288 LUCK, OR CUNNING? 



believed. Most people, if they only knew it, could 

 write a good book or play, paint a good picture, com- 

 pose a fine oratorio ; but it takes an unusually able 

 person to get the book well reviewed, persuade a 

 manager to bring the play out, sell the picture, or 

 compass the performance of the oratorio ; indeed, the 

 more vigorous and original any one of these things 

 may be, the more difficult will it prove to even bring 

 it before the notice of the public. The error of most 

 original people is in being just a trifle too original. 

 It was in his business qualities — and these, after all, 

 are the most essential to success, that Mr. Darwin 

 showed himself so superlative. These are not only 

 the most essential to success, but it is only by blas- 

 pheming the world in a way which no good citizen of 

 the world will do, that we can deny them to be the 

 ones which should most command our admiration. 

 We are in the world ; surely so long as we are in it 

 we should be of it, and not give, ourselves airs as 

 though we were too good for our generation, and . 

 would lay ourselves out to please any other by pre- 

 ference. Mr. Darwin played for his own generation, 

 and he got in the very amplest measure the recogni- 

 tion which he endeavoured, as we all do, to obtain. 



His success was, no doubt, in great measure due to 

 the fact that he knew our little ways, and humoured 

 them ; but if he had not had little ways of his own, 

 he never could have been so much au fait with ours. 

 He knew, for example, we should be pleased to hear 

 that he had . taken his boots off so as not to disturb 

 his worms when watching them by night, so he told , 



