C. THE INFLUENCE OF THE “BYRONIC ROMANCE” ON THE NOVEL OF ROMAN LIFE
In 1829[15] was first published a romance by George Croly, called Salathiel, a Story of the Past, the Present and the Future. It enjoyed wide popularity and was favorably reviewed both in England and America; and was issued at different times with variations of the title, such as Salathiel, the Immortal, or the Wandering Jew. Finally it has been revised and republished posthumously, in 1901, under the title of Tarry Thou, Till I Come, or Salathiel, the Wandering Jew. This last edition was published in somewhat elaborate style with copious introduction and appendix, and beautifully accurate illustrations, by Mr. T. de Thulstrup. Especially noteworthy is the introductory letter of General Lewis Wallace, who, in making his remarkable choice of the six greatest English novels, includes “Hypatia, and this romance of Croly’s.” While his choice of the “six greatest” is unusual, he gives very sound reasons for his support of Tarry Thou, Till I Come. General Wallace, who is best known for his Ben Hur, also wrote The Prince of India, in which he handles the theme of the Wandering Jew, describing the wanderings of the Jew in Moslem times.
Croly was born in 1780 in Dublin and died in 1860. In Salathiel he follows the school of Byron and Moore, which was dominant in his youth. The style of the book is marked by a warmth of coloring, and Croly excels in his handling of powerful situations. The character of Salathiel, surrounded by perpetual gloom, and displaying a proud aloofness from other men, has much in it of the “Byronic hero.” The terrible aspects of nature are also presented with telling effect, and much in the Byronic manner throughout the story; Croly is at his best in this sort of work in a chapter, which has been given the title The Wanderings of a Mind Diseased, and which represents the reality of Salathiel’s imaginary trials. In this chapter the description of a volcanic eruption suggests a similar description made by Bulwer in The Last Days of Pompeii, a few years later. The scene of Salathiel does not open in Rome, but from the very start, the reader feels the intensity of the Jewish hatred for Roman power. The degenerate Roman governor of Judea, Gessius Florus, is well portrayed in his capacity of extortioner and tyrant. He sends Salathiel to Rome, and at this point in the story we are given in a brief space many of the important elements in any novel of Roman life which deals with the time of Nero. There is the prisoner, calmly condemned to a death of torture, while the Emperor feigns practice on the lyre; then the fire at Rome is powerfully described, and when it is over, the blame for it is attached to the Christians; the Christians are put to death by torture in the amphitheatre, or torn by wild beasts; they are made to serve as living torches in Nero’s gardens; and finally the persecution ceases. Though his name is not mentioned, the martyrdom of St. Paul is told in such a way as to portray his indomitable spirit and courage in the face of death.
The scene of the remainder of the story is again laid in Judea, and the story of events culminating in the capture of Jerusalem by a Roman army, is taken from Josephus.[16] In this part of the book things Roman are best represented by the figure of the Prince and commander, Titus, and by the soldiers and officers of the Roman army. The divisions of the Roman army are described with great realism, recruited as they are from almost every tribe and nation under the sun. The fierce struggles between Roman and Jew outside of the walls, give opportunity for some of the finest pictures of desperate fighting to be found in any novel. The “labyrinth motive,” one of the oldest motives in story telling, is used a number of times in the latter part of Salathiel; it is used with much ingenuity in the description of his entrance into the fortress of Masada by a secret underground passage; and again, when, escaping from prison, he finds he has blundered upon the secret rear entrance of the pirates’ cave.
Salathiel is a truly great romance, in which the exalted language is suited to the grandeur of the theme. While “romance” is the proper word to describe the book as a whole, individual passages exhibit a realistic effect which far surpasses anything in the pages of Valerius or of The Epicurean. Moreover, it is sound in its historical basis, for Croly was a man of genuine learning, classic[17] and otherwise. On the other hand, it must not be supposed, because he was a curate, that he wrote Salathiel with any intention of spreading religious propaganda. The scene in which the Christians, imprisoned and awaiting crucifixion, exhibit their supreme faith, is one of tremendous significance; but this could be said of many other scenes in the book. Even if it were not a story of absorbing interest, Salathiel would deserve a high position in fiction, for its illustration of great principles in life, and its powerful revelation of eternal truths.