,the ,majesty of ,calmness  ,individual 
,problems and ,possibilities444  by     
,william ,george ,jordan  ,author of    
,the ,kingship of ,self-,control        
,,contents   ,i4   ,,the ,,majesty ,,of 
,,calmness ,,ii4  ,,hurry1 ,,the        
,,scourge ,,of ,,america ,,iii4 ,,the   
,,power ,,of ,,personal ,,influence     
,,iv4  ,,the ,,dignity ,,of             
,,self-,,reliance ,v4   ,,failure ,,as  
,a ,,success ,,vi4  ,,doing ,,our ,,best
 ,,at ,,all ,,times ,,vii4 ,,the ,,royal
 ,,road ,,to ,,happiness     ,i  ,the   
,majesty of ,calmness    ,calmness is   
the rarest quality in human life4 ,it is
 the poise of a great nature1 in harmony
 with itself and its ideals4 ,it is the 
moral atmosphere of a life self-centred1
 self-reliant1 and self-controlled4     
,calmness is singleness of purpose1     
absolute confidence1 and conscious      
power1--ready to be focused in an       
instant to meet any crisis4  ,the       
,sphinx is not a true type of           
calmness1--petrifaction is not calmness2

 it is death1 the silencing of all the  
energies2 while no one lives his life   
more fully1 more intensely and more     
consciously than the man who is calm4   
,the ,fatalist is not calm4 ,he is the  
coward slave of his environment1        
hopelessly surrendering to his present  
condition1 recklessly indifferent to his
 future4 ,he accepts his life as a      
rudderless ship1 drifting on the ocean  
of time4 ,he has no compass1 no chart1  
no known port to which he is sailing4   
,his self-confessed inferiority to all  
nature is shown in his existence of     
constant surrender4 ,it is              
not1--calmness4  ,the man who is calm   
has his course in life clearly marked on
 his chart4 ,his hand is ever on the    
helm4 ,storm1 fog1 night1 tempest1      
danger1 hidden reefs1--he is ever       
prepared and ready for them4 ,he is made
 calm and serene by the realization that
 in these crises of his voyage he needs 
a clear mind and a cool head2 that he   
has naught to do but to do each day the 

best he can by the light he has2 that he
 will never flinch nor falter for a     
moment2 that1 though he may have to tack
 and leave his course for a time1 he    
will never drift1 he will get back into 
the true channel1 he will keep ever     
headed toward his harbor4 ,when he will 
reach it1 how he will reach it1 matters 
not to him4 ,he rests in calmness1      
knowing he has done his best4 ,if his   
best seem to be overthrown or overruled1
 then he must still bow his head1--in   
calmness4 ,to no man is permitted to    
know the future of his life1 the        
finality4 ,god commits to man ever only 
new beginnings1 new wisdom1 and new days
 to use the best of his knowledge4      
,calmness comes ever from within4 ,it is
 the peace and restfulness of the depths
 of our nature4 ,the fury of storm and  
of wind agitate only the surface of the 
sea2 they can penetrate only two or     
three hundred feet1--below that is the  
calm1 unruffled deep4 ,to be ready for  
the great crises of life we must learn  

serenity in our daily living4 ,calmness 
is the crown of self-control4  ,when the
 worries and cares of the day fret you1 
and begin to wear upon you1 and you     
chafe under the friction1--be calm4     
,stop1 rest for a moment1 and let       
calmness and peace assert themselves4   
,if you let these irritating outside    
influences get the better of you1 you   
are confessing your inferiority to them1
 by permitting them to dominate you4    
,study the disturbing elements1 each by 
itself1 bring all the will power of your
 nature to bear upon them1 and you will 
find that they will1 one by one1 melt   
into nothingness1 like vapors fading    
before the sun4 ,the glow of calmness   
that will then pervade your mind1 the   
tingling sensation of an inflow of new  
strength1 may be to you the beginning of
 the revelation of the supreme calmness 
that is possible for you4 ,then1 in some
 great hour of your life1 when you stand
 face to face with some awful trial1    
when the structure of your ambition and 

life-work crumbles in a moment1 you will
 be brave4 ,you can then fold your arms 
calmly1 look out undismayed and         
undaunted upon the ashes of your hope1  
upon the wreck of what you have         
faithfully built1 and with brave heart  
and unfaltering voice you may say3 ,so  
let it be1--,i will build again4  ,when 
the tongue of malice and slander1 the   
persecution of inferiority1 tempts you  
for just a moment to retaliate1 when for
 an instant you forget yourself so far  
as to hunger for revenge1--be calm4     
,when the grey heron is pursued by its  
enemy1 the eagle1 it does not run to    
escape2 it remains calm1 takes a        
dignified stand1 and waits quietly1     
facing the enemy unmoved4 ,with the     
terrific force with which the eagle     
makes its attack1 the boasted king of   
birds is often impaled and run through  
on the quiet1 lance-like bill of the    
heron4 ,the means that man takes to kill
 another's character becomes suicide of 
his own4  ,no man in the world ever     

attempted to wrong another without being
 injured in return1--someway1 somehow1  
sometime4 ,the only weapon of offence   
that ,nature seems to recognize is the  
boomerang4 ,nature keeps her books      
admirably2 she puts down every item1 she
 closes all accounts finally1 but she   
does not always balance them at the end 
of the month4 ,to the man who is calm1  
revenge is so far beneath him that he   
cannot reach it1--even by stooping4     
,when injured1 he does not retaliate2 he
 wraps around him the royal robes of    
,calmness1 and he goes quietly on his   
way4  ,when the hand of ,death touches  
the one we hold dearest1 paralyzes our  
energy1 and eclipses the sun of our     
life1 the calmness that has been        
accumulating in long years becomes in a 
moment our refuge1 our reserve strength4
  ,the most subtle of all temptations is
 the seeming success of the wicked4 ,it 
requires moral courage to see1 without  
flinching1 material prosperity coming to
 men who are dishonest2 to see          

politicians rise into prominence1 power 
and wealth by trickery and corruption2  
to see virtue in rags and vice in       
velvets2 to see ignorance at a premium1 
and knowledge at a discount4 ,to the man
 who is really calm these puzzles of    
life do not appeal4 ,he is living his   
life as best he can2 he is not worrying 
about the problems of justice1 whose    
solution must be left to ,omniscience to
 solve4  ,when man has developed the    
spirit of ,calmness until it becomes so 
absolutely part of him that his very    
presence radiates it1 he has made great 
progress in life4 ,calmness cannot be   
acquired of itself and by itself2 it    
must come as the culmination of a series
 of virtues4 ,what the world needs and  
what individuals need is a higher       
standard of living1 a great realizing   
sense of the privilege and dignity of   
life1 a higher and nobler conception of 
individuality4  ,with this great sense  
of calmness permeating an individual1   
man becomes able to retire more into    

himself1 away from the noise1 the       
confusion and strife of the world1 which
 come to his ears only as faint1 far-off
 rumblings1 or as the tumult of the life
 of a city heard only as a buzzing hum  
by the man in a balloon4  ,the man who  
is calm does not selfishly isolate      
himself from the world1 for he is       
intensely interested in all that        
concerns the welfare of humanity4 ,his  
calmness is but a ,holy of ,holies into 
which he can retire from the world to   
get strength to live in the world4 ,he  
realizes that the full glory of         
individuality1 the crowning of his      
self-control is1--the majesty of        
calmness4     ,,ii  ,hurry1 the ,scourge
 of ,america    ,the first sermon in the
 world was preached at the ,creation4   
,it was a ,divine protest against       
,hurry4 ,it was a ,divine object lesson 
of perfect law1 perfect plan1 perfect   
order1 perfect method4 ,six days of work
 carefully planned1 scheduled and       
completed were followed by1--rest4      

