The Rambles of an Idler 



And this going out of doors must be as Na- 

 ture intended, on foot. We must walk, not ride, 

 across the plain and wade the brooks and thread 

 the tangled wildwood that lie between us and 

 the mountain. We are then equipped to realize 

 the whole purport of the rising ground, and 

 when at last we reach its base we must proceed 

 step by step, yet climbing ever higher and 

 higher, and by this means secure that alertness 

 of all our senses which is called for when, at the 

 summit, the world lies spread before us, in order 

 to get not only an intelligent but a comprehen- 

 sive view of it. 



This I conceive to be walking in its entirety, 

 and is far removed from mere exercising of 

 ambulatory muscles. The latter may be a rem- 

 edy for rheumatism, but never for ignorance. 

 The advocate of muscular pedestrianism might 

 with perfect consistency rest his head on the 

 ground and let his heels wave in the air as the 

 most important part of him. 



To admit the logic of the "unco guid," to 

 be wool-gathering, rather than forever occu- 

 pied with the stern facts of life, is to go astray, 

 but I contend it is a sin worth sinning. It is 

 but a brief and blameless existence in an ideal 



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