Theodore Hook (1788-1841) belonged to that singularly fortunate class of writers whose fame was greater while they lived than after death closed the book of life. To present-day readers Hook is known only as the subject of many a merry anecdote, the coiner of epigrams, and one of the most celebrated practical jokers of his time.But among his contemporaries Theodore Hook was something more. Before he was twenty years old farces and comic operas from his pen had been successfully produced on the London stage, and he was a pet of London society. When he was thirty he was the editor of the Tory paperJohn Bull, and the novels that he published at this period attained a high degree of popularity.As a punster Hook had few equals, and "A Chapter on Puns," which is herewith reprinted for the readers ofThe Scrap Book, constitutes an excellent specimen of the sort of humor for which its author was famous.
Theodore Hook (1788-1841) belonged to that singularly fortunate class of writers whose fame was greater while they lived than after death closed the book of life. To present-day readers Hook is known only as the subject of many a merry anecdote, the coiner of epigrams, and one of the most celebrated practical jokers of his time.But among his contemporaries Theodore Hook was something more. Before he was twenty years old farces and comic operas from his pen had been successfully produced on the London stage, and he was a pet of London society. When he was thirty he was the editor of the Tory paperJohn Bull, and the novels that he published at this period attained a high degree of popularity.As a punster Hook had few equals, and "A Chapter on Puns," which is herewith reprinted for the readers ofThe Scrap Book, constitutes an excellent specimen of the sort of humor for which its author was famous.
Theodore Hook (1788-1841) belonged to that singularly fortunate class of writers whose fame was greater while they lived than after death closed the book of life. To present-day readers Hook is known only as the subject of many a merry anecdote, the coiner of epigrams, and one of the most celebrated practical jokers of his time.But among his contemporaries Theodore Hook was something more. Before he was twenty years old farces and comic operas from his pen had been successfully produced on the London stage, and he was a pet of London society. When he was thirty he was the editor of the Tory paperJohn Bull, and the novels that he published at this period attained a high degree of popularity.As a punster Hook had few equals, and "A Chapter on Puns," which is herewith reprinted for the readers ofThe Scrap Book, constitutes an excellent specimen of the sort of humor for which its author was famous.
Theodore Hook (1788-1841) belonged to that singularly fortunate class of writers whose fame was greater while they lived than after death closed the book of life. To present-day readers Hook is known only as the subject of many a merry anecdote, the coiner of epigrams, and one of the most celebrated practical jokers of his time.But among his contemporaries Theodore Hook was something more. Before he was twenty years old farces and comic operas from his pen had been successfully produced on the London stage, and he was a pet of London society. When he was thirty he was the editor of the Tory paperJohn Bull, and the novels that he published at this period attained a high degree of popularity.As a punster Hook had few equals, and "A Chapter on Puns," which is herewith reprinted for the readers ofThe Scrap Book, constitutes an excellent specimen of the sort of humor for which its author was famous.
Theodore Hook (1788-1841) belonged to that singularly fortunate class of writers whose fame was greater while they lived than after death closed the book of life. To present-day readers Hook is known only as the subject of many a merry anecdote, the coiner of epigrams, and one of the most celebrated practical jokers of his time.
But among his contemporaries Theodore Hook was something more. Before he was twenty years old farces and comic operas from his pen had been successfully produced on the London stage, and he was a pet of London society. When he was thirty he was the editor of the Tory paperJohn Bull, and the novels that he published at this period attained a high degree of popularity.
As a punster Hook had few equals, and "A Chapter on Puns," which is herewith reprinted for the readers ofThe Scrap Book, constitutes an excellent specimen of the sort of humor for which its author was famous.
There is one class of people who, with a depravity of appetite not excelled by that of the celebrated Anna Maria Schurman, who rejoiced in eating spiders, thirst after puns. If you fall in with these, you have no resource but to indulge them to their heart's content; but in order to rescue yourself from the imputation of believing punning to be wit, quote the definition of Swift, and be, like him, as inveterate a punster as you possibly can, immediately after resting everything, and hazarding all, upon the principle that the worse the pun the better.
In order to be prepared for this sort ofpunicwar (for the disorder is provocative and epidemic), the moment any one gentleman or lady has, as they say in Scotland, "let a pun," everybody else in the room who can or cannot do the same sets to work to endeavor to emulate the example. From that period all rational conversation is at an end, and a jargon of nonsense succeeds which lasts till the announcement of coffee, or supper, or the carriages puts a happy termination to the riot.
Addison says, "One may say of a pun, as the countryman described his nightingale, that it isvox et præterea nihil, a sound, and nothing but a sound;" and in another place he tells us that "the greatest authors in their most serious works make frequent use of puns; the sermons of Bishop Andrews and the tragedies of Shakespeare are full of them; if a sinner was punned into repentance as in the latter, nothing is more usual than to see a hero weeping and grumbling for a dozen lines together;" but he also says, "It is indeed impossible to kill a weed which the soil has a natural disposition to produce. The seeds of punning are in the minds of all men, and though they may be subdued by reason, reflection, and good sense, they will be very apt to shoot up in the greatest genius that is not broken and cultivated by the rules of art."
Here is something like a justification of the enormity; and, as the pupil is to mix in all societies, he may as well be prepared.
Puns may be divided into different classes; they may be made in different ways, introduced by passing circumstances, or by references to bygone events; they may be thrown inanecdotically, or conundrumwise.
It is to be observed that feeling, orpity, or commiseration, or grief are not to stand in the way of a pun—that personal defects are to be made available, and that sense, so as the sound answers, has nothing to do with the business.
If a man is pathetically describing the funeral of his mother or sister or wife, it is quite allowable to call it a "black-buryingparty," or to talk of a "fit ofcoffin"; a weeping relative struggling to conceal his grief may be likened to a commander of "private tears"; throw in a joke about the phrase of "funeralsperformed" and a re-hearsal; and wind up with the anagramreal-fun, funeral.
I give this instance first, in order to explain that nothing, however solemn the subject, is to stand in the way of a pun.
It is allowable, when you have run a subject dry in English, to hitch in a bit of any other language which may sound to your liking. For instance, on a fishing party. You say fishing is out of yourline; yet, if you did not keepa float, you would deserve arod; and if anybody affects to find fault with your joke, exclaim: "Oh,vous bête!"
There you haveline,rod,float, andbaitready to your hand.
