Christian Intelligencer
Christian Intelligencer, office Ann and Nassau, edited and published by members of the Protestant Dutch Reformed church, Valentine Van de Water, general agent, NYHS volume, weekly
Jan 13 1838 1st issue. have lit notices, cover legislature, coloniz soc. Calvin Stowe’s report on educ. Feb 17 p4 fr Eve Star take Catlin’s account of portrait of Osceola. Bishop Doane poem, NYHS lectures on aborigines. take account of Cilley fr J of Commerce, which mostly seems to object to second round of firing not the duel itself. Mar 10 condemn dueling, so both sides at fault, Whittier poem fr Dem Rev Apr 14 symp to Cherokees. Sigourney poem. Bulwer immoral. Aug 11 Isaac Bird testifies to correctness of Catherwood’s Pano of Jerusalem, excerpted fr Christian Advocate, which says it is rare and interesting, more interest than all the other exhibs we’ve witnessed, accurate, and to one familiar with Scripture history, thrilling beyond description, illusion is perfect, Mount of Olives, garden, Golden Gate, Mosque etc diversified peculiarities of groups of people. Sigourney poems. Aug 25 can’t agree with Garrison. Oct 27 p4 cites Stephens on pano of Jerusalem Nov 3 excerpts on Emerson’s German Unitarianism as really atheistic, Ware’s labored defence of deity Nov 10 p1 poem on Visiting Catherwood’s pano of Jerusalem, by JC, noble art, to bring it near, even in ruins dear, will rise again. Dec 15 another profile of GW
1839
Jan 5 have a new masthead with a heraldic device and motto between the Xtian and Intellig, Charles van Wyck is proprietor (has been for last 3 years), address all communications to him. Inside says paper cost church money, Editorial Committee serves for free, subscribers must pay full year in advance. Jan 12 p1 3 columns on pano of Jerusalem fr another paper describing it. Feb 3 Love Stephen van Rensselaer, NP Willis bit. Mar 2 fr J of Commerce a Michael Angelo sonnet. LEL and Hemans. Apr 27 new discov in fine arts, the daguerreotype. Gallaudet a reg contrib. May 4 James G Birney in the Emancipator on Genl Scott. Willis G Clark and other poems fr Knick. Love Frelinghuysen. June 8 MF Tupper poem June 15 Freling’s inaug given in totality, his speech, desire of knowl may become inordinate and dangerous; don’t pry into revelations. p4 anecdote of GW. Aug 10 Bryant poem; defend Puritans. Get info on Amistad fr Courier and Comm Advert. More on dags.Dec 21 p. 88 engr of view of Albany fr Greenbush fr Family Mag’s historical reminiscences; more on Gw and dags
1840
Jan 4 gives list of American slang, Americanisms. JG Adams. More GW Edw Everett on intemp. Daily Whig excerpt. Feb 15 anti theater diatribe. Mar 14 view of Jerusalem fr Mt of Olives p136 Aprw 25 p160 somewhat crude portraits of great evangelicals, Whitefield eg. Tons of Sigourney. Write Varian about liquor shops. Admire Mathew Carey. July 4 front page illus of tree growing out of bible, trunk is church, limbs are educ preaching causes and civilization. July 18 last issue in volume.
NYPL misc Christian Intelligencer, ed by assoc of members of Prot Reformed Dutch Church, Chas van Wyick proprietor, 102 Nassau, weekly, Feb 3 1844. Critical of Wainwright as Popish, no church without a bishop claim
1859
Rev Elbert S. Porter, editor. 103 Fulton st. Chas Van Wyck still proprietor. A relig fam newspaper, $2.50 year.
Jan 6 is first issue. Seems slightly bigger. Still anti-theater. Jan 20 NY Daily Times gives minute details of HW Beecher’s thoughts words and acts, have a special reporter for dainty and luscious titbits of personal incident of the distinguished eccentricity. If heblows his nose, the Times sneezes. Beecher censured by Examiner for supporting Theo Parker. Jan 27 praise Knick for showing Everett’s democratic prostitution of a once lofty genius. Feb 3 more attacks on Beecher. Likes the Ledger, which Independent criticizes. Hostile to the Sunday Mercury. 17 condemns Beecherphobia and Beecherolatry
March 10 p146 Letter to a Country Fireside by TLC condemns Wash morals esp its sensuality, then says pleasantly spent evening in Gallery of Art (Wash sadly lacks), monthly artists’ reception night at Dodworths’ hall. Several hundred of city’s elite present, ladies in evening dress, chatted on arts and letters, fine coll of ptgs. Among best were lscapes by Kensett, heads by Grey and two clever pre-Raphaelite pieces by Perry of Phila. Pic that drew most eyes (and drew most from them) was Irving’s Pride of the Vilage in her dying moments by Gray, pale consumptive girl just floating fr existence. Mom supports broken hearted daughter, Dad offers mouthful of manna fr God’s book, but nothing can arrest, consuming her beauty like a moth. Admired port of Judge Wm Jay of Westchester, late, righteous, happy benevolent recalls Wilberforce, as does his earnest, fearless philanthropy. Wenzler the artist can paint eyelashes so you can count them, a wonderful artist in the small things that go to mae up the great effects, Many artistic celebrities present. Huntington, surprised so young, his Mercy’s Dream is one of America’s half doz masterpieces, stands in same rank with Cole’s Youth, Church’s Niagara and Weir’s Embarkation of the Pilgrims. taste for art growing, if kept chaste and Christian so the better, a vast diff in decency betw a model art and model artistes. On p 148 has Literary and Art Items, inclu Louvre purchased Murillo, Beranger, Paris salon opening, Jarves of Boston gathered a fine art coll in Florence for city.
Adam Bede has sincere relig feeling. Apr 7 Mike Walsh and Subterraneanism, Young Irish Americanism, has succumbed, shows progress of Sabbatarianism. excerpts Harper’s weekly. no poems. May 12 p. 184 by DB, welcomed advent of Putnam’s with choice bits fr Bryant and Benjamin and Curtis and other best native writers, but found in it unwholesome and gave it up. It died. Then Atlantic Monthly, old friends and new delights, some bits with old poisonous qualities but in small amounts, but in May has turned deadly with infidelity. Harper’s mag is good in its place and mostly observes proper respect, but what of higher orders of lit? The Professor at the Breakfast able bare faced infidelity and sneers for relig, pleas for infidel anarchy of opinion. Pity Mrs Stowe is on neighboring page.
Hiram Ketchum speaking at tract society. Greeley lacks piety (doesn’t observe Sabbath). NY Express says Autocrat of Atlantic Montly irreligious. July 5 Arch of Titus skilfully restored. Still profiling Clay and GW. Critical of Archbishop Hughes’ politics. Takes fr J of Commerce that Garibaldi is worthless. July 14 Theodore Parker is like Milton’s satan. Dislike Rev Bellows.
Aug 25 p 34, Greenwood Lake by VC, these lines dated fr an artist’s studio, a few years ago JF Cropsey the celeb lscape ptr strayed into beaut pictque region, search of fine rural scenery, discovered lovely views of mtn, lake, waterfall, and a wife. Studio on edge of a wood, finest productions, spirit of art still hovers over it, drawer with his implements furnish subj of most striking pic to be called the’Deserted Studio’/ Cooley his father in law puts up friends in it.
Liked Mayor Fernando Wood! Sept 29 long attack on Herald as literary chiffonier etc Oct 20 Letter fr NY toa Country Fireside, disapproves of Episcopalians, close to popinjay Puseyism, restoring Onderdonk and not condeming revival of slave trade.
several tributes to Danl Webster.
