Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1858-10-21
Pra ,AsS. Y. TsA.si

Libraries are managed It would Hlatter very HI
tie of what books such an institution were com
posed but It is somewhat amusing to think oil
PerciyaIs collection of books as City Library
for our fast brethren of the great City OF the
Lakes. Chicago is an extraordinary place In
twenty wears it reached population which 1t
took London or Amsterdam twenty centuries to
achieve. 1t is now the greatest primary grain
market in the world, thOugh twenty years ago I
il did not ship bushel of wheat But unless
II has raised scholars as numerOusly as gram /
merchants, we appreAend that 1t would hnd
PereiyaPs library of very little available value /
There are hardly dozen men IN the Union to /
whom, II vould be a serviceable collection. IL
was fulI of books in all the languages which |
nobody reads, except some such rare enthusiast
of learning as Percival himself Probably
there vss no other man in the United States
who could read all of them
PERcrv1L was one of the most remarkable
men of his time. As linguist and man oi
science he was more eminent than as Poet'
and vet his poetical faculty was maryellously
brilliant and prolific He was a geologist and
a geoorapher; he understood the structure OF
the earth we live on. and knew all the high
ways and byways OF its surface-roads, rivers
and eanals-as familiarly as most men know
their own domicile or the way to market MS
habits of study were peculiar. lie would take
mn a volume at a booksellers counter, and
stand till he had real It through. He never cut
the leaves of Lis books For many years he &C.
cupied rooms at the Hospital at Heg-Haven,
and during the whole period those rooms were
entered only once by 4 visitor de had no
food cooked during that time, but lived trugally
on dried beef, herring, bread, with apples and
other fruit when they were abundant IN the
market. He read all day and all night-throw-
I. s-.aN.f NEvNtA ma
ture insisted on repose. When his bedroom
was opened, after his death, it was covered
more than an inch thick with dust, except a
path that had been kept free from the door to
the bed.
1t was but seldom that Percival took lively
interest in what was going on in the world, but
when aroused by any event, he became enthusi-
astic in relation to it. The grsat struggle OF
Greece for independence appealed most strong
ly to him, and his poetry at the time was entire
iy devoted TO topics derived from this source
In the famous political campaign preceding
President Harrisons election, he was drawn
out by his friend Dr. Bacon, and entered into 1t
with zeal truly poetic. 1t is not generally
known that a very large number OF the songs oil
those days. that ran through the log-cabins from
Maine TO Louisiana, were from the pen OF Dr-
Percival. He would attend the political gather
III
enioy them with as much gustO as the most de-
voted politician Of the canvass When engaged
IN the geological Survey Of Connecticut, he
was necessarily brought more IN contact with
men. and the influence of this association was
to some extent visible in modifying his morbid
temper and habits. An aneedOte is told of him
in this connection that serves 20 illustrate
his character The law provided that the
seOIogist should receive his remuneration after
he had made his report and had been approved
by tie Governor. PERCIvAL waited upon Gov
ernor ELLSWORTH with the report, and was
very couueously received The Governor took
the report, and promised to give 1t hls immedi-
ate attention, and when he had examined it as
the law required, would make the necessary re-
QUESTION if it were satisfactory. PEKcTyAL roll
ed up his report. and withdrew. He insisted
that neither the Governor nor any one else was
lcompeteut to pass upon the merits of his report,
and he would not submit TO the lndIgnlty. He
was desperately in want Of the money that the
report would bring him, but he would not take
it on such conditions Some of his friends
finally procured the report from him by an inno-
cent stratagem, and it received, Of course, the
formal appreciation Of the Governor. who ad-
mitted his Incompetence to revise a geological
work of DR. PERcIvAL, but was too good an Of
fcer not to yield due obedience to the law
I W c all rGlLtluuGI NoAA " NAN BeAA
Of new shoes left at Dr. Johnson's door, when
he was 4 Young man and had not a decent pair to
his feet A similar anecdote is related of DIR.
Percival. A friend noticed that the cap
which had so long peered above the cloak in
which the Doctor enveloped himself, was be-
coming altogether too shabby, and left word
with a halter on the main street to present him
with a more appropriate though less pOetical
covering In the most delicate way possible,
the shopman intimated tothe poet that any hat
on the counter was at his service-but the
poet turned on his heel with utter con-
tempt He would never accept peeunlary
favor of any description. Being at one time
somewhat embarrassed by his expenditures on
his books, some or his friends made up purse
Of sI.4O0. which they rendered him TO relieve
his difficulties. He would only accept it as
loan, and not only insisted upon giving Gecuri-
ty, but actually gave it in mortgage on his
library, from which his friends were ultimately
reimbursed, principal and interest.
Ofhis poetical reputation, DIR. PERcIvAL took
no care If he had managed his productions
with 1.-THE of the art possessed by some of his
Paruass an brethren, he might have acquired
money as well as fame from his writings. Had
he studied the secrets of hOt-press and embel-
Iishment, of cream colored paper laid between
drab covers or been familiar with the effects Of
blue and gold in giving popularity to Inspira-
ton, PEcIvAL would have become a favOrIte,
and the favor of the people would have reacted
on his selection of topics and faniliarized his
style Those few poems Of his in which he
treated common and domestic subjects, hnd
universal acceptance with the lovers Of poetry,
and al! of them deserve q far larger popularity
than they enjoy. As to hts library, We appre-
bend it viii be aseeitained not TO suit as city
library for Chicago, and that it will be more
usefully dispersed among the various literary
institutions Of the land, according 10 their sew
| eral reouirements