Year: 1860




A writer in the November number of the
Atlantic Monthly thus speaks of the pathetic
writings of Tom Hood:


Hoods pathos eliminates in 1.-THE Song of
the Shirt" "The Lay of the Laborer." and
9 The Bridge of Sighs." These are marvellous
lyrics. In spirit and in form they are sim
gular and remarkable. We can not think of
any poems which more show the mystic
enchantment of genius. How else was a
ragged seamstress in a squalid garret made
immortal; nay, made universal; made to
stand for an entire sisterhood of wretched-
ness2 Here is the direst poverty, blear-eved
sorrow, dim and dismal suffering-nothinp of
the romantic. A stern picture it is, which
even the softer touches render sterner; still
there is nought in it that revOlts or shocks;
it is deeply poetic, calls into passionate ac,
tion the feelings Of reverence and pity, and
has all the dignity of tragedy.


Even more wonderful is the transforma-
ton that rustic hind undergoes in "The
Lay of the Laborer," in which a peasant out
of work personifes, with eloquent impress
sions, the claims and calamities of toiling
manhood. But an element of the sublime Is
added in "The Bridge of Sghs.' In that
we have the truly tragic for we have in it
the union of guilt, grief despair and DEATH
An angel from Heaven, we think, could not
sing a more gentle dirge or one more pure;
yet the ordinary associations suggested by
the corpse of the poor, ruined, selEmurdered
girl are such as to the prudish and fastidious
would not allow her to be mentioned, much
less bring her into song. But in the pity
almost divine with which Hood sings her
fate there. is not only spotless delicacv,
there is also morality as elevated as the
heavenly mercy which the lyrist breathes.


The pure can afford to be pitiful and the
life of Hood was so exemplary that he had
no fear to hinder him from being charitable.
The cowardice of conscience is one of the
saddest penalties of sin; and to avert suspi-
| cion from ones self by severity to others is,
| indeed, the most miserable expediency of
| self-condemnation. The temper of charity
and compassion seems natural to men OF
letters and of art. They are emotional and
sensitive, and by the necessity of their vo-
cation have to hold much communion with
the inmost consciousness Ofour nature; they
thus learn the weakness of man, and the al
lowances that he needs; they are conversant
with q broad and diversified humanity and
thence they are seldom narrow, intolerant
or self-righteous; feeling, too, their full
full share ofmoral and mortal imperfection
| they refuse to be inquisitors of the un-
fortunate, but rather choose to be their ad.
vocates and helpers.


No man ever had more ofthis temper than
Hood; and out of it came these immortal
! lyrics upon which we have been comment
ing. For such temper the writing of these
| lyrics was exceeding great reward; not only
| because they made the author an everlasting
| benefactor to the poor, but also because they
became an Interpretation of his own deeper
genius, and revealed nobler meaning in
his works than had ever before been dis,
cerned. Henceforth, he was more thought
of as profound poet than as the greatest O
mines, testers and punsters. The lyrics O
the poor saved him from imminent injus
tice.