OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. lOI 



his scolding and his satire; it is so smooth it does not sting. 

 Thus :t is that we come to Thackeray as to a master, our critical 

 rules all forsworn and laid aside. He dictates to us, not we to 

 him, and for education in the art of saying things we must simpl)^ 

 read and listen till the power of it permeates the mind. It is 

 not so rich or so sublime a style as that possessed by two other 

 masters of Knglishin the Victorian age, Ruskin and Martineau, 

 but in practical usefulness and reserve, in efficiency and good 

 sense, it surpasses them. It never runs away with him. The 

 engineer, you are sure, is ever sitting serene, smiling and cheer- 

 ful in the place of command, master of his instrument. 



See how compact and terse his way and manner is ! Not a 

 word wasted, each in its place, like well-trained servitors. You 

 need not sift a mass of verbiage for a faint idea ; the selection 

 has been made for you ; each sentence drives directl}" to its 

 mark ; it is luminous, almost self-luminous ; there can be no 

 mistake as to what i.<= meant. Every paragraph is compact and 

 finished, its subject is treated firmly- and then dropped. Here 

 is none of that oscillation, beating back and forth with hesitat- 

 ing step, fearful lest we have not said enough to make our mean- 

 ing clear, which marks the work of those who are not sure of 

 themselves. Here you may study the art of compression at its 

 best, whole chapters in a verb or adjective ; telling epithets with- 

 out the slightest attempt at display, no redundant descriptions 

 or fine writing for its own sake. Nor is the effect of this unity 

 of style jerk}^ or abrupt. All is calm and well controlled. No 

 evidence of haste appears. Words enough are used to keep the 

 reader's patience from sufftering jolt or hurt. In short, the lan- 

 guage is transparent, a vehicle to convej^ and not conceal 

 thought. Thackeray invites you to a journej^ not too hurried, 

 and, as the advertisements say, everything will be done that is 

 possible to promote the comfort and convenience of the travel- 

 ler. The attention of the tourist will be economized to the last 

 degree. He will not even (and perhaps this has its disadvan- 

 tages, as we should see in turning to Browning) he will not even 

 be called on to do over-much thinking for himself. The imag- 



