to say, a mind capable of playing the mastermanipulates the faculties and capabilities possessed by the Dummy, and putting them in motion achieves the most stupendous results. Meanwhile the Dummy is, if possible, more amazed than the rest of the world at the result of his handiwork. There is something anomalous in this state of matters, yet there is nothing of which to complain; for, without the motive power supplied by the master operator, Dummy could never have done anything. It is, therefore, no loss to him that his faculties are put to a useful purpose by the ingenuity of another mind. In law, it is Dummies who collect and compare precedents, draw pleadings and "get up cases." The knowledge, the acumen, the logical faculty requisite for these departments of work are the picture cards in the hands of the legal Dummy, but they would lie idle before him unless some more ready wit were induced to enter into partnership, and play them to their joint advantage. But it is in Art that the family of Dummies are in an exceptionally bad plight, and only occasionally thrive even tolerably. Artists have seldom the tact or intelligence to turn

their powers to beneficial account. Moreover, there is too much egotism in the conventional artist to allow of his making common cause with a professional brother who possesses the faculty of art-work, but has none of the demonstrative ability necessary to make him useful as a practitioner.

The possession of power is a far greater and more useful quality than the possession of special abilities. Few men can be philosophers nowa-days except with other people's brains. Traffic in men and minds- -a sort of mental slave trade— is the most profitable branch of modern commerce. Perhaps, as a rule, the men of mind who are bought and sold have little or no cause to complain. The alternative of their being used by other people is that they would not be useful at all. The only point worthy of consideration is whether cleverness, being in the ascendancy in every department, there is not a danger lest plodding industry should fall into disrepute and ultimately die out altogether. The claims of the Dummies are fairly entitled to consideration. Dummydom has its rights and a certain kind of respectability, which in the end may lead to its enfranchisement.

45

VI.

DWARFS.

By

THE dwarf is a monstrously small specimen of humanity. Monstrosity is indispensable to the idea. Men may be as diminutive as the good people of Lilliput, and yet not dwarfs, for your genuine dwarf is a being evidently designed to attain normal proportions, but stunted. some unfortunate combination of circumstances his growth has been arrested, and, in such a fashion, that the process of development has not ceased throughout the organism at the same moment of time, but come to an end gradually, so that the parts most distant from the seats of life and nutrition, the great nervous centres and the heart, have first ceased to grow and are too small in proportion to the rest of the body. Hence the characteristic monstrosity. In olden story and

in fable, while "little people" are portrayed as infinitely respectable and well-intentioned, performing all sorts of good and kindly offices for the race of ordinary mortals, to dwarfs are invariably assigned the worst and most mischievous propensities. There is a poetic harmony in this symbolism. The ugliness that comes of violating order in growth is fittingly associated with evil. Beauty and perfection of form, even on a small scale, are agreeably connected with goodness, truth, and purity. This leading idea has been adopted by writers of fiction in all countries and with general acceptance.

The development of mind is liable to be stunted like that of the body. And, when this untoward event comes to pass in the history of an individual, growth ceases in the extremities of his moral nature, the prehensile organs with which he is intended to receive impressions and to fulfil the mandates of the will, before the centres of intelligence and human impulse attain their final development. The dwarf-mind is, therefore, ast monstrous as the dwarf-body. A mental or moral dwarf has commonly plenty of primary or central

force in his character. Indeed, being less sensitive than properly developed people by reason of the fact that his mental and moral feelers are stunted and imperfect, his other qualities are obtrusively prominent. He has a stupendous amount of selfconceit, inordinate self-possession, unblushing audacity, and is little disturbed by what is going on around him. And there is no psychological reason why he should not exhibit a considerable amount of wit and a large array of well-developed and useful faculties. The mental and moral dwarf is by no means a failure. On the contrary, he is not unfrequently a great success. The great defect in his development concerns other persons a vast deal more than it affects him. He goes through the world like a crustacean, knocking against less insensible mortals without the smallest compunction, and with no trace of sympathy for the hard hits and injuries he inflicts. Even though moving in a subordinate sphere of life, he is an intolerable nuisance; but, when he rises to power and distinction, he betrays all the worst qualities of an upstart, coupled with those of a tyrant. In his dealings with men of normal constitution he