Frederick Swartwout Cozzens

“ There is no book like the Old Testament for poetry. “Study the ancient Hebrew,” he would say, “These be thy Gods, O Israel!”
He was annoyed at carping critics, who found fault with Irving’s Knickerbocker’s History of New York. “There was no book like it; it was the only original book of the kind. A travestie of history! a travestie of what history! It is original, and full of Irving’s genius. Historians are great pilferers from one another. ”

“ But besides these daily contributions to the Post, Drake had written a poem, and Halleck had written another, for the National Advocate, a newspaper edited by Major Noah, and both poems were published within the time in which the Croakers appeared in the Post. I mean to say, that in six days Halleck and Drake had written ten poems; and in those six days they had made the most conspicuous mark in American poetry.
When we examine these light satires, we find them by no means trifling. They are like the Italian chain-mail, delicate in fabric, but impervious to assault. ”

“ When we reflect that, at this time, Halleck was the most popular poet in the country,—for Drake was dead and Bryant scarcely known,—and that no other American poet could be called his rival, we may well admire that unpretending modesty which always formed the chief charm in his character. Upon one occasion, in after-years, when he was invited to a brilliant party in New York, he declined the invitation, and said, quietly, to a friend, “I always avoided notoriety in my earlier days,—and I am too old a lion now to shake my mane in a lady’s drawing-room.” ”

“ Those who toil in the republic of letters often waste the midnight sweat of the brow in vain; at least, many years elapse before they are recognised.
Bryant’s “Thanatopsis,” and Halleck’s “Twilight of the Heart,” fell dead upon the public ear; for poetic taste had as yet been little cultivated in our country, forty years ago.
It is true that Philip Freneau, that brave old son of New York! had written some admirable poems during the Revolutionary war, some lines of which Byron, Campbell, and Scott did not hesitate to appropriate. ”

“ To show how delightful these joint labors were, to both these illustrious men, Halleck told me that, upon one occasion, Drake, after writing some stanzas and getting the proof from the printer, laid his cheek down upon the lines he had written, and looking at his fellow-poet, with beaming eyes, said, “O, Halleck, isn’t this happiness!”
Mr. Halleck rarely spoke of his own productions indeed, he seemed to think very lightly of them. Yet he had an unbounded admiration for Drake. Drake, on the other hand, did not think his own poems worth publishing or acknowledging. ”

“ By detracting from the reputation of those who have earned their bitter laurels—amidst toil, and poverty, and privation—they presume that the path to that glorious Temple is open and secure to them. It is a most unfortunate mistake. The true path for an American author to take is not to under-rate “Fanny” or the “Croakers,” not to show how “Alnwick Castle” or “Marco Bozzaris” might have been improved, if the creator of these poems had only been instructed properly in metre by the modest reviewer,—but to write a poem equal to any of them. ”

“ As time rolls on, Posterity rakes among the ashes of the Past for some live coals of genius, but it never disturbs the dust of critics. A magazine a month old is very old indeed. It is true, that some undiscriminating persons invoke the aid of the book-binder, and preserve these volumes,—persons with palatial residences, and a yawning chaos of shelves in that part of the mansion which the architect has set apart—The Library. ”

“ It has been often said, that Halleck’s poems exhibit great artifice in their construction, and show the clearness and polish of laborious composition. This is partly true, but scarcely any poet knew better than he how to reach the highest art of all—the art of concealing art. ”

“ Resolved, That while knowing the author and paying that tribute of heartfelt admiration of his genius as a poet, which had been ever accorded by all acquainted with his writings, we cherish the recollection of his personal worth and amiability of character, the charm of his enlivened conversation, and the grace which his presence imparted to social life.
Resolved, That Wm. Cullen Bryant, the life-long friend of the poet, be invited to prepare a memorial paper on the life and genius of Fitz-Greene Halleck, to be read before this Society at a special meeting, to be held for that purpose. ”

“ Bryant, many years ago, in the New York Mirror, from which I beg leave to quote a few lines:
“His poetry, whether serious or sprightly, is remarkable for the melody of its numbers. It is not the melody of monotonous and strictly regular measurement. His verse is constructed to please an ear naturally line, and accustomed to a range of metrical modulation.”
Edgar A. Poe, in rather a harsh criticism upon his writings, says: “Personally, he is a man to be admired, respected, but more especially beloved. ”

“ The ladies of New Haven are highly educated, literary women,—and as charming as any ladies can be anywhere. Well, one of these charming ladies said to me, ‘Oh, Mr. Halleck! you should have been here a few evenings ago! ”

