UNCLE IN ENGLAND. 149 



the secondary employments which I despised ; a 

 thing for show ; a silly waste of time ; nothing 

 that could benefit mankind by the developement 

 of the human understanding. 



When I was eighteen, my philosophical en- 

 thusiasm became so great, that every moment 

 seemed lost which was not devoted to scientific 

 pursuits. To waste that time and those powers 

 which were given me for the noblest purposes, 

 in the common nothings of life ; to sit with my 

 friends listening to the trifling gossip of the 

 country, or to home-spun discussions, were 

 sacrifices to which I would seldom submit, and 

 I always broke away from them with undissem- 

 bled scorn. 



Many a lonely hour that she has passed re- 

 pairing the clothes of which I disdained to take 

 care, I might have cheered her by my company; 

 or enlivened my father's evenings by a little 

 simple music, in which he delighted. But con- 

 ceit and selfishness always accompany each 

 other; and, what is more to the point, always 

 lay the foundation of their own punishment ; the 

 very talents and pursuits which, under proper 

 control, ornament and raise the female cha- 

 racter, became by their abuse my incessant 

 bane. I had the pride of human intellect ; and 

 prayed for knowledge : alas ! I never prayed for 

 wisdom, nor for humility. 



I will give you an instance of my odious sel- 



O 3 



