xiv] FIRST LITERARY EFFORTS 201 



complete system, but as an aid to the comprehension of 

 a subject, which is, I think, one of the chief causes of the 

 success of my books, in almost all of which I have aimed at 

 a simple and intelligible rather than a strictly logical arrange- 

 ment of the subject-matter. 



Another lecture, the draft for which I prepared pretty 

 fully, was on a rather wider subject — " The Advantages of 

 Varied Knowledge" — in opposition to the idea that it was 

 better to learn one subject thoroughly than to know some- 

 thing of many subjects. In the case of a business or pro- 

 fession, something may be said for the latter view, but I 

 treated it as a purely personal matter which led to the culti- 

 vation of a variety of faculties, and gave pleasurable occupa- 

 tion throughout life. A few extracts may, perhaps, be 

 permitted from this early attempt. Speaking of a general 

 acquaintance with history, biography, art, and science, I say, 

 "There is an intrinsic value to ourselves in these varied 

 branches of knowledge, so much indescribable pleasure in 

 their possession, so much do they add to the enjoyment of 

 every moment of our existence, that it is impossible to esti- 

 mate their value, and we would hardly accept boundless 

 wealth, at the cost, if it were possible, of their irrecoverable 

 loss. And if it is thus we feel as to our general store of 

 mental acquirements, still more do we appreciate the value 

 of any particular branch of study we may ardently pursue. 

 What pleasure would remain for the enthusiastic artist were 

 he forbidden to gaze upon the face of nature, and transfer 

 her loveliest scenes to his canvas ? or for the poet were the 

 means denied him to rescue from oblivion the passing visions 

 of his imagination ? or to the chemist were he snatched from 

 his laboratory ere some novel experiment were concluded, or 

 some ardently pursued theory confirmed ? or to any of us 

 were we compelled to forego some intellectual pursuit that 

 was bound up with our every thought? And here we see 

 the advantage possessed by him whose studies have been in 

 various directions, and who at different times has had many 

 different pursuits, for whatever may happen, he will always 



