Text: Willis (?), Literary, Evening Mirror (New York), November 16, 1844, vol. 1, no. 36, p. 2, col. 4

[page 2, column 4, continued:]

“DROPPING FROM THE HEART,” BY THOMAS MACKELLAR — must be taken for what they are. They are a fair subject for praises, not for criticism; and we rejoice that a working man, low in health and by no means prosperous in circumstances, can find such solace for the dark hours which drive so many to dissipation and misery.

SPARK’S AMERICAN BIOGRAPHY, — VOL. XIII, NEW SERIES, III: Boston, Little & Brown.

The task of furnishing a historical gallery of American Portraits could not have fallen into better hands than those of the editor of this work. The greatest, perhaps the only serious defect of the work, is the utter neglect of chronological order in the series. The reasons for this blemish are unknown to us, but they ought to be weighty. The first “Life” is that of a Revolutionary General, while the last goes back to the Pilgrim fathers, and the intervening sketches are of events occurring near the close of the 17th century.

We perhaps show our Knickerbocker predilections but we cannot help stating our preference for the tragical story of Jacob Leisler. It is a genuine New York tale, told by a New Yorker in a veritable New York spirit.

The narrative shows that, staid and sober, as was the character of our early settlers, there are not wanting incidents of a touching and heart-stirring character. We would cherish every interesting local association, springing from the ancient, time-honored periods of our history, and we therefore recommend the story of Jacob Leisler to every genuine son of New York.

GROWTH OF WESTERN LITERATURE. — We are happy to notice that seven out of the seventeen articles with the names of the authors, in the last two numbers of the Biblical Repository, are from persons connected with literary institutions west of the mountains. Among the subjects of the western writers are, The Writings of Martin Luther; Evidences from Nature for the Immortality of the Soul; and the Natural History of Man in his Spiritual Relations. Another article contains an able defence of presbyterianism. So far as we can judge from a hasty view, these subjects, some of which are the greatest that can employ the pen anywhere, are treated with tact and ability, and give us a favorable opinion of the condition of our western seminaries of learning. The remaining contributions are from New England, with the exception of one from Virginia. New York does not appear in the list of contributors’ names. It is published at 194 Broadway.