The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1910-01-20
Oliver
Goldsmith
The Poet of Many Vicissitudes
Left his Impress Upon
The World.


there are none from whose writings I
derive so much satisfaction as from
those of Oliver Goldsmith. This man
who went to college and got plucked,
who had atry at everything from Law
to Theology, (Which l imagine to be
extremes) W h o studied medicine at
Edinburgh and Linden and became
successfully tramp, a proofreader and
an usher in a tenthra.e academy, is to
me an everfailing source ofinspiration.
"Fool!" they dubbed him whose name
survives when those of his cont emners
have been swept into the oblivion they
deserved.
AS my years lengthen my gullibility
becomes less. Not that my wisdom in
creases, but simply that there has crept
into my system dubiousness of thein-
fallability of human judgment. Cali
men are liars," saith the Bible, work
which investigation proves to be uni
formly correct in most of its assertions.
The term or appellation if more correct,
''fool" fills me with suspicion, uncon-
vinced as to whether it should lie
| deemed an honorary title or stigma.
| For during a somewhat desultory ex-
perienCe l have discovered that it is
sometimes applied to superior intelli-
gence while the wisdom of the reputed
"wise guy" is barely sufficient to con-
ceal his vacuity. "You are the biggest
fool that ever sat on school bench,"
said pedagogue to Arthur Wellesley,
who afterward became Duke of Well
ington aud the successful opponent of
Napoleon Bonaparte. What! A fool
rise to such eminence as that? Verify
there are reasons for my doubt unless
it be that all men in addition to being
liars are fools also-the bigger the bet
ter. But this is blasphemy, excuse it.
Oliver Goldsmith was genius and like
hunters of his kind lacked those quail
tiles which if rightly exercised raises
mediocrity to All eminence, the ability
to Judge humanity and to pander to its
desire. "Do right and men will
envy you, do wrong and they will
despise you," said Buddha-more than
( two thousand years ago and the remark
is applicable to the present day. Men
yield to mastery with reluctance. Con-
, !, scious superiority finds vent in calumny
!. against it's master and be your motives
3 as pure as we're those of the Victim of
: Calvary the cry of cruelty him" will
l. still be raised.
!, The worlds history centers around the
!, personalities of few strong men who
punctuate, as it were, the story of social
. evolution and the history of their lives
convinces me of the impossibility of
t winning the appreciation of all. Gold
b smith lived in perpetual state Of pow
!. erty. Like his contemporary, DR. John
a son, his retinue was composed of beg
Q gars, the diseased, blind, lame, and halt
a who fed upon his bounty. Nothing
!; could dampen the ardor of eeniality OF
+ Oliver; his spirits were irrepressible
II The jibes of the envious, the malice OF
# the contemplate, irritate but do not sur.
+ press the man of int nte.ligence, who like
# the eagle, when annoyed by the cav OF
n the raven, can soar to heights the raver
,e cannot attain.
le Oliver Goldsmith was an Irishman
= =, born in the county of Longford in 172s
and possessed all the characteristics O.
those remarkable people, not the leas
of which is sense of humOr that n,
circumstances ca n destroy. "Ever,
animal has an ailment suited to it
Ill constitution" he philosophical, "the o,
10 draws nourishment from the earth, tn
10 light chameleon can exist on air but,
rt lighter diet than this will often suffic
n for the man Of genius" The philoso
ID pher is worthy of full bellied alder
- =. man who over a table loaded with th
choicest viandS the world can eunnly