, and you will find but few whose minds
are neither deaf, nor blind, nor dead to some great art or science--

"And wisdom at one entrance quite shut out."

And such of them as are conceited as well as stupid shall even parade
instead of blushing for the holes in their intellects.

A zealot in art, the friar was a sceptic in religion.

In every age there are a few men who hold the opinions of another age,
past or future. Being a lump of simplicity, his sceptism was as naif as
his enthusiasm. He affected to look on the religious ceremonies of his
day as his models, the heathen philosophers, regarded the worship of
gods and departed heroes: mummeries good for the populace. But here his
mind drew unconsciously a droll distinction. Whatever Christian ceremony
his learning taught him was of purely pagan origin, that he respected,
out of respect for antiquity; though had he, with his turn of mind,
been a pagan and its contemporary, he would have scorned it from his
philosophic heights.

Fra Colonna was charmed with his new artist, and having the run of half
the palaces in Rome, sounded his praises so, that he was soon called
upon to resign him. He told Gerard what great princes wanted him. "But I
am so happy with you, father," objected Gerard. "Fiddlestick about being
happy with me," said Fra Colonna; "you must not be happy; you must be a
man of the world; the grand lesson I impress on the young is, be a man
of the world. Now these Montesini can pay you three times as much as I
can, and they shall too-by Jupiter."

And the friar clapped a terrific price on Gerard's pen. It was acceded
to without a murmur. Much higher prices were going for copying than
authorship ever obtained for centuries under the printing press.

Gerard had three hundred crowns for Aristotle's treatise on rhetoric.

The great are mighty sweet upon all their pets, while the fancy lasts;
and in the rage for Greek MSS. the handsome writer soon became a pet,
and nobles of both sexes caressed him like a lap dog.

It would have turned a vain fellow's head; but the canny Dutchman
saw the steel hand beneath the velvet glove, and did not presume.
Nevertheless it was a proud day for him when he found himself seated
with Fra Colonna at the table of his present employer, Cardinal
Bessarion. They were about a mile from the top of that table; but never
mind, there they were and Gerard had the advantage of seeing roast
pheasants dished up with all their feathers