The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1891-11-06

- Glen Eli 1EOILEE
G@the's opinion of '~'clever people'' was
that they 'are the best en~cyclopsdians. !"
We had started cut TO write about
sfSone people We meet" but as it is of
'~'clever people, whom we wish to speak.
it may be the better subject, although if
we transgress and get off on the subject of
some people who are cot so clever yen may
understand why it is.
The option Goethe had of clever people
was certainly a very interesting one, for if
there is one class of people more interest
ing than another that class is the clever
class. Whether they are the best encyclo-
pedians or not we each nave ideas of our
own. They may be, perhaps, to those who
have their memories sufficiently disciplined
to be able to retain the chief or most in
teresting points of which these people have
spoken, but in this respect, to the class
who gave not this education of memory
an encyclopedia at hand is a wonderful
source Of safety and comfort to have to
refer to Upon many occasions.
Who OF US but that can recall instances
where we have known people for years but
during all those years have never been
brought into closer relationship than SIM
ply to recognize each other as we meet,
and in many instances not even that. Yet
if these be clever people we are very apt to
know something of them and their works.
for be it noted-clever people generally
have works of some kind whereby inter-
esting traits of character, mind or heart,
have been developed. They are not an
idle class spending their time on 1.-The
~vanities of life, y nor are they the class of
which Beecher said: Il don't like these
cold, precise, perfect people, who, in order
not to speak wrong. never speak at all, and
in order not to do wrong, never do any
thing" but they are a class who are fear
less of mistakes, which they sometimes do,
they are ready and willing to admit it,
when they see that they made them. This
latter attribute seems to US the good part
of cleverness. even though Charles Kings
ley did divide the two when he wrote, BE
good, sweet maid, and let who will be
clever But suppose after a course of
years you are brought into nearer COM
municstion with these people whom you
have almost always known, but never been
acquainted with, how intensely interest
ing are these new relationships and with
what pleasure do you watch the unfolding
of their eleverness. Their characteristic
as they unfold toward you seem to possess
a greater charm, than do the opening
petals of the most fragrant flowers,
although your feeling toward them may be
no warme nor possess more of respect
than it did previous to your closer ac-
quaintance. For during those esrlie-
years You seemed to recognize
qualities in them which engendered
the most profound respect, the greatest
admiration, and half the pleasure of rat CHI
ing the gradual unfolding of their aequain-
taneeship is because you had always
thought they were clever people, aud are
so pleased to think you are not disappoint.
ed in them, but instead are constantly
finding deeper wells of q quality to be adj
mired. That is an egotistieal idea too, but
some one has said: Il like egotistics."
There comes before memory's window a
scene in a village scboolhouse,
from which all the pupils had been dis
missed except those who had failed during
the day in some particular u who were
now being punished by being kept in
Gathered on the platform at the right OF
the young teacher were two young ladies
and a gentleman, friends who had come TO
pay him a short visit after school hours.
AS be stood there speaking to one and then
another of his detained pupils, with his
handsome upper lip compressed in that
manner usual with him when he had mis-
creant pupils to deal with, we thought one
of the young ladies especially, whose face
is still pictured on memory's pages as II
then appeared, was in sympathy with the