Emerson's housekeeping, and the
excellent fare which she provided for her husband and his friends.
Emerson wished to bear the hardships of life without complaining, but he
also knew that to make life unnecessarily hard is not only unwise but
has an injurious effect on character. As he would have said, it is not
according to nature. A horse seeks the best of the road, and a cow the
freshest grass in the pasture. Studious people and others who live
mostly indoors are obliged to be careful of what they eat. You could not
call Emerson an epicure, but he knew how to appreciate a fine dinner.
Several witnesses have given their testimony in regard to his partiality
for what he called "pie." He was also fond of pears; knew the best
varieties and the order in which they ripened. He used to say that there
is only ten minutes in which a pear is fairly ripe: before that it is
too hard and afterwards too soft. His friend Dr. F. H. Hedge once made a
similar remark concerning ripe scholars.
Perhaps the most remarkable trait in his character was his absolute
self-poise. He had a balanced mind if there ever was one. Carlyle
considered the "Conduct of Life" to be Emerson's best book, and there
was reason why it should be. It was the subject of all others which he
knew most about. Conduct had been the study of his life. Behavior was a
fine art with him, cultivated partly from motives of prudence but more
for its own sake.
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