Faraday as a Discoverer. 181 
and defending himself from what he regarded as imputations 
on his character. The style of this letter is unexceptionable, 
for Faraday could not write otherwise than asa gentleman; but 
the letter shows that had he willed it, he could have hit hard. 
We have heard much of Faraday’s gentleness and sweetness 
and tenderness. It is all true, but it is very incomplete. You 
cannot resolve a powerful nature into these elements, and Far- 
aday’s character would have been less admirable than it was, 
had it not embraced forces and tendencies to which the silky 
adjectives “ gentle ” and “tender” would by no means apply. 
Underneath his sweetness and gentleness was the heat of a vol- 
. He was aman of excitable and fiery nature; but through 
high self-discipline he had converted the fire into a central glow 
and motive power of life, instead of permitting it to waste 
itself in useless passion. ‘‘ He that is slow to anger,” saith the 
sage, “‘is greater than the mighty, and he that ruleth his own 
spirit than he that taketh a city.” Faraday was not slow to 
anger, but he completely ruled his own spirit, and thus, though 
he took no cities, he captivated all hearts. 
“PAPERS, NOTES, NOTICES, &e., &c., 
ublished in octavo, 
“ Papers of mine published in octavo, in Quarterly Journal of 
Science, and elsewhere, since the time that Sir H. Davy encouraged 
me to write the analysis of caustic lime. 
“Some, I think, (at this date) are good; others moderate; and 
Some bad. But Ihave put all into the volume, because of the util- 
ity they have been of to me,—and none more than the bad,—in 
eae 2 out to me in future, or rather, after times, the faults it 
came me to watch and to avoid. ‘ 
- As I never looked over one of ef papers a year after it was 
Written, without believing both in philosophy a 
have been much better done, I still hope the collection may be of 
“ Aug. 18, 1839.2 “ M, Farapay. 
. None more than the bad!” This is a bit of Faraday’s 
imnermost nature; and as I read these words, I am almost con- 
uned to retract what I have said regarding the fire and exci- 
tability of his character. But is he not all the more ad e 
