Some of the Follies of Which Men and Women of Genius Have Been
Guilty—Queen Elizabeth Was Profane, Queen Victoria Was Superstitious,
While Bacon, Dickens, and Longfellow Were Confirmed Dandies.
No man or woman is so strong as to be wholly free from weakness. If a
man occupies an humble sphere in life he usually is fortunate enough to
keep his fads and follies from becoming known beyond his own circle of
friends. If, on the other hand, he has attained sufficient distinction
in the world to be called “famous,” he must reconcile himself to seeing
the public in possession of all knowledge that has to do with his
personal peculiarities.
=Descartes= had a small garden where he spent all the hours not
devoted to mental labor.
=Queen Elizabeth= was very profane, and when angry would kick and cuff
her maids.
=Matthew Arnold’s= dogs, cat, and canary bird are mentioned dozens of
times in his poems.
=Domitian= spent his leisure in catching flies and piercing them
through with a needle.
=William the Conqueror= was immoderately devoted to dog-fighting and
bear-baiting.
=David=, the artist, when not painting, amused himself by scraping on
an old fiddle.
=Mirabeau= loved dogs, and had a famous pet, Chico, to which he was
much attached.
=Mrs. Radcliffe= ate raw pork before going to work on a particularly
thrilling chapter.
=Pierex=, after work hours, busied himself in arranging and caring for
his coins and medals.
=Washington= was devoted to fox-hunting, and in the season usually
hunted twice a week.
=Socrates= was fond of playing with children, and was often seen busy
with them at their games.
=Mme. de Staël= always carried a bit of a stick in her hand and played
with it as an aid to conversation.
=Blackmore=, the novelist, was fond of gardening, and spent in that
amusement all he made by writing.
=Leigh Hunt=, when tired out with work, found relaxation in riding to
and fro on the London omnibuses.
=Dumas=, père, disliked a noise in the house while he was writing, and
kept a pet buzzard in his room.
=Vincent=, the landscape painter, disliked violets, and always avoided
a field or garden where they grew.
=Prince Rupert=, the cavalryman, was fond of chemistry, and invented
the glass drops called by his name.
=Berlioz=, though so famous as a composer, could play no instrument
except the guitar, and that very badly.
=Hazlitt= was an enormous drinker of strong tea, which completely
upset his nerves and made him miserable.
=Tycho Brahe=, “the Wizard of the Golden Nose,” always became sick at
the stomach whenever he saw a fox.
=Herrick=, the poet, was fond of pigs as pets, and taught one to
follow him about and to drink beer out of a mug.
=Francis Bacon= was very fond of fine clothes, and spent much of his
leisure in devising new costumes for court occasions.
=Edward Fitzgerald= was a vegetarian, and believed that in adopting
such a diet he had, to quote his own words, found “the great secret of
it all.”
=Charles Dickens= was fond of wearing gaudy jewelry, and the clanking
of his numerous gold chains announced his coming while he was yet some
distance away.
=Henry W. Longfellow= had a weakness for flowered waistcoats, and he
possessed many of gorgeous pattern and color.
=Queen Victoria= of England shared the common superstition about salt.
She would reprimand any guest who was unfortunate enough to spill it,
and throughout the remainder of the meal she would be disturbed and in
ill-humor.
The House and the Brain.