. American lands and letters. ERS. Alcott of the Orphic Sayings. Among the helpers toward giving a propertranscendental tone to that quarterly, The Dial, ofwhich I have spoken in connection with MargaretFuller, Avas a man — almost of an earlier genera-tion — who sometimes showed his prophet face atBrook Farm, and whose clever daughter, MissLouisa Alcott, has been one of the most welcomepurveyors of story-delights for that generation ofchildren which grew up during our war of course, I allude to Bronson Alcott,* of whomEmerson said, in letters (perhaps meant to beprivate) — a most
. American lands and letters. ERS. Alcott of the Orphic Sayings. Among the helpers toward giving a propertranscendental tone to that quarterly, The Dial, ofwhich I have spoken in connection with MargaretFuller, Avas a man — almost of an earlier genera-tion — who sometimes showed his prophet face atBrook Farm, and whose clever daughter, MissLouisa Alcott, has been one of the most welcomepurveyors of story-delights for that generation ofchildren which grew up during our war of course, I allude to Bronson Alcott,* of whomEmerson said, in letters (perhaps meant to beprivate) — a most extraordinary man, and thehighest genius of his time ; and again — moreof tlie Goddike than in any man I have In these opinions, tis plain, Carljde did notshare; he writes to Emerson (July, 1842) Alcottcame . . bent on saving the world by a re-turn to acorns and the golden age ... a kind * Amos Bronson Alcott, b. 1799; d. 1888. Concord Days.,1872. Orphic Sayings, 1841-42.•| Cabots Emerson., vol. i., p. A. Bronson Alcott. BJ^ ALCOTT. 1S7 of Venerablo Don Quixote, whom nobody can ovonlaugh at without loving. This reforming Quixote, who sliared the advaneedviews of most radicals of his (\\\\. was born in asmall country town of Connecticut, on the edge oftwo centuries (1700). From his father he ii\-lierited mechanical aptitudes and little else. Hisschooling was limited and scrimpy ; and in extremeyouth he w^as started with a little budget of booksand trinkets upon a peddling expedition throughSouthern Virginia. ]\[rs. (Ilawthorne) Lathrop inrecent Keminiscences of her father, tells pleasantlyhow Mr. Alcott, in his later years, used to go over,with gusto, stories of his early Nirginian ingratiated himself with hospitable plantersand traders — beginning then and there his rhap-sodies of edifying talk : but making fcAV sales andbad ones (as he continued to do all his lif(>). In-deed his aptness for empty pockets was quite ex-ceptional. He
Size: 1270px × 1967px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublishernewyorkcscribnerss
