from the vale of the nor thern foot of Helvellyn, Paterdale, soon after their excursion.' "My dear Scott, "Paterdale, Nov. 7. 1805. "I was much pleased to hear of your engagement with Dryden; not that he is, as a poet, any great favourite of mine. 'I admire his talents and genius. highly, but his is not a poetical genius. The only qualities I can find in Dryden that are essentially poetical, are a certain ardour and impetuosity of mind, with an excellent ear. It may seem strange that I do not add to this, great command of language; that he certainly has, and of such language too, as it is most desirable that a poet should possess, or rather, that he should not be without. But it is not language that is, in the highest sense of the word, poetical, being neither of the imagination nor of the passions; I mean the amiable, the ennobling, or the intense passions. I do not mean to say that there is nothing of this in Dryden, but as little, I think, as is possible, considering how much he has written. You will easily understand my meaning, when I refer to his versification of 'Palamon and Arcite,' as contrasted with the language of Chaucer. Dryden had neither a tender heart nor a lofty sense of moral dignity. Whenever his language is poetically impassioned, it is mostly upon unpleasing subjects, such as the follies, vices, and crimes of classes of men, or of individuals. That his cannot be the language of imagination, must have necessarily followed from this; that there is not a single image from nature in the whole body of his works; and in his translation from Virgil, 1 From Lockhart's Life of Scott, vol. ii. p. 287. whenever Virgil can be fairly said to have his eye upon his object, Dryden always spoils the passage. "But too much of this; I am glad that you are to be his editor. His political and satirical pieces may be greatly benefited by illustration, and even absolutely require it. A correct text is the first object of an editor; then such notes as explain difficult or obscure passages; and lastly, which is much less important, notes pointing out authors to whom the Poet has been indebted, not in the fiddling way of phrase here and phrase there (which is detestable as a general practice), but where he has had essential obligations either as to matter or manner. to me. "If I can be of any use to you, do not fail to apply One thing I may take the liberty to suggest, which is, when you come to the fables, might it not be advisable to print the whole of the Tales of Boccace in a smaller type in the original language? If this should look too much like swelling a book, I should certainly make such extracts as would show where Dryden has most strikingly improved upon, or fallen below, his original. I think his translations from Boccace are the best, at least the most poetical, of his poems. It is many years since I saw Boccace, but I remember that Sigismunda is not married by him to Guiscard (the names are different in Boccace in both tales, I believe, certainly in Theodore, &c.). I think Dryden has much injured the story by the marriage, and degraded Sigismunda's character by it. He has also, to the best of my remembrance, degraded her still more, by making her love absolute sensuality and appetite; Dryden had no other notion of the passion. With all these defects, and they are very gross ones, it is a noble poem. Guiscard's answer, when first reproached by Tancred, is noble in Boccace, nothing but this: Amor può molto più che ne voi ne io possiamo. This, Dryden has spoiled. He says first very well, 'The faults of love by love are justified,' and then come four lines of miserable rant, quite à la Maximin. Farewell, and believe me ever, "Your affectionate friend, "WILLIAM WORDSWORTH." The beauties of Paterdale, whence this letter was written, for a time divided Wordsworth's affection with those of Grasmere. An account of a week's tour made by him in November of this year, with his sister, from Grasmere, over Kirkstone, to Paterdale, Ulleswater, and its neighbourhood, will be found in his "Description of the Lakes." It is from Miss Wordsworth's pen. At the head of Ulleswater, on the east side, stands the magnificent hill called Place Fell. Under it was a small cottage and a little estate which attracted his attention; and, hearing it might be purchased, he made an offer of a certain sum (8001.) to the owner of it. But the possessor would not accept less than 10007. This Mr. Wordsworth did not think it prudent to give. It happened, by chance, that the late Earl Lonsdale, who was not then acquainted with Wordsworth, heard at Lowther of the Poet's wish to possess it. Lord Lonsdale employed his neighbour, Mr. Thomas Wilkinson 2, who has been already mentioned in these pages, to negotiate the purchase; and, with a view of completing it, and under the impression that it was to be sold for that sum, his lordship paid 800l. to Mr. Wordsworth's account. This unexpected 1 p. 119-132., ed. 1835. 2 Above, p. 55. act of kindness, performed in the most gratifying manner, made a deep impression on the Poet's mind. It removed every remnant of painful feeling that might still have lingered there, in connection with a name recently borne by one who had debarred him, his brothers, and sister, from the enjoyment of their patrimony for nineteen years. The name of Lonsdale, rendered more illustrious, as it now was, by the private and public virtues of its noble possessor, became henceforth an object of affectionate respect to the household at Grasmere. Nor was this mark of regard the less appreciated by the Poet, although he thought it his duty to accept the property at Paterdale only on condition of paying 8007.'; and for the satisfaction of obtaining it at this price, he felt very thankful to Lord Lonsdale, whose donation was so far applied as to raise that sum to 1000l., the sum required to complete the purchase, and he was more grateful still for the unsolicited and unlooked-for generosity evinced in the proffered gift. Lord Nelson died October 21. 1805; Mr. Pitt's death took place in the following year, the 23d January; and Mr. Fox followed him on the 13th September. It has been mentioned already, that some features of Nelson's character suggested materials for Wordsworth's poem, the Happy Warrior 2, which was writ ten at this time. The following letter to Sir George Beaumont touches on that subject, and on the decease and character of Mr. Pitt: 14001. of which was supplied by Mrs. Wordsworth. To Sir George Beaumont, Bart. 'My dear Sir George, "Grasmere, Feb. 11, 1806. "Upon opening this letter, you must have seen that it is accompanied with a copy of verses. I hope they will give you some pleasure, as it will be the best way in which they can repay me for a little vexation, of which they have been the cause. They were written several weeks ago, and I wished to send them to you, but could not muster up resolution, as I felt that they were so unworthy of the subject. Accordingly, I kept them by me from week to week, with a hope (which has proved vain) that, in some happy moment, a new fit of inspiration would help me to mend them; and hence my silence, which, with your usual goodness, I know you will excuse. "You will find that the verses are allusive to Lord Nelson; and they will show that I must have sympathised with you in admiration of the man, and sorrow for our loss. Yet, considering the matter coolly, there was little to regret. The state of Lord Nelson's health, I suppose, was such, that he could not have lived long; and the first burst of exultation upon landing in his native country, and his reception here, would have been dearly bought, perhaps, by pain and bodily weakness, and distress among his friends, which he could neither remove nor alleviate. Few men have ever died under circumstances so likely to make their deaths of benefit to their country: it is not easy to see what his life could have done comparable The Happy Warrior. |