The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-03-17
LUCK, GOOD AND BAD.

| in Human Lives.
 1 A man can certainly be unlucky in
 the proper sense of the word-that is,
 frequently visited by misfortune for
 which he is entirely irresponsible. Of course in the majority of eases the ill luck is only apparent the true ex-
 planation being some deficiency in the man himself of which he is totally un-
 conscious. He knows his powers, and
 he is aware of his weaknesses, but he l is not aware of his causes of failure 1 He may for example, be really able man, with every capacity for success, except a certain inability to understand the character of other men and women. l That has been often the deficiency which has ruined kings; it spoiled the career of Louis XIV, whose latest adj wiser, Mime. De Maintenon, was good
 woman of the Catholic devotee type, with a decidedly inferior brain; and it was one cause of the fall of Napoleon, whose sub-kings and marshals were,
 with the possible exception of Eugene Beauharnais, never men of first rate powers. This is usually attributed to his jealousy of rivals, but he chose in- ferior men in civil life, and never through his whole career had private secretary or controller of his house. hold who was worth his salt, while of his two wives one was a vain and aX- travagant person without brain, and
 the other an archduchess who had Ect an idea beyond her claim to be con- sidered on account of her birth and who married her chamberlain. In pri- vate life the same defect is probably of failure, we cannot but admit that ruin, very able men, and still oftener able women, being led away in pe- cuniary affairs by persons of imperfect intelligence and positively untrust- worthy character. Or the able man has a habit of procrastinaton of which he is wholly unaware, which leads him al- ways to miss the moment of opportuni- ty, the commonest of defects in able yet successful generals; or he is liable to what the French call entertainments" and the English ''rushes," which lead him into blunders that all his intimacies declare to be positively inexpicable.
 The ablest human being we ever knew had a way of dressing himself, always in unconsciousness which twice cost him great career, while another siii- gularly competent man spoiled every chance by temper which was in real ity nothing but whimsical, but which caused all employers to pronounce him hopelessly unreliable" We should say, indeed that the really able were speci- ally liable to one of the most ruinous of all vices of foibles, incurable indolent, while every one knows few quite com petent men who never succeeded te- cause they lost opportunities through an indifference of which they were totally unaware. Still, though we rec ognize all these, and many more causes of failrue, we cannot but admit that there are men who are genuinely 'un- lucky" with whom, that is, the current of events for some inexplicable reason always collides, who are always in jured in an accident from which others escape, whose cabs break down when driving to important appointments, whose investments which seem most reasonable are always swept away, whose relatives are blisters, and whose friends causes of expense. The writer had once an intimate friend who firmly believed of himself that the offchance of misfortune always happened to him, and always would happen and it was exceedingly difficult for any one who knew his history to doubt that he had reason for his superstition. And the writer knew another man-indeed, he published an account of his adventures who passed some eight times in life through accidents which would infalli- bly, have killed any one else, without scratch, and who had, therefore, Gives belief that he was destined to some thing-which turned out an illusion. We know that there are laws which regu- late chance, and we know that there are long intervals when they seem to be de- fled, and there is no perceptible reason why a mans life should not belived within the influence of one of the inter- vals, favorably or the reverse If he can throw aces or deuces ten times run ming, why should he rOt come to gria in ten consecutive incidents of life? There great providential scheme chance should be allowed to enter, but then there is no reason why insanity should, insanity involving that hardest of all things to conceive, Responsibility; yet both do enter. We may humbly wait for ex- planation; but we see no use in denying the common experience of mankind.- London Spectator.