10. Free circulation of lies, caricatures, and slanders concerning oneself, one’s personality, friends, ways of work, and general surroundings. 11. The grudging and bitter animosity of rival contemporaries. 12. Persistent public and private mis-representation of one’s character, aims, and intentions. But all these things taken together weigh very little when compared with the other side of the medal--the interior and invisible delight and charm of the Life Literary--the unpurchasable and never-failing happiness which no external advantage can give, no inimical influence take away. It is well-nigh impossible to enumerate the pleasures that attend the lover and servant of Literature; they are multitudinous, and, like all things spiritual, outweigh all things temporal. Here are just a few among the kindly and constant favours of the gods:-- 1. The power and affluence of creative thought. 2. A perpetual sense of intimate participation in the wonders of Nature and Art. 3. A keen perception of the beautiful. 4. Intense delight in the genius of all great men and women. 5. A cheerful and contented spirit. 6. Constant variety of occupation. 7. Joy in simple things. 8. The love of friends that are tried and true. 9. The never-wearying interest of working to try and give pleasure to one’s reading public. 10. The gifts and glories of Imagination. 11. Tranquillity of mind. 12. Firm faith in noble ideals. And, to quote from Walt Whitman what the inward sense of the “happiness” of the Life Literary really is, the disciple of Literature may say:-- “I will show that there is no imperfection in the present and can be none in the future. And I will show that, whatever happens to anybody, it may be turned to beautiful results.” Were all the lives in the world offered to me for my choice, from the estate of queens to that of commoners, I would choose the Life Literary in preference to any other, as ensuring the greatest happiness. It is full of the most lasting pleasure, it offers the most varied entertainment, all the arts and sciences group themselves naturally around it as with it and of it--for the literary student is, or should be, as devout a lover of music as of poetry, as ardent an admirer of painting and sculpture as of history and philosophy--that is, if complete enjoyment of the literary gift is to be possessed completely.