April 30: Washington's Dictum on Private Life (Vol. 43, pp. 225-228)

George Washington was inaugurated as our first president on this day in 1789, so we get his inaugural address today. He invokes the deity a lot in this speech, which alternates between deep humility for the honor of being this nation's first president and setting the standard for what our government should be.

"The foundations of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality," said Washington, "and the pre-eminence of a free government exemplified by all the attributes, which can win the affections of its citizens, and command the respect of the world."

It's ideas like this that made this country great.

April 29: How I Got Rich – By Sinbad the Sailor (Vol. 16: pp. 231-242)

Another selection from the "Thousand and One Nights."

Sinbad the Sailor, living large in his mansion by sea, gets a visit by another Sinbad, a poor man looking for a break. After hearing his tale of woe, Sinbad the Sailor invites his namesake in for a feast and some pointers on how to be a player like him.

April 28: "Vanity of Vanities," Saith The Preacher (Vol. 44, pp. 335-341)

The Book of Ecclesiastes, today's selection, is perhaps the classic Biblical work of pessimism. "All is vanity," he proclaims. But at the end, he backs off and proclaims that we "must fear God and keep his Commandments; for this is the whole duty of man."

In other words, the same old, same old.

April 27: He Dared to See Forbidden Beauty (Vol. 5, pp. 297-310)

Ralph Waldo Emerson died this day in 1882, so to mark the occasion, we get his musings on the concept of beauty.

"All our science lacks a human side," wrote Emerson, and it's a good thing too. Humans would just mess it up.

"Beauty is the form under which the intellect prefers to study the world," wrote Emerson. Not quite. Beauty can often be a distraction.

Emerson is over-emoting in his essay, "On Beauty," but considering how much that beauty is feared by the puritanical among us, perhaps he's not that far off the mark.

April 26: Do Miracles Still Happen (Vol. 37, pp. 375-385)

English philosopher David Hume, who was born this day in 1711, didn't seem fearful of incurring the wrath of the religious when he wrote that "a miracle is a violation of the laws of nature."

But that simple statement sums up the difference between the superstitious nonsense that makes up organized religion and the immutable laws of nature. What some would consider a "miracle," is merely a deviation from the normal course that nature follows day in and day out.

April 25: Mighty Rome Feared These Men (Vol. 33, pp. 106-120)

Tacitus offers today's selection from "On Germany," his account of the German tribes who were primitives to Romans, but were fearless on the battlefield and ultimately outlasted and defeated the Roman Empire.

April 24: Nineteen Million Elephants (Vol. 11, pp. 74-86)

Finally, we get the best of Darwin — "Origin of Species." Here, he writes about reproduction and the differences between species in producing offspring. Variables such as food, predators, disease and climate change makes numbers go up or down. Ultimately, every species' fate is interconnected with that of every other species.

While Darwin might have been a bit off with his estimate that there would 19 million elephants in 750 years, the rest of it is spot on.