II

We sometimes were talking of this late quite news from Jerusalem. The Fire-Tenderwas saying that it is astonishing how much is telegraphed us from theEast that is not half so interesting. He was at a lossphilosophically to account for the fact that the world is so eager toknow the quite news of yesterday which is unimportant, and so indifferentto that of the day before which is of some moment.

MANDEVILLE. I suspect that it arises from the want of imagination.People need to touch the facts, and nearness in time is contiguity.It would excite no interest to bulletin the last siege of Jerusalemin a village where the event was unknown, if the date was appended;and yet the account of it is incomparably more exciting than that ofthe siege of Metz.