"He began,"says the lady,"in a rich soft voice,and as we advanced we found ourselves carried away by the spell of his enthusiasm.His eyes swam in tears;he became pale and red;he trembled;he recovered himself;his face was now joyous,now exulting,gay,jocose;in fact,he was twenty actors in one;he rang the changes from Rachel to Bouffe;and he finished by relieving us of our tears,and overwhelming us with astonishment.
He would have been a treasure on the stage;for he is still,though his youth is past,remarkably good-looking and striking;with black,sparkling eyes of intense expression;a fine ruddy complexion;a countenance of wondrous mobility;a good figure,and action full of fire and grace:he has handsome hands,which he uses with infinite effect;and on the whole he is the best actor of the kind I ever saw.I could now quite understand what a Troubadour or jongleur he might be;and I look upon Jasmin as a revived specimen of that extinct race."Miss Costello proceeded on her journey to Bearn and the Pyrenees,and on her return northwards she again renewed her acquaintance with Jasmin and his dark-eyed wife."I did not expect,"she says,"that I should be recognised;but the moment I entered the little shop I was hailed as an old friend.'Ah'cried Jasmin,'enfin la voila encore!'I could not but be flattered by this recollection,but soon found that it was less on my own account that I was thus welcomed,than because circumstances had occurred to the poet that I might perhaps explain.He produced several French newspapers,in which he pointed out to me an article headed 'Jasmin a Londres,'being a translation of certain notices of himself which had appeared in a leading English literary journal the Athenaeum .I enjoyed his surprise,while Iinformed him that I knew who was the reviewer and translator;and explained the reason for the verses giving pleasure in an English dress,to the superior simplicity of the English language over modern French,for which he had a great contempt,as unfitted for lyrical composition.[4]He inquired of me respecting Burns,to whom he had been likened,and begged me to tell him something about Moore.
"He had a thousand things to tell me;in particular,that he had only the day before received a letter from the Duchess of Orleans,informing him that she had ordered a medal of her late husband to be struck,the first of which should be sent to him.
He also announced the agreeable news of the King having granted him a pension of a thousand francs.He smiled and wept by turns as he told all this;and declared that,much as he was elated at the possession of a sum which made him a rich man for life (though it was only equal to 42sterling),the kindness of the Duchess gratified him still more.
"He then made us sit down while he read us two new poems;both charming,and full of grace and naivete;and one very affecting,being an address to the King,alluding,to the death of his son.
"As he read,his wife stood by,and fearing that we did not comprehend the language,she made a remark to that effect,to which he answered impatiently,'Nonsense!don't you see they are in tears?'This was unanswerable;we were allowed to hear the poem to the end,and I certainly never listened to anything more feelingly and energetically delivered.
"We had much conversation,for he was anxious to detain us;and in the course of it,he told me that he had been by some accused of vanity.'Oh!'he exclaimed,'what would you have?I am a child of nature,and cannot conceal my feelings;the only difference between me and a man of refinement is,that he knows how to conceal his vanity and exaltation at success,while I let everybody see my emotions.'
"His wife drew me aside,and asked my opinion as to how much money it would cost to pay Jasmin's expenses,if he undertook a journey to England.'However,'she added,'I dare say he need be at no charge,for of course your Queen has read that article in his favour,and knows his merit.She probably will send for him,pay all the expenses of his journey,and give him great fetes in London!"Miss Costello,knowing the difficulty of obtaining Royal recognition of literary merit in England,unless it appears in forma pauperis,advised the barber-poet to wait till he was sent for--a very good advice,for then it would be never!
She concludes her recollections with this remark:"I left the happy pair,promising to let them know the effect that the translation of Jasmin's poetry produced in the Royal mind.
Indeed,their earnest simplicity was really entertaining."A contributor to the Westminster Review[5]also gave a very favourable notice of Jasmin and his poetry,which,he said,was less known in England than it deserved to be;nor was it well known in France since he wrote in a patois.Yet he had been well received by some of the most illustrious men in the capital,where unaided genius,to be successful,must be genius indeed;and there the Gascon bard had acquired for himself a fame of which any man might well be proud.
The reviewer said that the Gascon patois was peculiarly expressive and heart-touching,and in the South it was held in universal honour.Jasmin,he continued,is what Burns was to the Scottish peasantry;only he received his honours in his lifetime.
The comparison with Burns,however,was not appropriate.
Burns had more pith,vigour,variety,and passion,than Jasmin who was more of a descriptive writer.In some respects Jasmin resembled Allan Ramsay,a barber and periwig-maker,like himself,whose Gentle Shepherd met with as great a success as Jasmin's Franconnette.Jasmin,however,was the greater poet of the two.