The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1867-01-10
habits Of Crest Students.

. Racine composed his verses while
! walking about. reciting them in q loud
! voice. One day. while thus working at
/ his play of Mithridates, in Tuilleries
Gardens, a crowd of workman gathered
!, around him. attracted by his gestures
i they took him for q madman. about TO
! throw himself into the basin, On his re
turn home from such walks he would
write down scene by scene, at first in
/ prose. AMI when he had written it out he
/ would exclaim: '..My tragedy is done -
considering the dressings of the act up
/ in verse as very small affair
| Magnabecchi. the learned librarian to
/ the Duke of Tuscany, on the contrary,
never stirred abroad, but lived amidst
! books. These were his bed, board and
| washing. He passed eight and forty
| years in their midst, only twice in the
course of his life yenturing beyond the
walls Of Floi ence, once to go two leagues
off, and the other three and a half
! leagues, by order OF the Grand Dnke
He was an extremely frugal man, living
| upon eggs. bread and water, in great
moderation.
Luther. when studying. always had his
dog living at his feet. dog which he had
| brought from Wertemburg. and of which
he was very fond. An ivory cruciiix
stood at the table before him, and the
walls Of his study were stuck round with
caricatures of the Pope. He worked at
ms desk for days without going out but
when fatigued. and the ideas began to
stagnate. took his guitar with him into
the porch. and there executed some mu
sical phantasy, for he was a skillful mu
sician, when ideas would flow from him
as fresh as flowers after a summers rain
Music was his invariable solace at such
times. Indeed, Luther did not hesitate
to say that. after theology, music was
the first of arts. "Music," said he, ''is
the art of the prophets; it is the only art
which, like theology, can calm that agi-
tation of the soul. and put the devil to
fight" Next to music. if not before it.
Luther loved children and flowers. The
gnarled man had a heart az tender as q
woman's.
Calvin studied in his bed. Every
morning. at five or six o'clock, he had
books. manuscripts and papers carried
to him there, and had he occasion to 60
ont, on his return he went to bed again
to continue his studies. In his latter
years he dictated his writings to secre-
taries. He rarely corrected anything
The sentences issued complete from his
mouth. If he felt the faculty ofcomposi
ton leaving him, he forthwith Quilted
mis- hsa s ssSf Vert aB aBBor riiRso is aaties
for days, weeks and months together
Bnt as soon as he felt the inspiration
fall upon him again. he went back to
his bed, and his secretary was set to
work forthwith.
Pascal wrote most Of his thoughts on
:tt1n ae o. hy-- m
ments Fenelon wrote his Telema achus
in the Palace of Versailles, at the Court
Of the G rand Monarque. when discharg
ing the duties of tutor to the Dauphin.
That book so Thoroughly democratic
should have issued from such source,
and he written by priest, may seem sur
prising.
De Qnincey first promulgated his no
tons Of universal freedom of person
and trade, and of throwing all tax on
the l,nd-the germ, perhaps. Of the
French Rev.'ution-in the beudoir of
Madame de Pompadour.
Bacon knelt down before composing
his great work. and prayed for light and
inspiration from Heaven
Pope never composed well without first
declaiming for some time at the top of
his voice. and thus rousing his nervous |
system to its fullest activity.
The life of Leibnitz was one OF read
ing, writing and meditation. That was
the secre, OF his prodigious knowledge !
After an attack Of the gout he confined
hms If to a diet of bread and milk
Often he slept in a chair, and rarely went |
tt he'd till after midnight. Sometimes
he was months without quitting his seat. |
where he slept by night aud wrote by |
dav He had an ulcer in bis light lung, |
which prevented his walking about even
had he wish ed to do so.