The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-03-06
WHIMs OF GREAT MEN.
Celebrities Who Have Been Victims
Of Peculiar Foibles.
(Kansas CITY StarD

(kansas City Starr
Study the private lives of all truly
great men, both present and past. II
Is not difficult to determine that all of
them, 10 greater or less degree, furn-
ish material of the odd and eccentric"
kind. Cardinal RicheIieu found pleas
ure and amusement in jumping and
leaping with boys. Oliver Cromwell
sometimes cast aside his Puritan grav-
ity and played at blindman's buff with
hts daughters and attendants: Henri
Quatre delighted TO go about in dis
guise with the peasantry. Cowper oc-
cupied a great deal Of his time N max
ing bird cages and in feeding and car
ing for his hares.
DR.. Johnson was so fond Of his cats
that he would even go out himself TO
buy oysters for them, his servants be-
ing too proud to do so. Goethe de-
sPised dogs, but he kept a tame snake
Gray expressed the wish to be al
ways on a sofa reading new novels.
and Fenton. the eminent scholar, died
from sheer inactivity; he rose late, and
when he had risen sat down to his
books and papens. A woman who
waited upon him in his lodgings said
that he would lie AIDED and be fed
with a spoon. Contrary TO this was
the example of Sir Walter Scott, who
wrote all his finest works before break
fast
Spinoza delighted TO set spiders fight
ing and would laugh immOderately at
beholding their insect warfare. and
Anthony Magliabecchi. the famous II
brarian to the Duke of Tuscany, took
great interest in the spiders which
| thronged his apartments. and while
sitting among his mountains of books
would caution visitors mot TO hurt
my spiders
When he felt that he needed a little
activity the great losician. Samuel
Clarke, would leap over tables and
chairs, and il was not infrequent that
the upholsterer had to be called in TO
repair damages. The learned Petavius
would twirl his chair around for FIVE
minutes at the end Of each two hours
/ finding recreation in this. Tycho
Brahe diverted himself with polishing
glasses for spectaeles. Former Presi-
dent Cleveland would quit talking pol
itics any time to go fishing, and so II
was with Paley, the author OF ma
tural Theology" who was so much
given to angling that he had his por-
trait painted with rod and line in hand
/ Louis XVI. of sad memory, amused
himself locksmithing. while Salvador
Re sa performed in eXtempore come
dies. taking the character of a mounte-
/ bank in the streets of Rome.
! Charles IFS most innocent amuse-
ment consisted In feeding the ducks in
( st. James park and in rearing num-
bers of those beautiful spanieIs which
I stlll bear his name. I was difficult for
! Beethoven TO be free from a cold from
/ the fact that he delighted in splashing
/ in cold water at all times Of the day.
swamping his chamber until the water
| oozed through the flooring to the rooms
| beneath. He would also walk out in
1 -. II.
shoes.
Shelley could spend an entire day
! floating little paper boats on any water
! he CHANGED to be near.
! Poor Goldsmith's oddities and &c
! centricities" were chiefly dandyisms.
and the story of his peach blossom
coat is known the world over.
Montaigne had an aversion for Fri
| day. and, while he preferred odd num-
| bers. he would not sit down to a table
with thirteen people. Friday was al
ways black day in Byron's calendar,
/ but Byron believed in omens, dreams,
supernatural appearances apparitions,
presentiments and all such. He sue
| cumbed before the weakest prejudices.
and afforded proof that even the
/ strongest intellects have always their
weak side. Voltaire. whom one would
suppose devoid Of fear. moeker of re-
i
hearing rocks cawing in the country.
! Hobbies did not believe in God, but he
/ kept a light burning in his bedroom all
night, being afraid of the dark. Rous-
| seau was another who was afraid OF
/ the dark. ana the approach OF night
brought only terror TO him. Before re-
1 firing at night Sir Samuel Romilly
would always look under the bed to see
/ if anyone was concealed there. He
dreaded to see night come. Great war
riors have been afraid of thunder.
Caesar was almost thrown into convul-
sions by il, and st. Thomas Aquinas
! suffered greatly in thunderstorms-
/ Queen Elizabeth, Talleyrand and 9TH
ers could not bear 10 have the word
death uttered in their presence.
] Marshal SAKE. who overthrow armies,
| feG at sight OF a cat