Part 12

'Where multitudes of virtues passed along, Each pressing foremost in the mighty throng; Contending to be seen, then making room For other multitudes which were to come;'

that life in all its purity, in all its elevation, in all its grandeur, was the life of an American citizen. I claim him--I claim WASHINGTON--wholly for America.'

No wonder that 'great cheering'--that 'enthusiastic,' 'prolonged,' 'deafening,' 'long-continued,' 'renewed' applause--followed the utterance of these sentences, from the united voices of a great multitude which no man could number! There swelled the National Heart; there went up to Heaven the voice of a great People, speaking to Posterity.

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'THE POETRY OF LIFE.'--This volume by Mrs. ELLIS, author of the 'Women' and 'Wives' of England, savors of professional book-making. Sitting deliberately down to tell her readers how much poetry may be extracted from the moon, trees, animals, evening, sound, language, grief, flowers, woman, rural life, and the like, strikes us as a 'dead set' at the sentimental; and however well the task may be accomplished, it is but bringing together a confused mass of pleasurable or other emotions, which may not be altogether common to all the world and Mrs. ELLIS. In her description of the poetry of the Bible, she has omitted by far the most prominent exhibitions of that prevalent feature in the Sacred Word. The sublimity and exquisite beauty which characterize the book of Job; the unequalled story of Joseph and his Brethren; the touching pathos of PAUL; it would not have been amiss, one would think, to have included in a notice of the poetry of the Bible. In her essay upon the 'Poetry of Language,' Mrs. ELLIS presents the annexed interesting exhibition of verdancy:

'THE introduction of unpoetical images may be pardoned on the score of inadvertency, but it is possible for such images to be introduced in a manner which almost insults the feelings of the reader, by the doggerel or burlesque style which obtains favor with a certain class of readers, chiefly such as are incapable of appreciating what is beautiful or sublime. One specimen of this kind will be sufficient. It occurs in a volume of American poetry:

'THERE'S music in the dash of waves When the swift bark cleaves the foam; There's music heard upon her deck, The mariner's song of home. When moon and star-beams smiling meet At midnight on the sea-- _And there is music once a week In Scudder's balcony._

'The moonlight music of the waves In storms is heard no more, When the living lightning mocks the wreck At midnight on the shore: And the mariner's song of home has ceased; His course is on the sea-- _And there is music when it rains In Scudder's balcony._'

'What could induce the poet to spoil his otherwise pretty verses in this manner, it is difficult to imagine; but as this is by no means a solitary instance of the kind, we are led to suppose that the minds, in which such incongruities originate must be influenced by the popular notion of imitating Lord BYRON, in the wild vagaries which even his genius could scarcely render endurable.'

Isn't this rather rich, friend HALLECK? We doubt whether Mrs. ELLIS could take a joke, though it were shot at her from a cannon. Indeed, she would doubtless reply to this remark: 'But how can you shoot a joke out of a cannon? Surely, that can hardly be feasible!'

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GOSSIP WITH READERS AND CORRESPONDENTS.--A Friend, writing to us from the City of Brotherly Love, under date of 'Sixth-month 15th,' respectfully inquires: 'Will the Editor accept a few remarks on the communication of 'N. S. D.', from a plain Quaker; one, whose ancestors were Quakers, and who, after a close historical scrutiny, is not ashamed to claim _kith_, if he cannot _kin_, with those of that profession who were hung on Boston Common, or were beaten at cart-tails from village to village throughout puritanic New-England?' To which we cheerfully answer: 'Yea, certainly, Friend 'N.' Lift up thy voice against the accuser of the brethren, and welcome:'

