OUR COUNTRY LIFE 



it is a life of ease, though not of idleness; because 

 all these things are what he wishes to do, not what he 

 is compelled to do. Is he ever satisfied with the result 

 of his labors? Is his place ever in perfect condition? 

 Never. His ideals change with each new year, and 

 no mere combination of matter ever overtake them. 

 Does this discourage him? Not at all. If his imag- 

 ination failed to picture something beyond what he 

 actually had, his interest would soon flag and he would 

 turn to a new toy. 



So we are made. "Life is a train of moods like a 

 string of beads," Emerson says, "and as we pass through 

 them they prove to be many-colored lenses which paint 

 the world their own hue, and each shows only what 

 lies in its focus. Nature and books belong to the eyes 

 that see them. It depends on the mood of the man 

 whether he shall see the sunset or the fine poem. Tem- 

 perament is the iron wire on which the beads are 

 strung." 



Lucky indeed is the possessor of a happy nature, a 

 sanguine temperament; his ideals hover so nearly 



286 



