THE SCIENCE OF HAPPINESS 



would often retire into a cave of the earth, and shave half 

 of his head so that he could not with decency appear 

 abroad till his hair was grown again. He also accus- 

 tomed himself to harangue at the seashore, where the 

 agitation of the waves formed to him an idea of the com- 

 motions in a popular assembly, and served to prepare 

 and fortify him against them. From these several kinds 

 of hardship which he imposed upon himself," concludes 

 his biographer, "it is plain that he was not so much born 

 an orator, but is rather an instance, how far parts and 

 application may go toward the forming a great man in 

 any profession." 



Another application of this truth is furnished by the 

 experience of Edmund Stone, the eminent mathema- 

 tician. " He was a native of Scotland, and son to a gar- 

 dener in the service of the duke of Argyle. The in- 

 structions he received amounted to no more than being 

 taught to read by a servant of the duke's. 'I first 

 learned to read, 7 said Stone. 'The masons were then 

 at work upon your house. I went near them one day 

 and I saw that the architect used a rule and compasses, 

 and that he made calculations. I inquired what might 

 be the use of these things, and I was informed that there 

 was a science called arithmetic. I purchased a book 

 of arithmetic, and I learned it. I was told that there was 

 another science called geometry. I bought the books 

 and I learned geometry. By reading I found that 

 there were good books in these two sciences in Latin. 

 I bought a dictionary, and I learned Latin. I under- 

 stood that there were good books of the same kind in 



