of oblivion. (It appears, nevertheless, that he
was a happy man.)

And yet--I repeat--since we respond to it so readily, whether in
welcome or in irritation, there must be something in this claim set
up for childish simplicity; and I cannot help thinking it fortunate
and salutary for us that the Celtic poets have taken to sounding its
note so boldly. Whatever else they do, on the conventional ideals of
this generation they speak out with an uncompromising and highly
disconcerting directness. As I said just now, they are held, if at
all, by a long and loose chain to the graven images to which we stand
bound arm-to-arm and foot-to-foot. They fly far enough aloof to take
a bird's-eye view. What they see they declare with a boldness which
is the more impressive for being unconscious. And they declare that
they see us tied to stupid material gods, and wholly blind to ideas.

P.S.--I made bold enough to say in the course of these remarks that
Euclid's _Elements_ could hardly be improved by writing them out in
ballad metre. A friend, to whom I happened to repeat this assertion,
cast doubt on it and challenged me to prove it. I do so with
pleasure in the following--

[In the original text, there is shown a geometrical diagram which
consists of two equally sized circles superimposed so that they each
intersect the other's centre which points are marked A and B. The
outermost points on the two circles in line with AB are marked D and
E. The upper point where the two circles intersect is marked C and
an equilateral triangle is shown by joining points A, B and C.]

NEW BALLAD OF SIR PATRICK SPENS.

The King sits in Dunfermline toun
Drinking the blude-red wine:
"O wha will rear me an equilateral triangle
Upon a given straight line?"

O up and spake an eldern knight,
Sat at the King's right knee--
"Of a' the clerks by Granta side
Sir Patrick bears the gree.

"'Tis he was taught by the Tod-huntere
Tho' not at the tod-hunting;
Yet gif that he be given a line,
He'll do as brave a thing."

Our King has written a braid letter
To Cambrigge or thereby,
And there it found Sir Patrick Spens
Evaluating PI.

He hadna warked his quotient
A point but barely three,
There stepped to him a little foot-page
And louted on his knee.

The first word that Sir Patrick read,