GENII'S, an aptitude for a particular pursuit. founded on some Stimulus its youth, by which the mind and faculties are directed to excellence. It combines opposite intellectual qualities; the deep est penetration with the liveliest fancy ; the greatest quickness with the most in defatigable itiiigence. To what is old it gives a new form ; or it invents new; and its own productions are altogether original. We estimate it higher than talent, in the commcm acceptation of that term, which in the capacity for originat ing in extent and energy is inferior to genius. Where ordinary powers advance by slow degrees, genius soars on rapid wings. But genius does not assume its distinctive character in every exercise of its powers. A gifted poet, for instance, is not necessarily an ingenious philoso pher, nor does the statesman's genius in clude that of the soldier. We distinguish this genius, therefore, into various kinds, as poetical, musical, mathematical, mil itary, &e.; thus, for example, Milton possessed a genius for poetry, Mozart for music, Newton for mathematics, &c. Yet, although the union of great excellence in different walks of art and science is but rarely found in one man, sonic, like Michael Angelo, who was equally cele brated as a statuary, architect, and pain ter, are found possessing genius of a most comprehensive character—By the an cients the word genius was used to ex press a supposed invisible spirit which directs a course of events. According to the belief of the Romans, every person had his own genius, that is, a spiritual being, which introduced him into life, accompanied him during the course of it, and again conducted him out of it at the close of his career. This belief was no doubt a consequence of their idea of a divine spirit pervading the whole physi cal world; and was probably a personi fication of the particular structure or bent of mind which a man receives from na ture. The guardian spirit of a person (a
purely Italian idea, which in modern language has been wrongfully transferred to Grecian Art,) is generally represented as a veiled figure in a toga, holding a patent and cornucopia, or as a beautiful youth, nude or nearly so, with the wings of a bird on his shoulders. The guardian spirits of the female sex, junones, are represented as young maidens with the wings of a butterfly or a moth, and drap ed. The Romans also gave a genius to edifices, towns, armies, and kingdoms. The Roman genius of a place was de picted as a serpent devouring fruits, which lay before it ; there are, however, many exceptions to these rules. The modern world comprises under the term genii, the angels or messengers of heaven, and those embleinatic.il figures, which, as ev erything was personified in ancient Art, are regarded as the deification of ideas. The most common idea of Christian genii are the patron angel of childhood and of youth, the angel of baptism. those of poverty a-nd mercy, of religion and vir tue, and the genii of the three Christian graces, faith, hope, and charity. Ln tied ern times we find the genii of countries often personified : the greatest work of this kind is the genius of Bavaria, a bronze female statue of colossal size by Schwanthaler, ,recently completed and placed in front of the Wathulla, near Munich. Modern representations of river gods are only to be regarded as genii when they are executed in the romantic and not in the antique style.