What, then, it may
be asked, is the good of being great? The answer is that you may
understand greatness better in others, whether alive or dead, and
choose better company from these and enjoy and understand that company
better when you have chosen it- also that you may be able to give
pleasure to the best people and live in the lives of those who are yet
unborn. This, one would think, was substantial gain enough for
greatness without its wanting to ride rough-shod over us, even when
disguised as humility.
I was there on a Sunday, and observed the rigour with which the
young people were taught to observe the Sabbath; they might not cut
out things, nor use their paintbox on a Sunday, and this they
thought rather hard, because their cousins the John Pontifexes might
do these things. Their cousins might play with their toy train on
Sunday, but though they had promised that they would run none but
Sunday trains, all traffic had been prohibited. One treat only was
allowed them- on Sunday evenings they might choose their own hymns.
In the course of the evening they came into the drawing-room, and,
as an especial treat, were to sing some of their hymns to me,
instead of saying them, so that I might hear how nicely they sang.
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