lish G. P. R. James is in many respects admissible.
But Simms had what James had not: a small par-
ticular field which he made his own, and that field
was essentially American. For this reason he will
live longer than James, and for this reason he de-
serves a place among American men of letters.
His place is not a high one; but it should never
be forgotten that he was not only a pioneer, but
the pioneer, of American literature, whose destiny
forced him to labor in the least favorable section of
all America for successful literary work. When his
environment is considered, the work he did will be
deemed worthy of admiration rather than of fault-
finding.

Yes, Hayne was right. The man Simms "is
worthy of all honor." Whether as a literary toiler,
working successfully under most harassing condi-
tions; whether as a misguided patriot, striving for
what he believed to be his section's good; whether
as a defeated, worn-out spirit, laboring to relieve
the distresses of his children and his friends, the
man Simms ceases to be a mere man and assumes
proportions that are truly heroic. His State may
still point to her Calhouns and McDuffies, and
his section may point to politicians and soldiers,
contemporary lights that have cast and still cast
him in the shade; but it is doubtful whether
South Carolina, or indeed the whole South, has
produced in this century a man who will better
stand a close scrutiny into his motives and his life-
work than William Gilmore Simms.

-332-