'FROM the days of COTTON MATHER down to the present time, it has been the constant aim of the defenders of the reputation of the founders of New England, to cast upon the early Quakers all manner of aspersions. A few years since, a writer in the 'North-American Review,' having occasion to allude to the banishment of MARY FISHER and ANNE AUSTIN, the first Quakers who ever visited the western world, declared that it was for molesting and interrupting ministers in their places of worship. This assertion is also made by a clergyman of Philadelphia, in a discourse delivered on the anniversary of the landing of the 'Pilgrim Fathers;' with this addition, that one of these women went naked into a place of worship. THESE CHARGES ARE NOT TRUE. I do not believe the reviewer, nor the Doctor of Divinity (so called) wilfully misrepresented the truth; but I believe them culpable in taking for granted assertions of writers living long posterior to the events they describe, without examining for themselves the original documents remaining on the subject. The records of the Massachusetts Colony, as collected by HAZARD, as well as the narratives published at the time by the friends of the sufferers, conclusively show that neither MARY FISHER nor ANNE AUSTIN had ever set foot on the shores of New England until they were taken as prisoners from the vessel in which they came passengers, and carried to the jail of the colony. Deputy governor BELLINGHAM having received intelligence that two female Quakers were in the ship Swallow, then at anchor in the Bay, commanded that they should be closely confined therein, and that all their books should be taken from them, and burned by the hangman. A writer of that day, in reference to the person employed to effect this conflagration, quaintly remarks: 'O, learned and malicious cruelty!--as if another man had not been sufficient to have burnt a few harmless books, who, like their masters, can neither fight, strike, nor quarrel.' At that time there was no law against Quakers; but the council deemed that they were liable to the penalties of a law passed in 1646, against heresy and error, which decreed to banishment the opposers of the baptism of infants, and all such as denied the lawfulness of war. The order of council in this case is now before me, bearing date 'the 11th of July, 1656.' It commences with enumerating the former laws against heretics, and goes on to say, that, notwithstanding these, SIMON KEMPTHORN had brought in two Quakers, who, on examination, are found to hold very dangerous and heretical opinions, which they acknowledge they came purposely to propagate. It directs that the books of the prisoners shall be burned; that the prisoners themselves shall be kept close, and none admitted to see them without leave from the governor, deputy-governor, or two magistrates; and that the said SIMON KEMPTHORN is hereby enjoined, speedily and directly to transport, or cause to be transported, the said persons from hence to Barbadoes, from whence they came, he defraying all the charges of their imprisonment; and for the effectual performance hereof, he is to give security in a bond of one hundred pounds sterling, and on his refusal to give such security, he is to be committed to prison till he do it.'

'Of the four individuals put to death at Boston, after examining all the records extant in the respective cases, the apologies issued by JOHN NORTON and the 'General Court' of Massachusetts, I am prepared to say, that there is not the slightest evidence that they were disturbers of the public peace, or violators of public decorum. The charges brought against them prove indeed that they came to Massachusetts, alleging it was from a sense of religious duty, and that while there, as free-born citizens of England, they refused a voluntary submission to laws violating the rights guarantied them by Magna Charta, and the Common Law of England. I wish not to consume space, but would make a few remarks on the 'frequent occasions' in which the early Quakers, according to 'N. S. D.', went 'stark naked into the public assemblies.' Women of respectable connections, easy fortunes, liberal education, and modest demeanor and carriage, for preaching the gospel, and for merely coming to New-England to look after their rightful possessions, were from time to time stripped naked to the waist, and whipped from township to township; and yet the nice sense of modesty of the New-England folk of that day was not shocked. In 1664, when these scenes had been enacted for seven years, LYDIA WARDELL, who had been summoned repeatedly to appear before the congregation at Newbury, and whose mind was no doubt under much excitement in sympathy with her fellow-believers in their sufferings, went into the place of worship in that village, stripped in the manner the magistrates were continually stripping her friends. The modesty of the people was sorely offended; and seizing her and her female companion, they stripped the latter, and tying their naked bodies to the whipping-posts, with many lashes earnestly laid on, endeavored to heal the wounds inflicted on the sense of decorum of the gaping crowd.

