, 1874-01-04
or csst-iron men, who does not indulge in some

oUT-oF-THE-wAY TASTE OR HoBBT
in his o1-ofhcio character. Some years hgo there
WAS in Dundee, Scotland, 3 servant to the Alagis-
trates, wearing their livery, who Was BY far the
,most learned man in town. I There WIS about
the same time butcher IN the Edinburgh mar
lket who spent all his spare time in reading books
OF - profoundly philosophical character.
'Hobbea, Hutcheson, Stewart, and Brown we're
bis constant companions. In the same metropo-
lis there was porter who was remarkable for
the zeal with which, with self-made machinery,
be pursued experiments in electricity, and in q
public Office might have been seen q Outlook
ing man, who. though seemingly devoted only to
its dry details, Was most profound student OF
the etymologies OF European and Eastern Ian
guagest and wrote little tracts On obscure texts,
which attracted the attention OF English
Bishops.
The greatest monarchs
HAVE NOT ALWAYS BEEN HApp1Esr
when wearing the crown. One Of the Kings Of
Macedon loved better to make lanterns than to
WELD the sceptre; and King Of France found
his chief delight in making locks. Domitian
spent hours in catching flies. The French statea-
man, Turgot, found solace for the loss OF Office
in the study OF physical science, and cheated the
60As ~
sample Of which ne have in the famous line on
Franklin:
Erpuit colo fu1men, sceptrunque tyrannts.
Sir George G. Lewis, when not busted with
budgets, copied Greek manuscripts in the British
Museum, or Investigated reported cases of lon
gevity. Occasionally ne hear Of discrepancy
between mans public and private character
thatis
TOO LUDICRou8 FOR BELIEF.
IT have hea1d," says an English writer,
OF a clever, active farmer, who while unive1-
sally respected rs drst-rnte agriculturlst,
standing, WAS accessible to no dattery on these
accounts but, il you had only told him that you
had heard Of his possessing wonderful power
Of squcaking Ike pig, and we're extremely
anxious to hear him try it, he would blush and
hesitate, like young Indy asked to sing, diaclaim
all merit, say it was great nonsense, and finally,
after sufdciency Of pressing, he would exhibit
as pig,-evidently believing that. il fortune
had played him fair, he would havo sstonished
the whole world by his art, instead OF beng only
q a''respectable farmer
Another striking discrepancy between the
outer and the inner man is
TIE VIVID CONTRAST
which We often observe Of PERSONS talk OF
writings with his life,-of his speculation with
his acts. II has been truly said that there
is division OF labor even in
vice; some men addict themselves
to the speculation only, others to the practice.
Montaigne tells lis that he Railways observed
supercelestial opinions and subterranean morals
to be Of singular Accord; and it is a fact which
has escaped the notice Of few, that purists,
hypocrisy apart. are sometimes the fraest live1s,
while, on the other hand some Of the most lati-
tud1uarian professors Of general license Of
behavior have been the last to take the benefit
OF their own doctrines, from which they reap
nothing but the ob1oquy, and the pleasure Of
starting their "wonder-wounded" hearers. An
authors book is often a poor key with which to
unlock his character. Because certain poets
have been enthusiastic in their praises of vine,
We may not positively infer that they were ad-
dicted to tippline. It was the very rarity
Of the indulgence that gave such zest
to their strains; for, 90 the truly heart
broken mourner suffers only IN occasional
sob to escape him SO no man cares to descant
ecstatica1y upon any subject With which he is
thoroughly familiarized. Men Of genius who
have happy homes do not babb1e about. that hap
piness in their writings. Nine-tent1s of those
who havo rayed in rapturous stanzas about the
sweets OF conjugal love we're
BACHELORS sHtYEHrSd IN SOLITARY oAnnETs.
Could the secrets of authorship be disclosed,
it would be found that romances Of foreign lands
come generally from persons who Lave never
smelt saltwater. just as ''stories OF real Ife,"
showing =" q deep insight OF human nature"
come from those who would be shocked at an
iron spoon. Rurnl life ia the eternal burden OF
sai1or's talk; wh1le farmers, who are fixtures Of
the soil, think nothing so pleasant as life Of
sightseeing and adventure IN foreign lands.
Mount1ineers and fustics hare IN intense ap-
probation OF the advantages OF great cities;
while, On the other hand, tho deaizens Of great,
ugly, smoky towns have passionate longing for
beautiful scenery and rustic retirement. The
author Of 1.-THE Intellectual Life" says truly
that the development OF modern landscape.
painting has been due, not to habits Of rural ex-
isteuce, but to the growth Of very big aud |
hideous modern cities, which made men long for |
shady forests, and pure streams, and magnih- |
cent spectacles Of sunset, and dawn, and noon |
light. Paul JONES' tho hero Of desperate seac
fights, loved Thomson's *'seasons'; Bonaparte, |
who oyerran Europe with his armies, zecreated |
himself with the wild thapsodies Of Ossian; and
Spinoza, who passed his days among the cob
webs OF metaphysics, amused himself by
SEEING sF1pERs FIGHT.
The most e1quisitely-delcate artists in ltera- !
ture and painting hare astonished thoir friends |
By their ccarseneBs; and Swift even declared |
that nice man is a man Of nasty ideas. It is |
said that within the Chateaubriand Of 'tAtala" Il
there existed IN obscure Chateaubriand that |
would burst forth occasionally in talk that no |
biog1apher would repeat; and the same has been |
affirmed Of tho sentimental Lamartine. Turner,
dreamer Of enchanted landscapes, took the |
pleasures Of q sailor On spree. Too much |
thinking drove johnson to his cat for conviviali-
ty; and similar reaction drove Byron to fight |
for Greece.
Herou's "Conforta Of Human Life" was I
written, under the most painful circumstances,
in prison; Beresforu's "Miseries Of human !
Life" Was composed in 3 drawing-room, amid |
the most elegant appointments and lu1uries. |
Seneca Was never moro eloquent in his praises |