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Untitled Article
nine-days' wonder ; and that , fcuch is the conspiracy and collusion of publishers and literary coteries , that the breath and strength oi mutual puffing are expended in hoisting up to public notice creatures of the emptiest pretence , to the detriment of real talent . It is true that there is , and perhaps always will be , much of this
there will always be a number of men ready to rush forwards to the first seats of distinction , and sure to occupy them too , by the possession of those very qualities which the real children of genius generally want , impudence and hardihood ;—but let no friend of genius despair . The drums and cymbals of mercenary criticism may attract all ears and eyes , for a moment , to some worthless object , —but there is a wise public after all , and it is sure to detect
the cheat , and turn away in quest of unobtrusive merit . We muBt , and we need , never abandon our faith , for an instant , in the strength and immortality of mind . It is not , in its highest kind , so lavishly sown as to become valueless ; it cannot be long mixed up and confounded with its counterfeits , however they may swell and sparkle , and array themselves in raiment cut after its fashion . Iu the gardens of literature , the true plants may be
hidden , and perhaps for a considerable period , by a wild overgrowth of rampant weeds , —but be assured the old gardener Time will come , with his sturdy hoe , and down will go the weeds , however tall !—down they will go , mass after mass , however luxuriant , however they may have drawn one another up to a wondrous growth , however flaunting and showy they may be , and the lilies and roses will be 'left alone in their glory . '
Amongst the lilies of the pregent day , that have been less seen and admired than they deserve , there is one quietly flourishing in its pale and pearly beauty , beneath the boughs of the New Forest . Where it sprung up , there it has been suffered to grow ,
and spread its sweetness and mild splendour through the wood . Passing travellers have caught glimpses of it , and wondered at it for a moment , and then gone forward , leaving it to be the delight of a few who love beauty for itself , and care not whether they find it in field or garden , in cottage or in hall .
Without ftirther fig ure , I mean Caroline Bowles . There is no writer of the present day , of the same high talent , who has been so much overlooked , and remains so little known to general readers , nay , we may say , to those whose business it is to detect , and make everywhere familiar , the possessors of true genius . We have often asked professed critics if they admired the poetry
of Miss Bowles . * Miss Bowles ?'—has been the inquiring reply' is she a relative of William Lisle Bowles ? It is only when you mention her as a contributor to ' Blackwood ' s Magazine , ' that they recognise her as a writer . Perhaps one reason is the retiringness of her own nature , which makes her contented to enjoy the pleasures of intellect , and careless of a name- ; and another , not less probable , may be found in her weak place happening to be a want
Untitled Article
S 3 * The Writing * and Gmiut of Caroline Bowies .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), May 2, 1834, page 338, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2633/page/26/
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