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    We should do car utmost to encourage'the Beautiful , for the Useful encourages ¦ ' . itself—Goethe .

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    '¦ ¦" '¦ ' ' ' .. ¦ ' ¦ XX . . ' Seven Hills , May 4 , 1853 . | i ! PpOU could scarcely understand , amid miei , how reluctant Margaret ra |^ @ , is to spealc , but still less if you kne ^ tr how well she speaks . Edf ^ Hps war des , who delights to draw out his young adversary , lias twitted WM&l her for days with not having completed the exposition of her Cs £ VD principles . " Principles ! " she replied : " women have no principles . Men have principles ; women have only intentions . " It was again by accident that we provoked her to explain herself . We had been going

    over good part of Itossini ' s greatest work , his own favourite , and Margaret's ; taking it up here and there . Julie , who grows more brilliant every day , and would be Margaret's companion in arms , or rather voice , but for a contingency that will spoil the mir Canadian for art by converting her into an English woman of " property , " had been singing the duet of the mother and son ; but had been deposed by the pitiless Margaret , who declared that Julie ' s singing had no sense of guilt or penafnce ^ -no tears in her voice ; and Yseult was put in her place . The duet between the two rival generals—and Stanhope is developing a very fair basso cantante of the austere order , —led to the other between Semiramide and Assur —•

    that wonderful compound of triumph , horror , and defiance . But'sweet Yseult , who could so passionately urge her son to strike home and avenge his father , has the voice but not the fierce heart for the indomitable defiance of the warrior queen , ; and in the midst of her threats to the dark traitor Assur , Margaret , exclaiming with irrepressible impatience— " Oh ! Yseult dear 1 "—began the melody again with her own voice . You know what the music is ; btit you would have been astounded if you had heard the force , the brilliancy , the triumphant dash with which the young contralto hurled forth the taunts of the audacious soprano , —like lightning in coruscating sound ; and she turned round on her music stool , as much as to tell Yseult— " That is the way to do it / ' -

    " But , Yseult , you see , " said Julie , in reply to the look , " however she may excel me in guilt and contrition , has no hardened defiance like that , Margaret . " " Thank heaven V cried Edwardes , " or some of us would not be safe ! But where did you get all these dark passions , Margaret ?" " . From nature , " she said . Perhaps the study had called it forth ; especially of Rossini , for there is not a passion which he lias not taught . All artists are so of the same school in that respect . It is often observed

    that they must know all parts of human nature , and be capable of all ; and she insisted on that , literally . The true artist must not only know each passion , as a matter of critical contemplation , but he must be capable of being the hero and the villain , the apostle and the apostate , the rescuer and the murderer , the tyrant and the victim that he paints ; ench in turn , though neither one exclusively . " " But how , "_ asked Edwardes , " would you apply this principle of evoking the genius of martyrdom , housobreaking , sudden death , and other virtues ?"

    " I don't know , " answered Margaret , ingenuously . "I have not studied philosophy ; only art a little ; and I observe that life consists in what I said the other day—in those same things that make the raw material of art . " " The application , " interposed Conway , "is not so difficult as Edwardes pretends . 1 on have to cultivate the faculties , not separately , but in one and the same man ; and Margaret counts upon the sum as being a complete and noble type of manhood , and therefore not base , truculent , and unsafe . " That may be all very well in a rude and barbarous , ov a mcdifeval and chivalrous state of society ; but at present , I confess , I neither boo the advantage nor necessity of cultivating murderers , martyrs , and other monsters . "

    "You need not , Edward , " Margaret answered for herself ; " ( hey are made tor you , as it is . You pretend only that those bad qualities and passions are suppressed . You protend that thoro is peace' or order in society , between man and man , between nation and nation ; but bow is the iacti > Are nil people 'living happy ever after ? ' Ts there no cowardice , no meanness , no tyranny , no breach of faith , no hypocrisy P" > j "Margaret is right , " said Conway . " Society in but one pretence , in winuh the appearance often is the reverse of the truth , Wo pretend to "odovotod to peace , and thus tacitly suflor thousands to bo flagellated , ringed , and imprisoned . ; besides tho fclioiiHiinds of patriot who ' aro still under spies . It ih ho over the greater part of Europe . Wo pretend to no-called virtues m our homes ; and yet , in proportion to the virtue is tho vico that clamours in the streets . "

    " Jtacanso you try to regulate life by abatiu " it " xvl " V ( nyjvnc > " RJ 11 < ! ¦ IMwardes ; " but I don ' t see how we can do otherw ise . We cannot induce society—at least , not Engli . sh society—to take J > crusades or kmght-errant enterprises .. Wo lock up our culprits in ' w lll ( f 'V ^ r 'V- / Or tho W - ° ITimt to exorcise bin virtue upon . Wo preior tJie Policeman to the knight-errant " i " , « d flo « ibty « oj » sonts to live the life of a policeman—in livery , with a "cat , and a thief , ever m the eye . " . Hut conio now , toll uh , Margaret , what you would do " am no reformer . " fio < 3 v' - /" 6 an y r / indivi ? JJ ! Sr- How , being thus discontented with iSlon « . ** ' y ° my y ° tt httV ° P" «« ij > lw , hub only With on instwit ' s pause , Margaret audW'We H , aC lmst j wouJd fc