Nov 3 John Brown a fanatic, his type tearing Union apart, has satire of what Emerson, Holmes, Parker and Greeley will say about it, the inevitable martyr Nov 10 beaut statue Palmer’s White Captive belonging to exGovernor Fish will be exhib soon at Schaus Art Gall on Broadway; oldest ptg in England a port of Chaucer, oldest in world is a madonna. J of Commerce praises Cooper Institute. 17 praises Frith’s Merry making in the Olden Time, engr $3 pub by Knick, gathered under a spreading oak. Notices death of Irving. Excerpts pulpits on John Brown, Osgood and Cheever of Unitarian, Hawkes Episcopalian etc Dec 8 charming chromo of Court of Death. engr by Sarony, pub by GQ Colton, authenticated by Remb Peale, gives long description, inside praises Times for non partisan on Brown and clerical friend admires Waugh’s Italia panorama 15 likes Willis’ sacred poems best. Degeneracy of lecture system, panders to prevailing tastes or whatever will bring down the house is said without scruple, Bayard Taylor the well known traveller, much read but not added to human knowledge, on A von Humboldt, don’t characterize how church feels about his reluctance to recognize god; Taylor says he turned hisback on public church and we disagree
1860
Jan 5 p1 Letter fr Abroad, Rome, visited Tribune of Uffizi in Florence, inner temple of art, forms if not divine are more than human, Goddess of beauty, Venus matchless perfection, surpasses expectation, don’t criticize, rapt in contemplation, later ask perhaps head too small and feet scarcely natural nor consistent with freedom of faultless form. why nude? purity of Eden. Apollo by Praxiteles, may be too beaut to comport with manly strength, inferior to Belvedere,r egular smooth and graceful. Vandyke Chas V on horseback shows how much kings are in the way, fall and drag others down, Cranach’s Adam and Eve not equal to Du Buff’s which many will remember to have seen in America in 1850-52. Loves Raphael’s Fornarina. Free. RB Welch. p.2 or 110 has letter critical of TLC’s letters to country, shouldn’t criticize our ministers for attending pro-Union mtgs (where slavery is defended)
. Editor still thinks Colonization will work. 19 Welch goes thru free Pitti palace. cont on 26th, anecdote of Benj West’s industry. Feb 9 raise money for Scudder monument. March 8 p146 TLC (a Rev) Costly, But Precious, stands before magnif pic told cost $15,000, seemed enormous, but peerless required months of toil by most celeb artist of the land, for necessary studies had perils of distant dangerous clime, did not wonder pay thous for companionship of such a pic in his drwg rm. Choicest things reckoned the dearest. Sculptor counts not long months wasted away with hammer and chisel pursuing imprisoned Hercules or Greek Slave within block of marble, what are hardships amid icefields or Granadean mtns to Fred Church, as long as he is rearing Heart of the Andes a new monument to his imperishable fame. April 5 p1 The Novel a Work of Art part 2 to represent ideas (objects of the imag) is aim of artist, the ideal we look for in Apollo Belvidere etc, the ideal, their truth, matters little whether ptgs in Dusseldorf are real scenes, they are symbols, the daguerreotypist gives us portraits, the artist gives ideals judged by no external standard and whose truth does not depend on actual existence. So no external standard for crit? Work of art must be natural, life like, but similarity to nature attained not by mechanical imitation of external objects, but a correct rep of internal conceptions.
here romance has adicaed in avor of reality, reduce it to standard of Ned Buntline and Sulvanus Cobb (not sure I follow) continues in Apr 12 signed PJH, goal of novel shld be to excite symp and inspire love for worthy ideals. Death of Paulding, anecdote of Michael Angelo and the Pope 19 Henry Clay statue inaug. Richmond. has had a couple of Andrew Jackson anecdotes. June 21 arguing over Scudder monument, where to put it, to attract attn or mark his grave. Herald linking puritans and blacklegs. TLC an old college friend of editor’s. present editor started in 1852, before him was John H Bevier since 1843 Aug 2 Baltimore monuments, Robt Mills to GW Aug 30 p1 A Day in Washington, went to Capitol, Rotunda splendid, Wier’s Landing of Pilgrims, Columbus, Pocahontas, etc. by Illinois. critical of the World’s theater ads. likes Agassiz on Darwin
Oct 18 The rln of Art to the Cause of a Xtian Civiliz by EB, must work agst superstition which at time of old Puritans confounded it with idolatry or lax morals, protest agst iconoclasm, vindicate it, art appeals to highest faclty, the imagination,s o instrument of highest good, rouses us fr sin, quotes Ruskin, rapidly increasing power of art in this city, so it shld be a pure one. art reaches wealthy before the lower classes, strong on the cultivated and their morality, not relig art alone, but fair world that art appeals to highest attributes of our intellect. so stimualte such art, don't reject it all, art cultivate spiritual percpetions, imag needs healthy foods, require an art to refine material forces, equal England, p. 68 the two dags, human and divine