The complete works of Ralph Waldo Emerson: Society and solitude [Vol. 7]

and patches a boat. In the Hindoo legends, Hari dwells a peasant among peasants. In the Greek legend, Apollo lodges with the shepherds of Admetus, and Jove liked to rusticate among the poor Ethiopians. So, in our history, Jesus is born in a barn, and his twelve peers are fishermen. 'T is the very principle of science that Nature shows herself best in leasts; it was the maxim of Aristotle and Lucretius; and, in modern times, of Swedenborg and of Hahnemann. The order of changes in the egg determines the age of fossil strata. So it was the rule of our poets, in the legends of fairy lore, that the fairies largest in power were the least in size. In the Christian graces, humility stands highest of all, in the form of the Madonna; and in life, this is the secret of the wise. We owe to genius always the same debt, of lifting the curtain from the common, and showing us that divinities are sitting disguised in the seeming gang of gypsies and pedlers. In daily life, what distinguishes the master is the using those materials he has, instead of looking about for what are more renowned, or what others have used well. "A general," said Bonaparte,1 "always has troops enough, if he only knows how to employ those he has, and bivouacs with them." Do not refuse

Pages

About this Item

Title: The complete works of Ralph Waldo Emerson: Society and solitude [Vol. 7]
Author: Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 1803-1882.
Canvas: Page 176
Publication: Boston ; New York :: Houghton, Mifflin,; [1903-1904].

Technical Details

Collection: The Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson
Link to this Item: https://name.umdl.umich.edu/4957107.0007.001
Link to this scan: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/emerson/4957107.0007.001/190

Rights and Permissions

The University of Michigan Library provides access to these materials for educational and research purposes. These materials are believed to be in the public domain; however, if you decide to use any of these materials, you are responsible for making your own legal assessment and securing any necessary permission. If you have questions about the collection, please contact Digital Collections Help at [email protected]. If you have concerns about the inclusion of an item in this collection, please contact Library Information Technology at [email protected].

DPLA Rights Statement: No Copyright - United States

IIIF

Manifest: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/api/manifest/emerson:4957107.0007.001

Cite this Item

Full citation: "The complete works of Ralph Waldo Emerson: Society and solitude [Vol. 7]." In the digital collection The Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/4957107.0007.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed June 14, 2025.

The complete works of Ralph Waldo Emerson: Society and solitude [Vol. 7]

Annotations Tools

Actions

About this Item

Technical Details

Rights and Permissions

Related Links

IIIF

Cite this Item