Call two noodles from the city in a punt, endeavoring to catch small fry, "East Angles"; or, if you please, observe that "thepuntersare losing the fish," "catching nothing but a cold," or that "the fish are too deep for them." Call the Thames a "tidy" river; but say you prefer theIsisin hot weather.
Personal deformities or constitutional calamities are always to be laid hold of. If anybody tells you that a dear friend has lost his sight, observe that it will make him more hospitable than ever, since now he would be gladto see anybody.
If a clergyman breaks his leg, remark that he is no longer a clergyman, but alame man. If a poet is seized with apoplexy, affect to disbelieve it, although you know it to be true, in order to say—
Poeta nascitur nonfit;
and then, to carry the joke one step farther, add, "that it is not afitsubject for a jest."
A man falling into a tan-pit, you may call "sinking in thesublime"; a climbing boy suffocated in a chimney meets with asootabledeath; and a pretty girl having caught the smallpox is to be muchpitted.
On the subject of the ear and its defects, talk first of something in whicha cow sticks, and end by telling the story of the man who, having taken great pains to explain something to his companion, at last got in a rage at his apparent stupidity, and exclaimed, "Why, my dear sir, don't you comprehend? The thing is as plain as A, B, C." "I dare say it is," said the other; "but I am D, E, F."
It may be as well to give the beginner something of a notion of the use he may make of the most ordinary words, for the purpose of quibbleism. For instance, in the way of observation: The loss of a hat is alwaysfelt; if you don't like sugar, you maylumpit; a glazier is apanes-taking man; candles are burnt becausewick-edthings always come tolight; a lady who takes you home from a party is kind in hercarriage, and you say "Nunc estridendum" when you step into it; if it happen to be a chariot, she is acharitableperson; birds'-nests and king-killing are synonymous, because they arehigh trees on; a bill for building a bridge should be sanctioned by the Court ofArchesas well as the House ofPiers; when a man is dull, he goes to the seaside toBrighton; a Cockney lover, when sentimental, should live inHeigh Hoburn; the greatest fibber is the man most tore-lieupon; a dean expecting a bishopric looksfor lawn; asui-cide kills pigs, and not himself; a butcher is a gross man, but a fig-seller is agrocer; Joshua never had a father or mother, because he was the son of aNun; your grandmother and great-grandmother were youraunt's sisters; a leg of mutton is better than heaven, because nothing is better than heaven, and a leg of mutton is better than nothing.
Races are matters ofcourse; an ass never can be a horse, although he may be amayor; the Venerable Bede was the mother of Pearl; a baker makes bread when hekneadsit; a doctor cannot be a doctor all at once, because he comes to it bydegrees; a man hanged at Newgate has taken adroptoo much; thebridleday is that on which a man leads a woman to thehalter. Never mind the aspirate; in punning all's fair.
Puns interrogatory are at times serviceable. You meet a man carrying a hare: ask him if it is his ownhare, or a wig?—there you stump him. Why is Parliament Street like a compendium? Because it goes to abridge. Why is a man murdering his mother in a garret a worthy person? Because he is above committing a crime. Instances of this kind are innumerable; and if you want to render your question particularly pointed, you are, after asking it once or twice, to say "D'ye give it up?"—then favor your friends with the solution.
Puns scientific are effective whenever a scientific man or men are in company, because, in the first place, they invariably hate puns, especially those which are capable of being twisted into jokes which have no possible relation to the science of which the words to be joked upon are terms; and because, in the next place, dear, laughing girls, who are wise enough not to be sages, will love you for disturbing the self-satisfaction of the philosophers, and raising a laugh or titter at their expense.
Where there are three or four geologists of the party, if they talk of their scientific tours made to collect specimens, call the old ones "ninny-hammers," and the young ones "chips of the old block"; and then inform them that claret is the best specimen ofquartzin the world.
If you fall in with a botanist who is holding forth, talk of the quarrels of flowers as a sequel to the loves of the plants, and say they decide their differences withpistols.
In short, sacrifice everything to the pursuit of punning, and in the course of time you will acquire such a reputation for waggery that the whole company will burst into an immoderate fit of laughing if you only ask the servants for bread, or say "No" to the offer of a cutlet.
Among Those Who Were Singularly Deficient in the Art of Conversation Were Corneille,Addison, Milton, Dante, and Goldsmith.
"He wrote like an angel and talked like poor poll," was the manner in which Oliver Goldsmith was described by one of his contemporaries, and all acounts agree that the author of "The Deserted Village" made a sorry figure as a conversationalist. But Goldsmith was far from being the only writer of undoubted genius whose conversation was devoid of charm. Indeed, there is a wealth of evidence to prove that the art of writing well and talking well are not akin.
Descartes, the famous mathematician and philosopher; La Fontaine, celebrated for his witty fables; Buffon, the great naturalist, were all singularly deficient in the powers of conversation.Marmontel, the novelist, was so dull in society that his friend said of him, after an interview, that he must go and read his tales to recompense himself for the weariness of hearing him.As to Corneille, the grandest dramatist in France, he was completely lost in society—so absent and embarrassed that he wrote of himself a witty couplet importing that he was never intelligible but through the mouth of another.Wit on paper seems to be something widely different from that play of words in conversation, which, while it sparkles, dies; for Charles II, the wittiest monarch that sat on the English throne, was so charmed with the humor of "Hudibras" that he caused himself to be introduced in the character of a private gentleman to Butler, its author. The witty king found the author a very dull companion, and was of opinion, with many others, that so stupid a fellow could never have written so clever a book.Addison, whose classic elegance has long been considered a model of style, was shy and absent in society, preserving, even before a single stranger, stiff and dignified silence.In conversation Dante was taciturn and satirical.Rousseau was remarkably trite in conversation—not a word of fancy or eloquence warmed him.Milton was unsocial, and even irritable, when much pressed by talk of others.
Descartes, the famous mathematician and philosopher; La Fontaine, celebrated for his witty fables; Buffon, the great naturalist, were all singularly deficient in the powers of conversation.
Marmontel, the novelist, was so dull in society that his friend said of him, after an interview, that he must go and read his tales to recompense himself for the weariness of hearing him.
As to Corneille, the grandest dramatist in France, he was completely lost in society—so absent and embarrassed that he wrote of himself a witty couplet importing that he was never intelligible but through the mouth of another.