'I have not taken up my pen to defend the conduct of LYDIA, but merely to state the facts of the case. Beside this instance, one other individual, a few months afterward, under similar excitement, performed a similar action. Now to our conclusion. These cases, which are the only ones a close examination of the charges of contemporaneous enemies of the Society, and the defense of its friends exhibit any trace of, are brought forward at this day in justification of acts of oppression committed long before these occurred; Turn to the statements forwarded to England to excuse the murder of STEVENSON, ROBINSON, DYER, and LEDDRA; examine the reasons assigned by NORTON and the 'General Court' for their proceedings. Their enmity to the Quakers is strong, but not the slightest hint is given that these suffered because of any indecent exposure, or that the general persecution the Society at that time endured was occasioned by acts of this or a kindred nature. And why? Because the first instance of the kind occurred more than three years after the death of LEDDRA, the last Quaker martyr in New-England. It is a remarkable fact, that soon after these two cases of voluntary exposure, the public stripping of Quaker women ceased. What effect these had in changing the feelings of the community, I cannot tell; but it is certainly a curious coincidence, that after this period the records of courts, and the copious annals of our Society, scarcely exhibit an instance of these cart-tail indecencies. The rest of the charges of 'N. S. D.' are equally unfounded; and, with sufficient space for quotations, might be satisfactorily confuted.

N.'

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RELIGIOUS or sectarian controversy is foreign to the purpose of the KNICKERBOCKER; yet we could not decline the calm consideration of facts brought forward to correct alleged misstatements. 'If,' says the writer, 'N. S. D.' wishes information on a subject with which he seems to be unacquainted, I should like to refer him to works wherein he may find the original documents.' For our own part, we think, as we have already partly intimated, that 'the less said the better' touching the treatment of the Quakers and 'others of the Non-elect' by the New-England Puritans. WASHINGTON IRVING has driven a long nail home on this theme: 'The zeal of these good people to maintain their rights and privileges unimpaired, betrayed them into errors, which it is easier to pardon than defend. Having served a regular apprenticeship in the school of persecution, it behooved them to show that they had become proficients in the art. They accordingly employed their leisure hours in banishing, scourging, or hanging, divers heretical Papists, Quakers, and Anabaptists, for daring to abuse the 'liberty of conscience,' which they now clearly proved to imply nothing more than that every man should think as he pleased in matters of religion, _provided_ he thought _right_; for otherwise it would be giving a latitude to damnable heresies. Now as they were perfectly convinced that they alone thought right, it consequently followed that whoever thought differently from them, thought wrong; and whoever thought wrong, and obstinately persisted in not being convinced and converted, was a flagrant violator of the inestimable liberty of conscience, and a corrupt and infectious member of the body politic, and deserved to be lopped off and cast into the fire!' * * * WE are indebted to a most kind correspondent for the following excerpt from his note-book. It is an extract made many years ago from some author, whose name and that of his work our friend has alike forgotten. How many just such thoughtless, rattle-brained, _aimless_ talkers have we encountered! We rather like the practice of an old friend of ours in this regard! He makes it a point, he says, never to _inquire_ after any body!

