content　to　commit　to　memory　and　recite　as　an　actor；　stood　higher
  in　popular　estimation。　　We　only　know　that　he　was　a　successful
  theatrical　manager；　and　that　in　the　prime　of　life　he　retired　to
  his　native　place；　where　he　died；　and　had　the　honours　of　a　village
  funeral。　　The　greater　part　of　the　biography　which　has　been
  constructed　respecting　him　has　been　the　result；　not　of
  contemporary　observation　or　of　record；　but　of　inference。　　The　best
  inner　biography　of　the　man　is　to　be　found　in　his　sonnets。
  Men　do　not　always　take　an　accurate　measure　of　their
  contemporaries。　　The　statesman；　the　general；　the　monarch　of　to…day
  fills　all　eyes　and　ears；　though　to　the　next　generation　he　may　be
  as　if　he　had　never　been。　　〃And　who　is　king　to…day？〃　the　painter
  Greuze　would　ask　of　his　daughter；　during　the　throes　of　the　first
  French　Revolution；　when　men；　great　for　the　time；　were　suddenly
  thrown　to　the　surface；　and　as　suddenly　dropt　out　of　sight　again；
  never　to　reappear。　　〃And　who　is　king　to…day？　　After　all；〃　Greuze
  would　add；　〃Citizen　Homer　and　Citizen　Raphael　will　outlive　those
  great　citizens　of　ours；　whose　names　I　have　never　before　heard　of。〃
  Yet　of　the　personal　history　of　Homer　nothing　is　known；　and　of
  Raphael　comparatively　little。　　Even　Plutarch；　who　wrote　the　lives
  of　others：　so　well；　has　no　biography；　none　of　the　eminent　Roman
  writers　who　were　his　contemporaries　having　so　much　as　mentioned
  his　name。　　And　so　of　Correggio；　who　delineated　the　features　of
  others　so　well；　there　is　not　known　to　exist　an　authentic　portrait。
  There　have　been　men　who　greatly　influenced　the　life　of　their
  time；　whose　reputation　has　been　much　greater　with　posterity
  than　it　was　with　their　contemporaries。　　Of　Wickliffe；　the
  patriarch　of　the　Reformation；　our　knowledge　is　extremely　small。
  He　was　but　as　a　voice　crying　in　the　wilderness。　　We　do　not
  really　know　who　was　the　author　of　'The　Imitation　of　Christ'
  a　book　that　has　had　an　immense　circulation；　and　exercised
  a　vast　religious　influence　in　all　Christian　countries。　　It
  is　usually　attributed　to　Thomas　a　Kempis　but　there　is　reason
  to　believe　that　he　was　merely　its　translator；　and　the　book　that
  is　really　known　to　be　his；　（10）　is　in　all　respects　so　inferior；
  that　it　is　difficult　to　believe　that　'The　Imitation'　proceeded
  from　the　same　pen。　　It　is　considered　more　probable　that　the
  real　author　was　John　Gerson；　Chancellor　of　the　University　of　Paris；
  a　most　learned　and　devout　man；　who　died　in　1429。
  Some　of　the　greatest　men　of　genius　have　had　the　shortest
  biographies。　　Of　Plato；　one　of　the　great　fathers　of　moral
  philosophy；　we　have　no　personal　account。　　If　he　had　wife　and
  children；　we　hear　nothing　of　them。　　About　the　life　of　Aristotle
  there　is　the　greatest　diversity　of　opinion。　　One　says　he　was　a
  Jew；　another；　that　he　only　got　his　information　from　a　Jew：　one
  says　he　kept　an　apothecary's　shop；　another；　that　he　was　only　the
  son　of　a　physician：　one　alleges　that　he　was　an　atheist；　another；
