, 1874-11-08
.EGOTISM BUN MAD.


tons, which display him as the egotiat par emf
nence Of the century. Mr. Ruskin has ,ndulgod
in lamentations before, but mono Of them have
been go purely personal ~ his recent wailings.
The catalogue Of them Is too amusing to be left
unnoticed- Their arrogance is defeated by their
puerility, and any hope that A1r. Ruskin
may be relieved from his world Of troubles
ia lost in tho fact that the authors Of
those troubles will only laugh 1t their victim,
and that the world Ut large will regard Mr. Rus
kin as 1t would child uailng over its broken
doll First Mr. Ruskin complains Of his Own
name, because, ~ he says, it is only short for
'Rough 6kin,' in the sense OF "Pig Skin," and
be cannot find historical mention OF any other
form OF the name, except as that Of the leading
devil Of four (Red Skin and Blue Skin, and he
forgcts the names OF the other two), who per-
formed in one OF the Miracle plays. Second, he
asserts that he has lost the pleasure Of threesev-
enths Of hislifa owing to Sunday. He reaches this
exac. fraction by the fact that the inoyitability
Of the coming OF Sunday always cast lurid ahade
over Friday aud Saturday. Third. he has fifteen
thousand pounds in bank stocks, for which he
gets per cent, but 1t causes him great un-
easiness, ~ he has suspicion that this ia usury.
II would seem, however, very easy matter for
him to divest himself Of this suspicion aud re-
leye his uneaainess, and there arc plenty of
money-borzowers who could give him IN infai-
lible remedy for this trouble. Fourth. he COM
p1ainu fhaf fhA u1fI sail
black gil. and mentions bis wish to buy
white ono With title,-an easy purchase, il be
has monsy enough. Fifth. he says he da1es not
give penny to beggar unless he is sure no
clergyman il in sight, from which We presume
he means to intimate that the clergyman would
Immediately rob him or impoztune him for aims,
being the biggest beggar Of the TWO, Sixth, he
is not able to correct his proof-sheets At ali With
in hearing Of steam-whistlc or within sight OF
rainbow Seventh. he complains he cannot read
Sensational novels on strikes. Eighth, gas makes
his head ache, ~ it does the he2da Of millions
OF other people. Ninth. he is greatly exercised
because London firm has sent him circulars
shout silks, which they want to sell at IN alarm
4A46 aAIAAAGo~ Ao0IAs A4o &1V"AA OtCAub0 pcuuY
cookery-books come to him BY post, and above
all because an old friend aaks him to read u text
every morning in what he calls the Sausage
Book Quere; The Bible? Eleventh, he de-
cla1es himself to be misunderstood, to be i'll
tempered. to have few friends remaining, and
that the British public is Of loquacious and
speculative dispos1tion as compared with the in
tensely practical and matter-of-fact character Of
his own mind
ALI this seems so dreadful to Mr. Ruskin that
he parades it before the world in his Fors Clap
igera, as il he wero the only man in the world
suffering from annoyances and grievances. The
mistake which he makes ia in suppoaing himself
singular in this respect. There Is probably not
a man or woman living who ia not
afflicted with ~ many petty torments and
eccentric ais II Mr. Ruskin, but 1t IL not COZ
sidered either necessary or becoming to gabble
OF growl shout them. Most human beings have
their attention without giving heed to the small
ones. Mr. Ruskin seens to have no great ones.
aud 80 clamors like huckster over the lit
tie ones, and. in so doing, only proclaims
himae1f ~ tho most offensive and i1l-tempered |
Of living egotiats. The fact that he p1oclxims |
Ills snnoyauces in very elegant English does not
place them Of him in any better light. It does |
not make mule any the less mule to trim him |
with ribbons, or monkey any the leas = monkey |
TO dresa him in gilt cap and scarlet coat