Year: 1877

WHAT FORCE OF WILL, AMBITION AND
FEARI.Es NE,s OF RlDiCULE HAVE
ACCOMPLISHED.


From a Sketch in Scribner's Monthly.


But d. r :, is career has been very
remarkable one. The career has been
extraordinary because he has himself
been extraordinary. 1t Is the charac-
teristics of the man which have been
extraordinary rather than the ou'-
ward accidents of his career. Given
such qualities as he has had-such
force of will, such ambition, such
want of humor, and consequent fear>
lessness Of ridicule; given talents 30
pi ecisely suited to the life to which
his ipclinations called him, and which
cha ce opened 10 him, and we mig
expect for the lucky possessor Of thess
qualities great success. Indeed, II


would be hard to find in these days
another career which shows such couT
age and determination such power
to look the world down. Disraeli has


longed for high places, fame, the re-
cognition of the people who drive past


Hyde Park corner, for career which


would satisfy his activities-with a


fervor which reminds one of the Old


Testament. The accidents of his liter


ary career appear to us much more


interesting than those of his birth and


station. 1t is true that his books often


contain passage which reveal the force
of his judgment and the excellence of


his satlrical abilities. But they also
| contain such a mass of gush, nonsense


and talk, such an unworthy careless


ness Of being thought fool, and such
| an apparent ignorance of what the
world thinks foolish that il is hard for
us to conceive that they are the work
of one who has since proved himself
to be, of all the eminent people of his
time and country, perhaps the most
consummate man OF the world. In no
books is there to be found less of that
sneaking caution in expressing the


mind just as it is, which a very little
commerce with the world teaches.
The gush. the nonsense. and the talk"
| come straight TO the surface. He is not
| in the least ashamed to express his
admiration of the fine houses, fine
dinners. and fine manners of the great.
And the nonsense and the talk" are
not alone the outcome of his youth.
We find him, after having been Prem
ier, writing book full of the same
kind of thing which he wrote as a boy
His talents have been SO commanding
the force of his will has been such
that he has been able to carry" these
immaturities. We have spoken OF the
extraordinary ambition of Disracli. Il
is not unlikely that the disad Yantages
of his birth and station (such as they
were) may have spurred him to exel-
tions to attain position and fame
which he might not have put forth
had he been born to an eminent place.
1t is natural that the wealth and pride
of the great society of London should
appeal 10 the imagination of a young
and aspiring man. That society is as
proud as any in the world, and pei


haps more splendid than any and yet
| it ia not inaccessible. The surest pass
port to 1t, and tof powerful p ace


within it e, is political career. Society
| seems contrived for the man who may
make reputation in the House Of
! Commons. Take young fellow, such
| as we conceive Disraeli to have been,
J with an immense ambition and an en-
tire belief in all the wealth. rank, and
state of British society and we may
imagine with what longing he mast
look forward to the great places of
the world. Is 1t not possible, by the


way, that the condition of almost pei
feet democracy which we have reach
ed in this country will scarcely permit


men toEcherish such fierce.ambitions.


NO educate young man here can fell
that there is any society which.is great
ly above him. Of course. it is true
that ambition is a personal quality


and needs but little to feed upon; but
1t seems to us very possible that one
result of democratic society will be


to make the ambition of men some
what less strong and eager.