Samuel Smiles

Jasmin: Barber, Poet, Philanthropist is a classic poet biography by Samuel Smiles. My attention was first called to the works of the poet Jasmin by the eulogistic articles which appeared in the Revue des Deux Mondes, by De Mazade, Nodier, Villemain, and other well-known reviewers. I afterwards read the articles by Sainte-Beuve, perhaps the finest critic of French literature, on the life and history of Jasmin, in his 'Portraits Contemporains' as well as his admirable article on the same subject, in the 'Causeries du Lundi.' Jansemin (born Jacques Bo and also known as Jasmin in French) (16 March 1798 - 4 October 1864) was an Occitan poet. He was born at Agen, his family name being Bo . His father, who was a tailor, had a certain facility for making doggerel verses, which he sang or recited at fairs and other such gatherings; Jacques, who generally accompanied him, was thus early familiarized with the role of the poet. At 16, he found employment at a hairdresser's shop, and subsequently started a similar business of his own on the Gravier at Agen. In 1825 he published his first volume of Papillotos (Curl Papers), containing poems in French (a language he used with a certain sense of restraint), and in the familiar Agen variety of Occitan language, the popular speech of the working classes in which he was to achieve all his later literary triumphs. Jasmin was the most famous forerunner, in Proven al literature, of Fr d ric Mistral and the F librige. His influence in rehabilitating, for literary purposes, his native dialect, was particularly exercised in the public recitals of his poems he gave. His poetic gift, as well as his fluent voice and fluid bearing, fitted him admirably for this double role of troubadour and jongleur. In 1835, he recited his "Blind Girl of Castel-Cuill" at Bordeaux, and in 1836 at Toulouse, and he met with an enthusiastic reception in both of these important cities. Most of his public recitations were given for benevolent purposes, the proceeds being contributed by him to the restoration of the church at Vergt and other good works.

A Boy's Voyage Round the World is a world travelogue and adventure classic by Samuel Smiles. I have had pleasure in editing this travel diary, not only because it is the work of my youngest son, but also because it contains the results of a good deal of adventure travel under novel aspects, as seen by young, fresh, and observant eyes.

"A speck in the Northern Ocean, with a rocky coast, an ungenial climate, and a soil scarcely fruitful, -this was the material patrimony which descended to the English race-an inheritance that would have been little worth but for the inestimable moral gift that accompanied it. Yes; from Celts, Saxons, Danes, Normans-from some or all of them-have come down with English nationality a talisman that could command sunshine, and plenty, and empire, and fame. The 'go' which they transmitted to us-the national vis-this it is which made the old Angle-land a glorious heritage. Of this we have had a portion above our brethren-good measure, running over. Through this our island-mother has stretched out her arms till they enriched the globe of the earth....Britain, without her energy and enterprise, what would she be in Europe?"-Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine (1870)

This book is intended as a sequel to "Self-Help," and "Character." It might, indeed, have appeared as an introduction to these volumes; for Thrift is the basis of Self-Help, and the foundation of much that is excellent in Character. The author has already referred to the Use and Abuse of Money; but the lesson is worthy of being repeated and enforced. As he has already observed, -Some of the finest qualities of human nature are intimately related to the right use of money; such as generosity, honesty, justice, and self-denial; as well as the practical virtues of economy and providence. On the other hand, there are their counterparts of avarice, fraud, injustice, and selfishness, as displayed by the inordinate lovers of gain; and the vices of thoughtlessness, extravagance, and improvidence, on the part of those who misuse and abuse the means entrusted to them