Spirit of the times. [volume] (Ironton, Ohio) 1853-1858, 1855-06-26
Mis- { CMlL,LAIYw.
Great Events from Slender Causes.

DR.. Paris observes, that ".he history
OF great effects from small causes would
form an Interesting work."
"How momentous," says Campbell,
are the results of apparently trivial cir.
cumstances! When Mohammed was
flying from his enemies, he took refuge
in cave; which his pursuers would
have entered, if they had not seen a sp-
der's web at the entrance. Not know.
ing that it was freshly woven, they pass
ed by the cave; and thus spiders web
changed the history Of the world"
When Louis VII, to obey the njunc
lions Of his bishops, cropped his hair
and shaved his beard. Eleanor, his con-
sort, found him, with this unusual ap.
pearance, very ridiculous, and soon very
contemplate. She revensed herself as
she thought proper, and the poor shaved
king obtained divorce. She then mar
ried The Count of Anjou, a(terward Hen.
ry H., of England. She had for her
marriage dover the rich provinces Of
Poitou and Guienne; and this was the
| origin Of those wars which for three hun
dred years ravsged France, and cost the
French three millions Of men. Al this
probably had never occurred, had Lou.
is not been so rash as TO crop his head
and shave his beard, by which ho be.
came SO disSust(ul in the eyes Of Queen
Eleanor.
Warton mentions, in his notes on
Pope, that the treaty Of Utrecht was oc.
casioncd by quarrel between the Ouch.
ess Of Marlborough and Queen Anne
about pair Of gloves.
The coquetry Of the daughter of
Count Julian introduced the Saracens
into Spain.
"What can be ina sined more trivial" i"
remarks Hume, in one Of his essays,
ethan the difference between one color
of livery and another in horse races?'
Yet this difference begal two most invet.
crate factions in the Greek empire, the
Prasini and Veneti; who never suspend
ed their animosities till they ruined that
unhappy government.
The murder of Cesar in the capitol
was chiefly owing TO his not rising from
his seat when the senate rendered him
some particular honors.
The negotiations with the Pope foI
dissolvlng Henry Eish,h's marriage are
said to have been interrupted by the Earl
of Wiltshire's dog biting his holiness
toe, when he put it out 10 be kissed by
that ambassador and the Duchess o
Marlborough's spillins basin Of water
on Mrs. Masham's gown, in Queer
Anne's reign. brought in the Tory minis
try, and gave a new turn TO the affairs o
r Europe.
"If tho nose Of Cleopatra had beer
shorter" said Pascal, in his epigrami'
manner, "the condition of the worl'
would have been different
Luther might have been lawyer ha
) his friend and companion escaped tn
! thunder. storm Scotland had wante
| her stern re(ormer, if the appeal Of III
n preacher had not startled him in tn
h chapel Of St. Andrews Castle; and
o Mr.. Grenville had not carried, in 1854
n his memorable resolution as to the es
Q pediency of charging certain stamp dc
h ties on the plantations in America, tn
: western world might still have bowed t
g the British sceptre.
h Giotto, one of the early Florentiu
,r painters, might have continued rud
n shepheard boy, if a sheep drawn by nil
r, upon stone had not, by the merest al
10 cident, attracted the notice Of Cin,abu