" Coleridge once asked Charles Lamb if he had
ever heard him preach, referring to the early days when he was a Unitarian
preacher. "I never heard you do anything else," was the answer he
received. He was the prince of talkers, and talked more coherently and
connectedly than he wrote: drawing with ease from the vast stores of his
learning, he delighted men of every degree. While of the Lake school of
poetry, and while in some sort the creature of his age and his
surroundings, his eccentricities gave him a rare independence and
individuality. A giant in conception, he was a dwarf in execution; and
something of the interest which attaches to a _lusus naturae_ is the chief
claim to future reputation which belongs to S. T. C.
HARTLEY COLERIDGE, his son, (1796-1849,) inherited much of his father's
talents; but was an eccentric, deformed, and, for a time, an intemperate
being. His principal writings were monographs on various subjects, and
articles for Blackwood. HENRY NELSON COLERIDGE, (1800-1843,) a nephew and
son-in-law of the poet, was also a gifted man, and a profound classical
scholar.
Pages:
689
690
691
692
693
694
695
696
697
698
699
700
701
702
703
704
705
706
707
708
709
710
711
712
713