Far, very far is it
from being fully developed. Sometimes the idea is rejected;
sometimes it is fostered. At one time he is almost fixed on the
'Red Horse,' but the blazing fire and sedulous kindness of the
landlady of the 'Dun Cow' shake him, and his soul labours! Heavy is
the ploughed land, dark, dreary, and wet the day. His purpose is at
last fixed for beer! Threepence is put down for the vigour of the
ale, and one penny for the stupefaction of tobacco, and these are
the joys and holidays of millions, the greatest pleasure and
relaxation which it is in the power of fortune to bestow."
Such kindly feelings as animated Sydney Smith were found more fully
developed in Thomas Hood. He made his humour minister to philanthropy.
The man who wrote the "Song of the Shirt" felt keenly for all the
sufferings of the poor--he even favoured some of their unreasonable
complaints. Thus he writes the "Address of the Laundresses to the Steam
Washing Company," to show how much they are injured by such an
institution. In a "Drop of Gin," he inveighs against this destructive
stimulant.
"Gin! gin! a drop of gin!
What magnified monsters circle therein,
Bagged and stained with filth and mud,
Some plague-spotted, and some with blood."
He seems not to be well pleased with Mr.
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