ABSTRACT
Since the publication of Philip Van Artevelde,1 we have met with no such evidences of poetical genius, and of general intellectual power, as arc contained in this volume. It is a philosophical view of incident, to create and evolve the crisis he desires to produce, prefers to display somewhat minutely the mood itself in its rise and progress, and to suffer the agency by which it is influenced and determined, to be generally discernible in its effects alone, and subordinate, if not altogether excluded. The effect of this mode of treatment is necessarily severe, and the reader who takes up the volume must be prepared accordingly. He will find enough of beauty to compensate him for the tedious passages, were they ten times as obscure and tedious. A rich vein of internal sentiment, a deep knowledge of humanity, an intellect subtle and inquisitive, will soon fix his interest, and call forth his warmest admiration. He will probably read the book twice-as we have done… It is some time since we read a work of more unequivocal power than this. We conclude that its author is a young man, as we do not recollect his having published before. If so, we may safely predict for him a brilliant career, if he continues true to the present promise of his genius. He possesses all the elements of a fine poet.
