THE ACTIVE MAN.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5632, 18 April 1879, Page 3

THE ACTIVE MAN.

(From the llor net.)

The active man is about forty years of age. He is round rather than stout, full colored rather than pale, wears beard and moustaches of dark brown hair, and has a remarkably white and shiny forehead. His face is radiant, his clothes are radiant, his speech is radiant, but his legs are dazzling. You can no more be conscious of his presence and insensible to his legs than you can shut up your attention from the cornet in a band of three instruments. As he stands at a corner talking to a friend, his legs seem to be on the point of. running away from his body, and dashing down the four ways at once. These legs are never for a moment still. He poises on his toes, thrusts the heel of the right foot into the hollow of the left, and then the heel of the left into the hollow of the right. He waggles his knees, juts his hips, turns his toes in, turns his toes out, bends both legs, to the left, bends both legs to the right, pats the ground with the ball of the right foot, pats the ground with the ball »f the left, and then dances away from his friend as though ho were endeavoring to overtake and capture a swallow.

His great theory is that everything in this world can be done by “ seeing ” some one or other in London. He is willing at a moment’s notice to rush from Knightsbridge to Wapping to see some man there who can tell him the difference, between a brig and a brigantine; which information he requires to settle a wager of a penny against an orange between two of his casual acquaintances. He is eager to rush from Tumbridge to Trafalgar-square to see, for the satisfaction of his own curiosity, whether the paws of the lions are turned in or turned down.

He ; knows where the best of to be got, and will not allow himself to be imposed on by distance. The very best wax matches are to be had at a certain shop in the High-street, Islington, and he never dreams of buying matches anywhere else. The bast cigars are to be got at a certain shop in Bondstreet, and he never dreams of baying cigars anywhere else. He goes to Thames-street for fish, and to Barnsbury for plants. He would no more entrust the man who makes his trousers with the fitting of his waistcoats than he’d permit the cutter of his coat to do either. He buys his shoes in Regent-street, and, his shoe-laces in the Euston-road.

He is secretary to a football club, president of an archery club, arid treasurer of a coal-distributing society. He is executor to four aud trustee to six wills. I He is a powerful man in electioneering times,'for he knows everyone and is universally liked. He can give you the address of any man much more quickly and quite as accurately as the Post Office Directory. He can tell yen how many children every person of your acquaintance has, and what professions the boys are destined for. ’ ! But it is as an interviewer he is most distinguished. He will call-on any man, no matter how high his position or how low. If he sees a child knocked down by a cab and carried: to the hospital he will call at the hospital, see the head resident surgeon, call On the head visiting surgeon, call on the secretary of the hospital, call on two of the directors of the hospital, and finally upon the poor woman ■whose child has been hurt.

i He is interested in everything he hears of or sees,,and takes an equal interest in all. The result is that he is one of the men best informed on current subjects, and consequently one of the most interesting of callers. He is skilful in what he communicates, always taking care that his news is interesting to his bearer.He does not begin with a question, but generally with some piece of intelligence which he knows will be new and surprising to bis listener. . And still he always carefully [steers clear of any thing approaching treachery. [Everyone he knows is. his “ friend,!’ and he [would not jeopardise the position br happiness ; of'any friend. But then bis friends tell Kim 'things about other people whom he doesn’t ;know, and about whom he is under no obligation of secresy when secresy is not imposed by [the communicative friend. He also makes it [a rule never to give the name of his informant, and thus' his news gets from one [place to another with as little savor of personality as appears in the record of a Morse receiving machine. V i i [ ' The-Active Man is a bachelor. He is not : long lived. He prefers to burn out rather [than rust oat, and at forty-three he dies. He iis .top active to be long ill, and he goes oat'of [ the great world as quickly as he went about in [ the great City. ..