New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-04-23

could never have lived permanently together
She expressed surprise once at seeing no lines
on his forehead as the result OF his hard THINK
ing 'I suppose 1t is because l am never puz-
zled" he said. 20! that's the most arrogant
thing I ever heard uttered" che exclaimed ana
though he proceeded to explain away his seem
ing arrogance. she was not far wrong in her
feeling about him. Spencer's portrait OF TINS
famous woman includes the following interest
ing lines:
nasculinty claracterizing her intellect for though
Of but ordinary feminine height she vas STos ~
women II had moreover. popularity distlr sulsh-
cuIine; namely. that ats contour was very ses ;
Usually. heads have here and theIs eiuher TIt
ITher% convex Striking by its power e %nen N re
smile The smiles Of many are signs Of nothing
more than amusement: but with her smile there
either for the person smiled at the person smiled
with. Her voice was conoraito OF Ta'f nn his
iast point ought to have more definite impress
fEether. hut the habit Of subduing her voice was
constant that suspect its real power sfis
and. Ike the smile. sympathetic
Her self-control, leading TO evenpess Of temper:
was marked. Only once did see irritation. not
uniustlfied little too much manifested. Conscien-
uoils and Just in all relations and eoi,Se1aently
tolerant of human weaknesses as to be quickly
foTgypgJ n9a Ts last trait was doubt not
in part caused by constant study Of her own de-
conscionsness-a current Of sef-criticism being an
habitual accompaniment of anything sne WIS say
d DEF and seif-distrrst,
In early DAYS she was, believe sometimes viva
nor afterward Probably this was the reason why
gave signs Of their presence were not frequently
displayed. Guinness was nm habitdai trait; Ihere
still less Of mental strain: but the impression con
stanly produced was that b OF e,a e nasetr the
products Of large intelliSence working easily.
which she must have been conscious. was not ac-
companied by any marked self-conhdence. DHer-
ence OF opinion she frequently expressed In a haf-
apologize manner.
tits pity that there is not more material OF
this sort in the autobiography, to enliven the
rather monotonous stream of inconsequential in
formation Spencer's life was. on the whole.
notably uneventful, and even those themes on
which he might have enlarged in an effective
manner are often treated with so heavy hand
as to lose much of their significance. When he
goes to Switzerland he is disappointed because
of the absence Of fine coloring." and he finds
the country in this respect FAR inferior to Scot
land" When he visits America he pays his re-
spects with due solemnty. to our great institu-
ton of iced water" but unnumbered British
tourists have touched the same subject, and his
pages on this country throughout dull as
any that his least inspired predecessors and fol-
lowers have written. We would not regret this
SO much if II were not that the autobiography is
SO pnrtentously long. When a fills more
than twelve hundred pages with the story of his
life he ought at least to make the majority OF
them readable The sad truth is that Spencer
let his pen wander on when he sat down TO .1e
conposition of these volumes with altogether
ton rnucb couplacency and wrote many a pa GO
when he had really little, If anything. to say
beyond the things with which only the MEM
bers OF his family could be expected to have
any concern. Spencerian fanatics will rejoice
In the book. DISTINGUISHED readers will find In
many parts of il nothing but boredom.