Show habits qt of great thinkers it Is ia said that the habits contracted by genius assist the action of the mind cicero tells us how his eloquence caught inspiration from the constant study 0 latin and grecian poetry pompey never undertook any aay considerable enterprise without concentrating cent ceat rating his thoughts upon the character of achilles in the first iliad although he acknowledged that the enthusiasm thusia sm he caught came rather from toe the poet than the hero bossuet before composing a funeral oration al ways retired for several days to his study and poured over the pages of homer alfieri usually predisposed his mind before composing by listening to music leonaro de vinci walle painting lisa kept musicians constantly waiting to play light harmonies harmonica which inspired the ideas within his bis mind of tipsy dance and revelry haydn would never sit down to compose except in full dress with a diamond ring upon his bis finger and he used the finest and costliest cost liest paper for his musical compositions rousseau confesses to the influence of rose colored knots of ribbon tied to his portfolio of flue fine paper brilliant ink and gold sand the faculty of memory is the foundation of genius few comparatively are acquainted with the fine machinery odthe of the memory which is as capable of being regulated and governed aj q the clock on the mantel A celebrated writer whose memory was treacherous arranged a book with pages to accommodate the days of the year and resol resolved to recollect an anecdote for every page as insignificant and remove as he was a ble able rejecting all anecdotes u under ten years of age and to his surprise be tilled filled every inch of space although until this experiment was tried he be had bad no concep conception toD of the extent of his faculty wolf the german physician relates of himself that by the most persevering habit he resolved nis algebraic problems in bed and in darkness and geometrically composed all his bis methods by the aid of imagination and memory to register the transactions of the day with observations upon them is an exercise that soon goon drifts into a habit ws as profitable as it soon becomes easy it was thus that curwen educated himself in the art of thinking magazine of american his tory ory |