Carlyle

One might think at first that it was a Universal Lawthat all Writing or Speaking should be so clear as tobe transparent. And yet, as we have seen, no readerof Carlyle can doubt that a great deal of his Forcewould be gone if one made his Writings transparent.If one took some of Carlyle's most typical works andparaphrased them in simple English, the effect wouldnot be a quarter as good as it is.

As to the other extreme, it is a questionwhether a sentence can be too clear, whether the Ideacan be too simply expressed ; and, if we once admitthat Carlyle's writings produced a greater effect anda better effect than they would have done if they hadbeen perfectly clear, then we must admit that forcertain purposes absolute Clearness is a Fault.

No Writer seems to be going off the point, and tobe violating the Law of ' Unity ' and Economy, morethan Carlyle does. As we read his "Frederick theGreat", the characters at first appear to us to have nomore connexion with one another than the characters

“Man is a Tool-using Animal (Handthierendes Thier). Weakin himself, and of small stature, he stands on a basis, at mostfor the flattest-soled, of some half square-foot, insecurelyenough; has to straddle out his legs, lest the very windsupplant him. Feeblest of bipeds! Three quintals are acrushing load for him; the Steer of the meadow tosses himaloft, like a waste rag. Nevertheless he can use Tools, candevise Tools: with these the granite mountain melts intolight dust before him; he kneads glowing iron, as if it weresoft paste; seas are his smooth highway, winds and fire hisunwearying steeds. Nowhere do you find him without Tools;without Tools he is nothing, with Tools he is all.”

Selections from CarlyleEdited by H. W. BOYNTON. i2mo, cloth, 288 pages. Price, 75 cents.

Imitation t o be avoided. Avoid the mannerisms andpersonal peculiarities of method or style of well-knownwriters, such as Carlyle or Macaulay.