The Portland daily press., 1900-03-02

knows his powers, and he IL aware ri hts
weaknesses. bat he 10 not aware Of his
causes Of failure. He may, for example,
be really able man. with every capacity
for success. except certain inability "a
understand the character Of other men OF
women. That has besn often the def.
cheney which has ruined kings; 1T spoiled
the career Of Louis XIV. whose latest
adviser, Nina. do Maintsnen, was q good
woman Of the devotss type, with de-
cidedly inferior train; and II was one
cause Of tie fall of Napoleon, whose sub
kings and marshais were, with the posi-.
BILE exception Of Eugene Besuharnais,
never men Of first-rate powers. 1hat 4.
usually attributed to his jealousy Of
rivals; bat he ohose inferior men In civil
life, and never through his whole career
had private secretary or controller Of
his household who was worth his salt;
while Of his two wives, one was Va In
and extravasant person without brain,
and tbs other an sroh- Duchess who had
not an idea beyond her claim to be con-
sidersd on account Of her birth. and who
married her chamberlain. In private
life tbs same defect IL probably OF all
others the oommonsst cause of ruin-ysry
able men. and still oftener able women,
being led away In peouniary affairs by
parsons Of imperft c, Intelligence and POSI-
lively untr ustworthy character. Or the
able man has habit of pfocrastin alton,
Of which he IL wholly unaware, which
leads him always 70 miss the moment OF
opportunity, the commonest OF defects Ia
able jet unsucce SAUL Generals; or he is
liable to what the French call "entrain-
a-ss -. II = - 4 -
lead him into blunders that all his init
mates declare to be positively inexplioa-
| bic"
The sblest human being we ever knew
had q way Of dret sing himself, always In
unconsciousness, which twics cost him q
great CAREER; while another sipgularly
competent man spoiled every chance by
q temper which was In reality moth log
put whimsical, but which caused all en-
ployers to pronounce him horelessly "un.
reliable. F" We should say, indeed. that
the really able were specially liable to
one of the most ruinous of all vices or
folbles, inourabls Incidence, while every
one knows few quite competent men
who nevar succeeded because they Loaf
opportunities through an Indifference OF
which they were totally unaware. still,
though We recognize all these, and many
more causes Of failure, we cannot but
admit that there are men who are gen
timely "unlucky," with whom the current
OF events for some inexplioable reason al
ways ooliitee, who are always Injured In
an accident from which others escape,
whose cabs break down when driving to
important appointments, whose invest
nc ents which seem meat reasonable ara
always swept away, whose rels lives are
blistfrs, and whose friends are causes OF
expense. The writer had onoe An intimate
friend, who firmly believed Of himself
that she offchance or misfortune always
happened to him, and always would hap.
pen, and 1t was exceedingly difficult for
any one who knew his history to doubt
And the writer knew well another man
indeed, he published an account OF bis
adventures-who passed some eight times
In life through accidents which would
iufallibly have killed any one else. with
out a scratch, aud who had, therefore,
Olives belief that he was destined to
| something-which turned out an Illusion.
We know that thsrs are laws which regu-
late chance, and we know that there tre
long intervals when they sesin to be
dsfisd, and there II no perceptibie rea son
any q man's life should not be lived
within the Influence of one OF the inter
walls, favorable or the reverse. IL he oan
throw aces or deuees ten times running
why should be not come to grief In ten
consecutive incidents of lief There ID
no reason peros ptible why in the great
| prov idsntisl scheme chances should BE-
allowed TO entsr, but then there Is nc
reason why insanity should, insanity In
| volvipg that hardest of all things to con-
We may huIntly wait for explanation,
but We see no use in denying the com
mon experience Of mankind. London
Spectator.