Page:Thoreau - His Home, Friends and Books (1902).djvu/120

98 and the day-book tells the simple story of the next year,—"Made pencils in 1844; Texas house to August 29, 1850." These two references show that the poet-naturalist spent the year before his Walden experiment in mechanical work, or, as he loved to express the thought, became "Apollo serving Admetus." Especially did his soul revolt at the portion of the story told by Euripides where the lofty-minded Phœbus is condemned to drudge for the selfish, sordid Admetus. It must not be inferred that Thoreau scorned manual work, rather was it a part of his creed, but he yearned for the leisure to develop also the higher faculties; he too had

Always skilful and exact in crafts, it is narrated that he once gained a certificate for making the best pencil then produced. He declared that he would make no more, since he had reached perfection, though probably he desisted because he attained to higher ideals for his life. It is significant, however, that he did return to the trade later, whenever the family needs required.

The second entry for this year suggests another fact of interest. "The Texas house," to which the family moved, was built almost entirely by father