“ Hackett to invite Mr. Halleck, Mr. Verplanck, and one or two other old friends to meet together, and have a good old-fashioned dinner. Halleck used to say, “Pretty much all my old friends are gone—except Bryant, Verplanck, and myself,—we are the last of the cocked hats.” But the projected dinner was unhappily interrupted by the decease of the poet, in whose honor it was intended to be given. I met Mr. Hackett and Mr. Verplanck, and agreed upon the day when I was to notify Halleck—and an hour after that meeting, I heard the sad news of his death. ”

“ In fact, Mr. Halleck told me that “Fanny” was published before Don Juan had crossed the Atlantic, and that he had adopted the versification of Beppo, one of Byron’s minor poems. But the story of Beppo is entirely different from either Fanny or Don Juan.
The last effort of Halleck is, I believe, a little epigrammatic quatrain, which he banded me one day. It was written in a lady’s album:
“All honor to woman, the sweet-heart, the wife,
The delight of the fireside by night and by day,
Who never does any thing wrong in her life,
Except when permitted to have her own way.” ”

“ This was before he had received the handsome sum of five hundred dollars from Mr. Bonner, of the “Ledger,” for Young America. “My first publisher failed,” said he, “and this deterred me from venturing upon a literary life, and placed me in a counting-room.”
He had a quasi admiration for lecturers. “I was in New Haven the other day,” Halleck said, lifting his hat with that deferential air which always made a point in his discourses, “I was in New Haven, and you know that New Haven is to Connecticut, what Boston is to Massachusetts—the intellectual centre of the State. ”

“ With his friends be is all ardor, enthusiasm, and cordiality; but to the world at large he is reserved, shunning society, into which he is seduced only with difficulty, and upon rare occasions.”
Miss Mitford, in her Recollections of a Literary Life, pays him a very high compliment, and quotes his “Young Thoughts have Music in them,” from Fanny, and his lines to Drake.
Samuel Rogers, writing to Irving, in 1837, says: “With Mr. Halleck’s Poems I was already acquainted, particularly with the first two in the volume, and I cannot say how much I admired them always. ”

“ There—in dust and cobwebs—row on row—the serried volumes stand! never to be disturbed—except by the Auctioneer.
Prominent among the contributors to these luckless volumes are the literary critics. They vainly imagine that they have been hewing their way to the foremost rank in public opinion. ”

“ But we may as well remember also, that although a thousand nameless architects have written essays to show how the Leaning Tower of Pisa should have been built, it still continues to hold its reputation as one of the Seven Wonders of the world, and still continues to lean. ”

“ He was always scrupulously correct in his dealings, no matter how trifling, and practised the greatest economy, so as to preserve his independence. He often used to refer to the fact that Burns, poor as he was, and a poet to boot, died without owing any one a single penny. ”

“ James Lawson, of this city, to the Southern Literary Messenger, November 25th, 1843, although written with great cordiality, does not award to Mr. Halleck as high a position as he deserves. It is not assuming too much to say, that Halleck, in his line, has not been approached yet by any one in this country, and that his line is a very noble one indeed.
There is one error in regard to Fanny, which should he corrected. It is generally said of it, that it is an imitation of Don Juan. ”

“ That is a historical mistake; Dr. Johnson, by his learning, by his genius, by his intellectual birth-gift, was a gentleman; and as a gentleman, he would not dine with a publisher!”
When he was sitting to Elliott for his portrait, the latter said to him, “Mr. Halleck, when you were in England, you no doubt saw some of the eminent poets whom you admire so much,—how did you like Wordsworth?” “I did not see him,” was the reply. “Well, of course you saw your favorite Campbell?” “No, I did not see Campbell.” “Indeed! ”

“ Other critics of less note urge, that, as they are merely local poems, they have lived their little life, and will be quietly forgotten, when the actors whose deeds they commemorate have passed from the scene. ”

“ B. Astor added to this a gift of ten thousand dollars. It was the first gift ever given by a wealthy man to a poet, in this country. It was certainly noble and generous. Opulence often pays thousands of dollars for a picture, to secrete in a private gallery; but the greater artist, the Poet, whose works ennoble mankind, is too often forgotten.
I asked Mr. Embury, one day, why it was that John Jacob Astor had left Halleck, his faithful clerk, only this trifling sum. “I think I can explain that,” he said. “Halleck often used to joke Mr. ”