The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1873-05-01

when our pleasures are heightened BY
the close participation of another persoI
in all our enjoyments. We not inquire
whether this analysis is complete o.
accurate; at any rate, it illustrates
pretty fairly the amazing complexity o
a passion which we are apt to describe
as simple. When young gentleman
at ball sees the young lady who ii
above all other young ladies enter tht
room, he is conscious only of a keer
thrill of emotion, 80 vivid and powerful
as to displace every other sentiment fol
the time. If Mr.. Herbert Spencer were
standing by him, and were to propose
to give him lecture on the constituen
elements of his passion, we fear, thougl
we mean no disrespect to Mr.. Spencer
that he would consider the philosopher
to be bore. But perhaps few years
afterward, or possibly on the next day
if his suit should have come to an un
timely catastrophe, he might be inclin
ed to take his passion to pieces, and he
would recognize the justice of most o.
the remarks which we have summarized
In that case he would perhaps find the
explanation OF some phenomena whicl
are little puzzling to by-standers,
though the lover himself has not the
leisure to attendhto them.
Thus, for example, everybody is puz
zled by the extraordinary caprices o
love-making. The ladies who say in
novels that they cannot understand
"what he could see in her" are general.
ly held up to ridicule as obviously
blinded by jealously; and yet theil
want of perception is not only sincere,
but is shard by perfectly impartial
spectators. When we see the way ii
which marriages are brought about ii
the world, we wonder that the pursuit
of match making should be found so i'll
teresting by amiable persons. OF course
matchmaking as variety of fortune
hunting is only too Ineligible ; but
there is match making of much less
sordid variety. All amiable women take
the keenesL delight in attempting tt
pair off their friends and relations ac.
corling to their own views Of the fit ess
of things and yet they always meeting
with the strangest and, at first sight,
hemostunaccountable disappointments
The man of intellect has an extraordm.
ary taste for stupid women the hand.
some man of fashion is carried off by 4
poor, ugly, and commonplace women,
ten wears older than himself the pom.
pous prig secures the brightest and live.
Iiest of her sex fortune-hunters attract
poetesses, and poets marry wives VIII,
can do nothing but mend their shirts
Such strange contrasts have led to the
development of the plausible theory
that people are attracted rather 10y
qualities complementary than by quail
ties similar to their own. This doctrine
however, fails by being too comprehen
sive. We must admit that like oftel
attracts like; and if we add that lik,
also attracts unlike, we have theory
which explains nothing, because it ex-
plains every thing. Every match thai
ever was or ever will be made may be
brought under one category or the other
but, until we can give some reason fol
telling beforehand which set of causes
is likely to be operative in given case,
we are no nearer an explanation than W,
were before. The only general rule al
which we have been enabled to arriv,
by experience is the rather discourag,
ing one that people whom we like al
ways marry people whom we dislike
Friends seem to have perverse deli h
in forming new combinations which may
be discordant as possible with then
ancient ties. We do not, however, Sc,
our way to erecting any philosophical
theory upon this experience, unless as i
goes to illustrate Artemus Wards doc
trine of the cussedness" of things il
general.
Mr.. Herbert Spencers analysis ma.
perhaps help us to understand some o
the conditions of the problem, thougl
the philosopher has yet to arise VIII,
will be able to tell us, from the inspec
tion of young lady or gentleman, wha
will be the character of his or her futur
partner. In the first place, it is to b
remarked that some of the element
which he describes do not enter into tn
passion in many cases, or at least d.
not enter into its earlier stages. Self
esteem, for example, is the reward o
successful love-making, and strengthen
| the passion when it has once been form
ed; but it cannot.be the primary cause
Mere contiguity is very often suflicien
explanation of the phenomenon. Amal
and woman, brought together in Robin
son Crusoe's island, would almost in
evitably fall in love, however IL promis
ing their characters might be; and
though London is very unlike "a desert
island, there are frequently situations
even in the most crowded societie:
where conditions substantially simila
are reproduced. There are circun
stances under which it would be almos
breach of good manners not to indulg
in little Irritation. A human bein
has such variety Of strong feelings /
state of solution that any object wi
, | ha aufficiant IN datarmine their crysta