,whether we accept the story as literal 
or as figurative1 as the account of     
successive days or of ages comprising   
millions of years1 matters little if we 
but learn the lesson4  ,nature is very  
un-,american4 ,nature never hurries4    
,every phase of her working shows plan1 
calmness1 reliability1 and the absence  
of hurry4 ,hurry always implies lack of 
definite method1 confusion1 impatience  
of slow growth4 ,the ,tower of ,babel1  
the world's first skyscraper1 was a     
failure because of hurry4 ,the workers  
mistook their arrogant ambition for     
inspiration4 ,they had too many         
builders1--and no architect4 ,they      
thought to make up the lack of a head by
 a superfluity of hands4 ,this is a     
characteristic of ,hurry4 ,it seeks ever
 to make energy a substitute for a      
clearly defined plan1--the result is    
ever as hopeless as trying to transform 
a hobby-horse into a real steed by brisk
 riding4  ,hurry is a counterfeit of    
haste4 ,haste has an ideal1 a distinct  

aim to be realized by the quickest1     
direct methods4 ,haste has a single     
compass upon which it relies for        
direction and in harmony with which its 
course is determined4 ,hurry says3 ,i   
must move faster4 ,i will get three     
compasses2 ,i will have them different2 
,i will be guided by all of them4 ,one  
of them will probably be right4 ,hurry  
never realizes that slow1 careful       
foundation work is the quickest in the  
end4  ,hurry has ruined more ,americans 
than has any other word in the          
vocabulary of life4 ,it is the scourge  
of ,america2 and is both a cause and a  
result of our high-pressure             
civilization4 ,hurry adroitly assumes so
 many masquerades of disguise that its  
identity is not always recognized4      
,hurry always pays the highest price for
 everything1 and1 usually the goods are 
not delivered4 ,in the race for wealth  
men often sacrifice time1 energy1       
health1 home1 happiness and             
honor1--everything that money cannot    

buy1 the very things that money can     
never bring back4 ,hurry is a phantom of
 paradoxes4 ,business men1 in their     
desire to provide for the future        
happiness of their family1 often        
sacrifice the present happiness of wife 
and children on the altar of ,hurry4    
,they forget that their place in the    
home should be something greater than   
being merely the man that pays the      
bills2 they expect consideration and    
thoughtfulness that they are not giving4
  ,we hear too much of a wife's duties  
to a husband and too little of the other
 side of the question4 ,the wife1 they  
tell us1 should meet her husband with a 
smile and a kiss1 should tactfully watch
 his moods and be ever sweetness and    
sunshine4 ,why this continual swinging  
of the censer of devotion to the man of 
business8 ,why should a woman have to   
look up with timid glance at the face of
 her husband1 to size up his mood8 ,has 
not her day1 too1 been one of care1 and 
responsibility1 and watchfulness8 ,has  

not mother-love been working over       
perplexing problems and worries of home 
and of the training of the children that
 wifely love may make her seek to solve 
in secret8 ,is man1 then1 the weaker sex
 that he must be pampered and treated as
 tenderly as a boil trying to keep from 
contact with the world8  ,in their hurry
 to attain some ambition1 to gratify the
 dream of a life1 men often throw honor1
 truth1 and generosity to the winds4    
,politicians dare to stand by and see a 
city poisoned with foul water until they
 see where they come in on a water-works
 appropriation4 ,if it be necessary to  
poison an army1--that1 too1 is but an   
incident in the hurry for wealth4  ,this
 is the ,age of the ,hothouse4 ,the     
element of natural growth is pushed to  
one side and the hothouse and the       
force-pump are substituted4 ,nature     
looks on tolerantly as she says3 ,so far
 you may go1 but no farther1 my foolish 
children4  ,the educational system of   
to-day is a monumental institution      

dedicated to ,hurry4 ,the children are  
forced to go through a series of studies
 that sweep the circle of all human     
wisdom4 ,they are given everything that 
the ambitious ignorance of the age can  
force into their minds2 they are taught 
everything but the essentials1--how to  
use their senses and how to think4      
,their minds become congested by a great
 mass of undigested facts1 and still the
 cruel1 barbarous forcing goes on4 ,you 
watch it until it seems you cannot stand
 it a moment longer1 and you            
instinctively put out your hand and say3
 ,stop6 ,this modern slaughter of the   
,innocents must not go on6 ,education   
smiles suavely1 waves her hand          
complacently toward her thousands of    
knowledge-prisons over the country1 and 
says3 ,who are you that dares speak a   
word against our sacred1 school system8 
,education is in a hurry4 ,because she  
fails in fifteen years to do what half  
the time should accomplish by better    
methods1 she should not be too boastful4

 ,incompetence is not always a reason   
for pride4 ,and they hurry the children 
into a hundred textbooks1 then into     
ill-health1 then into the colleges1 then
 into a diploma1 then into life1--with a
 dazed mind1 untrained and unfitted for 
the real duties of living4  ,hurry is   
the deathblow to calmness1 to dignity1  
to poise4 ,the old-time courtesy went   
out when the new-time hurry came in4    
,hurry is the father of dyspepsia4 ,in  
the rush of our national life1 the      
bolting of food has become a national   
vice4 ,the words ,quick ,lunches might  
properly be placed on thousands of      
headstones in our cemeteries4 ,man      
forgets that he is the only animal that 
dines2 the others merely feed4 ,why does
 he abrogate his right to dine and go to
 the end of the line with the mere      
feeders8 ,his self-respecting stomach   
rebels1 and expresses its indignation by
 indigestion4 ,then man has to go       
through life with a little bottle of    
pepsin tablets in his vest-pocket4 ,he  

is but another victim to this craze for 
speed4 ,hurry means the breakdown of the
 nerves4 ,it is the royal road to       
nervous prostration4  ,everything that  
is great in life is the product of slow 
growth2 the newer1 and greater1 and     
higher1 and nobler the work1 the slower 
is its growth1 the surer is its lasting 
success4 ,mushrooms attain their full   
power in a night2 oaks require decades4 
,a fad lives its life in a few weeks2 a 
philosophy lives through generations and
 centuries4 ,if you are sure you are    
right1 do not let the voice of the      
world1 or of friends1 or of family      
swerve you for a moment from your       
purpose4 ,accept slow growth if it must 
be slow1 and know the results must come1
 as you would accept the long1 lonely   
hours of the night1--with absolute      
assurance that the heavy-leaded moments 
must bring the morning4  ,let us as     
individuals banish the word ,hurry from 
our lives4 ,let us care for nothing so  
much that we would pay honor and        

self-respect as the price of hurrying   
it4 ,let us cultivate calmness1         
restfulness1 poise1 sweetness1--doing   
our best1 bearing all things as bravely 
as we can2 living our life undisturbed  
by the prosperity of the wicked or the  
malice of the envious4 ,let us not be   
impatient1 chafing at delay1 fretting   
over failure1 wearying over results1 and
 weakening under opposition4 ,let us    
ever turn our face toward the future    
with confidence and trust1 with the     
calmness of a life in harmony with      
itself1 true to its ideals1 and slowly  
and constantly progressing toward their 
realization4  ,let us see that cowardly 
word ,hurry in all its most degenerating
 phases1 let us see that it ever kills  
truth1 loyalty1 thoroughness2 and let us
 determine that1 day by day1 we will    
seek more and more to substitute for it 
the calmness and repose of a true life1 
nobly lived4     ,,iii  ,the ,power of  
,personal ,influence    ,the only       
responsibility that a man cannot evade  

in this life is the one he thinks of    
least1--his personal influence4 ,man's  
conscious influence1 when he is on      
dress-parade1 when he is posing to      
impress those around him1--is woefully  
small4 ,but his unconscious influence1  
the silent1 subtle radiation of his     
personality1 the effect of his words and
 acts1 the trifles he never             
considers1--is tremendous4 ,every moment
 of life he is changing to a degree the 
life of the whole world4 ,every man has 
an atmosphere which is affecting every  
other4 ,so silent and unconsciously is  
this influence working1 that man may    
forget that it exists4  ,all the forces 
of ,nature1--heat1 light1 electricity   
and gravitation1--are silent and        
invisible4 ,we never see them2 we only  
know that they exist by seeing the      
effects they produce4 ,in all ,nature   
the wonders of the seen are dwarfed into
 insignificance when compared with the  
majesty and glory of the unseen4 ,the   
great sun itself does not supply enough 

