Cayton's weekly. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1916-1921, 1920-07-10

of the world. He is fascinated by Alex
ander, by Faust, because they are imper-
sonations of his own golden dream. He
sympathizes even with the Bishop ordering
his tomb in st. PraXed's. He extends his
vanity beyond death. He would found a
family, and leave a name.
Alas, as the moralists have told us, there
is little happiness to be got out of these
conquests of glittering things! One may
envy Napoleon his triumphs but one does
not envy him his happiness. One may de.
sire the experiences of Faust, but not his
fate. 1t is open to doubt if millionaires are
happier than agricultural laborers. They
have obviously wider choice of pleasures,
but they do not get the same pleasure from
glass Of ale. They can purchase more
enjoyable things but they cannot purchase
the gift of enjoying them. A poor child
may get more pleasure from collection of
birds eggs than millionaire gets from his
private gallery Of old masters. We doubt
if the possession of first edition of Venus
and Adonis would make us whit happied
than the discovery Of those entrancingy
blue eggs in hedge.sparrow nest among
the thorns. The bibliophile will, we know,
feel differently about it, but it is question
able whether the rich bibliophle is happier
among his abundant treasures than the poor
bibiophile among his few.
TO say truth, there is not much to be
gained from turning ones house into a
museum. 1t is not the costliest books and
pictures that give the greatest delight The
library of the nouveau richie has often been
the subject Of satire as mere collection of
covers. One Of the most famous of rich
men, on purchasing a new house, went into
a bookshOp and said 81 want some books.'
The bookseller asked him what sort of
books ''Books,' said the millionaire i'm
patiently, reading books" And he or.
dered roomful Of them. 1t is related on
good authority that the bookseller, who
was himself publisher of schoolbooks, had
"senior readers,' and similar works, Law
library, where, no doubt, they looked as
handsome as the works Of Shakespeare
We have heard another bookseller relate
as fact that he once had a nouveau richie
come into his shop and order library of
books, declaring that he did not care what
they were as long as they looked well on
the shelves. The bookseller, who also car
ried on secondhand trade happened to
have in his store heap Of old copies of
Bradshaw's Guide. He had these nobly
bound in morocco, and they made the pref.
test possible show on the top shelves of the
rich mans library.
These may be merely booksellers fables,
but at least they have the truth of satire.
Money can buy books, but not the key to
books. 1t is the same with travel. 1t can
buy miles of travel, but not the eye to en-
joy them. Keats saw more of the world
in Hampstead garden than many rich
man has seen in a tour Of two continents.
The responsiveness is everything and this
cannot be hadf or check. One can not buy
even nice taste in Wines "Much can be
done with a Scotsman if he is caught
young" said DR.. Johnson in different
connection. And much may certainly be
done with a rich man, if he is caught young.
But we frankly doubt if the money of the
nouveau richie is worth having. 1t may be
worth having for his grandchildren but for
himself and his contemporaries it is largely
a nuisance and an offense.
We think it we'll to recall some of the
old commonplaces regarding the useessness
Of money just now when the Chancellor of
the Exchequer is levying so many new taxes