ercised any such
sublimated ingenuity in appreciating these men as has often been
considered essential. We can see that he admired certain parts of their
work intensely, but we look in vain for any real analysis of their
quality. But as he never had occasion to write essays upon their poetry,
it is perhaps hardly fair to expect anything more than the general
remarks that we actually do find, and as far as they go they are
satisfactory.

Like most of his distinguished contemporaries, Scott held the work of
Southey in surprisingly high estimation.[274] Southey, more than anyone
else except Wordsworth, and more than Wordsworth in some ways, was the
"real poet" of the period, devoting his whole heart to literature and
his whole time to literary pursuits. Scott commented on the fact,
saying, "Southey's ideas are all poetical," and, "In this respect, as
well as in many others, he is a most striking and interesting
character."[275] Nevertheless Scott found it easy to criticise Southey's
poems adversely, as we may see from his correspondence. Writing to Miss
Seward he pointed out flaws in the story and the characterization of
_Madoc_,[276] yet after repeated readings he saw enough to convince him
that _Madoc_ would in the future "assume his real place at the feet of
Milton."[277] _Thalaba_ was one of the poems he liked to have read aloud
on Sunday evenings.[278] A review of _The Curse of Kehama_, in which he
seemed to express the opinion that this surpassed the poet's previous
work, illustrates his professed creed as to criticism. He wrote to Ellis
concerning his article: "What I could I did, which was to throw as much
weight as possible upon the beautiful passages, of which there are many,
and to slur over the absurdities, of which there are not a few.... This
said _Kehama_ affords cruel openings for the quizzers, and I suppose
will get it roundly in the _Edinburgh Review_. I could have made a very
different hand of it, indeed, had the order of the day been _pour
dechirer_."[279] If Scott had to make an effort in writing the review,
he made it with abundant energy. Some absurdities are indeed mentioned,
but various particular passages are characterized in the most
enthusiastic way, with such phrases as "horribly sublime," "impressive
and affecting," "reminds us of the Satan of Milton, yet stands the
comparison," "all the gloomy power of Dante." It may be noted that Scott
used Milton's name rather freely in comparisons, and tha