Smyrna times., 1855-09-19
selett DlisteIIang,
FLAWS IN DIADION DS.

interesting, to learn something of the eccen-
tricites, failings and foibles of remarkable per-
sons. Such traits form the most attractive and
salient points of biographical works; they may
be called the coioring of literary portraiturs,
and, being endowed with an individual vitality,
are found to linger longest in the memory of
the general reader.
Having gathered together number of these
personal anecdotes, we propose to pass away a
gossipping, and not wholly an unproftable,
half-hour in relating them to our readers.
! It is painful to reflect upon the inordinate
vanity which characterixes lives. When Cesar
became bald, he constantly wore the laurel
wreath with which we see him represented on
medals, in the hope of concealing the defect;
and Cicero's egotism was so great, that he even
composed Latin hexameter in his own praise:
! o Ofnrtunatam nate ma consule Roman.
! 20 toTtuMsis RJme when born her COnsul9
line which e!icited the just Sarcasms of Juve~
nal. Queen Elizabeth left three thousand diff.
ferent dresses In her wardrobe when she died
and during many years of the latter part of he:
life, would rot suffer a looking glass in her
presence, for fear that she should perceive the
ravages of time upon her countenance. Niece
mas, the most egregiOus of classic exquisites, 10
said to have " welded the Roman empire with
rings on his fingers. The vanity Of Benvenuto
Celini is too we'll known to need :epetltion.-
Sir Walter Raleigh was, perhaps, the greatest
beau on record Ills shoes, on court-days,were
so gorgeously adorned with precious stones, as
to have exceeded six thousand guineas in value;
aud he had a suit OF armor of solid silver, with
jeweled sword and belt, the worth of which
was almost incalculable. The great Descartes
was very particular about his wigs, and always
Kept four in HIS dressing closet; piece OF
vanity wherein he was inltated by Sir R.charI
Steele, who never expended less than forty
gulneas upon one of his large black periwigs.
Mozart, whose light hair was Of a fine quality,
wore 1t very long and flowing down between
MS shoulders, with tie OF cUlored ribbon con-
timing it at the neck. Poor Goldsmth's Iuno-
cent dandyislns and the story OF his peach-bos-
sOm coat are almost proverblal. Pope's ssit-loTe
was so great, that, according to Johnson he
had been fiattered till he thought himself one
Allan Ramsay's egotIsm was ecessive. On one
occasion, he mOdesily took precedence of Peter
the Great, in estimating their comparative inn
pOrtance with the public: /" But baud (hold)
proud czar," he says, al wadna nlffer Eek
chaDge) fame!" Napoleon was vain of his
d small foot Salvador Rosa was once heard TO
compare himself with aphael aud Michael
Angelo, calling the former dry, and the latter
coarse; and Raphael, again, was jealous Of the
d fame aud skill of Michael Angelo. Hogarth' :
historical paintings (Which were bad) equal ed,
in his own opinion, those of the old masters
Lamartine, the loftiest and finest of French
poets, robs mis- charming pages of half their
o beauty by the inordinate self-praise Of his com
mentaries. Rousseau has been called the
self.torturisg egotst;" and Lord ByrOn's lite
" was one long piece Of egotism from beginbine
to end. He was vain OF his genius his rank
= his misanthropy, and even of his vices; and ht
was articularly proud of hia good riding anc
ID his handsome hands.
Penuriousness, unhappily, has been too com
monty associated with learning and fame
: Cato, the censor, on his return from Spain, wa
IN 50 Parsimonious that he sold his feld-horse, t
in save the expense of conveying the animal b.
he sea TO Italy. Attiius Reguus, at the perio
re of his greatest glory 10 Africa, entreated per
as mission to return home to the management
re his estate, which consisted but of seven acres
alleging that his servants had been defraudln
him of certain agricultural implements, an
that no was anxious to look after his afiairs.-
n. Lord Bacon is melancholy instance of the dC
I minon obtained by avarice over great minC
NO Among artists, Nollenkens and Northcote wei
no proVerbially penurious Swift, in his old ag
was ayaricious, and had an absolute terror
visitors. "When his friends of either Sc
he came to see him. in expectation Of Dime
est his custom was to give every one a shilin
res that they might please themselves with the
sry provision" ofthe great Duke Of Marlboroug
is il is said by Macaulsy, that I" his splendid qua
len ties were mingled with alloy of the most sOrd
tes kind"
"a We will now turn to the errors of scifi
g. diligence, Socrates, Plato, Agathau, Artist
|, l. phanes, and others Of the most celebrst
,rns Greeks, drank wine TO surprising extent; a
Plato says, in his Symposium, that sacra'
kept sober longer than any. Tiberius was
elo- much addicted to this vice, that he had &
'ere quently to be carried from the senate-house.
the Cato was fond of the bottle. Ben Jonson
'aiis lighted in copious draughts Of Canary wi
we and even contriyed TO have pipe Of that iiq'
the added to his yearly pension as poet-laureate
chill The fine intellect of Coleridge was clous
asr over by this unhappy propensity. Montais
ping indulged in sherry. The otherwise unexc
aps, tionable morality of Addison was this one
ror. Sir Richard Steele, Fielding, and Ste