Comparative physiognomy; or, Resemblances between men and animals . considered the author of his discoveries, and on examinationthey are found to be — 14 The children of an idle of nothing but vain phantasy. His grand idea is original-ity, and as this is attained byraking up whatever is explo-ded, and by paying homage toMisfortune ; and as language,in which he is so thoroughlyengrossed, is the mere clothing of ideas—his philosophy isnecessarily materialistic. His marvellous acquaintance withlanguages, and the multiplicity of his words, are as much asubject of wonder as is the gift
Comparative physiognomy; or, Resemblances between men and animals . considered the author of his discoveries, and on examinationthey are found to be — 14 The children of an idle of nothing but vain phantasy. His grand idea is original-ity, and as this is attained byraking up whatever is explo-ded, and by paying homage toMisfortune ; and as language,in which he is so thoroughlyengrossed, is the mere clothing of ideas—his philosophy isnecessarily materialistic. His marvellous acquaintance withlanguages, and the multiplicity of his words, are as much asubject of wonder as is the gift of speech in the parrot. Hebends all his efforts to excite the wonder of people more andmore — Till they cry out, • You prove yourself so able,Pity you were not dragoman at Babel;For had they found a linguist half so good,I make no question but the tower had stood ! THE MOCKING-BIRD. 325. There is a character quite different from this, and yetclosely related to it: it is that which resembles the mocking-bird. This bird is as wonderfully gifted as the parrot, buthis gift is eloquence. Intonation, inflection, harmonious mod-ulation, chords that waken echoes in the breasts of a thousandwarblers, are as easy in his throat as motion in his wings. Those who are gifted with elo-quence possess a strong resem-blance to the mocking-bird ; theystrike the chords in human bo-soms when they waken their own,without producing a jarring dis-cord other than is necessary toincrease the harmony; they knowthe secret spring of feeling in thehuman heart. They possess knowledge of humannature, and the reason is, theyfeel what others feel, intuitively,in a way they can not account for. They are better physiog-nomists than others, but how it is that they are seldom ornever deceived in theirestimate of characterthey can not tell. The eloquence thatthe mocking-bird pos-sesses in so
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