GESNER, or GEssxEn, SoLomotx, a celebrated Ger man poet and landscape painter, was born at Zurich on the first of April 1730. In the early period of his youth he made very slow progress in his education, and was con sidered by his teachers as a pupil of very mean capacity. But this backwardness must be ascribed to the perverse method of instruction at that time in use, and not to any communes. The Adour also waters the department. The following are the principal towns : deficiency of intellect on the part of the pupil. During his school hours, instead of devoting his attention to the study of grammatical rules, he often employed himself in modelling figures of various kinds, groups of men and animals in wax, and thus discovered an early genius for the imitative arts. By some accident, a copy of Robinson Crusoe fell into his hands, and awakened a poetic fancy, which his preceptors endeavoured to stifle by every means in their power.
His parents, however, perceiving the education of their son advance so slowly, resolved to try a different method, and accordingly sent him to the country, to the Rev. Mr Vogeli, a gentleman who had acquired great reputation as a teacher. Here, under a milder system of discipline, Gesner made sufficient progress to enable him to read the Roman poets in the original, and the Greek writers in the Latin version. His intercourse with the son of his in structor, a passionate admirer of ancient literature, and a Laver of the belles lettres in general, was likewise of great advantage to him. Through him he became acquainted with the works of the German poet Brockes, which he perused with avidity, and to which he was indebted for the developement of his poetical talents.
After a residence of about two years at Berg, he return ed to his family, and resolved to follow his father's profes sion of a printer and bookseller. At Zurich he had an op portunity of increasing his knowledge and improving his genius, by cultivating the society of men distinguished for their talents and learning. In the year 1749, he was sent to an eminent bookseller at Berlin, in order to learn his business. But the mechanical occupations in which he was employed by his master were by no means suited to the taste of Gesner, who already began to feel the con sciousness of his own abilities, He therefore quitted his employer, hired an apartment for himself, and resolved to devote himself to the study of landscape painting, which had long been his favourite pursuit. This hasty step ex cited the displeasure of his parents, who determined to make him feel his dependence, by withdrawing from him their support. A reconciliation, however, soon took place ; and Gesner obtained their permission to remain at Berlin, with the liberty of following his own inclinations. Here
he formed an acquaintance with several eminent literary characters, and was particularly intimate with Ramler, by whose advice he was induced to resolve his poetical com positions into harmonious prose, instead of verse, which presented many serious difficulties to an author who was not conversant with the more improved dialect of the Ger man language.
After paying a visit to Hamburgh, Gesner returned to Zurich, and published, in succession, those pieces which have procured for him an extensive and well-merited re putation. In 1751, his Song of a Swiss to his Mistress on her appearing in Armour, was inserted in a periodical pub lication. His next essay was the piece entitled Night. In 1754, he published a larger poem, entitled Dalzhnis, which was suggested to him by Amiot's translation of Longus. These were followed by a volume of Idyls, in 1756; the Death of Abel, 1753 ; a collection of his poems, in four volumes, 1762, including The First Navigator, which was always a favourite production with the author, and the two dramatic pieces, Evander and Erastus. In 1772, he pub lished a second volume of Idyls, with a letter on landscape painting, addressed to Al.
When about thirty years of age, Gesner married Made moiselle Heideggcr, a young lady endowed with rare ac complishments of mind and person. Finding, however, that the resources, of his pen were inadequate to the sup port of a family, he resolved to apply more seriously than ever to his favourite art of landscape painting, in which he ultimately attained a very high degree of excellence. Indeed, his pictures have been by sonic esteemed superior to his poems. He died on the Ilth of March, 1787, at his country scat in the forest of Sill). A monument, on which Nature and Poetry are represented weeping over his urn, was erected to his memory by some of his fellow-citizens, on a charming spot in his favourite walk, near the conflu ence of the Sill' and the Limmat.
The works of Solomon Gesner are too well known to require any particular notice. His poetry is all of the sentimental kind ; and he excels especially in the descrip tion of natural scenery. He is undoubtedly the first writer of pastorals in modern times ; and it is not the least of his merits, that his productions uniformly breathe a spirit of purity highly favourable to innocence and virtue. In pri vate life, he was modest, ingenuous, and amiable ; and the cheerfulness and natural gaiety of his temper, combined with great goodness of heart, endeared him to a numerous circle of friends. (z)