His brows were shaggy and
overhanging, and his black eyes, when ever and anon the drooping lids were
lifted away from them, shot forth a very deep and searching light. As one
sat over against him, watching his words, he might easily imagine himself
gazing through those glowing orbs back into the ages. His study, up two
flights of stairs, overlooking one of the public squares of the city, was
a place to be remembered. Its furniture was a plain round table, a
standing-desk, an old sofa and two or three chairs. High up on the walls
between the book-shelves and the ceiling, nearly all round the room, hung
engraved portraits of distinguished men; and he showed his noble
catholicity of spirit, in having the great men of his native land all
there, without regard to their peculiar schools and sentiments. His
library contained about 4,000 volumes. They filled the room; table, chairs
and sofa were loaded with them; they lay in stacks upon the floor; and, in
some cases, were piled, two or three tiers deep, into the shelves against
the walls. To anybody else the library would have been a chaos; but he
could lay his hand at once upon any book he wished for.
Pages:
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139