more than a few days a single date or a line
of poetry. I have a fair share of invention,
and of common sense or judgment, such as
every fairly successful lawyer or doctor must
have, but not, I believe, in any higher degree.''

This is presumably an honest statement
of fact, and in addition it should be remembered
that Darwin was always physically
weak, that for forty years he was practically
an invalid and able to work for only about
three hours a day. In these few hours he
was able to accomplish more, however, than
other men of apparently superior ability who
were able to work long hours daily for many

years. Darwin made the most of his ability
and increased his efficiency to its maximum.

For a parallel in business, Cyrus H. McCormick
might be named. The inventor of the
reaper and builder of the first American business
which covered the world was not a man of
extraordinary intellect, wit, or judgment. He
had, however, the will and power to focus his
attention on a single question until the answer
was evolved. Again and again, his biographers
tell us, he pursued problems which
eluded him far into the night and he was
frequently found asleep at his desk the morning