If a man does a thing unconsciously, it costs him no trouble; but if
he tries to do it by taking trouble, he fails. This applies to the
origin of those fundamental ideas which form the pith and marrow of
all genuine work. Only that which is innate is genuine and will hold
water; and every man who wants to achieve something, whether in
practical life, in literature, or in art, must _follow the rules
without knowing them_.

* * * * *

Men of very great capacity, will as a rule, find the company of very
stupid people preferable to that of the common run; for the same
reason that the tyrant and the mob, the grandfather and the
grandchildren, are natural allies.

* * * * *

That line of Ovid's,

_Pronaque cum spectent animalia cetera terram_,

can be applied in its true physical sense to the lower animals alone;
but in a metaphorical and spiritual sense it is, alas! true of nearly
all men as well. All their plans and projects are merged in the desire
of physical enjoyment, physical well-being. They may, indeed, have
personal interests, often embracing a very varied sphere; but still
these latter receive their importance entirely from the relation in
which they stand to the former. This is not only proved by their
manner of life and the things they say, but it even shows itself in
the way they look, the expression of their physiognomy, their gait and