heat and light to sustain animal and    
vegetable life on the earth4 ,we are    
dependent for nearly half of our light  
and heat upon the stars1 and the greater
 part of this supply of life-giving     
energy comes from invisible stars1      
millions of miles from the earth4 ,in a 
thousand ways ,nature constantly seeks  
to lead men to a keener and deeper      
realization of the power and the wonder 
of the invisible4  ,into the hands of   
every individual is given a marvellous  
power for good or for evil1--the silent1
 unconscious1 unseen influence of his   
life4 ,this is simply the constant      
radiation of what a man really is1 not  
what he pretends to be4 ,every man1 by  
his mere living1 is radiating sympathy1 
or sorrow1 or morbidness1 or cynicism1  
or happiness1 or hope1 or any of a      
hundred other qualities4 ,life is a     
state of constant radiation and         
absorption2 to exist is to radiate2 to  
exist is to be the recipient of         
radiations4  ,there are men and women   

whose presence seems to radiate         
sunshine1 cheer and optimism4 ,you feel 
calmed and rested and restored in a     
moment to a new and stronger faith in   
humanity4 ,there are others who focus in
 an instant all your latent distrust1   
morbidness and rebellion against life4  
,without knowing why1 you chafe and fret
 in their presence4 ,you lose your      
bearings on life and its problems4 ,your
 moral compass is disturbed and         
unsatisfactory4 ,it is made untrue in an
 instant1 as the magnetic needle of a   
ship is deflected when it passes near   
great mountains of iron ore4  ,there are
 men who float down the stream of life  
like icebergs1--cold1 reserved1         
unapproachable and self-contained4 ,in  
their presence you involuntarily draw   
your wraps closer around you1 as you    
wonder who left the door open4 ,these   
refrigerated human beings have a most   
depressing influence on all those who   
fall under the spell of their radiated  
chilliness4 ,but there are other        

natures1 warm1 helpful1 genial1 who are 
like the ,gulf ,stream1 following their 
own course1 flowing undaunted and       
undismayed in the ocean of colder       
waters4 ,their presence brings warmth   
and life and the glow of sunshine1 the  
joyous1 stimulating breath of spring4   
,there are men who are like malarious   
swamps1--poisonous1 depressing and      
weakening by their very presence4 ,they 
make heavy1 oppressive and gloomy the   
atmosphere of their own homes2 the sound
 of the children's play is stilled1 the 
ripples of laughter are frozen by their 
presence4 ,they go through life as if   
each day were a new big funeral1 and    
they were always chief mourners4 ,there 
are other men who seem like the ocean2  
they are constantly bracing1            
stimulating1 giving new draughts of     
tonic life and strength by their very   
presence4  ,there are men who are       
insincere in heart1 and that insincerity
 is radiated by their presence4 ,they   
have a wondrous interest in your        

welfare1--when they need you4 ,they put 
on a property smile so suddenly1 when it
 serves their purpose1 that it seems the
 smile must be connected with some      
electric button concealed in their      
clothes4 ,their voice has a simulated   
cordiality that long training may have  
made almost natural4 ,but they never    
play their part absolutely true1 the    
mask will slip down sometimes2 their    
cleverness cannot teach their eyes the  
look of sterling honesty2 they may      
deceive some people1 but they cannot    
deceive all4 ,there is a subtle power of
 revelation which makes us say3 ,well1  
,i cannot explain how it is1 but ,i know
 that man is not honest4  ,man cannot   
escape for one moment from this         
radiation of his character1 this        
constantly weakening or strengthening of
 others4 ,he cannot evade the           
responsibility by saying it is an       
unconscious influence4 ,he can select   
the qualities that he will permit to be 
radiated4 ,he can cultivate sweetness1  

calmness1 trust1 generosity1 truth1     
justice1 loyalty1 nobility1--make them  
vitally active in his character1--and by
 these qualities he will constantly     
affect the world4  ,discouragement often
 comes to honest souls trying to live   
the best they can1 in the thought that  
they are doing so little good in the    
world4 ,trifles unnoted by us may be    
links in the chain of some great        
purpose4 ,in #agig1 ,william ,godwin    
wrote ,the ,inquirer1 a collection of   
revolutionary essays on morals and      
politics4 ,this book influenced ,thomas 
,malthus to write his ,essay on         
,population1 published in #agih4        
,malthus' book suggested to ,charles    
,darwin a point of view upon which he   
devoted many years of his life1         
resulting1 in #ahei1 in the publication 
of ,the ,origin of ,species1--the most  
influential book of the nineteenth      
century1 a book that has revolutionized 
all science4 ,these were but three links
 of influence extending over sixty      

years4 ,it might be possible to trace   
this genealogy of influence back from   
,godwin1 through generation and         
generation1 to the word or act of some  
shepherd in early ,britain1 watching his
 flock upon the hills1 living his quiet 
life1 and dying with the thought that he
 had done nothing to help the world4    
,men and women have duties to           
others1--and duties to themselves4 ,in  
justice to ourselves we should refuse to
 live in an atmosphere that keeps us    
from living our best4 ,if the fault be  
in us1 we should master it4 ,if it be   
the personal influence of others that1  
like a noxious vapor1 kills our best    
impulses1 we should remove from that    
influence1--if we can possibly move     
without forsaking duties4 ,if it be     
wrong to move1 then we should take      
strong doses of moral quinine to        
counteract the malaria of influence4 ,it
 is not what those around us do for us  
that counts1--it is what they are to us4
 ,we carry our house-plants from one    

window to another to give them the      
proper heat1 light1 air and moisture4   
,should we not be at least as careful of
 ourselves8  ,to make our influence felt
 we must live our faith1 we must        
practice what we believe4 ,a magnet does
 not attract iron1 as iron4 ,it must    
first convert the iron into another     
magnet before it can attract it4 ,it is 
useless for a parent to try to teach    
gentleness to her children when she     
herself is cross and irritable4 ,the    
child who is told to be truthful and who
 hears a parent lie cleverly to escape  
some little social unpleasantness is not
 going to cling very zealously to truth4
 ,the parent's words say don't lie1 the 
influence of the parent's life says do  
lie4  ,no man can ever isolate himself  
to evade this constant power of         
influence1 as no single corpuscle can   
rebel and escape from the general course
 of the blood4 ,no individual is so     
insignificant as to be without          
influence4 ,the changes in our varying  

moods are all recorded in the delicate  
barometers of the lives of others4 ,we  
should ever let our influence filter    
through human love and sympathy4 ,we    
should not be merely an influence1--we  
should be an inspiration4 ,by our very  
presence we should be a tower of        
strength to the hungering human souls   
around us4     ,,iv  ,the ,dignity of   
,self-,reliance    ,self-confidence1    
without self-reliance1 is as useless as 
a cooking recipe1--without food4        
,self-confidence sees the possibilities 
of the individual2 self-reliance        
realizes them4 ,self-confidence sees the
 angel in the unhewn block of marble2   
self-reliance carves it out for himself4
  ,the man who is self-reliant says     
ever3 ,no one can realize my            
possibilities for me1 but me2 no one can
 make me good or evil but myself4 ,he   
works out his own                       
salvation1--financially1 socially1      
mentally1 physically1 and morally4 ,life
 is an individual problem that man must 

solve for himself4 ,nature accepts no   
vicarious sacrifice1 no vicarious       
service4 ,nature never recognizes a     
proxy vote4 ,she has nothing to do with 
middle-men1--she deals only with the    
individual4 ,nature is constantly       
seeking to show man that he is his own  
best friend1 or his own worst enemy4    
,nature gives man the option on which he
 will be to himself4  ,all the athletic 
exercises in the world are of no value  
to the individual unless he compel those
 bars and dumb-bells to yield to him1 in
 strength and muscle1 the power for     
which he1 himself1 pays in time and     
effort4 ,he can never develop his       
muscles by sending his valet to a       
gymnasium4  ,the medicine-chests of the 
world are powerless1 in all the united  
efforts1 to help the individual until he
 reach out and take for himself what is 
needed for his individual weakness4     
,all the religions of the world are but 
speculations in morals1 mere theories of
 salvation1 until the individual realize