Wit on paper seems to be something widely different from that play of words in conversation, which, while it sparkles, dies; for Charles II, the wittiest monarch that sat on the English throne, was so charmed with the humor of "Hudibras" that he caused himself to be introduced in the character of a private gentleman to Butler, its author. The witty king found the author a very dull companion, and was of opinion, with many others, that so stupid a fellow could never have written so clever a book.
Addison, whose classic elegance has long been considered a model of style, was shy and absent in society, preserving, even before a single stranger, stiff and dignified silence.
In conversation Dante was taciturn and satirical.
Rousseau was remarkably trite in conversation—not a word of fancy or eloquence warmed him.
Milton was unsocial, and even irritable, when much pressed by talk of others.
An Elizabethan Dramatist and One of the Cavaliers ofCharles I Gave to Our Language Two ofIts Most Charming Lyrics.
The English language is particularly rich in poetical expressions of the tender passion, but among these two have long been regarded as preeminent.
One, "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love," was written by Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593), the only great predecessor of Shakespeare in the British drama. This lyric, which is described by old Izaak Walton as "that smooth song which was made by Kit Marlowe," is one of the most beautiful of its kind that has come down to us from the Elizabethan period. It has frequently been imitated by minor poets, and a delightful reply to it was made by Sir Walter Raleigh.
The second famous love poem published herewith was from the pen of the gay, loyal, brave, but unfortunate Cavalier, Sir Richard Lovelace (1618-1658). The exquisite verses constituting his address "To Althea from Prison" were written while the young poet was confined as a prisoner, by order of the Puritan Parliament, in the Gatehouse of Westminster, for presenting to the Commons a petition from Kentish royalists in the king's favor. He was released on bail which amounted to two hundred thousand dollars. The young woman to whom the lines "To Althea" were written subsequently became the wife of another. Lovelace died in the most abject poverty.
ByCHRISTOPHER MARLOWE.
Come live with me, and be my love,And we will all the pleasures proveThat valleys, groves, and hills, and fields,Woods or steepy mountains yields.And we will sit upon the rocks,Seeing the shepherds feed their flocksBy shallow rivers, to whose fallsMelodious birds sing madrigals.And I will make thee beds of roses,And a thousand fragrant posies;A cap of flowers, and a kirtleEmbroidered all with leaves of myrtle;A gown made of the finest wool,Which from our pretty lambs we pull;Fair lined slippers for the cold,With buckles of the purest gold;A belt of straw and ivy buds,With coral clasps and amber studs:And if these pleasures may thee move,Come live with me, and be my love.The shepherd swains shall dance and singFor thy delight each May-morning:If these delights thy mind may move,Then live with me, and be my love.
Come live with me, and be my love,And we will all the pleasures proveThat valleys, groves, and hills, and fields,Woods or steepy mountains yields.
And we will sit upon the rocks,Seeing the shepherds feed their flocksBy shallow rivers, to whose fallsMelodious birds sing madrigals.
And I will make thee beds of roses,And a thousand fragrant posies;A cap of flowers, and a kirtleEmbroidered all with leaves of myrtle;
A gown made of the finest wool,Which from our pretty lambs we pull;Fair lined slippers for the cold,With buckles of the purest gold;
A belt of straw and ivy buds,With coral clasps and amber studs:And if these pleasures may thee move,Come live with me, and be my love.
The shepherd swains shall dance and singFor thy delight each May-morning:If these delights thy mind may move,Then live with me, and be my love.
ByRICHARD LOVELACE.
When Love with unconfined wingsHovers within my gates,And my divine Althea bringsTo whisper at my grates;When I lie tangled in her hairAnd fettered to her eye,The birds that wanton in the airKnow no such liberty.When flowing cups run swiftly roundWith no allaying Thames,Our careless heads with roses bound,Our hearts with loyal flames;When thirsty grief in wine we steep.When healths and draughts go free—Fishes, that tipple in the deep,Know no such liberty.When like committed linnets IWith shriller throat shall singThe sweetness, mercy, majesty,And glories of my king;When I shall voice aloud how goodHe is, how great should be,Enlarged winds, that curl the flood,Know no such liberty.Stone walls do not a prison make,Nor iron bars a cage;Minds innocent and quiet takeThat for a hermitage;If I have freedom in my loveAnd in my soul am free;Angels alone, that soar above,Enjoy such liberty.
When Love with unconfined wingsHovers within my gates,And my divine Althea bringsTo whisper at my grates;When I lie tangled in her hairAnd fettered to her eye,The birds that wanton in the airKnow no such liberty.
When flowing cups run swiftly roundWith no allaying Thames,Our careless heads with roses bound,Our hearts with loyal flames;When thirsty grief in wine we steep.When healths and draughts go free—Fishes, that tipple in the deep,Know no such liberty.
When like committed linnets IWith shriller throat shall singThe sweetness, mercy, majesty,And glories of my king;When I shall voice aloud how goodHe is, how great should be,Enlarged winds, that curl the flood,Know no such liberty.
Stone walls do not a prison make,Nor iron bars a cage;Minds innocent and quiet takeThat for a hermitage;If I have freedom in my loveAnd in my soul am free;Angels alone, that soar above,Enjoy such liberty.
ByJAMES PROCTOR KNOTT.
James Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky on August 29, 1830. He went to Missouri in 1850 and there began the practise of law. In 1858 he was elected to the Missouri Legislature and subsequently he became attorney-general. He returned to Kentucky in 1862 and was elected to Congress from that State in 1866. It was while in Congress that Mr. Knott attained national fame as a humorist. As a satirist he had no equal among his fellow members, and he was responsible for several bills being "laughed out of the House."Mr. Knott's most famous speech was delivered in the House of Representatives, January 27, 1871, on the joint resolution extending the time to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River to the west end of Lake Superior. At that time Duluth was a small and almost unknown village. Knott's grandiloquent forecast of its future, intended as a satire, has since been in great part verified by the city's wonderful development. It now has a population of more than fifty-five thousand persons, and as one of the principal shipping points of the great Northwestern grain-fields it is world-famous.Of this speech, which has long been regarded as a model of its kind, an abridged version is given below. The complete text may be found in the third section of the appendix of theCongressional Globefor 1870-1871, beginning on page 68.
James Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky on August 29, 1830. He went to Missouri in 1850 and there began the practise of law. In 1858 he was elected to the Missouri Legislature and subsequently he became attorney-general. He returned to Kentucky in 1862 and was elected to Congress from that State in 1866. It was while in Congress that Mr. Knott attained national fame as a humorist. As a satirist he had no equal among his fellow members, and he was responsible for several bills being "laughed out of the House."Mr. Knott's most famous speech was delivered in the House of Representatives, January 27, 1871, on the joint resolution extending the time to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River to the west end of Lake Superior. At that time Duluth was a small and almost unknown village. Knott's grandiloquent forecast of its future, intended as a satire, has since been in great part verified by the city's wonderful development. It now has a population of more than fifty-five thousand persons, and as one of the principal shipping points of the great Northwestern grain-fields it is world-famous.Of this speech, which has long been regarded as a model of its kind, an abridged version is given below. The complete text may be found in the third section of the appendix of theCongressional Globefor 1870-1871, beginning on page 68.
James Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky on August 29, 1830. He went to Missouri in 1850 and there began the practise of law. In 1858 he was elected to the Missouri Legislature and subsequently he became attorney-general. He returned to Kentucky in 1862 and was elected to Congress from that State in 1866. It was while in Congress that Mr. Knott attained national fame as a humorist. As a satirist he had no equal among his fellow members, and he was responsible for several bills being "laughed out of the House."Mr. Knott's most famous speech was delivered in the House of Representatives, January 27, 1871, on the joint resolution extending the time to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River to the west end of Lake Superior. At that time Duluth was a small and almost unknown village. Knott's grandiloquent forecast of its future, intended as a satire, has since been in great part verified by the city's wonderful development. It now has a population of more than fifty-five thousand persons, and as one of the principal shipping points of the great Northwestern grain-fields it is world-famous.Of this speech, which has long been regarded as a model of its kind, an abridged version is given below. The complete text may be found in the third section of the appendix of theCongressional Globefor 1870-1871, beginning on page 68.
James Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky on August 29, 1830. He went to Missouri in 1850 and there began the practise of law. In 1858 he was elected to the Missouri Legislature and subsequently he became attorney-general. He returned to Kentucky in 1862 and was elected to Congress from that State in 1866. It was while in Congress that Mr. Knott attained national fame as a humorist. As a satirist he had no equal among his fellow members, and he was responsible for several bills being "laughed out of the House."Mr. Knott's most famous speech was delivered in the House of Representatives, January 27, 1871, on the joint resolution extending the time to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River to the west end of Lake Superior. At that time Duluth was a small and almost unknown village. Knott's grandiloquent forecast of its future, intended as a satire, has since been in great part verified by the city's wonderful development. It now has a population of more than fifty-five thousand persons, and as one of the principal shipping points of the great Northwestern grain-fields it is world-famous.Of this speech, which has long been regarded as a model of its kind, an abridged version is given below. The complete text may be found in the third section of the appendix of theCongressional Globefor 1870-1871, beginning on page 68.
James Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky on August 29, 1830. He went to Missouri in 1850 and there began the practise of law. In 1858 he was elected to the Missouri Legislature and subsequently he became attorney-general. He returned to Kentucky in 1862 and was elected to Congress from that State in 1866. It was while in Congress that Mr. Knott attained national fame as a humorist. As a satirist he had no equal among his fellow members, and he was responsible for several bills being "laughed out of the House."
Mr. Knott's most famous speech was delivered in the House of Representatives, January 27, 1871, on the joint resolution extending the time to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River to the west end of Lake Superior. At that time Duluth was a small and almost unknown village. Knott's grandiloquent forecast of its future, intended as a satire, has since been in great part verified by the city's wonderful development. It now has a population of more than fifty-five thousand persons, and as one of the principal shipping points of the great Northwestern grain-fields it is world-famous.
Of this speech, which has long been regarded as a model of its kind, an abridged version is given below. The complete text may be found in the third section of the appendix of theCongressional Globefor 1870-1871, beginning on page 68.
Mr. Speaker: As to those great trunk-lines of railway spanning the continent from ocean to ocean, I confess my mind has never been fully made up. But with regard to the transcendent merits of the gigantic enterprise contemplated in this bill—to construct a railroad from the St. Croix River, or lake, to the west end of Lake Superior and to Bayfield—I never entertained a shadow of a doubt.
Now, sir, who that is not as incredulous as St. Thomas himself will doubt for a moment that the Goshen of America is to be found in the sandy valleys and upon the pine-clad hills of the St. Croix?
Sir, I have been satisfied for years that if there was any portion of the inhabited globe absolutely in a suffering condition for a railroad, it was these teeming pine-barrens of the St. Croix.
At what particular point on that noble stream such a road should be commenced I knew was immaterial, and so it seems to have been considered by the draftsman of this bill. It might be up at the spring or down at the foot-log, or the water-gate, or the fish-dam, or anywhere along the bank, no matter where. But in what direction should it run, or where should it terminate, were always to my mind questions of the most painful perplexity, until I accidentally overheard some gentlemen the other day mention the name of "Duluth."
Duluth! The word fell on my ear with a peculiar and indescribable charm, like the gentle murmur of a low fountain stealing forth in the midst of roses, or the soft, sweet accent of an angel's whisper in the bright, joyous dream of sleeping innocence.
Duluth! 'Twas the name for which my soul had panted for years, as the hart panteth for the water-brooks. But where was Duluth?
Never in all my limited reading had my vision been gladdened by seeing the celestial word in print. And I felt a profound humiliation in my ignorancethat its dulcet syllables had never before ravished my delighted ear. I was certain the draftsman of this bill had never heard of it, or it would have been designated as one of the termini of this road.
I asked my friends about it, but they knew nothing of it. I rushed to the library and examined all the maps I could find. I discovered in one of them a delicate, hair-like line diverging from the Mississippi near a place called Prescott, which I supposed was intended to represent the river St. Croix; but I could nowhere find Duluth.
Nevertheless, I was confident that it existed somewhere, and that its discovery would constitute the crowning glory of the present century, if not of all modern times.
Thanks to the beneficence of that band of ministering angels who have their bright abodes in the far-off capital of Minnesota, just as the agony of my anxiety was about to culminate in the frenzy of despair, this blessed map was placed in my hands; and as I unfolded it a resplendent scene of ineffable glory opened before me, such as I imagine burst upon the enraptured vision of the wandering peri through the opening gates of paradise.
There, there for the first time my enchanted eye rested upon the ravishing word "Duluth."
