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Article THE LAMP-POST. ← Page 3 of 3
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The Lamp-Post.
of the lamp-post . At length , after much confusion , the whole Twelve agreed to appeal to Number Seven , who , in all this clamour , had kept a silence—a mournful silence . However , being by general acclaim , made the arbiter of the question , he proceeded to decide it according to the Square . " It is clear , " said Number Seven , "that there are thirteen houses ;
it is clear that each of the thirteen bears a proportionate part of the cost—it is no less clear , that as the lamp-post cannot be at the door of each of the thirteen , it should be placed whence it can best diffuse its benefits to all . And how can it more perfectly do this , than when fixed in the centre—in , I may say ( and he looked at Number Five ) the midst of the tabernacle ? Now , good friends , there are thirteen houses ,
which is the middle number ? " " Number Seven ! " was the general shout . " it is—I have judged , " said Number Seven .
" What ! the lamp-post at your house ? " And the whole Number Twelve were unanimous in their revilings ancl tauntings of Number Seven , charging him with every iniquity beneath the sun . They lost all view of the truth of his judgment , of the wisdom conveyed in it , — in indignation of his accidental position ; they confounded his honesty with the benefit which was inevitably to arise from it , and they called it
mean , designing selfishness : the truth of figures was as nothing to the indulgence of a prejudice . What was the result ? This . No lamp-post is to this day erected . Broken shins , sprained ancles , lost knockers , and fallings over . pigs , continue to be endured by the whole Number Twelve , who vow they will suffer all this and more—will five and die in darkness , for this very
excellent , and no less general reason , —they ivill not succumb to the truth of Number Seven , because their neighbour ivould be , as they think , beyond themselves , the accidental gainer by it . Flow many of our most grievous social quarrels are about the position of the lamp-post ?
" T HE art of life consists in not being overset by trifles . AVe should look at the bottom of the account , not at each individual item in it , and see how the balance stands at the end of the year . We should be satisfied if the path of life is clear before us , and not fret at the straws or pebbles that lie in our way . The impertinence of mankind is a thing that no one can guard against . " Sir Joshua Reynolds .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Lamp-Post.
of the lamp-post . At length , after much confusion , the whole Twelve agreed to appeal to Number Seven , who , in all this clamour , had kept a silence—a mournful silence . However , being by general acclaim , made the arbiter of the question , he proceeded to decide it according to the Square . " It is clear , " said Number Seven , "that there are thirteen houses ;
it is clear that each of the thirteen bears a proportionate part of the cost—it is no less clear , that as the lamp-post cannot be at the door of each of the thirteen , it should be placed whence it can best diffuse its benefits to all . And how can it more perfectly do this , than when fixed in the centre—in , I may say ( and he looked at Number Five ) the midst of the tabernacle ? Now , good friends , there are thirteen houses ,
which is the middle number ? " " Number Seven ! " was the general shout . " it is—I have judged , " said Number Seven .
" What ! the lamp-post at your house ? " And the whole Number Twelve were unanimous in their revilings ancl tauntings of Number Seven , charging him with every iniquity beneath the sun . They lost all view of the truth of his judgment , of the wisdom conveyed in it , — in indignation of his accidental position ; they confounded his honesty with the benefit which was inevitably to arise from it , and they called it
mean , designing selfishness : the truth of figures was as nothing to the indulgence of a prejudice . What was the result ? This . No lamp-post is to this day erected . Broken shins , sprained ancles , lost knockers , and fallings over . pigs , continue to be endured by the whole Number Twelve , who vow they will suffer all this and more—will five and die in darkness , for this very
excellent , and no less general reason , —they ivill not succumb to the truth of Number Seven , because their neighbour ivould be , as they think , beyond themselves , the accidental gainer by it . Flow many of our most grievous social quarrels are about the position of the lamp-post ?
" T HE art of life consists in not being overset by trifles . AVe should look at the bottom of the account , not at each individual item in it , and see how the balance stands at the end of the year . We should be satisfied if the path of life is clear before us , and not fret at the straws or pebbles that lie in our way . The impertinence of mankind is a thing that no one can guard against . " Sir Joshua Reynolds .