 that he must save himself by relying on
 the law of truth1 as he sees it1 and   
living his life in harmony with it1 as  
fully as he can4 ,but religion is not a 
,pullman car1 with soft-cushioned seats1
 where he has but to pay for his        
ticket1--and some one else does all the 
rest4 ,in religion1 as in all other     
great things1 he is ever thrown back on 
his self-reliance4 ,he should accept all
 helps1 but1--he must live his own life4
 ,he should not feel that he is a mere  
passenger2 he is the engineer1 and the  
train is his life4 ,we must rely on     
ourselves1 live our own lives1 or we    
merely drift through existence1--losing 
all that is best1 all that is greatest1 
all that is divine4  ,all that others   
can do for us is to give us opportunity4
 ,we must ever be prepared for the      
opportunity when it comes1 and to go    
after it and find it when it does not   
come1 or that opportunity is to         
us1--nothing4 ,life is but a succession 
of opportunities4 ,they are for good or 

evil1--as we make them4  ,many of the   
alchemists of old felt that they lacked 
but one element2 if they could obtain   
that one1 they believed they could      
transmute the baser metals into pure    
gold4 ,it is so in character4 ,there are
 individuals with rare mental gifts1 and
 delicate spiritual discernment who fail
 utterly in life because they lack the  
one element1--self-reliance4 ,this would
 unite all their energies1 and focus    
them into strength and power4  ,the man 
who is not self-reliant is weak1        
hesitating and doubting in all he does4 
,he fears to take a decisive step1      
because he dreads failure1 because he is
 waiting for some one to advise him or  
because he dare not act in accordance   
with his own best judgment4 ,in his     
cowardice and his conceit he sees all   
his non-success due to others4 ,he is   
not appreciated1 not recognized1 he is  
kept down4 ,he feels that in some subtle
 way society is conspiring against him4 
,he grows almost vain as he thinks that 

no one has had such poverty1 such       
sorrow1 such affliction1 such failure as
 have come to him4  ,the man who is     
self-reliant seeks ever to discover and 
conquer the weakness within him that    
keeps him from the attainment of what he
 holds dearest2 he seeks within himself 
the power to battle against all outside 
influences4 ,he realizes that all the   
greatest men in history1 in every phase 
of human effort1 have been those who    
have had to fight against the odds of   
sickness1 suffering1 sorrow4 ,to him1   
defeat is no more than passing through a
 tunnel is to a traveller1--he knows he 
must emerge again into the sunlight4    
,the nation that is strongest is the one
 that is most self-reliant1 the one that
 contains within its boundaries all that
 its people need4 ,if1 with its ports   
all blockaded it has not within itself  
the necessities of life and the elements
 of its continual progress then1--it is 
weak1 held by the enemy1 and it is but a
 question of time till it must          

surrender4 ,its independence is in      
proportion to its self-reliance1 to its 
power to sustain itself from within4    
,what is true of nations is true of     
individuals4 ,the history of nations is 
but the biography of individuals        
magnified1 intensified1 multiplied1 and 
projected on the screen of the past4    
,history is the biography of a nation2  
biography is the history of an          
individual4 ,so it must be that the     
individual who is most strong in any    
trial1 sorrow or need is he who can live
 from his inherent strength1 who needs  
no scaffolding of commonplace sympathy  
to uphold him4 ,he must ever be         
self-reliant4  ,the wealth and          
prosperity of ancient ,rome1 relying on 
her slaves to do the real work of the   
nation1 proved the nation's downfall4   
,the constant dependence on the captives
 of war to do the thousand details of   
life for them1 killed self-reliance in  
the nation and in the individual4 ,then1
 through weakened self-reliance and the 

increased opportunity for idle1         
luxurious ease that came with it1 ,rome1
 a nation of fighters1 became1--a nation
 of men more effeminate than women4 ,as 
we depend on others to do those things  
we should do for ourselves1 our         
self-reliance weakens and our powers and
 our control of them becomes            
continuously less4  ,man to be great    
must be self-reliant4 ,though he may not
 be so in all things1 he must be        
self-reliant in the one in which he     
would be great4 ,this self-reliance is  
not the self-sufficiency of conceit4 ,it
 is daring to stand alone4 ,be an oak1  
not a vine4 ,be ready to give support1  
but do not crave it2 do not be dependent
 on it4 ,to develop your true           
self-reliance1 you must see from the    
very beginning that life is a battle you
 must fight for yourself1--you must be  
your own soldier4 ,you cannot buy a     
substitute1 you cannot win a reprieve1  
you can never be placed on the retired  
list4 ,the retired list of life         

is1--death4 ,the world is busy with its 
own cares1 sorrows and joys1 and pays   
little heed to you4 ,there is but one   
great password to                       
success1--self-reliance4  ,if you would 
learn to converse1 put yourself into    
positions where you must speak4 ,if you 
would conquer your morbidness1 mingle   
with the bright people around you1 no   
matter how difficult it may be4 ,if you 
desire the power that some one else     
possesses1 do not envy his strength1 and
 dissipate your energy by weakly wishing
 his force were yours4 ,emulate the     
process by which it became his1 depend  
on your self-reliance1 pay the price for
 it1 and equal power may be yours4 ,the 
individual must look upon himself as an 
investment1 of untold possibilities if  
rightly developed1--a mine whose        
resources can never be known but by     
going down into it and bringing out what
 is hidden4  ,man can develop his       
self-reliance by seeking constantly to  
surpass himself4 ,we try too much to    

surpass others4 ,if we seek ever to     
surpass ourselves1 we are moving on a   
uniform line of progress1 that gives a  
harmonious unifying to our growth in all
 its parts4 ,daniel ,morrell1 at one    
time ,president of the ,cambria ,rail   
,works1 that employed #g1jjj men and    
made a rail famed throughout the world1 
was asked the secret of the great       
success of the works4 ,we have no       
secret1 he said1 but this1--we always   
try to beat our last batch of rails4    
,competition is good1 but it has its    
danger side4 ,there is a tendency to    
sacrifice real worth to mere appearance1
 to have seeming rather than reality4   
,but the true competition is the        
competition of the individual with      
himself1--his present seeking to excel  
his past4 ,this means real growth from  
within4 ,self-reliance develops it1 and 
it develops self-reliance4 ,let the     
individual feel thus as to his own      
progress and possibilities1 and he can  
almost create his life as he will4 ,let 

him never fall down in despair at       
dangers and sorrows at a distance2 they 
may be harmless1 like ,bunyan's stone   
lions1 when he nears them4  ,the man who
 is self-reliant does not live in the   
shadow of some one else's greatness2 he 
thinks for himself1 depends on himself1 
and acts for himself4 ,in throwing the  
individual thus back upon himself it is 
not shutting his eyes to the stimulus   
and light and new life that come with   
the warm pressure of the hand1 the      
kindly word and the sincere expressions 
of true friendship4 ,but true friendship
 is rare2 its great value is in a       
crisis1--like a lifeboat4 ,many a       
boasted friend has proved a leaking1    
worthless lifeboat when the storm of    
adversity might make him useful4 ,in    
these great crises of life1 man is      
strong only as he is strong from within1
 and the more he depends on himself the 
stronger will he become1 and the more   
able will he be to help others in the   
hour of their need4 ,his very life will 

be a constant help and a strength to    
others1 as he becomes to them a living  
lesson of the dignity of self-reliance4 
,v  ,failure as a ,success    ,it       
ofttimes requires heroic courage to face
 fruitless effort1 to take up the broken
 strands of a life-work1 to look bravely
 toward the future1 and proceed         
undaunted on our way4 ,but what1 to our 
eyes1 may seem hopeless failure is often
 but the dawning of a greater success4  
,it may contain in its debris the       
foundation material of a mighty purpose1
 or the revelation of new and higher    
possibilities4  ,some years ago1 it was 
proposed to send logs from ,canada to   
,new ,york1 by a new method4 ,the       
ingenious plan of ,mr4 ,joggins was to  
bind great logs together by cables and  
iron girders and to tow the cargo as a  
raft4 ,when the novel craft neared ,new 
,york and success seemed assured1 a     
terrible storm arose4 ,in the fury of   
the tempest1 the iron bands snapped like
 icicles and the angry waters scattered 

