CORNEILLE.

59

place of incident—the audience wept—and criticism wasmute. Corneille floundered miserably : love with himis always an adjunct and an episode, but not the wholesubject: it helps as a motive — it is never the end.He fancied that his young rival was angry with him forcompeting with him; and he gave signs of a queru-lousness which he had no right to feel* ; but there issomething so naive in his self praises, and such in-genuousness in his repinings, that we look on them astraits portraying the simplicity and singleness of hischaracter, rather than as marks of vanity or invidious-ness.

After “Berenice,’’hewrotetwootherplays, “Pulcherie”and “ Surena,” and then, happily, gave up composition.Though he saw the pieces of his young rival hailedwith delight, he had the gratification of knowing that hisown chef-d’oeuvres were often acted with applause, thatthe best critics regarded them with enthusiasm, and thathis position was firmly established as the father of French tragedy. He lived to a considerable age; and his mindbecame enfeebled during the last year of his life. Hedied on the 1st September, 1584, in the seventy-ninthyear of his age.

There is a harmony between the works of Corneilleand his character, which his contemporaries, who appre-ciated only the brilliant, mistook, but which strikesforcibly. He was proud and reserved. Though his de-dications are phrased according to the adulatory cere-monial of the day, his conduct was always dignifiedand independent. He seldom appeared at court, wherehis lofty, though simple, character found nothing toattract. He was, besides, careless of the gifts of for-tune : he detested the cares of property, shrinking,with terror, from such details. Serious, and evenmelancholy, trifles had no charms for him : dramatic

* See his “ Excuse k Ariste.” In another place he says, —

“ Si mes quinze lustres

Font encore quelque peine aux modernes illustres jS’il en est de facheux jusqu’a se chagriner,

Je n’aurai pasjong-temps £ les importuner.”