SOURCE: A review of Poems and Prose Writings, in The New Englander, Vol. IX, No. XXXIII, February, 1851, pp. 28-35.

In the following favorable review, the author praises Dana's poetic diction, his style, and his artistic character.

Our first remark is, that Mr. Dana's language is made up in a great degree of Saxon. It is free, more than that of most authors, from Latinisms, Gallicisms, from modern conventionalisms, and all pert and dainty expressions. He eschews, as by instinct, such words as "emanate," "develop," "position," "responsibility," "elevated," "exposition," etc., unless in cases where they may be absolutely needed to give the sense. It is hardly necessary to say that his pages are never disfigured by "stand-points," "hand-books," "being done," "transpired" in the sense of happen, "governmental," and that large class of words, which, if found in the dictionaries, are not wanted to express any idea, and whose occurrence...