The Republican journal., 1903-01-29
HAWTHORNE.
AMERICAS GREAT STORY WRITER

AMERICAS GREAT STORY WRITER
| The fourth and last of the series of union
| vesper services and lectures on American
| Men of Letters was held in the Universalist
church Sunday evening, Jan. 25th. The
service was as follows:
Mrs ii. A. Drinkwater.
Anthem,
Choir-F. G. Mixer, c. E. White, Miss
Emma Skay, Miss Marion Wells.
S"''n 40 Rev. Harry Lutz
Solo, "'Twill not be long,
Mr.. White.
Rev Harry Lutz
Duet, "My thoughts are not as thy
thoughts" Hosmer
Misses Wells and Skay.
Reading from Hawthorne, description
OF visit to Niagara" and "The
Star of Calvary"
Rev. Harry Lutz.
Trombone solo, Calvary" Rodney
Fl. A. Drinkwater.
Hymn, ''Lord of all being Holmes
Choir.
Rev Ashley A. Smiths lecture on CLAW
thorne, Americas Great Story WRITER
was candid and interesting review of that
writer's life and work. Born in Salem
amid all the conditions Of the strictest Puri-
tanism, his mind naturally followed along
those lines. But his work would not have
pleased his Puritan ancestors, who would
have considered the writing of stories as
frivolous and ungodly. Yet Hawthorne
preached more effectively through his books
than did many members of the clergy from
their pulpits. Hawthorne was born July 4,
1904, and the date was prophetic of his char
acter and mind. He was distinctively
American, and seemed destined to do a
great work for his country. Yet it was not
until he was past middle life that he pro-
duced anything of Importance. The morn
ing after the publication of 'The Scarlet
Letter he awoke to find himself famous,
as did Byron after he published "Childe
Harold's Pilgrimage" We cannot fully
understand 1.-The Scarlet Letter" or ''The
House of Seven Gables" without knowing
something of the life of the author. Haw-
thorne's books have been compared with
those of Scott, Dickens, George Eliot and
others, but his greatness lay in different
direction from them. We may as well ex-
pect to see another Shakespeare as an
other Hawthorne. The three master
pieces of Hawthorne are 1.-The Scar
let Letter" 1.-The House of Seven Gables"
and the marble Fawn. These were
written amid surroundings tending to mel
ancholy, yet Hawthorne is never gloomy.
Reared among the StricteSt of Purtancal
ideas in Salem, his father dying when he
was mere lad and his mother retiring al
most wholly from the world, young Haw-
thornes early training was in the line of Sc
clusion and gloom. In addition to these he
spent some time, in the forests of Maine, and
in later years preferred solitary walk on
the SeaShOre to the more bustling scenes
and companionship of city or village life
Yet Nathaniel Hawthorne could see and
learn more in one solitary hour communing
with nature ana seeing few people than
some writer's would i'll the busy streets of a
metropolis. His writings were always
bright and cheerful and showed an insight
into human nature rarely met with. His
first novel was an inconspicuous failure and
is rarely heard of. For several years he
wrote anonymously for the papers and
magazines and afterwards compiled the
| stories in the well-known "Twice Told
Tales" We see the hand of a master in
the very simplicity of his writings. His
marriage was /, romance Illustrating the old
adage that truth is stranger than fiction. A
neghbor and playmate Of his early days
saw and admired his writings without
knowing who was the author and was
greatly surprised to learn that it was her
old schoolmate The natural outcome of
such a condition would be a marriage of
the parties, but Hawthorne married her
younger sister. His married life was con-
tinued happiness. His home life is reveal
ed in "Mosses From an Old Manse." 'The
Scarlet Letter. was written just after he
had lost political appointment, and in
this work his wife's encouragement was OF
great help to him. He afterwards Travelled
in England and Italy and quite extensively
in America and used the result of his OBJ
servations in his stories. He died in 1864,
and was buried at Sleepy Hollow in Con-
cord, where rest the remains of Longfelow,
Thoreau and other lights of American lit
erature.
The service closed with the hymn, "Tress
on, and the benedction.