3–9 August 1840

A man of genius or a work of love or beauty cannot be compounded like a loaf of bread by the best rules, but is always a new and incalcu- lable result like health. Do not therefore rattle your rules in our ears, we must behave and do as we can. The ancients, the antique; I see in all that is excellent under that name somewhat near to me. It is the genius of the European family. The discovery and the planting of America and the American Revolution and me- chanic arts are Greek, Attic, Antique, in this sense, as much as the Parthenon or the Pro- metheus Chained. I can easily see in our peri- odical literature, for example, a diffused and weakened Athens.