Produced by David Widger
By Charles Dudley Warner
Thirty years ago and more those who read and valued good books in thiscountry made the acquaintance of Mr. Warner, and since the publication of"My Summer In a Garden" no work of his has needed any other introductionthan the presence of his name on the title-page; and now that reputationhas mellowed into memory, even the word of interpretation seemssuperfluous. Mr. Warner wrote out of a clear, as well as a full mind, andlucidity of style was part of that harmonious charm of sincerity andurbanity which made him one of the most intelligible and companionable ofour writers.
It is a pleasure, however, to recall him as, not long ago, we saw himmove and heard him speak in the ripeness of years which brought him thefull flavor of maturity without any loss of freshness from his humor orserenity from his thought. He shared with Lowell, Longfellow, and Curtisa harmony of nature and art, a unity of ideal and achievement, which makehim a welcome figure, not only for what he said, but for what he was; oneof those friends whose coming is hailed with joy because they seem alwaysat their best, and minister to rather than draw upon our own capital ofmoral vitality.
Mr. Warner was the most undogmatic of idealists, the most winning ofteachers. He had always some thing to say to the ethical sense, a wordfor the conscience; but his approach was always through the mind, and hisenforcement of the moral lesson was by suggestion rather than bycommandment. There was nothing ascetic about him, no easy solution of thedifficulties of life by ignoring or evading them; nor, on the other hand,was there any confusion of moral standards as the result of a confusionof ideas touching the nature and functions of art. He saw clearly, hefelt deeply, and he thought straight; hence the rectitude of his mind,the sanity of his spirit, the justice of his dealings with the thingswhich make for life and art. He used the essay as Addison used it, notfor sermonic effect, but as a form of art which permitted a man to dealwith serious things in a spirit of gayety, and with that lightness oftouch which conveys influence without employing force. He was as deeplyenamored as George William Curtis with the highest ideals of life forAmerica, and, like Curtis, his expression caught the grace anddistinction of those ideals.
It is a pleasure to hear his voice once more, because its very accentssuggest the most interesting, high-minded, and captivating ideals ofliving; he brings with him that air of fine breeding which is diffused bythe men who, in mind as in manners, have been, in a distinctive sense,gentlemen; who have lived so constantly and habitually on intimate termswith the highest things in thought and character that the tone of thisreally best society has become theirs. Among men of talent there areplebeians as well as patricians; even genius, which is never vulgar, issometimes unable to hide the vulgarity of the aims and ideas which itclothes with beauty without concealing their essential nature. Mr. Warnerwas a patrician; the most democratic of men, he was one of the mostfastidious in his intellectual companionships and affiliations. Thesubjects about which he speaks with his oldtime directness and charm inthis volume make us aware of the serious temper of his mind, of his deepinterest in the life of his time and people, and of the easy and naturalgrace with which he insisted on facing the fact and bringing it to thetest of the highest standards. In his discussion of "Fashions inLiterature" he deftly brings before us the significance of literature andthe signs which it