If gentlemen will examine it, they will find Duluth not only in the center of this map, but represented in the center of concentric circles one hundred miles apart, and some of them as much as four thousand miles in diameter, embracing alike in their tremendous sweep the fragrant savannas of the sunlit South, and the eternal solitudes of snow that mantle the ice-bound North.
I find by reference to this map that Duluth is situated somewhere near the western end of Lake Superior; but as there is no dot or other mark indicating its exact location, I am unable to say whether it is actually confined to any particular spot, or whether "it is just lying around there loose."
But, however that may be, I am satisfied that Duluth is there or thereabout, for I see it stated here on this map that it is exactly thirty-nine hundred and ninety miles from Liverpool, though I have no doubt, for the sake of convenience, it will be moved back ten miles so as to make the distance an even four thousand.
Then, sir, there is the climate of Duluth, unquestionably the most salubrious and delightful to be found anywhere on the Lord's earth. Now, I have always been under the impression, as I presume other gentlemen have, that in the regions around Lake Superior it was cold enough, for at least nine months in the year, to freeze the smoke-stack off a locomotive.
But I see it represented on this map that Duluth is situated exactly half-way between the latitudes of Paris and Venice; so that gentlemen who have inhaled the exhilarating airs of the one or basked in the golden sunlight of the other may see at a glance that Duluth must be a place of untold delights, a terrestrial paradise, fanned by the balmy zephyrs of an eternal spring, clothed in the gorgeous sheen of ever-blooming flowers, and vocal with the silvery melody of Nature's choicest songsters.
As to the commercial resources of Duluth, sir, they are simply illimitable and inexhaustible, as shown by this map. I see it stated here that there is a vast scope of territory, embracing an area of over two million square miles, rich in every element of material wealth and commercial prosperity, all tributary to Duluth.
Look at this map; do not you see from the broad brown lines drawn around this immense territory, that the enterprising inhabitants of Duluth intend some day to enclose it all in one vast corral, so that its commerce would be bound to go there whether it would or not? And on this map, sir, I find within a convenient distance the Piegan Indians, which of all the many accessories to the glory of Duluth I consider the most inestimable.
For, sir, I see vast "wheat-fields" represented on this map in the immediate neighborhood of the buffaloes and the Piegans; and though the idea of there being these immense wheat-fields in the very heart of a wilderness, hundreds and hundreds of miles beyond the utmost verge of civilization, may appear to some gentlemen as rather incongruous, as rather too great a strain on the "blankets" of veracity, to my mind there is no difficulty in the matter whatever.
Here, you will observe, are the buffaloes, directly between the Piegans and Duluth, and here, on the right of Duluth, are the Creeks. Now, sir, when the buffaloes are sufficiently fat from grazing on these immense wheat-fields, you see it will be the easiest thing in the world for the Piegans to drive them on down, stay all night with their friends, the Creeks, and go into Duluth in the morning.
Sir, I might stand here for hours and hours and expatiate with rapture upon the gorgeous prospects of Duluth as depicted upon this map. But human life is far too short and the time of this House far too valuable to allow me to linger longer upon the delightful theme. Nevertheless, sir, it grieves my very soul to be compelled to say that I cannot vote for the grant of lands provided for in this bill.
Ah, sir, you can have no conception of the poignancy of my anguish that I am deprived of that blessed privilege! There are two insuperable obstacles in the way. In the first place, my constituents for whom I am acting here have no more interest in this road than they have in the great question of culinary taste now perhaps agitating the public mind of Dominica as to whether the illustrious commissioners who recently left this capital for that free and enlightened republic would be better fricasseed, boiled, or roasted; and in the second place, these lands which I am asked to give away, alas! are not mine to bestow.
My relation to them is simply that of trustee to an express trust. And shall I ever betray that trust?
Never, sir! Rather perish Duluth! Perish the paragon of cities! Rather let the freezing cyclones of the bleak Northwest bury it forever beneath the eddying sands of the raging St. Croix.
Some Simple Facts Concerning Woodcraft Which Will Enable Wanderers in a Forest toGet Their Bearings and Find Their Camps.
With the coming of vacation time, men's thoughts turn to woods and streams, and there is a general rush for "the tall timber."
That many will wander far afield and lose themselves in "trackless forests" is inevitable, but there is a sure way of finding oneself which is well worth remembering, for it is a serious matter to be actually lost in dense woods.
Find a mature tree that stands apart from its fellows. Even if it is only slightly separate it will do. The bark on this tree will be harder, drier, and lighter in color on the south side. On the north it will be darker, and often at the roots it will have a clump of mold or moss.On the south side of all evergreen trees, gum which oozes from wounds or knotholes will be hard and amber-colored; on the north side this gum is softer, gets covered with dust, and is of a dirty gray.In fall or winter, trees which show a rough bark will have nests of insects in the crevices on their south side.Hardwood trees—the oak, the ash, elms, hickories, mesquits, etc., have moss and mold on the north. Leaves are smaller, tougher, lighter in color, and with darker veins on the south; on the north they are longer, of darker green, and with lighter veins. Spiders build on the south sides. In the South, air plants attach themselves to the north sides. Cedars bend their tips to the south.Any sawed or cut stump will give you the compass points, because the concentric rings are thicker on the south side. The heart of the stump is thus nearer to the north side. All these things are the effects of the sun.Stones are bare on the south side, and if they have moss at all, it will be on the north. At best, on the sunny side only a thin covering of harsh, half-dry moss will be found.On the south side of a hill the ground is more noisy underfoot. On the north side ferns, mosses, and late flowers grow.If you are on a marsh, small bushes will give you the lesson; then leaves and limbs show the same differences. Almost all wild flowers turn their faces to the south. There are many other signs that will aid the lost person, but you will find these enough.
Find a mature tree that stands apart from its fellows. Even if it is only slightly separate it will do. The bark on this tree will be harder, drier, and lighter in color on the south side. On the north it will be darker, and often at the roots it will have a clump of mold or moss.
On the south side of all evergreen trees, gum which oozes from wounds or knotholes will be hard and amber-colored; on the north side this gum is softer, gets covered with dust, and is of a dirty gray.
In fall or winter, trees which show a rough bark will have nests of insects in the crevices on their south side.
