together.

There are, however, times when the obstinacy of the mean man looks very
like the obstinacy of the great one; but if you look closely into the
matter, you will always see that the obstinacy of the first is in the
pronunciation of "I;" and of the second, in the pronunciation of "It."

* * * * *

Note 5th, p. 56.--"_Invention of new wants._"

138. It would have been impossible for political economists long to have
endured the error spoken of in the text,[18] had they not been confused
by an idea, in part well founded, that the energies and refinements, as
well as the riches of civilised life, arose from imaginary wants. It is
quite true, that the savage who knows no needs but those of food,
shelter, and sleep, and after he has snared his venison and patched the
rents of his hut, passes the rest of his time in animal repose, is in a
lower state than the man who labours incessantly that he may procure for
himself the luxuries of civilisation; and true also, that the difference
between one and another nation in progressive power depends in great
part on vain desires; but these idle motives are merely to be
considered as giving exercise to the national body and mind; they are
not sources of wealth, except so far as they give the habits of industry
and acquisitiveness. If a boy is clumsy and lazy, we shall do good if we
can persuade him to carve cherry-stones and fly kites; and this use of
his fingers and limbs may eventually be the cause of his becoming a
wealthy and happy man; but we must not therefore argue that
cherry-stones are valuable property, or that kite-flying is a profitable
mode of passing time. In like manner, a nation always wastes its time
and labour _directly_, when it invents a new want of a frivolous kind,
and yet the invention of such a want may be the sign of a healthy
activity, and the labour undergone to satisfy the new want may lead,
_indirectly_, to useful discoveries or to noble arts; so that a nation
is not to be discouraged in its fancies when it is either too weak or
foolish to be moved to exertion by anything but fancies, or has attended
to its serious business first. If a nation will not forge iron, but
likes distilling lavender, by all means give it lavender to distil; only
do not let its economists suppose that lavender is as profitable to it
as oats, or that it helps poor people to live, any more than the
schoolboy's kite provides him his dinner