Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1859-03-30
Foor.s AND THEIR USES.


The lecturer commenced by saying that the
lst of April or the 18th of Feb'y. would either
have been more appropriate day lor the uls,
cussion of his subject, but that no day would
be wholly unreasonable, so universally preva-
lent was folly. He felt no embarrassment ari-
sing out of the time, but he was overwhelmed
by the vast magnitude of the theme which ran
through all ages and literature, and embraced
the whole human family from the days OF Ad-
am. The subject OF the lecture embraced ev-
erybody. The general predominance OF the
fools was shown by the frequency with which
illusions to them were made in the Bible.
The word in its various combinations occurred
568 times in the plays of Shakespeare. The
old French epigram was, indeed, true
The world of fools has such a store,
That he who would not see an ass,
Must bide at home, and bolt his door,
And break his looking glass.
There did not seem to be any inequality in
the sexes in point of the extent and degree In
which they seem to be fools. Though the
first great folly was committed by woman,
yet in the parable of the ten virgins, at least
five of them, we are told, were not fools. The
lecturer here defended the gentlcr sex against
the mputatons of intellectual inferiorIty, and
declared that it was hers always to inspire, If
not always to act, and though she had neither
written the Novum Organum, nor painted the
TRANSPORTATION, she had performed noble Of
fec in elevating and purifying the vision and
heart of man.
1t was worthy of remark, that nations as
well as individuals were fools. II gallery of
paintings existed which represented the fool
ish incidents in the history of nations, itNyoud
far surpass in extent those which contain the
history of their gOries. The tower OF Babel
was not the only magnificent folly OF the past,
although that work was the cause OF the con-
! fusion of tongues and afforded mankind, in
| stead OF one, many tongues, in which to use
| the word fool. The Caesars in their magnlf-
! cence and glory had their Babel of universal
dominion, and the great work of Gibbons
was nothing but the story of their folly.
| The condition of Spain once as compared
with her condition now, presents striking ey-
| idence of the folly of nation. Her grandeur
and greatness have departed owing to the fol-
! lies of which she was guilty. England, too,
was of those nations which had not been cx-
empt from the general rule. Passing by the
great South Sea bubble, and the license of the
! restoration, the course which she pursued to-
| wards the thirteen colonies, and by which she
| lost the brightest-and most valuable jewel in
| her crown, was standing evidence OF her fol-
| ly. France, however, was pre-eminent In the
| list of nations for the widest and most reck-
! less exhibition of the fool. Her history is a
| history of follies. China was the oldest and
most constant fool OF nations. Flatterlng her.
| self that she is the wisest and most enlight-
| ened and purest of all people-she still re-
mains in profound ignorance and foolish iso-
| lation. Our own history is not without evil
dence of folly. The story Of Dickens, and at
later day that of Jenny Lind, tell too truly
of the folly of our people. True. our country
had never been guilty of any ruinons act of
folly, and it was to be hoped that the greatest
which could take place, that of dissolution
of the Union, never will occur.
Not only nations. but large divisions of time,
were classed among fools. Carlyle had styled
| the 18th century great fool; and as he diff
fered with tha: gentleman, and intended to
notice his remarks on the 18th century. he
| would read them. The lecturer here read
portion of an article by Carlyle, in which the
| latter sneers at the 18th century as one given
up to folly, and which had not been diStin-
guished by any great or grand actions.l The
| lecturer said that Carlyle had entirely over
| looked the services of the philanthropist How
| ard, when he said there was nothing grand in
that century; and then asked if there was
| nothing grand in the labors and struggles of
the Weseys, and of Whitfield, surrounded as
they were by trials, and subject to prosecutions
| from which they came forth as refined gold
| Or was there nothing grand in the successful
| efforts of thirteen colonies to throw off the
| shackles of tyranny Was there nothing
| grand in the character of Washington. whose
| fame will live when that of other men, who
were distinguished in the centuries in which
they lived, will be forgotten as folly, or re-
membered as worse? Carlyle, he said, had ig-
nored all these; and in styling the 18th centu-
ry a fool, had committed a folly himself.
The lecturer then said, that but few great
men had ever lived who had not at some pc
| riod of their lives, and frequently when at the
very height of their greatness: been guilty of
this weakness. Napoleon had sacrificed the
holiest and purest affection at the shrine of
ambition, and Bacon and Angelo had given eX-
| kibitions of folly, which almost challenged
parallel. The lecturer said that it was an old
proverb, s.He is a wise man who speaks little"
Lecturers who talked by the hour, would stand
an excellent chance Of being classed among
the unwise, if judged by the rule of the pro-
| verb. Men, however, could not be judged
safely by this rule. The power of speech is
| one of the principal differences between man
and beast, and while the exercise of the facul-
| ty was proper when used to convey wisdom, it
too frequently occurred that where there was
| the most talk there the least sense. 1t
| was no evidence TO find a man silent. The
| lecturer related an incident told by Coleridge
| who had noticed in stage coach man who
! had little to say, but whose appearance was
that OF deep thinker. They stopped at a ho-
tel to dine, and the stranger remained silent
until the apple dumplings were brought upon
the table, when he exclaimed with ivid
grin, ssThem's the jockies for me- some
| excellent takers were fools in some respects,
and the lecturer illustrated this remark oy re-
| ferring TO Goldsmith. Follles are enoemlc
and epidemic but who the chronic crew were
| II was most difficult to tell. They were found
| evervvhere and under all circumstances, in
| every class of society They were OF no day
or age but now, always here.
| The uses of fools were many. The genuine
fool was certain to take the popular side of a
| question, and some eminent man had recon-
mended that men engaged in government
should always have fool near them, so that
they might judge the public pulse on questions
! Of policy. The fool was benefit IN afording