in search or culture;
I know that this middle class nina VIII ho S,
that Tennyson prigged that last RED leaf VI '''S
from Colerdge.
We NAV talk OF unconscious memory" but
this laborious dullard who reads poetry win
commentaries will run off with the wrong laea'
He is like the Young lady who, hearing LOCKS
ley Hail. read. allowed that ii was pretty out
asked Who is the individual Withers 1t is
a pity that such well meaning but helpless!y
prosaic persons should think II outy 10 SUI SUI,
.In Memortam" They won't "see Plotinus
Enn " Will l." they. are recommended 70
DO In a spirit much more Christian, ADMIT,
Than mine Mr. Bradley has tried to help these
weak brethren and sisters HIS account OF 'Ils
sequence Of ideas and general composition OF
I'm Memoriam." and his explicatlon OF Whht can "a
hardly be called the poets philosophy Nof ~
does not pretend to be philosophy are luclo
and generous. IT Is only the references 10 uh,
conscious borrowings and the revelations o.
the hallucinations of some commentators thaI
make me what Mr. Bradley calls tine ekas-
perated reader" Just conceive the cretln VINO
takes the gentleman requested to leave ms
sister when she prays," ETC. for-LaZarusi or Tor
Tennyson himself (xxxiiD. Yes. ethically may
be wrong-perhaps we ought 10 be gentle 10
the poor of spirit; perhaps we ought TO Try TO
teach them TO understand. But practcally
considering the brevity of life. is 1t unwlse TO
entreat them to go about their biameless busl-
ness and leave the MUSES. to persons porn I -
enjoy the Muses.? AT all events, n the 4ntereStS
Of NV peace of mind. | am glad that l never
read any other commentator an Tennyson take
refupa under his wings If he let interpreted
tions pass which unquestionably wrong,
he clearly did not disturb himself about les
pauvres d'esprit Mr.. Bradley writes: mere
are hosts of neutrality-suspicious. which l have
left unnoticed" Those hosts are the children
NJ les Dauvres d'esprit embarked IN a galley
where they have no business Mr. Bradley VIII
find higher matter for his oxford lectures.