XLbc XCoucb ot ITnspiration 



best romances with the best recent analyti- 

 cal novel, and there will be no escape from 

 regret. That Dumas's style has been sur- 

 passed by recent writers cannot be denied ; 

 that his stories occupy too much space 

 goes without the saying : but he was not 

 ashamed of his imagination. We shall 

 have no more good novels till the Scotts 

 and the Dumases return to us. They 

 must return, however, fully abreast of the 

 time, and able to take in the meaning of 

 the later civilization. 



The poets have dwindled, too, under the 

 pressure of materialistic realism. We shall 

 not see much truly great poetry so long 

 as the dramatists and the lyrists restrain 

 their imaginations. Realism has never 

 produced one permanent drama, one im- 

 mortal novel, or one enduring lyric. 



148 