the logs far and wide4 ,the chief of the
 ,hydrographic ,department at           
,washington heard of the failure of the 
experiment1 and at once sent word to    
shipmasters the world over1 urging them 
to watch carefully for these logs which 
he described2 and to note the precise   
location of each in latitude and        
longitude and the time the observation  
was made4  ,hundreds of captains1       
sailing over the waters of the earth1   
noted the logs1 in the ,atlantic ,ocean1
 in the ,mediterranean1 in the ,south   
,seas--for into all waters did these    
venturesome ones travel4 ,hundreds of   
reports were made1 covering a period of 
weeks and months4 ,these observations   
were then carefully collated1           
systematized and tabulated1 and         
discoveries were made as to the course  
of ocean currents that otherwise would  
have been impossible4 ,the loss of the  
,joggins raft was not a real failure1   
for it led to one of the great          
discoveries in modern marine geography  

and navigation4  ,in our superior       
knowledge we are disposed to speak in a 
patronizing tone of the follies of the  
alchemists of old4 ,but their failure to
 transmute the baser metals into gold   
resulted in the birth of chemistry4     
,they did not succeed in what they      
attempted1 but they brought into vogue  
the natural processes of sublimation1   
filtration1 distillation1 and           
crystallization2 they invented the      
alembic1 the retort1 the sand-bath1 the 
water-bath and other valuable           
instruments4 ,to them is due the        
discovery of antimony1 sulphuric ether  
and phosphorus1 the cupellation of gold 
and silver1 the determining of the      
properties of saltpetre and its use in  
gunpowder1 and the discovery of the     
distillation of essential oils4 ,this   
was the success of failure1 a wondrous  
process of ,nature for the highest      
growth1--a mighty lesson of comfort1    
strength1 and encouragement if man would
 only realize and accept it4  ,many of  

our failures sweep us to greater heights
 of success1 than we ever hoped for in  
our wildest dreams4 ,life is a          
successive unfolding of success from    
failure4 ,in discovering ,america       
,columbus failed absolutely4 ,his       
ingenious reasoning and experiment led  
him to believe that by sailing westward 
he would reach ,india4 ,every redman in 
,america carries in his name ,indian1   
the perpetuation of the memory of the   
failure of ,columbus4 ,the ,genoese     
navigator did not reach ,india2 the     
cargo of souvenirs he took back to      
,spain to show to ,ferdinand and        
,isabella as proofs of his success1     
really attested his failure4 ,but the   
discovery of ,america was a greater     
success than was any finding of a       
back-door to ,india4  ,when ,david      
,livingstone had supplemented his       
theological education by a medical      
course1 he was ready to enter the       
missionary field4 ,for over three years 
he had studied tirelessly1 with all     

energies concentrated on one aim1--to   
spread the gospel in ,china4 ,the hour  
came when he was ready to start out with
 noble enthusiasm for his chosen work1  
to consecrate himself and his life to   
his unselfish ambition4 ,then word came 
from ,china that the opium war would    
make it folly to attempt to enter the   
country4 ,disappointment and failure did
 not long daunt him2 he offered himself 
as missionary to ,africa1--and he was   
accepted4 ,his glorious failure to reach
 ,china opened a whole continent to     
light and truth4 ,his study proved an   
ideal preparation for his labors as     
physician1 explorer1 teacher and evangel
 in the wilds of ,africa4  ,business    
reverses and the failure of his partner 
threw upon the broad shoulders and the  
still broader honor and honesty of ,sir 
,walter ,scott a burden of              
responsibility that forced him to write4
 ,the failure spurred him to almost     
super-human effort4 ,the masterpieces of
 ,scotch historic fiction that have     

thrilled1 entertained and uplifted      
millions of his fellow-men are a        
glorious monument on the field of a     
seeming failure4  ,when ,millet1 the    
painter of the ,angelus worked on his   
almost divine canvas1 in which the very 
air seems pulsing with the regenerating 
essence of spiritual reverence1 he was  
painting against time1 he was antidoting
 sorrow1 he was racing against death4   
,his brush strokes1 put on in the early 
morning hours before going to his menial
 duties as a railway porter1 in the dusk
 like that perpetuated on his           
canvas1--meant strength1 food and       
medicine for the dying wife he adored4  
,the art failure that cast him into the 
depths of poverty unified with          
marvellous intensity all the finer      
elements of his nature4 ,this rare      
spiritual unity1 this purging of all the
 dross of triviality as he passed       
through the furnace of poverty1 trial1  
and sorrow gave eloquence to his brush  
and enabled him to paint as never       

before1--as no prosperity would have    
made possible4  ,failure is often the   
turning-point1 the pivot of circumstance
 that swings us to higher levels4 ,it   
may not be financial success1 it may not
 be fame2 it may be new draughts of     
spiritual1 moral or mental inspiration  
that will change us for all the later   
years of our life4 ,life is not really  
what comes to us1 but what we get from  
it4  ,whether man has had wealth or     
poverty1 failure or success1 counts for 
little when it is past4 ,there is but   
one question for him to answer1 to face 
boldly and honestly as an individual    
alone with his conscience and his       
destiny3  ,how will ,i let that poverty 
or wealth affect me8 ,if that trial or  
deprivation has left me better1 truer1  
nobler1 then1--poverty has been riches1 
failure has been a success4 ,if wealth  
has come to me and has made me vain1    
arrogant1 contemptuous1 uncharitable1   
cynical1 closing from me all the        
tenderness of life1 all the channels of 

higher development1 of possible good to 
my fellow-man1 making me the mere       
custodian of a money-bag1 then1--wealth 
has lied to me1 it has been failure1 not
 success2 it has not been riches1 it has
 been dark1 treacherous poverty that    
stole from me even ,myself4 ,all things 
become for us then what we take from    
them4  ,failure is one of ,god's        
educators4 ,it is experience leading man
 to higher things2 it is the revelation 
of a way1 a path hitherto unknown to us4
 ,the best men in the world1 those who  
have made the greatest real successes   
look back with serene happiness on their
 failures4 ,the turning of the face of  
,time shows all things in a wondrously  
illuminated and satisfying perspective4 
,many a man is thankful to-day that some
 petty success for which he once        
struggled1 melted into thin air as his  
hand sought to clutch it4 ,failure is   
often the rock-bottom foundation of real
 success4 ,if man1 in a few instances of
 his life can say1 ,those failures were 

the best things in the world that could 
have happened to me1 should he not face 
new failures with undaunted courage and 
trust that the miraculous ministry of   
,nature may transform these new         
stumbling-blocks into new               
stepping-stones8  ,our highest hopes1   
are often destroyed to prepare us for   
better things4 ,the failure of the      
caterpillar is the birth of the         
butterfly2 the passing of the bud is the
 becoming of the rose2 the death or     
destruction of the seed is the prelude  
to its resurrection as wheat4 ,it is at 
night1 in the darkest hours1 those      
preceding dawn1 that plants grow best1  
that they most increase in size4 ,may   
this not be one of ,nature's gentle     
showings to man of the times when he    
grows best1 of the darkness of failure  
that is evolving into the sunlight of   
success4 ,let us fear only the failure  
of not living the right as we see it1   
leaving the results to the guardianship 
of the ,infinite4  ,if we think of any  

supreme moment of our lives1 any great  
success1 any one who is dear to us1 and 
then consider how we reached that       
moment1 that success1 that friend1 we   
will be surprised and strengthened by   
the revelation4 ,as we trace each one1  
back1 step by step1 through the         
genealogy of circumstances1 we will see 
how logical has been the course of our  
joy and success1 from sorrow and        
failure1 and that what gives us most    
happiness to-day is inextricably        
connected with what once caused us      
sorrow4 ,many of the rivers of our      
greatest prosperity and growth have had 
their source and their trickling        
increase into volume among the dark1    
gloomy recesses of our failure4  ,there 
is no honest and true work1 carried     
along with constant and sincere purpose 
that ever really fails4 ,if it sometime 
seem to be wasted effort1 it will prove 
to us a new lesson of how to walk2 the  
secret of our failures will prove to us 
the inspiration of possible successes4  

