The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-03-10


their minds to improve and elevate their tastes to
form themselves for the duties of that essential but
almost non-ezistent class among us-the men of in
tehgent and cultivated leisure? We have high au-
thorlty for saying that "WisdOm y cometh
BY opportunity Of leisure, and he that hath little
business shall become wise" How many do we
know-any of us-who, in the maturity of their fac
uitles, are willing-we will not say to desert
their career, but to pause in it merelv-nay even
to slacken their pace, that they may gather the
iruit from the trees under which they pass-that
they may have the opportunity of wisdom of which
the good man speaks? How many will say-cheer-
fully or at al-''the labor of half the day sutIices
i VIII devote the other half to myself?' Few
sadly lew! grant you, that in the latter case the
| thlng Is not so easy, even where man may have
the VIII. We cannot be part OF a system and vet
be detached from it. If we are in the current, we
cannot linger in the eddies. We must move on. or
be left behind altogether For this the system il
IN the MAN, responsible. But the other thing
the retirement OF those who can afford to break
OIL from system which coerces them
ought not to be difficult, and is not-where
| the Will exists. 1t is a matter of every day oc-
| currence, in other countries-certainy on the
continent of Europe. Men wind up their affairs,
invest their money, accommodate their expenses to
| their means and sit down to be happy while there
is yet enough of the vigor of life left to make en-
Joyment healthy and robust, and while there is
enough of taste, appreciation and thought left, to
De cultivated and deveoped-to be made useful as
well as graceful.
what an outburst of joyous freedom-what
dance upon broken manacles and chains sundered
forever-what hymn of gratitude and deverance
lis that InImitable essay of Charles Lamb's-"The
Superannuated Man" wherein he tells the story off
servltude OF six and thirty years, in counting
room, brought happily to an end How he dwes,
ke ioerated prisoner, on the tolls and the prva-
tons OF his prison -house-the infreuuent holydays
which were over before he could determine how
they were to be enjoycd-the SUNDAYS which
Drought no reiaxation-the week at Easter, which
was gone before its leisure tasted the wood of
MS desk, which had entered into his soul! And
then the tumultuous gladness of his emancipation
the time that first, in all his life, he could call his
own-the plans, the pleasures and the independence
upon pension of two-thirds of small salaryl-
.Had a little son." he exclams in the rapture of
his his soul1"l would christen him Nothing to Do
| He should do nothing" | afraid that even in
England "Nothing to do" would have had hard
| time OF it. With u.s. am quite sure that his name
might have interfered with his getting situation
Inc humorlst would have found it an Improbable
| Labor.
What is the course under our system and with
our ideas? Take professional men for instance
We toll on and toll on, almost without execution,
| until waning mind and broken body refuse to toll
longer We preach sermons-argue causes-feel
| pulSes-spur on our jaded faculties along the mar
row pathway of our traditional and artificial medi-
tauons, until the spur is answered no more And
what is the effect Of this upon ourselves and the So
clety OF which We form part? Every mans pur-
sult, exclusively followed, draws limited portion
| OF humanity within the focus of its light leaving
| all outside unseen and uncomprehended We see
what we look for, in this world and not much else
| Niagara is spectacle to the artist or the poet
another to the geologist and still another to the
man with water mill. The physician lives in a
world whose occupants are patients and the hu
man phenomena therefore, which he chiefly notices
| are OF the class called symptoms. To the LAWYER
| humanity takes the aspect for the most part, of
wrong attempted or resisted. His CONCENTRATIONS
are of the morbid subject, generally like the pby-
slclans His occupations of a sort which, it has
been wisely said, may sharpen the edge but are
sure to narrow the blade, of the mind. So
M in
| at the world to which he ministers, only
from the point of view of the transgressions which
render such mniStratOn needful. 1t is to him ex
cluslvely an abiding place of sancttv and SIM and
he Is very apt to see more of both in it. than per
haps the facts will always justify Thus it is with
all caings by which mems lives and faculties are
monopolized. Mr.. Weller only exaggerated slight
ly-but In perfectly natural drection-when he
represented the undertakers as regarding NOR
tahty in the light of an institution intended for
their benefit.
