Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1878-05-08
Ets age.
Tho Romance Of Accident,

them from erumbling 10 pieces, Not
oply mineral but literary treasures
have been brought 10 light when ex'
cayating mother earth For Instance
10 the foundations Of an old house.
Luther's "Table.Talk" was discovered
"lying Ia deep, obscure hole, wrap
ped Ia strong linen cloth, which was
waxed all over with beeswax within
aud without" There 1t had remained
hidden ever since It's suppression by
Pope Gregory XIII The sudden
falling in of ceiling, for example, OF
some chambers In Llncolas Inn, re-
yealed the secret depository OF the
Thurloe state papers Other literary
treasures have turned up In an equally
curious manner Milton'a essay on
the "Doctrines OF Christianity" was
discovered 10 q bundle OF old Dispatch
esi and II ID said that one OF tho can
tos of Dantes great poem was found,
after being long mlslaid, bidder away
beneath a window'sill,
II IL curious 10 trace how the origin
Of some famous work has been sug-
gested apparently by the mcrcst acct
dent. We need but remind the reader
how Lady Austcn's suggestion OF
"the soft" as subject tor blank verse
was the beginning Of ''fhe Task q
poem which grew to formidable pro-
portions under Cowper's iaoilo pen
Another example Of
what great events from trivial causes SrrIas'
is furnished by Lockarts account OF
the gradual growth OF "The Lay OF
the Last Minstrel" The lovely Count
ess ofaDalkei,h hears n wild legend of
border diaLlerie, and sportively asks
Scott TO make it the subject of q ballad,
The poets accidental confinement IN
the midst Of q yeoTary camp gave
him leisure to mediate his theme to
the sound Of buglc suddenly there
flashes on him the idea Of extending
his simple outline so as to embrace a
vivid panorama Of that old border life
of war and tumult A friends sug'
cestion led TO the arrangement and
framework of the Lay" and the con-
ception of the ancient harper Thus
step by step grew the poem that first
made its author famous. The manu-
script of "Waverley" lay hidden away
in an old cabinet for years before the
public were aware OF its existence.
In the words OF the Great I'm
known: ~ had written the greater
part of the first volume and sketched
other passages, when mislaid tn"
manuscript and only found it by the
merest accident, rs | was rummag'nS
tho drawer Of an old cabinet and
took the fancy of finishing it.
The characters in Oliver Twist oil
Pagan, Skies and Nancy, We're sug-
gested by some sketches Of Crulks-
hank, who long had design to show
the life of London thief by series
of drawings. Dickens, while paying
Cruishank a visit, happened to turn
over some sketches in portfolio.
When he came to that one which rep.
resents Pagan in the condemned CELL
he studied it for half an hour, and told
his friend that he was tempted to
change the whole plot OF his story
not to carry Oliver through adventures
in the country, but to take him up in
to the thieves den in London, show
what this life was, and bring Oliver
through it without sin or shame
Cruikshank consented to let Dickens
write up to as many Of the drawings
as he thought would suit his purpose.
So the story as it now runs resulted in
great measure from that chance i'll.
spectiou of the artists portfolio. The
remarkable picture Of tho Jew male
factor IN the condemned cell, biting
his nails in the torture of rem9rse, is
associated with a happy accident. The
artist had been laboring at the subject
for several days, and thought the task
hopeless when sitting up in his bee
one morning with his hand on his
chin aud his fingers in his mouth, the
whole attitude expressive of despair
he saw his face in the cheval glass
"That's 1t ! he exclaimed that s thu
expression / want" And he soor
finished the picture.
A clergyman in one of the Hudson