  that　he　was　a　Trinitarian；　and　so　forth。　　But　we　know　almost　as
  little　with　respect　to　many　men　of　comparatively　modern　times。
  Thus；　how　little　do　we　know　of　the　lives　of　Spenser；　author　of
  'The　Faerie　Queen；'　and　of　Butler；　the　author　of　'Hudibras；'
  beyond　the　fact　that　they　lived　in　comparative　obscurity；　and　died
  in　extreme　poverty！　　How　little；　comparatively；　do　we　know　of　the
  life　of　Jeremy　Taylor；　the　golden　preacher；　of　whom　we　should　like
  to　have　known　so　much！
  The　author　of　'Philip　Van　Artevelde'　has　said　that　〃the　world
  knows　nothing　of　its　greatest　men。〃　　And　doubtless　oblivion　has
  enwrapt　in　its　folds　many　great　men　who　have　done　great　deeds；　and
  been　forgotten。　　Augustine　speaks　of　Romanianus　as　the　greatest
  genius　that　ever　lived；　and　yet　we　know　nothing　of　him　but　his
  name；　he　is　as　much　forgotten　as　the　builders　of　the　Pyramids。
  Gordiani's　epitaph　was　written　in　five　languages；　yet　it　sufficed
  not　to　rescue　him　from　oblivion。
  Many；　indeed；　are　the　lives　worthy　of　record　that　have　remained
  unwritten。　　Men　who　have　written　books　have　been　the　most
  fortunate　in　this　respect；　because　they　possess　an　attraction　for
  literary　men　which　those　whose　lives　have　been　embodied　in　deeds
  do　not　possess。　　Thus　there　have　been　lives　written　of　Poets
  Laureate　who　were　mere　men　of　their　time；　and　of　their　time　only。
  Dr。　Johnson　includes　some　of　them　in　his　'Lives　of　the　Poets；'
  such　as　Edmund　Smith　and　others；　whose　poems　are　now　no　longer
  known。　　The　lives　of　some　men　of　letterssuch　as　Goldsmith；
  Swift；　Sterne；　and　Steelehave　been　written　again　and　again；
  whilst　great　men　of　action；　men　of　science；　and　men　of　industry；
  are　left　without　a　record。　（11）
  We　have　said　that　a　man　may　be　known　by　the　company　he　keeps　in
  his　books。　　Let　us　mention　a　few　of　the　favourites　of　the　best…
  known　men。　　Plutarch's　admirers　have　already　been　referred　to。
  Montaigne　also　has　been　the　companion　of　most　meditative　men。
  Although　Shakspeare　must　have　studied　Plutarch　carefully；　inasmuch
  as　he　copied　from　him　freely；　even　to　his　very　words；　it　is
  remarkable　that　Montaigne　is　the　only　book　which　we　certainly　know
  to　have　been　in　the　poet's　library；　one　of　Shakspeare's　existing
  autographs　having　been　found　in　a　copy　of　Florio's　translation　of
  'The　Essays；'　which　also　contains；　on　the　flyleaf；　the　autograph
  of　Ben　Jonson。
  Milton's　favourite　books　were　Homer；　Ovid；　and　Euripides。　　The
  latter　book　was　also　the　favourite　of　Charles　James　Fox；　who
  regarded　the　study　of　it　as　especially　useful　to　a　public　speaker。
  On　the　other　hand；　Pitt　took　especial　delight　in　Miltonwhom　Fox
  did　not　appreciatetaking　pleasure　in　reciting；　from　'Paradise
  Lost；'　the　grand　speech　of　Belial　before　the　assembled　powers　of
  Pandemonium。　　Another　of　Pitt's　；favourite　books　was　Newton's
  'Principia。'　Again；　the　Earl　of　Chatham's　favourite　book　was
  'Barrow's　Sermons；'　which　he　read　so　often　as　to　be　able　to　repeat
  them　from　memory；　while　Burke's　companions　were　Demosthenes；