'WHOEVER has visited Cambridge, can hardly fail of recollecting Lady ----. The leading idea of her life was to _do the pretty_; to say civil things and make agreeable speeches. But alas! her ladyship was not infallible, and sometimes with the very best intentions would fail desperately. They relate of her at Cambridge, that during a series of concerts which Madame CATALANI gave at the last grand commencement, this Queen of Song was staying at the house of her friend Mrs. F. At an evening party at D---- Lodge, Lady ---- was invited to meet her. 'My dear Madame CATALANI! how delighted, how transported I am to see you! When did you arrive? How is Monsieur VALBRIQUE? and your dear little boy?' CATALANI changed color; her lip quivered, and her fine dark eyes filled with tears, as she murmured: '_Ah! pauvre petit, je l'ai perdu!_' 'What an engaging, interesting, elegant little creature he is!' '_Je l'ai perdu!_' shrieked the foreigner, in a tone of agony. Lady ---- had forgot her French. 'Is he, indeed? I am happy to hear it. I always said he would come out something extraordinary.' '_Je l'ai perdu! Je l'ai perdu!_' cried poor CATALANI, in a more piercing tone, and with increased emotion. 'Don't exert yourself; yes, yes; I understand you, perfectly; well, pray remember me to him very kindly, since he is not with you, and offer him my congratulations.' '_He is dead! he is dead!_ Lady ----,' said Mrs. F. impatiently. 'Dead! Why didn't somebody tell me so? Poor little fellow! And so he's dead! Well, I declare, I am very sorry for him! Dead! That's very surprising!' On another occasion she said to another distinguished guest: 'Ah! my dear Mrs. SIDDONS, what an unexpected gratification to see you at Cambridge! How d'ye do? Ah! but you are altered, when one comes to look at you! very much altered! Let me see; it must be thirty years ago since Sir BENJAMIN and I were first delighted with your Lady Randolph. How life ebbs away! What changes we see! It was poor EDWIN'S night, I think. Surely, that was the Augustan era of the British Theatre! Ah! poor EDWIN! he's gone! And PALMER, Gentleman PALMER, he's gone! And DODD--clever actor, DODD--he's gone! We live in a world of changes!' Mrs. SIDDONS looked sad, and was silent. 'I've been recollecting when it was I saw you last. It must be about fourteen years ago. You played Queen Catherine, and your gifted brother JOHN played Wolsey. What a heat it was! Dear JOHN KEMBLE! and _he's_ gone!' Mrs. SIDDONS burst into tears. 'Amiable creature!' said Lady ---- to the astonished by-standers; 'what an affectionate heart she has!'

WE once saw a painting of the SAVIOUR OF MEN, which we could well deem to be like the divine original; and never while we live shall we forget the heavenly face which the artist had depicted. It was the countenance of a 'man of sorrows, acquainted with grief:' there was a pervading _pathos_ in its expression, which 'brought the water-drops to our eyes.' The picture is now in Germany, where it was painted; and we can never hope to see another so perfect an embodiment of our conception of the lineaments of the REDEEMER. There was something in the _ensemble_ of the picture which we remember to have thought was like a description, by an eye-witness, of the SAVIOUR'S personal presence, which we had read in our youth, and which we were glad recently to encounter in an old common-place book. It was addressed by PUBLIUS LENTULLUS, President in Judea in the reign of TIBERIUS CÆSAR, to the Senate of Rome:

'CONSCRIPT FATHERS: There appeared in these our days a man of great virtue, named JESUS CHRIST, who is yet living among us, and of the Gentiles is accepted for a Prophet of truth; but his own disciples call him the SON OF GOD. He raiseth the dead, and cureth all manner of diseases. A man of stature somewhat tall and comely, and in proportion of body well shaped; his hands and arms delectable to behold; with a very reverend countenance, such as the beholders may both love and fear. His hair is of the color of a filbert full ripe to his ears, whence downward it is more orient of color, somewhat curling or waving about his shoulders. In the midst of his head, is a seam or partition of his hair, after the manner of the Nazarites. His forehead is plain and delicate. His cheeks without spot or wrinkle, beautified with a comely red; his nose and mouth exactly formed. His beard is thick, the color of his hair; not of any great length, but forked. His look innocent and mature. His eyes gray, dear, and quick. In reproving he is awful; in admonishing, courteous and friendly; in speaking, very temperate, modest, and wise. It cannot be remembered that any have seen him laugh, but many have seen him weep. A being for his singular beauty surpassing the children of men.'

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LET us add here a beautiful sonnet, on this great theme, which we derive from an esteemed friend and contributor, who has been kind enough to copy it for us from the writer's manuscript:

JESUS.

By Rev. Theodore Parker.

JESUS, there is no dearer name than thine, Which Time has blazoned on his ample scroll: No wreaths nor garlands ever did entwine So fair a Temple or so vast a Soul. Ay, every Angel set his comely seal Upon thy brow, and gave each human grace, In a sweet copy Heaven to reveal, And stamp Perfection on a mortal face. Once on the earth, before dull mortal eyes, Which could not half thy sacred radiance see, (E'en as the emmet cannot read the skies,) For our weak orbs reach not Immensity, Once on the earth wast Thou a living shrine, Where shone the Good, the Lovely, the Divine.

