book is a possession for all time, be-
cause a writer of the first rank is the
contemporary of every generation;
he is never outgrown, exhausted, or
even old-fashioned, although the gar-
ments he wore may have been laid
aside long ago.

In this permanent quality, un-
changed by changes of taste and form,
resides the secret of that charm which
draws about the great poets men and
women of each succeeding period,
eager to listen to words which thrilled
the world when it was young, and
which have a new meaning for every
new age. It is safe to say that
Homer will speak to men as long as
language survives, and that transla-
tion will follow translation to the end
of time. What Robinson said of the
Bible in one of the great moments of
modern history may be said of the

[[205]]

p204 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p205w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p206

v?