254 A PREVENTIVE OF ANGER. 
its bloodless character not a little to the influence of snuff... 
We read of difficulties in its. course, which, fifty years previ- 
ously, would inevitably have led to bloodshed, being easily, 
almost humorously surmounted. The plagued nation effected 
a revolution over its snuff-boxes in the happiest conceivable 
manner. 
“Having ventured so far I am inclined to put forward a 
yet higher claim which snuff has upon our gratitude, and to 
hint that the great deeds of great men who were snuff-takers 
may be traced by a chain of reasoning—slight, yet conclusive 
—to this dearly prized luxury. The hackneyed saying that 
time is money, or money’s worth, has more truth in it than 
most of the fallacies which are supposed to regulate our con- 
‘duct. The most important events of our lives often hinge on 
\ moments. A moment to stifle passion, to summon reflection, 
to plunge into the past and bring up a buried memory, to 
consider results, is often of the utmost. consequence, and this. 
valued moment the pinch of snuff insures, when, without it, 
elay would be simply embarrassment. ‘The pinch of snuff, 
taken at the right instant, secures an important reprieve, 
during which the unpleasant question may be evaded, the 
hasty reply reconsidered, or an angry repartee thought better 
of, while the same time gained serves to improve the diplo- 
matist’s eguwogue, to point.the orator’s satire, aud polish the 
wit’s mot. Ina word, its use on important occasions affords, 
to every one who needs them, better means of acting upon 
Talleyrand’s mischievous yet clever aphorism—that language 
is useful rather to conceal than to express our thoughts. 
Moreover, the action necessary in conveying the tempting 
graces to their destination has not unfrequently been found 
useful. It employs the hasty hand that may itch to take - 
illegal vengeance for fancied insults; it serves to hide the 
angry twitching mouth and passionately expanding nostrils, 
to give a natural expression to changes of the countenance 
which would otherwise indicate emotion, and to parry atten- 
tion till reason has been summoned to supplant passion. 
“Tt is denied (in a rather irritating way sometimes) that 
the subject of our article has any beneficial influence upon 
the inteilects of its patrons. We are not about to claim for 
it any such exalted qualities, but we may: be allowed to men- 
tion a fact or so which entitles it to some respect medicinally. , 
As we have before stated, in its early days it was considered 
to possess powerful healing qualities, and even now is found 
of use in cases of headache and weak sight. It was also 
