aenold's view of emeeson and CAELYLE 159 



those who would live in the spirit, " — in the spirit 



of truth, in the spirit of virtue, in the spirit of 



heroism. 



The lecturer was unfortunate in what he said of 



Emerson's "Titmouse." We do not learn, he said, 



what his titmouse did for him; we are reduced to 



guessing; he was not poet enough to tell us. But 



the bird sounded the heroic note to the poet, and 



inspired him with courage and hope when he was 



ahout to succumb to the cold : — 



" Here was this atom in full breath, 

 Hurling defiance at vast death; 



Henceforth I wear no stripe but thine ; 

 Ashes and jet all hues outshine. 



I think old Caesar must have heard 

 In northern Gaul my dauntless bird, 

 And, echoed in some frosty wold, 

 Borrowed thy battle-numbers bold. 



Pman! Veni, vidi, vici." 



It is one of Emerson's most characteristic poems. 

 Burns, the speaker said, would have handled the 

 subject differently, thinking probably of Burns's 

 "Mouse." Certainly he would. He was pitched 

 in a different key. The misfortunes of his mouse 

 touched his sympathy and love, appealed to his 

 human tenderness, and called up the vision of his 

 own hard lot. Each poet gives us the sentiment 

 proper to him; the heroic from Emerson, the hu- 

 man from Burns. The lecturer was right in saying 

 that the secret of Emerson's influence is his temper, 

 but it is not merely his good temper, his cheer- 



