As a poet of nature, Bryant received great praise for his poetry, but the critics did not give him unconditional laurels, due to the absence of a full range of poetry, such as epics, elegies, and verse drama. He looked at art as something demanding time and reflection, something not afforded to him on his travels or by his work at the paper. He did publish The Letters of a Traveller in 1850, a series of letters he had written to the Evening Post, describing his tours of Europe, Mexico, Cuba, and South Ameri

We hold our existence at the mercy of the elements. The life of man is a state of continual vigilance against their warfare. The heats of noon would wither himlike the severed herb. The hail would smite him to death, did he not seek shelter and protection against them. His clothing is the perpetual armour he wears for his defence, his dwelling the fortress to which he retreats for safety. Yet, even there the elements attack him. The winds overthrow his habitation. The waters sweep it away. The fire, that w