Under a strong persuasion that little of real value is derived by
persons in general from a wide and various reading; but still more
deeply convinced as to the actual mischief of unconnected and
promiscuous reading, and that it is sure, in a greater or less degree,
to enervate even where it does not likewise inflate; I hope to satisfy
many an ingenious mind, seriously interested in its own development and
cultivation, how moderate a number of volumes, if only they be
judiciously chosen, will suffice for the attainment of every wise and
desirable purpose; that is, in addition to those which he studies for
specific and professional purposes. It is saying less than the truth to
affirm that an excellent book (and the remark holds almost equally good
of a Raphael as of a Milton) is like a well-chosen and well-tended
fruit-tree. Its fruits are not of one season only. With the due and
natural intervals, we may recur to it year after year, and it will
supply the same nourishment and the same gratification, if only we
ourselves return to it with the same healthful appetite.--S. T.
COLERIDGE. _Prospectus to a Course of Lectures._