,man living with the highest aims1 ever 
as best he can1 in continuous harmony   
with them1 is a success1 no matter what 
statistics of failure a near-sighted and
 half-blind world of critics and        
commentators may lay at his door4  ,high
 ideals1 noble efforts will make seeming
 failures but trifles1 they need not    
dishearten us2 they should prove sources
 of new strength4 ,the rocky way may    
prove safer than the slippery path of   
smoothness4 ,birds cannot fly best with 
the wind but against it2 ships do not   
progress in calm1 when the sails flap   
idly against the unstrained masts4  ,the
 alchemy of ,nature1 superior to that of
 the ,paracelsians1 constantly          
transmutes the baser metals of failure  
into the later pure gold of higher      
success1 if the mind of the worker be   
kept true1 constant and untiring in the 
service1 and he have that sublime       
courage that defies fate to its worst   
while he does his best4     ,,vi  ,doing
 ,our ,best at ,all ,times    ,life is a

 wondrously complex problem for the     
individual1 until1 some day1 in a moment
 of illumination1 he awakens to the     
great realization that he can make it   
simple1--never quite simple1 but always 
simpler4 ,there are a thousand mysteries
 of right and wrong that have baffled   
the wise men of the ages4 ,there are    
depths in the great fundamental         
questions of the human race that no     
plummet of philosophy has ever sounded4 
,there are wild cries of honest hunger  
for truth that seek to pierce the       
silence beyond the grave1 but to them   
ever echo back1--only a repetition of   
their unanswered cries4  ,to us all1    
comes1 at times1 the great note of      
questioning despair that darkens our    
horizon and paralyzes our effort3 ,if   
there really be a ,god1 if eternal      
justice really rule the world1 we say1  
why should life be as it is8 ,why do    
some men starve while others feast2 why 
does virtue often languish in the shadow
 while vice triumphs in the sunshine2   

why does failure so often dog the       
footsteps of honest effort1 while the   
success that comes from trickery and    
dishonor is greeted with the world's    
applause8 ,how is it that the loving    
father of one family is taken by death1 
while the worthless incumbrance of      
another is spared8 ,why is there so much
 unnecessary pain1 sorrowing and        
suffering in the world--why1 indeed1    
should there be any8  ,neither          
philosophy nor religion can give any    
final satisfactory answer that is       
capable of logical demonstration1 of    
absolute proof4 ,there is ever1 even    
after the best explanations1 a residuum 
of the unexplained4 ,we must then fall  
back in the eternal arms of faith1 and  
be wise enough to say1 ,i will not be   
disconcerted by these problems of life1 
,i will not permit them to plunge me    
into doubt1 and to cloud my life with   
vagueness and uncertainty4 ,man         
arrogates much to himself when he       
demands from the ,infinite the full     

solution of all ,his mysteries4 ,i will 
found my life on the impregnable rock of
 a simple fundamental truth3--',this    
glorious creation with its millions of  
wondrous phenomena pulsing ever in      
harmony with eternal law must have a    
,creator1 that ,creator must be         
omniscient and omnipotent4 ,but that    
,creator ,himself cannot1 in justice1   
demand of any creature more than the    
best that that individual can give4' ,i 
will do each day1 in every moment1 the  
best ,i can by the light ,i have2 ,i    
will ever seek more light1 more perfect 
illumination of truth1 and ever live as 
best ,i can in harmony with the truth as
 ,i see it4 ,if failure come ,i will    
meet it bravely2 if my pathway then lie 
in the shadow of trial1 sorrow and      
suffering1 ,i shall have the restful    
peace and the calm strength of one who  
has done his best1 who can look back    
upon the past with no pang of regret1   
and who has heroic courage in facing the
 results1 whatever they be1 knowing that

 he could not make them different4      
,upon this life-plan1 this foundation1  
man may erect any superstructure of     
religion or philosophy that he          
conscientiously can erect2 he should add
 to his equipment for living every shred
 of strength and inspiration1 moral1    
mental or spiritual that is in his power
 to secure4 ,this simple working faith  
is opposed to no creed1 is a substitute 
for none2 it is but a primary belief1 a 
citadel1 a refuge where the individual  
can retire for strength when the battle 
of life grows hard4  ,a mere theory of  
life1 that remains but a theory1 is     
about as useful to a man1 as a          
gilt-edged menu is to a starving sailor 
on a raft in mid-ocean4 ,it is          
irritating but not stimulating4 ,no rule
 for higher living will help a man in   
the slightest1 until he reach out and   
appropriate it for himself1 until he    
make it practical in his daily life1    
until that seed of theory in his mind   
blossom into a thousand flowers of      

thought and word and act4  ,if a man    
honestly seeks to live his best at all  
times1 that determination is visible in 
every moment of his living1 no trifle in
 his life can be too insignificant to   
reflect his principle of living4 ,the   
sun illuminates and beautifies a fallen 
leaf by the roadside as impartially as a
 towering mountain peak in the ,alps4   
,every drop of water in the ocean is an 
epitome of the chemistry of the whole   
ocean2 every drop is subject to         
precisely the same laws as dominate the 
united infinity of billions of drops    
that make that miracle of ,nature1 men  
call the ,sea4 ,no matter how humble the
 calling of the individual1 how         
uninteresting and dull the round of his 
duties1 he should do his best4 ,he      
should dignify what he is doing by the  
mind he puts into it1 he should vitalize
 what little he has of power or energy  
or ability or opportunity1 in order to  
prepare himself to be equal to higher   
privileges when they come4 ,this will   

never lead man to that weak content that
 is satisfied with whatever falls to his
 lot4 ,it will rather fill his mind with
 that divine discontent that cheerfully 
accepts the best1--merely as a temporary
 substitute for something better4  ,the 
man who is seeking ever to do his best  
is the man who is keen1 active1         
wide-awake1 and aggressive4 ,he is ever 
watchful of himself in trifles2 his     
standard is not ,what will the world    
say8 but ,is it worthy of me8  ,edwin   
,booth1 one of the greatest actors on   
the ,american stage1 would never permit 
himself to assume an ungraceful         
attitude1 even in his hours of privacy4 
,in this simple thing1 he ever lived his
 best4 ,on the stage every move was one 
of unconscious grace4 ,those of his     
company who were conscious of their     
motions were the awkward ones1 who were 
seeking in public to undo or to conceal 
the carelessness of the gestures and    
motions of their private life4 ,the man 
who is slipshod and thoughtless in his  

daily speech1 whose vocabulary is a     
collection of anaemic commonplaces1     
whose repetitions of phrases and        
extravagance of interjections act but as
 feeble disguises to his lack of ideas1 
will never be brilliant on an occasion  
when he longs to outshine the stars4    
,living at one's best is constant       
preparation for instant use4 ,it can    
never make one over-precise1            
self-conscious1 affected1 or priggish4  
,education1 in its highest sense1 is    
conscious training of mind or body to   
act unconsciously4 ,it is conscious     
formation of mental habits1 not mere    
acquisition of information4  ,one of the
 many ways in which the individual      
unwisely eclipses himself1 is in his    
worship of the fetich of luck4 ,he feels
 that all others are lucky1 and that    
whatever he attempts1 fails4 ,he does   
not realize the untiring energy1 the    
unremitting concentration1 the heroic   
courage1 the sublime patience that is   
the secret of some men's success4 ,their