  Milton；　Bolingbroke；　and　Young's　'Night　Thoughts。'
  Curran's　favourite　was　Homer；　which　he　read　through　once　a　year。
  Virgil　was　another　of　his　favourites；　his　biographer；　Phillips；
  saying　that　he　once　saw　him　reading　the　'Aeneid'　in　the　cabin
  of　a　Holyhead　packet；　while　every　one　about　him　was　prostrate
  by　seasickness。
  Of　the　poets；　Dante's　favourite　was　Virgil；　Corneille's　was　Lucan；
  Schiller's　was　Shakspeare；　Gray's　was　Spenser；　whilst　Coleridge
  admired　Collins　and　Bowles。　　Dante　himself　was　a　favourite　with
  most　great　poets；　from　Chaucer　to　Byron　and　Tennyson。　　Lord
  Brougham；　Macaulay；　and　Carlyle　have　alike　admired　and　eulogized
  the　great　Italian。　　The　former　advised　the　students　at　Glasgow
  that；　next　to　Demosthenes；　the　study　of　Dante　was　the　best
  preparative　for　the　eloquence　of　the　pulpit　or　the　bar。　　Robert
  Hall　sought　relief　in　Dante　from　the　racking　pains　of　spinal
  disease；　and　Sydney　Smith　took　to　the　same　poet　for　comfort　and
  solace　in　his　old　age。　　It　was　characteristic　of　Goethe　that　his
  favourite　book　should　have　been　Spinoza's　'Ethics；'　in　which　he
  said　he　had　found　a　peace　and　consolation　such　as　he　had　been　able
  to　find　in　no　other　work。　（12）
  Barrow's　favourite　was　St。　Chrysostom；　Bossuet's　was　Homer。
  Bunyan's　was　the　old　legend　of　Sir　Bevis　of　Southampton；　which　in
  all　probability　gave　him　the　first　idea　of　his　'Pilgrim's
  Progress。'　One　of　the　best　prelates　that　ever　sat　on　the　English
  bench；　Dr。　John　Sharp；　said〃Shakspeare　and　the　Bible　have　made
  me　Archbishop　of　York。〃　　The　two　books　which　most　impressed　John
  Wesley　when　a　young　man；　were　'The　Imitation　of　Christ'　and　Jeremy
  Taylor's　'Holy　Living　and　Dying。'　Yet　Wesley　was　accustomed　to
  caution　his　young　friends　against　overmuch　reading。　　〃Beware　you
  be　not　swallowed　up　in　books；〃　he　would　say　to　them；　〃an　ounce　of
  love　is　worth　a　pound　of　knowledge。〃
  Wesley's　own　Life　has　been　a　great　favourite　with　many　thoughtful
  readers。　　Coleridge　says；　in　his　preface　to　Southey's　'Life　of
  Wesley；'　that　it　was　more　often　in　his　hands　than　any　other　in　his
  ragged　book…regiment。　　〃To　this　work；　and　to　the　Life　of　Richard
  Baxter；〃　he　says；　〃I　was　used　to　resort　whenever　sickness　and
  languor　made　me　feel　the　want　of　an　old　friend　of　whose　company　I
  could　never　be　tired。　　How　many　and　many　an　hour　of　self…oblivion
  do　I　owe　to　this　Life　of　Wesley；　and　how　often　have　I　argued　with
  it；　questioned；　remonstrated；　been　peevish；　and　asked　pardon；　then
  again　listened；　and　cried；　'Right！　Excellent！'　and　in　yet　heavier
  hours　entreated　it；　as　it　were；　to　continue　talking　to　me；　for
  that　I　heard　and　listened；　and　was　soothed；　though　I　could
  make　no　reply！〃　（13）
  Soumet　had　only　a　very　few　hooks　in　his　library；　but　they　were　of
  the　bestHomer；　Virgil；　Dante；　Camoens；　Tasso；　and　Milton。　　De
  Quincey's　favourite　few　were　Donne；　Chillingworth；　Jeremy　Taylor；
  Milton；　South；　Barrow；　and　Sir　Thomas　Browne。　　He　described　these
  writers　as　〃a　pleiad　or　constel