Hardwood trees—the oak, the ash, elms, hickories, mesquits, etc., have moss and mold on the north. Leaves are smaller, tougher, lighter in color, and with darker veins on the south; on the north they are longer, of darker green, and with lighter veins. Spiders build on the south sides. In the South, air plants attach themselves to the north sides. Cedars bend their tips to the south.
Any sawed or cut stump will give you the compass points, because the concentric rings are thicker on the south side. The heart of the stump is thus nearer to the north side. All these things are the effects of the sun.
Stones are bare on the south side, and if they have moss at all, it will be on the north. At best, on the sunny side only a thin covering of harsh, half-dry moss will be found.
On the south side of a hill the ground is more noisy underfoot. On the north side ferns, mosses, and late flowers grow.
If you are on a marsh, small bushes will give you the lesson; then leaves and limbs show the same differences. Almost all wild flowers turn their faces to the south. There are many other signs that will aid the lost person, but you will find these enough.
Great Fortunes of To-day Compared With the Wealth of France Under the Bourbons—The Dangers of Dust, and the Eccentricities of Electricity—The World's Babel of Languages—Amusing Anachronisms Perpetrated By Authors and Artists—A Pin Scratch That Helped Nelson—With Other Interesting Items Gathered From Various Sources.
Great Fortunes of To-day Compared With the Wealth of France Under the Bourbons—The Dangers of Dust, and the Eccentricities of Electricity—The World's Babel of Languages—Amusing Anachronisms Perpetrated By Authors and Artists—A Pin Scratch That Helped Nelson—With Other Interesting Items Gathered From Various Sources.
Prior to the Seventeenth Century NoFrenchman Had an Income ThatTouched the Seven-Figure Mark.
Tales of the magnificent extravagances of France under the Bourbons have led a wondering later age to think that never since has gold been lavished upon luxury with so free a hand. But a French writer, the Vicomte Georges d'Avenel, has taken the trouble to make comparisons, and he has found that the incomes of to-day are relatively much larger than they were one, two, and three hundred years ago. The New YorkWorldhas summarized from theRevue des Deux MondesM. d'Avenel's discoveries:
For purposes of exact comparison M. d'Avenel estimates all fortunes and incomes of bygone times in terms of their equivalent value to-day, not as mere nominal sums. Up to the end of the sixteenth century, he shows, no one had an income of $1,000,000.Louis IX in the exceptional year of the crusade of 1251 spent $775,000. After the Hundred Years' War, in 1450, Charles VII's budget was $212,000. In 1516 Francis I, who was noted for his taste for luxury, had only $259,000 for his person and his court.Napoleon III's civil list amounted to $5,000,000, but Louis XIV had less than $4,000,000 for all expenses of an extravagant court.Richelieu and Mazarin derived tremendous incomes from their privileges, Mazarin leaving by will nearly $40,000,000 to the king, who refused it and let it pass to Mazarin's eight nephews and nieces.Except these three no person up to the time of the Revolution enjoyed an income of $1,000,000, and the revenues of Richelieu and Mazarin were subject in fact to charges really connected with the state.
For purposes of exact comparison M. d'Avenel estimates all fortunes and incomes of bygone times in terms of their equivalent value to-day, not as mere nominal sums. Up to the end of the sixteenth century, he shows, no one had an income of $1,000,000.
Louis IX in the exceptional year of the crusade of 1251 spent $775,000. After the Hundred Years' War, in 1450, Charles VII's budget was $212,000. In 1516 Francis I, who was noted for his taste for luxury, had only $259,000 for his person and his court.
Napoleon III's civil list amounted to $5,000,000, but Louis XIV had less than $4,000,000 for all expenses of an extravagant court.
Richelieu and Mazarin derived tremendous incomes from their privileges, Mazarin leaving by will nearly $40,000,000 to the king, who refused it and let it pass to Mazarin's eight nephews and nieces.
Except these three no person up to the time of the Revolution enjoyed an income of $1,000,000, and the revenues of Richelieu and Mazarin were subject in fact to charges really connected with the state.
The conclusion of this investigator is that the very rich of to-day are six times as rich, or those of equal fortune are twelve times as many, as the richest men of the old régime; and they are ten times as rich, or twenty times as many, as the rich princes of the feudal period.
Particles of Cork Floating in the Atmosphereof Linoleum Factories Must BeKept from Unprotected Lights.
Almost every kind of dust which is composed of inflammable material will explode when touched by a flame. For instance, the house-maid who uses the contents of the sugar bowl to light the fire knows that nothing burns more easily than powdered sugar. Proprietors of large sweetmeat factories have learned that there is danger from this source.
Some years ago an English inspector of mines conducted a number of experiments on the explosive power of coal dust. A disused shaft one hundred and fifty feet deepwas chosen for the purpose. Samples of dust from different collieries were collected for the purpose. When two hundredweight of dust was emptied down a shaft and a charge of gunpowder fired, the result was startling.Huge tongues of flame, sixty feet in height, shot up from the mouth of the shaft, and enormous columns of smoke rose high in the air, forming a great black pall over the scene of the explosion.Coal is the carbonized remains of tree mosses. Oddly enough, these mosses were the big forefathers of the moss we know as lycopodium, which in a powdered state is used to produce flash signals. This will help to give an idea of the intensely inflammable nature of coal dust.In the manufacture of linoleum no unprotected lights are allowed in the mixing department. This is on account of the great danger of exploding the cork dust floating in the air. An additional danger in linoleum making is that the mixture of cement and cork dust has the unpleasant property of spontaneously igniting if left in a warm place. It is, therefore, customary to mix the material a sackful at a time in order to reduce the risks of an explosion.
Some years ago an English inspector of mines conducted a number of experiments on the explosive power of coal dust. A disused shaft one hundred and fifty feet deepwas chosen for the purpose. Samples of dust from different collieries were collected for the purpose. When two hundredweight of dust was emptied down a shaft and a charge of gunpowder fired, the result was startling.
Huge tongues of flame, sixty feet in height, shot up from the mouth of the shaft, and enormous columns of smoke rose high in the air, forming a great black pall over the scene of the explosion.
Coal is the carbonized remains of tree mosses. Oddly enough, these mosses were the big forefathers of the moss we know as lycopodium, which in a powdered state is used to produce flash signals. This will help to give an idea of the intensely inflammable nature of coal dust.
