Doubtless, greater than any that
have come down to us, were among those lands, heroisms, persons, that
have not come down to us at all, even by name, date, or
location. Others have arrived safely, as from voyages over wide,
century-stretching seas. The little ships, the miracles that have
buoy'd them, and by incredible chances safely convey'd them, (or the
best of them, their meaning and essence,) overlong wastes, darkness,
lethargy, ignorance, &c., have been a few inscriptions--a few
immortal compositions, small in size, yet compassing what measureless
values of reminiscence, contemporary portraitures, manners, idioms and
beliefs, with deepest inference, hint and thought, to tie and touch
forever the old, new body, and the old, new soul! These! and still
these! bearing the freight so dear--dearer than pride--dearer than
love. All the best experience of humanity, folded, saved, freighted
to us here. Some of these tiny ships we call Old and New Testament,
Homer, Eschylus, Plato, Juvenal, &c. Precious minims! I think, if we
were forced to choose, rather than have you, and the likes of you, and
what belongs to, and has grown of you, blotted out and gone, we could
better afford, appaling as that would be, to lose all actual ships,
this day fasten'd by wharf, or floating on wave, and see them, with
all their cargoes, scuttled and sent to the bottom.
Gather'd by geniuses of city, race or age, and put by them in highest
of art's forms, namely, the literary form, the peculiar combinations
and the outshows of that city, age, or race, its particular modes of
the universal attributes and passions, its faiths, heroes, lovers and
gods, wars, traditions, struggles, crimes, emotions, joys, (or the
subtle spirit of these,) having been pass'd on to us to illumine our
own selfhood, and its experiences--what they supply, indispensable
and highest, if taken away, nothing else in all the world's boundless
store-houses could make up to us, or ever again return.
Pages:
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400