JAMES HERVEY
Preacher of Righteousness
By George M. Ella. GO Publications. 362 pages
ISBN 0 9527074 2 X
James Hervey is known to me as the author of Meditations in the Tombs and Theron & Aspasio.
These books are remarkable for their wide distribution, judged by the numbers printed and sold, but are very much in the style of their time. Balleine's History quotes: 'Cauliflowers sheltered their fair complexions under a green umbrella, and daisies were gay with the smile of youth and fair as the virgin snows.' But they were popular and influential, especially among the 'genteel classes' which other agencies could not reach. They tell us how each generation must speak in the language of the time to reach a particular audience. They had great influence in their day, there is no doubt.