In the manufacture of linoleum no unprotected lights are allowed in the mixing department. This is on account of the great danger of exploding the cork dust floating in the air. An additional danger in linoleum making is that the mixture of cement and cork dust has the unpleasant property of spontaneously igniting if left in a warm place. It is, therefore, customary to mix the material a sackful at a time in order to reduce the risks of an explosion.
Belief That the Electric Fluid NeverStrikes Twice in the Same Place IsShown to Be Wrong.
Among the duties assigned to the students of the Agricultural College at Guelph, Ontario, is that of gathering statistics concerning loss and damage from lightning in the province. The results thus obtained seem to show the value of lightning-rods, if properly adjusted, and the desirability of having trees standing near buildings. Summarizing the last annual report from the college, theFree Press, of London, Ontario, gives out the following novel facts:
As to the question does lightning strike twice in the same place, the report says that there may be warrant for the idea in the fact that where lightning ever strikes there is very little left to be struck a second time; but where a barn has once been struck and another barn has been erected on the same site, that second barn is just as likely to be struck as the first, and, in some instances, more likely.The statistics compiled by the college show that in the five years since 1901 ninety-four trees were struck by lightning, as follows: Elm, 28; pine, 17; oak, 9; basswood, 7; maple, 7; ash, 4; poplar, 4; cedar, 3; apple, 3; hemlock, 2; willow, 2; spruce, beech, chestnut, balsam, hickory, butternut, and fir, 1 each.The number of cattle killed in the same period was 114; sheep, 64; horses, 46; pigs, 4. Total, 228.Barns struck, 179; other buildings, 66.
As to the question does lightning strike twice in the same place, the report says that there may be warrant for the idea in the fact that where lightning ever strikes there is very little left to be struck a second time; but where a barn has once been struck and another barn has been erected on the same site, that second barn is just as likely to be struck as the first, and, in some instances, more likely.
The statistics compiled by the college show that in the five years since 1901 ninety-four trees were struck by lightning, as follows: Elm, 28; pine, 17; oak, 9; basswood, 7; maple, 7; ash, 4; poplar, 4; cedar, 3; apple, 3; hemlock, 2; willow, 2; spruce, beech, chestnut, balsam, hickory, butternut, and fir, 1 each.
The number of cattle killed in the same period was 114; sheep, 64; horses, 46; pigs, 4. Total, 228.
Barns struck, 179; other buildings, 66.
Linguists Attempt an Impossible Task ifThey Try to Master the Hundreds ofLanguages Still Spoken.
Language is, of course, a wonderful telegraph system between minds; but what a multiplicity of codes! The living languages to-day number eight hundred and sixty, to say nothing of five thousand dialects. This is a Babel indeed.
Europe has eighty-nine languages; Asia, one hundred and twenty-three; Africa, one hundred and fourteen; America, one hundred and seventeen; and the islands of the Pacific and Indian oceans have four hundred and seventeen.
Probably the most remarkable linguist the world has ever known was Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, who was born at Bologna in 1774, created cardinal in 1838, and died at Rome in 1849. The list of languages and dialects which he acquired reached the astounding total of one hundred and fourteen.It would be interesting to know what system was pursued by Cardinal Mezzofanti in the study of languages, but little light is now obtainable on this subject.The most famous linguists of antiquity were Mithridates, King of Pontus, who is said to have been thoroughly conversant with the languages of the twenty-five nations over which his rule extended; and Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, of whom Plutarch says that "she spoke most languages," andthat "there were but few of the foreign ambassadors to whom she gave audience through an interpreter."
Probably the most remarkable linguist the world has ever known was Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, who was born at Bologna in 1774, created cardinal in 1838, and died at Rome in 1849. The list of languages and dialects which he acquired reached the astounding total of one hundred and fourteen.
It would be interesting to know what system was pursued by Cardinal Mezzofanti in the study of languages, but little light is now obtainable on this subject.
The most famous linguists of antiquity were Mithridates, King of Pontus, who is said to have been thoroughly conversant with the languages of the twenty-five nations over which his rule extended; and Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, of whom Plutarch says that "she spoke most languages," andthat "there were but few of the foreign ambassadors to whom she gave audience through an interpreter."
Artists Have Portrayed Abraham ThreateningIsaac with a Blunderbuss, andRomans Smoking Pipes.
Whether it be due to ignorance or careless impatience, it is true that many of the greatest writers and painters have been guilty of the most surprising anachronisms. Thus Shakespeare introduces cannon into the play of "Hamlet," and in "Julius Cæsar" reference is made to the striking of the clock, though striking clocks were not invented until fourteen hundred years after Cæsar's death. Schiller, in his "Piccolomini," refers to lightning-conductors—at least one hundred and fifty years before they were invented. Instances might be added almost indefinitely.
The anachronisms of painters are more noticeable, as a rule, than those of writers. In "The Fancies of Fact" is the following compilation of blunders by artists:
Tintoretto, in a picture of the Children of Israel gathering manna, has taken the precaution to arm them with the modern invention of guns. Cigoli painted the aged Simeon at the circumcision of the Infant Saviour; and, as aged men in these days wear spectacles, the artist has shown his sagacity by placing them on Simeon's nose.In a picture by Verrio of Christ healing the sick, the lookers-on are represented as standing with periwigs on their heads. To match, or rather to exceed, this ludicrous representation, Dürer has painted the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden by an angel in a dress fashionably trimmed with flounces.The same painter, in his scene of Peter denying Christ, represents a Roman soldier very comfortably smoking a pipe of tobacco.A Dutch painter, in a picture of the Wise Men worshiping the Holy Child, has drawn one of them in a large white surplice, and in boots and spurs, and he is in the act of presenting to the child a model of a Dutch man-of-war.In a Dutch picture of Abraham offering up his son, instead of the patriarch's "stretching forth his hand and taking the knife," as the Scriptures inform us, he is represented as using a more effectual and modern instrument; he is holding to Isaac's head a blunderbuss.A French artist has drawn, with true French taste, the Lord's Supper, with the table ornamented with tumblers filled with cigar-lighters; and, as if to crown the list of these absurd and ludicrous anachronisms, the Garden of Eden has been drawn with Adam and Eve in all their primeval simplicity and virtue, while near them, in full costume, is seen a hunter with a gun, shooting ducks.Another famous mixture of periods occurs in a picture of the Crucifixion, by Fra Angelico. In the foreground are a Dominican monk, a bishop with a crozier, a mitered abbot, and a man holding up a crucifix.
