Sir William Patty born 1623.
Honore de Balzac born 1799.
William H. Seward born 1801.
Felicia Hemans died 1835.
Favored of Heaven! O Genius! are they thine,
When round thy brow the wreaths of glory shine;
While rapture gazes on thy radiant way,
'Midst the bright realms of clear mental day?
No! sacred joys! 'tis yours to dwell enshrined,
Most fondly cherished, in the purest mind.
--Felicia Hemans.
Genius is intensity.
--Honore Balzac.
But what if I fail of my purpose here?
It is but to keep the nerves at strain,
To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall,
And, baffled, get up and begin again--
So the chase takes up one's life, that's all.
--Robert Browning.
Be urgent in season, out of season.
--2 Timothy 4. 2.
My Lord, my life makes me conscious of weakness, and my memory brings
regret; forgive me for the lost strength I neglected to develop. In
thy compassion encourage me to be more watchful of my power, that I
may usefully increase it, and not willfully deplete it. May I learn
the need of constancy in well-doing. Amen.