ims, in the presence of selfishness and wrong: "Foolish men
imagine that because judgment for an evil thing is delayed, there is no
justice but an accidental one, here below. Judgment for an evil thing
is many times delayed some day or two, some century or two, but it is
sure as life, it is as sure as death! In the center of the
world-whirlwind, verily now as in the oldest days, dwells and speaks a
God. The great soul of the world is _just_."

Often the mood or spirit of gifted writers is something too intangible
to be firmly grasped, yet its presence is felt as a pervasive and
delightful atmosphere. A work is sometimes suffused with the divine
touch of genius, as the delicate and indescribable hues of autumn
glorify the valleys and mountains. While hovering near the earth for a
time, the spirit of genius, as in Shakespeare and Ruskin, sometimes
suddenly and spontaneously soars to regions of supernal
splendor,--altitudes of beauty absolutely inaccessible to ordinary and
unaided mortals.

The purpose of a literary work, like its mood or spirit, may be various.
In a measure it varies with the department of literature to which the
work belongs. The purpose of history, which brings before us the
achievements of the past, is chiefly instruction. The oratory of the
pulpit and the forum aims at persuasion. Fiction aims primarily at
entertainment, though it may also be made the vehicle for religious,
sociological, or moral teachings. Poetry aims at pleasure by means of
melody, felicity of expression, the picturing of moods and scenes, and
the narration of interesting incidents or important events. When the
purpose of a production is clearly apprehended we are prepared to judge
of the wisdom of the author in his choice and adaptation of means.

+24. Study of an Author's Life.+ The foregoing considerations show us
the value of an acquaintance with an author's life. Without this
acquaintance we are not prepared, in many cases, to understand or judge
his productions. A good biography will acquaint us with the
circumstances in which his talents were developed, and disclose to us
the autobiographic materials which have been embodied in his works. It
will reveal to us his views of life and his principles of art. It will
show us, in short, the man behind the work, and thus help us to grasp
the full significance of his utterance.

No one is absolutely independent of his surroundings. Men are frequently
led, and sometimes driven by t