62 HALF HOURS. 



systems, theories concerning the origin of evil, and more especially 

 a favourite glimpse I once-had of a scheme for demonstrating justice 

 to be the one supreme and inalienable principle, something in the 

 way of Leslie's " Short Method," but which I found too long to be 

 written, as well as reflected upon, in half an hour, it is my intention 

 henceforward to employ those much-neglected fragments of time, 

 whenever they come upon me suitors, for employment, or, in other 

 words, whenever I am at a loss what to do with them, in writing 

 down the story or the cogitations of the half hour last past, which 

 I hold to come within Goethe's rule, being unquestionably as near at 

 hand as the half hour just entered upon, and better secured against 

 accidents. This plan of redeeming time will certainly, if any thing 

 can, insure me against being " half an hour too late," a peril which 

 has been well illustrated by a contemporary writer, one of ihefew, I 

 believe, who have touched upon half hours but I regret that, owing 

 to a defective memory, I am unable to thank the sprightly individual 

 by name to whom I am indebted for the salutary warning which I 

 met with the other day when skimming the pages of fourteen of the 

 little books called Annuals, a class numerous and volatile as the swal- 

 low tribe, with which they have several points of resemblance besides 

 the term designating their periodical visitation ; but these I need not 

 point out to their ten millions of industrious readers. Eli Bates, for 

 whose good sense, eloquence, and piety I entertain sincere venera- 

 tion, has the only other written mention I can recollect concerning 

 the half hour. In this truly Christian, philosophical treatise, entitled 

 "Rural Retirement," which, I have the candour to acknowledge, 

 those who are induced to look into my pages for instruction would 

 have a chance of being still more edified by turning to, he has the 

 following passage, which, as I long ago copied it into'my common- 

 place book, I can take upon me distinctly to quote. " Men in general 

 had rather read twenty volumes, and hear many more sermons, than 

 sit down half an hour to close solitary meditation." This remark 

 does not indeed exalt the importance of the half hour, though it shows 

 plainly the estimation in which it is generally held, by exhibiting it 

 antithetically as the very minimum of man's idleness (I was directed 

 to the meaning of this learned word by a laugh in the House of 

 Commons the other day, which I mention because I do not profess 

 learning, and therefore like to give my authorities), nevertheless, I 

 am happy to quote an opinion bearing reference to the subject of my 

 patronage from so excellent and plain-dealing a writer, inasmuch as it 

 likewise includes the best apology I can offer for the loss to the world 

 of letters of the thousand and one half hours aforesaid. All my life 

 long have I been wishing and intending to immortalize myself by 

 my pen, but was constantly deterred from performance by some ill- 

 timed recurrence of the notion that close solitary meditation was a 

 pre-requisite, the above affirmed difficulty of which was heightened, 

 in my instance, by my active and gregarious pursuits as a votary of 

 fashion ! " Solitary " was out of the question ; and " close medita- 

 tion" disagreed with the peculiar tone and with the autocratic re- 

 volutivenes of my imaginative faculty, which, to own the truth, bore 

 in times past too lively a resemblance to the volatile and fly-feeding 



