28 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF THOREAU. 



do not share the philosopher s perception of identity. 

 To him there was no such thing as size. The pond 

 was a small ocean ; the Atlantic, a large Walden 

 Pond. He referred every minute fact to cosinical 

 laws. Though he meant to be just, he seemed 

 haunted by a certain chronic assumption that the sci 

 ence of the day pretended completeness, and he had 

 just found out that the savans had neglected to dis 

 criminate a particular botanical variety, had failed to 

 describe the seeds or count the sepals. &quot; That is to 

 say,&quot; he replied, &quot; the blockheads were not born in 

 Concord ; but who said they were ? It was their un 

 speakable misfortune to be born in London, or Paris, 

 or Rome ; but, poor fellows, they did what they could, 

 considering that they never saw Bateman s Pond, or 

 Nine-Acre Corner, or Becky-Stow s Swamp. Besides, 

 what were you sent into the world for, but to add this 

 observation ? &quot; 



Had his genius been only contemplative, he had 

 been fitted to his life, but with his energy and practi 

 cal ability he seemed born for great enterprise and for 

 command ; and I so much regret the loss of his rare 

 powers of action, that I cannot help counting it a 

 fault in him that he had no ambition. Wanting this, 

 instead of engineering for all America, he was the 

 captain of a huckleberry party. Pounding beans is 

 good to the end of pounding empires one of these 

 days ; but if, at the end of years, it is still only 

 beans ! 



But these foibles, real or apparent, were fast van 

 ishing in the incessant growth of a spirit so robust 

 and wise, and which effaced its defeats with new 

 triumphs. His study of Nature was a perpetual or 

 nament to him, and inspired his friends with curi- 



