Sometimes he was all but submerged, swimming through oblivion with a faltering stroke; and again, by some strange alchemy of soul, he would find another shred of will and strikeout more strongly.
It's all well and good to jump off the deep end if no one's depending on your earnings. But if you have a family or other dependents, you have to be absolutely sure before you strikeout on your own.
When Leverrier was working at his great discovery he did not strikeout a new path in science; he was sup ported by a great law of nature, the base of all astronomical knowledge.