zest for work, joy in life. Goethe at
eighty-four studied the problems of
life with the same deep interest which
he had felt in them at thirty or forty;
Tennyson's imagination showed some
signs of waning power in extreme old
age, but the magic of feeling was still
fresh in his heart; Dr. Holmes car-
ried his blithe spirit, his gayety and
spontaneity of wit, to the last year of
his life; and Mr. Gladstone at eighty-@
six was one of the most eager and
aspiring men of his time. Genius
seems to be allied to immortal youth;
and in this alliance resides a large part
of its power. For the man of genius
does not demonstrate his possession
of that rare and elusive gift by seeing
things which have never been seen
before, but by seeing with fresh inter-
est what men have seen so often that
they have ceased to regard it. Nov-

[[178]]

p177 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p178w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p179

v?