196 LITEEAEY VALUES 



the worth of the new idea, or of the new inven- 

 tion. 



Emerson does not so much expound a philosophy 

 as he celebrates a sentiment or a law. He does not 

 inculcate a virtue, but quickens our moral sense. 

 He does not teach a religion, but shows all nature as 

 religious. His method is not that of the analyst ; 

 he celebrates and presents whole what others give in 

 detail. His mind is deficient in continuity, but 

 strong in affirmation, strong in its separate sallies 

 and flights. He has not a definite, practical bent 

 like Carlyle ; he seldom lays his hand on any cur- 

 rent evil or want, but rather glorifies the world as 

 it is. He is abstract in his aim, and concrete in 

 his methods. He fixes his eye on the star, but 

 would make it draw his wagon. 



Carlyle was like an engine tied to its iron rails, 

 — he turned aside for nothing ; Emerson was more 

 like a sailing yacht that hovers about all shores and 

 takes advantage of every breeze. 



