The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1883-02-08
The Sayings Of Great People.
THE SPECTATOR

The SPECTATOR
George Ills sayings are, like his own image
stamped on copper, poor in expression, but very
strongly stamped. 1t was the same with Ma
dame de Pompadour's celebrated expression of
recklessness: "Apres nous, lie deluge," say
ing which has become part of history, partly
from its truth, partly from its vivid expression
of the sel6shness and recklessness which made
it historical. And it is this quality of personal
expressiveness which, when the character so
stamped is not poor, but has anything noble or
magnificent in it, that makes great saying
take rank with great deed. Louis XIV IS
declaration on his deathbed to Madame de
Maintenon, 81 imagined it more difficult to
die as though his departure at least must
have involved a convulsion of nature, and
Pitts grand farewell to power, when he re-
turned, dying, from Bath, "Fold up the map
of Europe are excellent specimens of the sort
of sayings which, though containing no thought
at all, nothing but great consciousness of
power. yet impress us more than the most vivid
wisdom or the most poignant wit. This is why
dignity tells for SO much in saying of this
kind for SO mach more, indeed, than even
truth. Burke's grand sentence on the hastings.
when referring to the death of another candi-
date: "What shadows We are, and what sbad
ows we pursue!' makes an even greater i'm
preston on the imagination than the other sen.
tence: 81 do not know how to draw IN an in
dictment against whole people" not because
it embodies half the political wisdom of the
second sentence, but because it recalls Burke
and his soaring imagination more impressively
to the mind. Even Lord Chesterfield, with all
his thnness and su perfcialty makes his mark
rs a fn daliuo
self "Tbere is a certain dignity to be kept up
in pleasures as in business" and "KuoWedge
may give weight, but accomplishments give
lustre, and many more people see than weigh"
paint so exactly man thoughtfully and con-
sistentently anxious about appearances, that
they impress us almost as much as one of DIR.
Johnson'S vivid self portraitures of much no.
bier kind. Indeed, they impress us not only
almost as much, but for nearly the same rea-
son, that by imaging the man who lived in an
pearances, they throw up in strong relief on
our minds the recollection of men to whom
mere appearances were naught.
Sayings, however excellent, which do not
convey in them any self-portraiture are seldom
wildly associated with their true authors
How many of our readers will remember who
it was that said, Nothing is certain but death
and taxes''; or, "We must all hang together,
else we shall all hang separately" or even, sit
| IS better to wear ont than to rust out" which
last does represent the energy of a certain kind
Oh temperament, but energy so common that 1t
MARKS rather class than an individual. Ben
lamin Franklin said the two first sayings, and
bishop Cumberland tie last, but we should be
surprised to lind anyone in company of liter
airy men Weo could have pronounced on the
| spot to whom any one Of the three was to be at
! tributed. On the other hand we seldom misap-
| propriate sayings containing much less tnan it
| is worth while to remember, if only they vivid
| ly portray memorable figure, like Frederick
| the Greats indignant "Wollt ihr INNER le-
| bancp (bDO ~ 20
| when bis soldiers showed some disinclination
| to being shot down, or Gambetta's peremptory,
| I'll faudra on Sc soumettre, on 20 demettre," 81
| Marshal MasMshon's Government Of Gom.