a
drag-chain now and then upon his tongue. The largest minds have the
smallest opinion of themselves; for their knowledge impresses them with
humility, by showing them the extent of their ignorance, and the discovery
makes them taciturn. Deep waters are still. Wise men generally talk
little, because they think much. Feeling the annoyance of idle loquacity
in others, they are cautious of falling into the same error, and keep
their mouths shut when they can not open them to the purpose. The smaller
the _calibre_ of the mind, the greater the _bore_ of a perpetually open
mouth. Human heads are like hogsheads--the emptier they are, the louder
report they give of themselves. I know human specimens who never think;
they only _think_ they think. The clack of their word-mill is heard, even
when there is no wind to set it going, and no grist to come from it. A
distinguished Frenchman, of the time of Cardinal Richelieu, being in the
antechamber of that wily statesman, on one occasion, at the time that a
great talker was loudly and incessantly babbling, entreated him to be
silent, lest he might annoy the cardinal.

"Why do you wish me not to speak?" asked the chatterbox; "I talk a good
deal, certainly, but then I talk well."

"_Half_ of that is true!" retorted the sarcastic Frenchman.

-------------------------------------

It is getting to be a rather serious business for a man to stand up, in
these modern days, in a court of justice as a witness. What with
impertinent questions of all sorts, and the impudent "bullyragging" of
counsel, he is a fortunate and self-possessed man if he is not nearly at
his wits' end before he comes off from that place of torture, a
witness-stand. "Moreover, and which is more," as Dogberry would say, when
he _comes_ off, he has not escaped; for now the reporters take him up; and
in a little paragraph, inclosed in brackets, we hear somewhat of his
character, personal appearance, &c., something after the following
fashion:

"[Mr. Jenkins is a small, restless, fidgety man, with little black eyes,
one of which has a remarkable inward inclination toward the nose, which
latter feature of his face turns up slightly, and indicates, by its color,
the influence upon it of alcoholic fluids. He is lame of one leg, and wore
a drab roundabout. As he left the stand, we observed a patch on the north
side of his pantaloons, which evidenced 'premeditated poverty.' Mr.
Jenkins was an extremely wil