Tintoretto, in a picture of the Children of Israel gathering manna, has taken the precaution to arm them with the modern invention of guns. Cigoli painted the aged Simeon at the circumcision of the Infant Saviour; and, as aged men in these days wear spectacles, the artist has shown his sagacity by placing them on Simeon's nose.
In a picture by Verrio of Christ healing the sick, the lookers-on are represented as standing with periwigs on their heads. To match, or rather to exceed, this ludicrous representation, Dürer has painted the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden by an angel in a dress fashionably trimmed with flounces.
The same painter, in his scene of Peter denying Christ, represents a Roman soldier very comfortably smoking a pipe of tobacco.
A Dutch painter, in a picture of the Wise Men worshiping the Holy Child, has drawn one of them in a large white surplice, and in boots and spurs, and he is in the act of presenting to the child a model of a Dutch man-of-war.
In a Dutch picture of Abraham offering up his son, instead of the patriarch's "stretching forth his hand and taking the knife," as the Scriptures inform us, he is represented as using a more effectual and modern instrument; he is holding to Isaac's head a blunderbuss.
A French artist has drawn, with true French taste, the Lord's Supper, with the table ornamented with tumblers filled with cigar-lighters; and, as if to crown the list of these absurd and ludicrous anachronisms, the Garden of Eden has been drawn with Adam and Eve in all their primeval simplicity and virtue, while near them, in full costume, is seen a hunter with a gun, shooting ducks.
Another famous mixture of periods occurs in a picture of the Crucifixion, by Fra Angelico. In the foreground are a Dominican monk, a bishop with a crozier, a mitered abbot, and a man holding up a crucifix.
The Noting of the Distress of a FrenchMaid by Sir John Acton Had aStrange Result.
The good points of pins have been generally appreciated, but never did a pin point to a greater result than the one that made possible Nelson's great victory of the Nile on August 1 and 2, 1798.
It was at this fight that Nelson, with his usual intrepidity, forced a passage with half of his fleet of fifteen vessels between a small island, near Aboukir in Egypt, and the French line of battle, while the other half attacked the enemy in front, completely defeating the French fleet and capturing or sinking thirteen of its seventeen ships.
The part that the pin played in the story came about in this way:
Sir John Acton, then commander-in-chief of the land and sea forces of Naples, happened to be in his wife's dressing-room at the moment she was preparing for dinner.Lady Acton's French maid was also in the room, and was so startled at receivinga letter from her brother, a sailor in the French navy, whom she had believed to be dead, that she ran a pin into her mistress's flesh.Apologizing for her carelessness, the maid stated the cause of her surprise. With carefully suppressed eagerness Sir John Acton offered to read the letter while the maid continued her duties. The maid gladly consented.Having read the letter, the commander-in-chief left the house in search of Lord Nelson, who had in vain been seeking the French fleet. He found him and imparted to him the contents of the letter. It gave all the information the admiral had so long endeavored to obtain.Setting sail immediately, Nelson came up with the French, and the victory of the Nile was the result.
Sir John Acton, then commander-in-chief of the land and sea forces of Naples, happened to be in his wife's dressing-room at the moment she was preparing for dinner.
Lady Acton's French maid was also in the room, and was so startled at receivinga letter from her brother, a sailor in the French navy, whom she had believed to be dead, that she ran a pin into her mistress's flesh.
Apologizing for her carelessness, the maid stated the cause of her surprise. With carefully suppressed eagerness Sir John Acton offered to read the letter while the maid continued her duties. The maid gladly consented.
Having read the letter, the commander-in-chief left the house in search of Lord Nelson, who had in vain been seeking the French fleet. He found him and imparted to him the contents of the letter. It gave all the information the admiral had so long endeavored to obtain.
Setting sail immediately, Nelson came up with the French, and the victory of the Nile was the result.
The Fate of the Most Important ExploringExpedition in History Was Decidedby a Flight of Birds.
A flight of birds, coupled with a sailor's superstition, robbed Columbus of the honor of discovering the continent.
When the great Italian navigator sailed westward over the unknown Atlantic, he expected to reach Zipangu (Japan). After several days' sail from Gomera, one of the Canary Islands, he became uneasy at not discovering Zipangu, which, according to his reckonings, should have been two hundred and sixteen nautical miles more to the east.
After a long discussion he yielded to the opinion of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the commander of the Pinta, and steered to the southwest.Pinzon was guided in his opinion solely by a flight of parrots, which took wing in that direction. It was good luck to follow in the wake of a flock of birds when engaged upon a voyage of discovery—a widespread superstition among Spanish seamen of that day—and this change in the great navigator's course curiously exemplifies the influence of small and apparently trivial events in the world's history.If Columbus had held to his course he would have entered the Gulf Stream, have reached Florida, and then probably have been carried to Cape Hatteras and Virginia.
After a long discussion he yielded to the opinion of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the commander of the Pinta, and steered to the southwest.
Pinzon was guided in his opinion solely by a flight of parrots, which took wing in that direction. It was good luck to follow in the wake of a flock of birds when engaged upon a voyage of discovery—a widespread superstition among Spanish seamen of that day—and this change in the great navigator's course curiously exemplifies the influence of small and apparently trivial events in the world's history.
If Columbus had held to his course he would have entered the Gulf Stream, have reached Florida, and then probably have been carried to Cape Hatteras and Virginia.
One Hundred Pounds of Hay Produce aBetter Effect Than Six Times ThatWeight of Beets.
The relative values of different foods in stock-raising are shown by the following table, in which the given number of pounds of the various articles named produces the same effect as one hundred pounds of hay:
Beets, white669poundsTurnips469"Rye Straw429"Clover, red, uncured373"Clover, red, dry88"Potatoes350"Oat Straw317"Alfalfa89"Buckwheat78.5"Corn62.5"Oats59"Barley58"Rye53.5"Wheat44.5"Oilcake, linseed43"
Hay, it will be seen, is rated as being more nutritious than potatoes or beets.
Every Time the Typewriter Key IsPressed, Several Ounces of ManualPower Are Used.
If a man realized at the end of the day how much energy he had expended in normal and almost unconscious physical activities, he would be thankful for the chance to sleep. The writer who pushes his pen over the paper for several hours at a stretch would doubtless think he had workedhard if he had excavated a well in the same time; yet it is believed that the sum of the energy he uses daily in writing would be enough easily to dig a well. The following figures are quoted fromAnswers: