without sinew or living flesh.--C. LAMB. _Table Talk._ BOOKS OF ONE THOUGHT Few books have more than one thought: the generality indeed have not quite so many. The more ingenious authors of the former seem to think that, if they once get their candle lighted, it will burn on for ever. Yet even a candle gives a sorry, melancholy light unless it has a brother beside it, to shine on it and keep it cheerful. For lights and thoughts are social and sportive: they delight in playing with and into each other. One can hardly conceive a duller state of existence than sitting at whist with three dummies: and yet many of our prime philosophers have seldom done anything else.--A. W. and J. C. HARE. _Guesses at Truth._ INDUCTIVE CRITICISM A heedy reader shall often discover in other men's compositions perfections far differing from the author's meaning, and such as haply he never dreamed of, and illustrateth them with richer senses and more excellent constructions.--MONTAIGNE. READING BETWEEN LINES In hours of high mental activity we sometimes do the book too much honour, reading out of it better things than the author wrote,--reading, as we say, between the lines. You have had the like experience in conversation: the wit was in what you heard, not in what the speakers said. Our best thought came from others. We heard in their words a deeper sense than the speakers put into them, and could express ourselves in other people's phrases to finer purpose than they knew.--R. W. EMERSON. _Quotation and Originality._ PURPLE PATCHES There are some fine passages, I am told, in that book. Are there? Then beware of them. Fine passages are mostly _culs de sac_. For in books also does one see Rich windows that exclude the light And passages that lead to nothing. A. W. and J. C. HARE. _Guesses at Truth._ There's more ado to interpret interpretations than to interpret things, and more books upon books than upon any other subject. We do but inter-glose ourselves. All swarmeth with commentaries; of authors there is great penury.--MONTAIGNE. THE ROYAL ROAD ERASMUS. I am told there is a certain compendious art, that will help a man to accomplish himself with all the liberal sciences by a very little labour. DESIDERIUS. What is that you talk of? Did you ever see the book? ERASMUS. I did see it, and that was all, having nobody to instruct me in the use of it. DESIDERIUS. What was the subject of the book? ERASMUS. It treated of various forms of dragons, lions, leopards; and various circles, and words written in them, some in Greek, some in Latin, and some in Hebrew and other barbarous languages. DESIDERIUS. Pray, in how many days' time did the title-page promise you the knowledge of the arts and sciences? ERASMUS. In fourteen. DESIDERIUS. In truth, a very noble promise. But did you ever know anybody that has become learned by that notable art? ERASMUS. No.