 luck was that they had prepared        
themselves to be equal to their         
opportunity when it came and were awake 
to recognize it and receive it4 ,his own
 opportunity came and departed unnoted1 
it would not waken him from his dreams  
of some untold wealth that would fall   
into his lap4 ,so he grows discouraged  
and envies those whom he should emulate1
 and he bandages his arm and chloroforms
 his energies1 and performs his duties  
in a perfunctory way1 or he passes      
through life1 just ever sampling lines  
of activity4  ,the honest1 faithful     
struggler should always realize that    
failure is but an episode in a true     
man's life1--never the whole story4 ,it 
is never easy to meet1 and no philosophy
 can make it so1 but the steadfast      
courage to master conditions1 instead of
 complaining of them1 will help him on  
his way2 it will ever enable him to get 
the best out of what he has4 ,he never  
knows the long series of vanquished     
failures that give solidity to some one 

else's success2 he does not realize the 
price that some rich man1 the innocent  
football of political malcontents and   
demagogues1 has heroicly paid for wealth
 and position4  ,the man who has a      
pessimist's doubt of all things2 who    
demands a certified guarantee of his    
future2 who ever fears his work will not
 be recognized or appreciated2 or that  
after all1 it is really not worth while1
 will never live his best4 ,he is       
dulling his capacity for real progress  
by his hypnotic course of excuses for   
inactivity1 instead of a strong tonic of
 reasons for action4  ,one of the most  
weakening elements in the individual    
make-up is the surrender to the oncoming
 of years4 ,man's self-confidence dims  
and dies in the fear of age4 ,this new  
thought1 he says of some suggestion     
tending to higher development1 is good2 
it is what we need4 ,i am glad to have  
it for my children2 ,i would have been  
happy to have had some such help when ,i
 was at school1 but it is too late for  

me4 ,i am a man advanced in years4      
,this is but blind closing of life to   
wondrous possibilities4 ,the knell of   
lost opportunity is never tolled in this
 life4 ,it is never too late to         
recognize truth and to live by it4 ,it  
requires only greater effort1 closer    
attention1 deeper consecration2 but the 
impossible does not exist for the man   
who is self-confident and is willing to 
pay the price in time and struggle for  
his success or development4 ,later in   
life1 the assessments are heavier in    
progress1 as in life insurance1 but that
 matters not to that mighty             
self-confidence that will not grow old  
while knowledge can keep it young4      
,socrates1 when his hair whitened with  
the snow of age1 learned to play on     
instruments of music4 ,cato1 at         
fourscore1 began his study of ,greek1   
and the same age saw ,plutarch          
beginning1 with the enthusiasm of a boy1
 his first lessons in ,latin4 ,the      
,character of ,man1 ,theophrastus'      

greatest work1 was begun on his         
ninetieth birthday4 ,chaucer's          
,canterbury ,tales was the work of the  
poet's declining years4 ,ronsard1 the   
father of ,french poetry1 whose sonnets 
even translation cannot destroy1 did not
 develop his poetic faculty until nearly
 fifty4 ,benjamin ,franklin at this age 
had just taken his really first steps of
 importance in philosophic pursuits4    
,arnauld1 the theologian and sage1      
translated ,josephus in his eightieth   
year4 ,winckelmann1 one of the most     
famous writers on classic antiquities1  
was the son of a shoemaker1 and lived in
 obscurity and ignorance until the prime
 of life4 ,hobbes1 the ,english         
philosopher1 published his version of   
the ,odyssey in his eighty-seventh year1
 and his ,iliad one year later4         
,chevreul1 the great ,french scientist1 
whose untiring labors in the realm of   
color have so enriched the world1 was   
busy1 keen and active when ,death called
 him1 at the age of #ajc4  ,these men   

did not fear age2 these few names from  
the great muster-roll of the famous ones
 who defied the years1 should be voices 
of hope and heartening to every         
individual whose courage and confidence 
is weak4 ,the path of truth1 higher     
living1 truer development in every phase
 of life1 is never shut from the        
individual--until he closes it himself4 
,let man feel this1 believe it and make 
this faith a real and living factor in  
his life and there are no limits to his 
progress4 ,he has but to live his best  
at all times1 and rest calm and         
untroubled no matter what results come  
to his efforts4 ,the constant looking   
backward to what might have been1       
instead of forward to what may be1 is a 
great weakener of self-confidence4 ,this
 worry for the old past1 this wasted    
energy1 for that which no power in the  
world can restore1 ever lessens the     
individual's faith in himself1 weakens  
his efforts to develop himself for the  
future to the perfection of his         

possibilities4  ,nature in her beautiful
 love and tenderness1 says to man1      
weakened and worn and weary with the    
struggle1 ,do in the best way you can   
the trifle that is under your hand at   
this moment2 do it in the best spirit of
 preparation for the future your thought
 suggests2 bring all the light of       
knowledge from all the past to aid you4 
,do this and you have done your best4   
,the past is forever closed to you4 ,it 
is closed forever to you4 ,no worry1 no 
struggle1 no suffering1 no agony of     
despair can alter it4 ,it is as much    
beyond your power as if it were a       
million years of eternity behind you4   
,turn all that past1 with its sad hours1
 weakness and sin1 its wasted           
opportunities as light2 in confidence   
and hope1 upon the future4 ,turn it all 
in fuller truth and light so as to make 
each trifle of this present a new past  
it will be joy to look back to2 each    
trifle a grander1 nobler1 and more      
perfect preparation for the future4 ,the

 present and the future you can make    
from it1 is yours2 the past has gone    
back1 with all its messages1 all its    
history1 all its records to the ,god who
 loaned you the golden moments to use in
 obedience to ,his law4     ,,vii  ,the 
,royal ,road to ,happiness    ,during my
 whole life ,i have not had twenty-four 
hours of happiness4 ,so said ,prince    
,bismarck1 one of the greatest statesmen
 of the nineteenth century4             
,eighty-three years of wealth1 fame1    
honors1 power1 influence1 prosperity and
 triumph1--years when he held an empire 
in his fingers1--but not one day of     
happiness6  ,happiness is the greatest  
paradox in ,nature4 ,it can grow in any 
soil1 live under any conditions4 ,it    
defies environment4 ,it comes from      
within2 it is the revelation of the     
depths of the inner life as light and   
heat proclaim the sun from which they   
radiate4 ,happiness consists not of     
having1 but of being2 not of possessing1
 but of enjoying4 ,it is the warm glow  

of a heart at peace with itself4 ,a     
martyr at the stake may have happiness  
that a king on his throne might envy4   
,man is the creator of his own          
happiness2 it is the aroma of a life    
lived in harmony with high ideals4 ,for 
what a man has1 he may be dependent on  
others2 what he is1 rests with him      
alone4 ,what he obtains in life is but  
acquisition2 what he attains1 is growth4
 ,happiness is the soul's joy in the    
possession of the intangible4 ,absolute1
 perfect1 continuous happiness in life1 
is impossible for the human4 ,it would  
mean the consummation of attainments1   
the individual consciousness of a       
perfectly fulfilled destiny4 ,happiness 
is paradoxic because it may coexist with
 trial1 sorrow and poverty4 ,it is the  
gladness of the heart1--rising superior 
to all conditions4  ,happiness has a    
number of under-studies1--gratification1
 satisfaction1 content1 and             
pleasure1--clever imitators that        
simulate its appearance rather than     

emulate its method4 ,gratification is a 
harmony between our desires and our     
possessions4 ,it is ever incomplete1 it 
is the thankful acceptance of part4 ,it 
is a mental pleasure in the quality of  
what one receives1 an unsatisfiedness as
 to the quantity4 ,it may be an element 
in happiness1 but1 in itself1--it is not
 happiness4  ,satisfaction is perfect   
identity of our desires and our         
possessions4 ,it exists only so long as 
this perfect union and unity can be     
preserved4 ,but every realized ideal    
gives birth to new ideals1 every step in
 advance reveals large domains of the   
unattained2 every feeding stimulates new
 appetites1--then the desires and       
possessions are no longer identical1 no 
longer equal2 new cravings call forth   
new activities1 the equipoise is        
destroyed1 and dissatisfaction reenters4
 ,man might possess everything tangible 
in the world and yet not be happy1 for  
happiness is the satisfying of the soul1
 not of the mind or the body4           

