" Irving, however, in _The Legend of Sleepy Hollow_, has
sufficient leisure to make this observation and to stop to listen to "the
pensive whistle of the quail," or to admire "great fields of Indian corn,
with its golden ears peeping from their leafy coverts, and holding out the
promise of cakes and hasty puddings."
Some have even proposed that his stories be called "narrative-essays," but
they show a step beyond Addison in the evolution of the short story because
they contain less essay and more story. It is true that Irving writes three
pages of essay before beginning the real story in _The Legend of Sleepy
Hollow_, but the most of this preliminary matter is very interesting
description. The quiet valley with its small brook, the tapping woodpecker,
the drowsy shade of the trees, the spots haunted by the headless
Hessian,--all fascinate us and provide an atmosphere which the modern
short-story teller too seldom secures. The novice in modern short-story
writing should know at the outset that it takes more genius to succeed with
a story like _The Legend of Sleepy Hollow_ than with a tale where the
writer relies on the more strait-laced narration of events to arouse
interest.
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