The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1905-07-19
JULYJe. 1905.
HEROISM OF AUTHORS
BRAVE BATTLES WAGEO AGAINST
THE AGONY OF DISEASE.

ence and History, Is Indebted TO
Pain and worry and Suffering For
Some of Its Choicest Gems.
There are heroes of the pen as well
as of the sword, and the Victories of the
study are quite as affecting and mem
orable as those of the battlefield.
II n complete list Of the fine exam
PIES of heroism of authors We're com
piled 1t would reach we'll out into the
thousands and include Il large number
Of fllustriou5 names. In fact. II Is said
that few authors have done really great
work except under adverse circum
stances. Literature, rs we'll rs science,
art and history is indebted to pain and
worry and suffering for some Of lts
choicest gems.
There are few finer example Of the
herolsm of the study than that present
ed By Professor Finsen, the discoveref
of the light cure for lupus. For the
last twenty years OF his too short life
he suffered from painful diseases oi
was superadded, and 1t was only by
daily self denial and the strlctcst diet
Ing that he was able to live at all.
Yet for all these years, lived In the
very shadow Of death and In constant
suffering, he stuck brayely to his great
life work. even studying his own dis
eases with the keenest attention and
"a,
journals The last two or three years
of his life were spent lying OH his back.
unable even to be carried to his be
loved institute II few yards away. and
yet the lion hearted scientist never re
Taxed for single day his gallant fight
for his fellow men against disease.
The hefosm Of the Danish profess
or suggests similar brave battle
waged by nm English professor, 3 X.
Green, the historian, against disease
and pain 1t was IN 1869. when the
disease which had assailed him for
many years finally Frustrated him and
when the doctors gave him no hope OF
living more than six months, that
Green set to work to write his famous
"Short History of the English PEG
pie" Day after day he toIled ut his
task, holding desperately on to life
and In Il state OF ceaseless pain and ex
haustlon and SO brave was the mans
spirit that he actually prolonged his
life for five years Even he was bound
to confess, Il wonder how In those
years of physical pain and despond
ehey | could ever have written tile
book ut all =
General Grants memoirs which
brought his widow the enormous sum
of 100000, We're written under even
more trying conditions than Green's
history. In 1881, the year before his
death, the cX president found himself
bankrupt through the failure of the
Marine bank and face to face with the
prospect Of dying penniless and lcay-
ing his wife destitute. 1t was ut this
terrible crisis that he began to write
the story of his stirring career But
the cup of his misfortune was not yet
full \ cancer formed ut the root of
his tongue and the gallant soldier was
compelled to write day after day, suf
fering constant and severe agony.
Mrs browning, too. wrote most Of
her beautiful poems confined to II
darkencd chamber, 10 which only her
own family and II few devoted friends
could be admitted. In great weakness
and almost unlntermittent suffering
with her favorite spaniel as her com
panion
The German poet leine was another
martyr and hero of the study. The
last seven years of his life were spent
on his mattress grave" racked with
such eXcruciating pain that he Ind to
take doses of opium large enough TO
have killed several men ia order to
give him few blessed hours OF free
dom from IT. Through all these years
of torture he not only bore himself
with noble resignation aud cheerful
ness, but produced many OF his finest
and most finished works, including his
Last Poems and Thoughts" and his
'Coufessions.'
Sir Walter SCOTS heroic struggle
with misfortune and failing health dur
Ing the closing years of his life Is per
haps too wen known to call for more
than mention. After the commercial
crash came which left him crushed
with debt and with shattered health he
set TO work with wearled eyes and
worn brain" and toiled for years often
as much rs fourteen hours day, until
the end came and with 1t the lifting of
all burdens. including that OF his debts.
every penny OF which his monumental
toll had paid.
In the list are also Frank Smedley.
who wrote bis book Oh "a bed Of an
guish;' Edna Iyall. who kept death at
bay by her brave spirit and busy pen,
and Clark liussell. who set q magnif-
icont example Of patience by his in-
dustry when racked With rheumatism.
Ii is also said that much OF Sir Arthur
Sullivan's sweetest music was distilled
from pain York Herald.