,dissatisfaction1 in its highest sense1 
is the keynote of all advance1 the      
evidence of new aspirations1 the        
guarantee of the progressive revelation 
of new possibilities4  ,content is a    
greatly overrated virtue4 ,it is a kind 
of diluted despair2 it is the feeling   
with which we continue to accept        
substitutes1 without striving for the   
realities4 ,content makes the trained   
individual swallow vinegar and try to   
smack his lips as if it were wine4      
,content enables one to warm his hands  
at the fire of a past joy that exists   
only in memory4 ,content is a mental and
 moral chloroform that deadens the      
activities of the individual to rise to 
higher planes of life and growth4 ,man  
should never be contented with anything 
less than the best efforts of his nature
 can possibly secure for him4 ,content  
makes the world more comfortable for the
 individual1 but it is the death-knell  
of progress4 ,man should be content with
 each step of progress merely as a      

station1 discontented with it as a      
destination2 contented with it as a     
step2 discontented with it as a         
finality4 ,there are times when a man   
should be content with what he has1 but 
never with what he is4  ,but content is 
not happiness2 neither is pleasure4     
,pleasure is temporary1 happiness is    
continuous2 pleasure is a note1         
happiness is a symphony2 pleasure may   
exist when conscience utters protests2  
happiness1--never4 ,pleasure may have   
its dregs and its lees2 but none can be 
found in the cup of happiness4  ,man is 
the only animal that can be really      
happy4 ,to the rest of the creation     
belong only weak imitations of the      
understudies4 ,happiness represents a   
peaceful attunement of a life with a    
standard of living4 ,it can never be    
made by the individual1 by himself1 for 
himself4 ,it is one of the incidental   
by-products of an unselfish life4 ,no   
man can make his own happiness the one  
object of his life and attain it1 any   

more than he can jump on the far end of 
his shadow4 ,if you would hit the       
bull's-eye of happiness on the target of
 life1 aim above it4 ,place other things
 higher than your own happiness and it  
will surely come to you4 ,you can buy   
pleasure1 you can acquire content1 you  
can become satisfied1--but ,nature never
 put real happiness on the              
bargain-counter4 ,it is the undetachable
 accompaniment of true living4 ,it is   
calm and peaceful2 it never lives in an 
atmosphere of worry or of hopeless      
struggle4  ,the basis of happiness is   
the love of something outside self4     
,search every instance of happiness in  
the world1 and you will find1 when all  
the incidental features are eliminated1 
there is always the constant1           
unchangeable element of love1--love of  
parent for child2 love of man and woman 
for each other2 love of humanity in some
 form1 or a great life work into which  
the individual throws all his energies4 
,happiness is the voice of optimism1 of 

faith1 of simple1 steadfast love4 ,no   
cynic or pessimist can be really happy4 
,a cynic is a man who is morally        
near-sighted1--and brags about it4 ,he  
sees the evil in his own heart1 and     
thinks he sees the world4 ,he lets a    
mote in his eye eclipse the sun4 ,an    
incurable cynic is an individual who    
should long for death1--for life cannot 
bring him happiness1 death might4 ,the  
keynote of ,bismarck's lack of happiness
 was his profound distrust of human     
nature4  ,there is a royal road to      
happiness2 it lies in ,consecration1    
,concentration1 ,conquest and           
,conscience4  ,consecration is          
dedicating the individual life to the   
service of others1 to some noble        
mission1 to realizing some unselfish    
ideal4 ,life is not something to be     
lived through2 it is something to be    
lived up to4 ,it is a privilege1 not a  
penal servitude of so many decades on   
earth4 ,consecration places the object  
of life above the mere acquisition of   

money1 as a finality4 ,the man who is   
unselfish1 kind1 loving1 tender1        
helpful1 ready to lighten the burden of 
those around him1 to hearten the        
struggling ones1 to forget himself      
sometimes in remembering others1--is on 
the right road to happiness4            
,consecration is ever active1 bold and  
aggressive1 fearing naught but possible 
disloyalty to high ideals4              
,concentration makes the individual life
 simpler and deeper4 ,it cuts away the  
shams and pretences of modern living and
 limits life to its truest essentials4  
,worry1 fear1 useless regret1--all the  
great wastes that sap mental1 moral or  
physical energy must be sacrificed1 or  
the individual needlessly destroys half 
the possibilities of living4 ,a great   
purpose in life1 something that unifies 
the strands and threads of each day's   
thinking1 something that takes the sting
 from the petty trials1 sorrows1        
sufferings and blunders of life1 is a   
great aid to ,concentration4 ,soldiers  

in battle may forget their wounds1 or   
even be unconscious of them1 in the     
inspiration of battling for what they   
believe is right4 ,concentration        
dignifies an humble life2 it makes a    
great life1--sublime4 ,in morals it is a
 short-cut to simplicity4 ,it leads to  
right for right's sake1 without thought 
of policy or of reward4 ,it brings calm 
and rest to the individual1--a serenity 
that is but the sunlight of happiness4  
,conquest is the overcoming of an evil  
habit1 the rising superior to opposition
 and attack1 the spiritual exaltation   
that comes from resisting the invasion  
of the grovelling material side of life4
 ,sometimes when you are worn and weak  
with the struggle2 when it seems that   
justice is a dream1 that honesty and    
loyalty and truth count for nothing1    
that the devil is the only good         
paymaster2 when hope grows dim and      
flickers1 then is the time when you must
 tower in the great sublime faith that  
,right must prevail1 then must you      

throttle these imps of doubt and        
despair1 you must master yourself to    
master the world around you4 ,this is   
,conquest2 this is what counts4 ,even a 
log can float with the current1 it takes
 a man to fight sturdily against an     
opposing tide that would sweep his craft
 out of its course4 ,when the           
jealousies1 the petty intrigues and the 
meannesses and the misunderstandings in 
life assail you1--rise above them4 ,be  
like a lighthouse that illumines and    
beautifies the snarling1 swashing waves 
of the storm that threaten it1 that seek
 to undermine it and seek to wash over  
it4 ,this is ,conquest4 ,when the chance
 to win fame1 wealth1 success or the    
attainment of your heart's desire1 by   
sacrifice of honor or principle1 comes  
to you and it does not affect you long  
enough even to seem a temptation1 you   
have been the victor4 ,that too is      
,conquest4 ,and ,conquest is part of the
 royal road to ,happiness4  ,conscience1
 as the mentor1 the guide and compass of

 every act1 leads ever to ,happiness4   
,when the individual can stay alone with
 his conscience and get its approval1   
without using force or specious logic1  
then he begins to know what real        
,happiness is4 ,but the individual must 
be careful that he is not appealing to a
 conscience perverted or deadened by the
 wrongdoing and subsequent deafness of  
its owner4 ,the man who is honestly     
seeking to live his life in             
,consecration1 ,concentration and       
,conquest1 living from day to day as    
best he can1 by the light he has1 may   
rely explicitly on his ,conscience4 ,he 
can shut his ears to what the world says
 and find in the approval of his own    
conscience the highest earthly          
tribune1--the voice of the ,infinite    
communing with the ,individual4         
,unhappiness is the hunger to get2      
,happiness is the hunger to give4 ,true 
happiness must ever have the tinge of   
sorrow outlived1 the sense of pain      
softened by the mellowing years1 the    

chastening of loss that in the wondrous 
mystery of time transmutes our suffering
 into love and sympathy with others4    
,if the individual should set out for a 
single day to give ,happiness1 to make  
life happier1 brighter and sweeter1 not 
for himself1 but for others1 he would   
find a wondrous revelation of what      
,happiness really is4 ,the greatest of  
the world's heroes could not by any     
series of acts of heroism do as much    
real good as any individual living his  
whole life in seeking1 from day to day1 
to make others happy4  ,each day there  
should be fresh resolution1 new         
strength1 and renewed enthusiasm4 ,just 
for ,today might be the daily motto of  
thousands of societies throughout the   
country1 composed of members bound      
together to make the world better       
through constant simple acts of         
kindness1 constant deeds of sweetness   
and love4 ,and ,happiness would come to 
them1 in its highest and best form1 not 
because they would seek to absorb it1   

but1--because they seek to radiate it4