Doth ask a drink divine."

English literature is of preëminent worth in helping to supply that
thirst. It brings us face to face with great ideals, which increase
our sense of responsibility for the stewardship of life and tend to
raise the level of our individual achievement. We have a heightened
sense of the demands which life makes and a better comprehension of
the "far-off divine event" toward which we move, after we have heard
Swinburne's ringing call:--

"...this thing is God,
To be man with thy might,
To grow straight in the strength
of thy spirit, and live out thy life
as the light."

We feel prompted to act on the suggestion of--

"...him who sings
To one clear harp in divers tones,
That men may rise on striping-stones
Of their dead selves to higher things."[4]

In the second place, the various spiritual activities demanded for the
interpretation of the best things in literature add to enjoyment. This
pleasure, unlike that which arises from physical gratification,
increases with age, and often becomes the principal source of
entertainment as life advances. Shakespeare has Prospero say:--

"...my library