    conform . Some must do so—they cannot help themselves . I could , or atJeast , would not ; and I flunk , she addeof , with a slight degree of indignation in her tone , that those who dissent from society , and do not mark their dissent , but conform , are trait ors to t heir own convictions , as well as to those who share them . There was a slight pause ; the blow hit more than one of her hearers " But , " asked Edwardes , " may not that arise from modesty ? Each one of us must feel that he cannot set the . world right , however it may be out of joint . Indeed , there is a certain presumption in thinking so . " Then there is a presumption in being a martyr . " " Exactly so . " " After you , sir ! " cried Julie ; " that is what Mr . Edwardes would say to the martyr . " " And there is a presumption , " continued Margaret , " in rescuing a

    fellow-creature . " ° " Without leave or apology I" exclaimed Julie . " There are many things in society of which we must disapprove , " said Edwardes ; " but we must combat them by reason . " " Yes , and example . Prove that it is possible to he rational , consistent , ' moral , ' and yet to hold opinions the reverse of those often held ; and then you will vindicate for truth its own self-dignity . " " Still , " said Conway , " there is a defect here ; and you do not seem to me to fetch it out , Margaret . It is impossible for us to act in the present state of society as you recommend , hypocrisy apart . You commend bodily exercises ; but what man of the middle class , father or son , can command the due quantum . We may be sick of the world ' hypocrisy , and yet our actions are not all our own , we drag others with us , and perhaps inflict on them the martyrdom to which we oiu-selves should be hardened . "

    "I told yon , " said Margaret , " that I could not give you principles , and if you cannot do it for me , . Alfred , it must remain undone . " " How unjust women are to their own faculties . And yet I do not know After all , thinking is not the only , or the greatest , function of the creation . Inception is greater—intention as you call it . What would you do , Margaret ; tell me your acts , and I will tell you your principles . " " I would do what I could . " . *¦ ¦ * " And what would that be in the ease sirpposed ? Do not fence with me , my dear girl . " " I am not , Alfred ; and only hesitate because you suppose a case which I have not before supposed , in which one could not act according to one ' s own conscience . In that case , I suppose , one should do nothing , except watch to help those that are more fortunately free ; but I think ' that we should all try to make ourselves free . "

    "let the freest of us cannot act exactly as he resolves . Laws compel . " " No , I know ; but compulsion exonerates conscience , and resistance to that which in irresistible only ends in . ridicule . So far as we think differently from those around us , or differently from the way in which those around us profess to think , we must act as if we were in a foreign country ; observing the manners and customs of the natives , so far as we are compelled , either by force of law , or by the desire not needlessly to outrageother people ' s feelings . " ° "That is your first principle . Next . " " ' . By viewing it in that light we shall avoid ill to others , and gratuitous trouble to ourselves , and still preserve our independence of mind " " Good . "

    " But then we should try to enlarge our independence of action as much as possible , because although independence of thought is I'miter than independence of act , and must come before that ; yet it . stops with itself if it be not expressed in word or act ; whereas , put in action , it acts other thoiiglit in motion . " " But how would you enlarge your independence of actP That is the whole question for some of us . " " I do not biow how all could ; I only know how some could . Artists must obey laws which others need not . . 1 mean if they are to be real artists , and not painters of still life , they must know tfie passions which others are taught to stifle ; and perhaps that is tho reason why other laws—the common laws , are not so strictly enforced them . "

    upon J . see it , cried Conway . " if a man wants to be ' free , he must be an artist , ihero is some truth in that ; at least , no man is freer than the artist , if he pleases . Especially a musician—the most purely n'stheticul , and non-intellectual of artists . An artist needs not ho oC any established sect : no , he may be of any sect , and siiu ? in the Miihh . lie needs not bind himself in wedlock if be disapprove of that bond—uhIcsh he yo to America . lie noeds not bo monarchical or anti-monarchical , ho that bin counterpoint be just , or bin voice pure . After all , however , if we extract leit does

    your princip , not apply exclusively to art , though i /; is quite natural that Margaret should' think of that . I siiHpod ; it depends on power , in any profession—except tho Church—a man of great power , not caring for ' society , ' might be practically independent . jSo might an artisan , or a shopkeeper , or a manufacturer , ii ' a genius in bin way . It all doponds on power . Yen , 1 see ; if we have power , wo limy be " independent—if wo have power , will , and conviction . That is it , Margaret . You won d , you Hay , obey positive compulsory laws . . Now , what do you mean IIV I'lliLl / 4

    " I mean , that a perfectly distinct law , which actually forces you to submit , should bo obeyed without resistance . For example , nobody in master of bia own notions till he is twenty-one years old : < lo not lot him attempt to act independently till that ago , except negatively . We can all oiusrefuHo to act ; we can't always act as we choose ; and I would do nothing till I wan by tho law fvoo " . The next hour 1 nliould no longer consider ohedionco duo to any one ; though F might consider deference duo to any poi-Hon on a subject which he understood bettor than

    myself . " "And all the while , " cried Julie , " Margaret bus been thought the qiuetost , most obedient , most docile of little girlw I So then , J ace you Wftit two yearts , and then . " J

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    OctdBfifc 22 , 1853 . ] T HE LE ADEK . 1027 ¦ \ ' '¦ . ' ¦¦¦ ¦ . ' - '¦ ¦ " ¦ ^ . —_¦ . . . .. ^ —*¦ " ¦¦ - T - - Y ----- 1 l , 1 - ' , n . n , " 1 - ' ' ¦ ¦ ' ' . - - ' --

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Oct. 22, 1853, page 1027, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2009/page/19/