in Constantinople, so long as
studied, made there a Goshen of light in the Dark Ages, and when carried
to Italy proved a Promethean spark to kindle occidental culture anew. It
is well known that inventions are oftenest struck out in the Patent
Office, the grand store-house of inventions. In the world of mind, as
well as of matter, new ideas are suggested where old ideas most
congregate, or are most communed with. According to CHAUCER,

"Out of old fields, as man saith,
Cometh all the new corn from year to year,
And out of old books, in good faith,
Cometh all the new science that men lear."

The idea of writing the "Life of COLUMBUS" first darted into the mind
of IRVING, when, in Madrid, he found himself surrounded by an unrivaled
magazine of materials made ready to his hand, and for which the world
had been ransacked. Thus the sight of means to make good books makes
good books made.

Not only those volumes which compose the body of literature, but those
finer essences which form its soul,--the literature of power,--stamped
in Nature's mint of ecstasy--are marked all over with proofs of
familiarity with the best that had been achieved,--each in its own
department. Nobody has hesitated thus to affirm concerning VIRGIL,
DANTE, TASSO, MILTON. But it is commonly said that SHAKESPEARE was
_ignorant_. The truth is that no ignorant man, no ordinary, scholar can
understand his allusions, historical, romantic, classical, or those to
art, science, nationalities, customs--or even his words. He could get
more from a Library in a day than most men in a life-time, but he needed
it still.

In speaking of SHAKESPEARE, I mean the man who wrote the Plays reputed
his, no matter whether that author was BACON, or JOHN SMITH, or even our
townsman GEORGE B.

We ought to say that SHAKESPEARE was a universal man,--because he was
heir of all ages,--and his was universal knowledge, a knowledge which
neither can we fathom nor could he find without a library.

His peculiarity was ability to discern the immortal part of books, or to
stamp what were otherwise perishable with his own immortality. Whoever
can do much without tools, can do more with them. Accordingly men do
their broken weapons rather use than their bare hands. Whoever can do
much without a library, can do more with a library. DAVID did much with
a sling, but more with better arms, and builded an armory on which there
hung a thousand bucklers, all shields of m