First Visit to England. 125 



yond all other men of his age to control the thought of the 

 future ; when I thought of him hampered and harassed for 

 want of means to publish his great thoughts as having to 

 think for the world and then having to pay the expense of 

 instruction, setting up other men in intellectual business 

 with a paragraph, I confess I thank God that I had had a 

 little opportunity to do him service. Dear sister, let us re- 

 spect ourselves more that we saw through the obscurity of 

 distance the genuine and exalted claims of this unheralded 

 man, and were led to help him in a way that he most needed 

 help. 



Mr. Spencer is a man who lives his philosophy. He ap- 

 plies his principles in the proper phraseology to the criti- 

 cism and consideration of all questions which arise. He 

 has not the slightest doubt or hesitation, nor is he at a loss. 

 He did not talk much upon these topics, to be sure, while 

 I was with him, nor did I desire to lead him into it, but the 

 evidence of the complete mastery of his themes, that they 

 are part of his mind's nature, crops out constantly. Again, 

 he is equally ready in the application of his convictions of 

 right and justice. " You see," said he, after two or three 

 days' acquaintance with me, " that I have a very disagree- 

 able habit of speaking my mind." For instance, he pounced 

 upon every man in the cars who smoked, and several at- 

 tempted it, as they have no smoking cars. Individuals 

 would try to smoke out of the window. He always at- 

 tacked them. " Is it disagreeable to you ? " they would 

 say. " Not at all," he would reply ; " but it is against the 

 law, and the law is a wholesome and proper one. You have 

 no right to break it, and you shall not do it ; and if you do 

 not desist I will call the guard." Again, when we were in 

 Edinburgh Castle, in the bedroom of Mary, Queen of Scots, 

 where her son was born, and let down outside through the 

 window, an old Scotchman was trying to rally his recollec- 

 tions about some details, and appealed to Spencer. " I am 