The subject bears further illustration What A
solemn speech is that of Hamlets when he sees the
grave digger knocking the ''sconce" of his imapi-
nary lawyer about with his ''dirty shovel" The
learned man ''will not tell him of his action of bat
tery! w hat a comment upon a life, which has
gone on In the exclusive pursuit of an enrrossinp
artificial and restricted line of thought-from
which, in spite of u.s. the narrowing and hardening
processes of professional education and exercise have
shut out art and literature-put the extinquisher
upon poetry and tancy-made social enjoyment a
hasty and exceptional pleaSure-and all the more,
IN proportion to the success and reputation which
seem to reward the struggle How the naturc he
comes subdued, upon the one side,
''To what it works in-like the Overs bapdr
How false and partial and unhappy are the views
VIII wh,ch IL ADOPTS upon the other side, of human life
S Sh! Guar acter III seems to y0u, said Sydney
;f auuleSslnS eongreg alton OF lawyers, Gas
a. a. men were pouhu together by the relations of
. auu anu CRIME Laws were not made for the
HtI'' Ill., .he goou ana the Just. You see and know
f y. 'e'l III your PROFESSION, and therefore you
bi A. M. tnsii. Inc lawyer who tempted
~ otei a hau heaTu oi the SINS OF the woman at
boz go f "f'nout @ Nno"lng that she mad poured
Iesrs VI precious ointment on the feet OF
TaLo oor, +bo oo,.oo, e c,
ono ,rbo ,o .n1 tLt ee VI success'ui physlcan-
; bP i iiiaI P'oIessioh as an actVe call
frsm nm,b 80 haS uays ana MS nights to 1t,
and tho half Of his o.esoes Social pleasures
hi; obiId a, - VI MS uoiiestic Joys ior lt-who sees
nj CONTACT VI oh - - it ~ '.: 30. pei son parent
fnI to frru, tba 49, o'.,. M IlSS esse; Is need
What do Won roIa - 't ~ useaulnesS anu nonor-
hin, ao ,oIoh a ~ Va 80, SuG'. III ana aunlre
cIasS of Jn.i,s = t' 10y IT. H HaS u!Scn"i Seu one
bnwond db. ~ = u y Ie' nc mas uone much good,
t;on;n tbo roo; ~ nnS Deen useLui IN MS genera
,nocbina Pt - bn 10 "I enSihGer Vi the human
of ali others tha most innorat Seu tnat rust
own gifts and foculins tho go. 80. ~ VI ui iro
He has givan nbySic 70 ; ea' suI VI hluSeH
has iysn il cm ~ as the mere lawyer
it the cultivated nowarS th .S W .nSin siscn " 70
intellect-thn tastns and tba t; - "n' a'nPIe
it. and to which it has a rgbt from, go p7, ~
ACCORDING to his endowmppts and bis ont,ti5
They have cnnfarred nnn .ta ,, Jus tuntits
and a LAWYER resnectivny instead af 80 "
citizen. They have sacr6cad ~ ~ ttil. man e anu
or thc excitemant of aI ao5 oG .ne onn5' ot gam
hilton what tbnv owad 70 II @ aI iae a-
or tbev have becn sacriGcad h anu
zatiop' the false nrncinias tbe
of society itself The birber tbair abiIitioS "a ,h
purer and more CONSIDERATIONS tbai , a,,lu J al'J
iabors the more nariIon, tbo;r a,,dS p | .h
relentless demands of svster uhob duor' ~ @ aae
its vortay trst ubotoyar /, ~ - tie'. me-
intallact and beort 10 "e'' "'" no''eS' III
GontamIt 20 ,
surrnndared bmseIf fona ~; neone VINO mas
nnrsnit nf coin or r. n - us eaiy years 10 tae
hut ennalIv enorroSs;nr a;tpt, w. - w | ti ool uiu
suit onrondarsee eeonJ fs W. "L'Ii '"d1 PuI-
he rnJar orr st9 "nh I1 " nav uoes nc come 10
mould and Jarc,oo H. iIS IS oots ms occupation
dent nav nnrbanp ;fbo i IT. ub Is iucAy anu Pru-
W. ,viII assmra r. H. - 49, ei'n1 nc grows rlch
and inananoa go; a;' df he uoe. ne acquires power
none Iener,I aus conoed anu respect, Whlch
noses aSnd osnao;oiI a 'oi al Pracueai Pur-
Int Mat appna, - anu "nnouS colhhercsal people
10 von fnd b; hn; ,l;n up: pe ne lahe ol nulseli
boot rat;n , ia, b ms accounts closing ms
J noooi;;s Noii 'ne puSy scene OF excitement
mnor if ~ ms YET vigorous years
;. 80. - '"'e iile, upon soclai rennement and en-
". en1' upon arustlc tastes or literary pleasures
or or huiiatlzhg lad occupatons-the thousand things
onat maze men wiser ana better, and civilize and
90 H. n".io"s. LOW unwliiihSV the hand gives |
up .he leuger' even when 1t grows too weak to
s suIh oveI i 'le leaves! l know some examples-a
~ ~ ho phe respects ana honors them more |
tnau l uo-oi men who from conviction, have |
nj