The Irish standard., 1909-01-16
y!gsG oTIsM OF GENIUS.
M The Exalted Opinion Of Themselves by
5aSsiiS $A Noted Persons.

e.
Snnca that vanity, egotism, seiI-suh
51tciency are by no means the least "a
gtha traits of genius. 1t follows. tnere-
fnra that but few great men have oeen
unaware Of their genius, failing '''''e
has been pardoned them on account VI
their achievements.
~ Even philosophers, who are supposed
80 he above the pettiness OF ordinary
men. afford Us instances of the esotlsli'
b. 81 ~ aenius. For instance, Schopenhauer'
IS tGe great German, furnishes a most re-
4 ,,,a rkahle example of .self-complacency
HIS naive euiogiums on his own pro-
emotions are almost beyond belief.
SSsss1n writing to his publishers % his
/ work he says:
ats worth and Importance are 81
Fl Great that l Go not venture to express
'k4 H. even toward you, because you would
Il mt believe me-" He then proceeds TO
..,,ote a. review (which speaks ut Mo
with the highest praise, as the greatest
s5nh,,osonher of the age, which is real
l. saving much less than the good man
thinks"
|. "sir" once remarked Schopenlauer
Ia an unoffe.1ding stranger VINO watch
"a him across a table dhote, wher!
the philosopher habitually acted the
ny; Or the local 'lion,' "Sir, you are
evidently astonished at my appetite
,rrue eat three times as much as vol
dc, but then I have three times as
much mind"
The vanity of Victor Hugo was most
,,ons;ne. leading, as it did, to all man
Eer Of odd fances on his part
In 1851, when Napoleon Ill. was
crushing the liberties of the republic
II Hueo was anxious to stir up a reVolu-
tor. Jules Simon has related 'ha''
B IN company with a friend, he one Gay
met Hugo on the street in great ex-
citcment.
nsimon." demanded Hugo, do you
B think that if 1 caused myself TO DC
KILLED in the Latin Quarter. ami my
ho,lv were carried through the Streets
tile students would rise in revoit?'
II am sure they would" Simon SAID
whereupon Hugo shook his head IN
! trasical way and went on. NJ ST.
r1on's companion glanced at him in q
sort of terror.
ooh. don't be afraid said simon,
ere rss,.'y means it. but 1nasmuch a.
the Latin Quarter is quite a distance
l,nnce. Hug, will have entirely for
y,,4ren about his little idea before he
Rcts there
1T is said that during the siege II
PAWS by the Germans in 1871, Victo:
lJrro said one day at a dinner table:
u am going to raise the siege an
slve Paris!"
III but how?" asked a guest.
~ shall expose myself at the out
r,sts." said Hugo, land shall be nillea.
S1h.n, when the Prussians see my
dead body they will retire with ,rrow
sl,i shame TO their own country"
s che poet evidently forgot this pro-
1cct as we'll as the other.
Another writer, Auerbach, the Ger
'&:,1an novelist, had a quaint apprecia v
\ zion of his own powers and WORK, and
Il merry stories are told Of the obtrusive
B,yay in which he displayed his vanity.
German writer says of him:
NJ .'eEvery year Auerbach visits three o:
fonr fashionable watering places, 1t
zach of which the following episode
( ,,rc,1rs at least thirty times. The nov
llclist INDUCES in small talk with tn
sfslittle children OF the natives. an / in
variably ends the conversation thus:
.Knowest thou who has been talking
with thee? Berthold Auerbach! Tell
@that at hon1e!'"
About the most charming egot!st OF
3 all was Hans Christian Anderson. 1t
ais related that when the Danish Gown
Prince brought home his Swedish
assemblage of people stood in the
streets Of Copenhagen to see the royal
couple pass.
s5 in one group were several distin-
guished women and the great story
J teller. Hans himself. The women oc-
sioun.ed front seats at the wi@dow
u end received marked attention from
tile court dignitares in the procession
4 {$s Some one in the company observed
that this particular window seemed t.
Nh POSSESS pecniiar attractions.
III oh, yes,' said the aged poet, pleas
g9 ia and fappy in his seat where he had
ls been seen Ivy nobody, every ont
Ss knows mel
The quiet smile that went around
N the group had no trace of unkin,ipess
Anderson's childish vanity was one o:
HE arniable traits of the gentle ole
II man Everybody knew and loved it
.