If, then, fault can be found with the older
Romancists for the spreading here and there of false historical
notions, let us look to future workers in the same sphere for
adjustment. I believe, however, that one notable critic has
pronounced the mischief already done to be quite irreparable,
seeing that the only "History" at all widely spread is that derived
from those very romances in which errors are so interwoven with the
sentimental interest of the plot itself that readers inevitably
"hug their delusions!" But I think that this danger need not be
contemplated seriously. The Historical Novel exists primarily as
Fiction, and, even though in our waking moments we may be persuaded
of the unreality of that "dream" which a Scott or a Dumas has
produced for us, we shall still be able to place ourselves again
and again under the spell of their delightful influence. Moreover,
while admitting Dumas' carelessness of exact detail, it would
hardly be contended by the most sceptical that his works (still
less those of Scott) are without any background of Historic
suggestiveness.
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