_Ellesmere_. “To us, my friend, the times that are gone by Are a mysterious book.”— _Milverton_. Those two first lines are the full expression of Faust’s discontent—unmeasured as in the presence of a weak man who could not check him. But, if you come to look at the matter closely, you will see that the time present is also in some sense a sealed book to us. Men that we live with daily we often think as little of as we do of Julius Cæsar, I was going to say—but we know much less of them than of him. _Ellesmere_. I did not mean to say that Faust spoke my sentiments about history in general. Still, there are periods of history which we have very few authors to tell us about, and I daresay in some of those cases the colouring of their particular minds gives us a false idea of the whole age they lived in. _Dunsford_. This may have happened, certainly. _Milverton_. We must be careful not to expect too much from the history of past ages, as a means of understanding the present age. There is something wanted besides the preceding history to understand each age. Each individual life may have a problem of its own, which all other biography accurately set down for us might not enable us to work out. So of each age. It has something in it not known before, and tends to a result which is not down in any books. _Dunsford_. Yet history must be of greatest use in discerning this tendency. _Ellesmere_. Yes; but the Wagner sort of pedant would get entangled in his round of history—in his historical resemblances. _Dunsford_. Now, Milverton, if you were called upon to say what are the peculiar characteristics of this age, what should you say? _Ellesmere_. One of Dunsford’s questions this, requiring a stout quarto volume with notes in answer. _Milverton_. I would rather wait till I was called upon. I am apt to feel, after I have left off describing the character of any individual man, as if I had only just begun. And I do not see the extent of discourse that would be needful in attempting to give the characteristics of an age. _Ellesmere_. I think you are prudent to avoid answering Dunsford’s question. For my own part, I should prefer giving an account of the age we live in after we have come to the end of it—in the true historical fashion. And so, Dunsford, you must wait for my notions. _Dunsford_. I am afraid, Milverton, if you were to write history, you would never make up your mind to condemn anybody. _Milverton_. I hope I should not be so inconclusive. I certainly do dislike to see any character, whether of a living or a dead person, disposed of in a summary way.