336  ALBUMS.
If  all,  or  a  portion  of  the  above  remarks,  should
be  offensive  to  the  feelings  of  any  lady  who  keeps
an  album,  I  hope  she  will  do  me  the  justice  to  be
lieve  that  I  certainly  meant  hers  to  be  an  exception
to  these  general  observations,


CONTENTMENT.
THERE  is  perhaps .  no  sounder  or  more  generally
acknowledged  axiom  than  that  the  value  of  a  thing
is  in  proportion  to  its  scarcity.  This  may  be  one
great  reason  why  contentment  has  found  such
favor  in  the  eyes  of  the  multitude ;  every  one  set
ting  the  highest  value  on  what  he  had  not,  and
indifferent  to  the  praise  which  might  be  bestowed
upon  its  virtues  and  efficacy,  so  long  as  he  knew
his  neighbor  no  richer  than  himself.  Thus  it  is,
that  this  thing,  whose  intrinsic  value  (except  in  a
very  limited  degree.)  is  not  worth  a  cent,  has,  as  a
regularly  be-praised  subject,  equalled  even  Shaks-
peare's  Works,  Warren's  blacking,  or  La  Fayette.
Now  I  mean  to  say  that  as  far  as  the  share  con
tentment  has  in  the  enjoyment  a  man  feels  in  eat
ing  his  dinner,  smoking  his  cigar,  or,  after  his  daily
labor  enjoying  the  comforts  of  his  fire-side,  it  is  a
good  ;  but,  I  also  say,  that  taken  in  any  extended


238  CONTENTMENT.