THE '_Plebeian_' daily journal of Gotham is down upon the _Yanokies_ or Yankees, with a weapon swung round like a flail; and like another valiant defender of the KNICKERBOCKERS before him, he has raised such a buzzing about his unlucky head, that he will need the tough hide of an ACHILLES or an ORLANDO FURIOSO, to protect him from their stings. We do not like the _nucleus_ of the ball which our sturdy democrat has set in motion--the glorious battle of Bunker-Hill; but for the rest, we should do dishonor to the spirit of our great historian and sire, if we did not applaud the prowess which is displayed in this warfare upon a set of 'dieven, schobbejaken, dengenieten, twist-zoëkeren, loozenschalken, blaes-kaken, kakken-bedden;' a squalling, bundling, guessing, questioning, swapping, pumpkin-eating, molasses-daubing, shingle-splitting, cider-watering, horse-jockeying, notion-peddling crew! Let the 'Defender of the Faithful' continue to ply his trenchant quill: thousands of crowded and jostled KNICKERBOCKERS are heart and soul in the contest; and the spirit of WILLIAM THE TESTY, who was translated to the firmament, and now forms a very fiery little star somewhere on the left claw of 'the Crab,' looks approvingly down upon the warfare! We confess that we find it in our hearts greatly to rejoice that the descendants of HABBAKUK NUTTER, RETURN STRONG, ZERUBBABEL FISK, and DETERMINED COCK, those losel scouts who overreached STOFFEL BRINKERHOFF, are to be taught that the 'sins of the fathers may be visited upon the children,' by a right valiant son of New-Amsterdam. When we bethink us how these Yankee varlets penetrated into the New-Netherland settlements, and bored our taciturn progenitors with their volubility and intolerable inquisitiveness; bringing the honest burghers to a stand on the highway, and torturing them with questions and guesses; 'and which is more,' seducing the light affections of the simple damsels from their ponderous Dutch gallants, and introducing among them the ancient practice of _bundling_; when we call to mind how that long-sided, raw-boned, hardy race received the proclamations of the sage Governor of New-Amsterdam, treating them with contempt, and applying them to an unseemly purpose, and foully dishonoring the valorous VAN CURLET, who bore them; when we remember these things, and also how that the tribe has been spreading wider and wider, and growing more impertinent every day; we cannot find it in our heart to regret that a doughty champion has come out against them, to expose their braggadocia and annihilate their pretensions. By the beard of MAHOMET! do they think that wisdom and patriotism lived alone and is to die with them? Because they are virtuous, are there to be no more cakes and ale? Is their aspiring metropolis, climbing upon its little hills to look down upon itself, to eclipse the great capital of the Manhaddoes? Is imperial Rome, in comparison, to be voted a rat-hole, 'Nineveh,' a nook, Babylon a baby-house, and Pekin the paltriest pile of the pigmies?' Unanimously, in this meridian, the KNICKERBOCKERS 'reckon not!' * * * WE place the following passages from recent letters of two excellent friends in juxtaposition, for an especial reason. The epistles are not dated far apart; and in the second, the writer, who dwelleth near 'MASON and DIXON,' descants upon the awful climate hereabout in the summer months. Infatuated person! Observe what he of Tinnecum, living scarcely eight miles away, saith: 'I have watched a fair opportunity to invite you to this '_verum et secretum_ μουσειοι.' The woods are gloriously animated; the fields deliciously green; the west winds overburdened with clover; the sea-shore breezes are life-inspiring; and to quote Greek again from one of the noble bursts of the chorus, I love to sit upon a piazza, with my picturesque head of hair ensnarled in the breeze, and sing out:

Αυρα, ποντιας αυρα, Αυρα, ποντιας αυρα.