best capable of doing in the world? If not put it off no longer. You
expect to do something, you wish to achieve success. Have you ever
thought of what success consisted? It does not consist in amassing a
fortune; some of the most _unsuccessful_ men have done that. Remember,
too, that success and fame are not synonymous terms. You can not all be
famous as lawyers, statesmen, or divines. You may or may not accumulate
a fortune. But is it not true that wealth, position, and fame are but
the accidents of success, that success may or may not be accompanied by
them, that it is something above and beyond them? In this sense of the
word you only are to blame if you fall. It is in your power to live a
life of integrity and honor. You can so live that all will honor and
respect you. You can speak words of cheer to the downhearted, a kindly
word of caution to the erring one. You can help remove some obstacle
from the paths of the weak. You can incite in the minds of those around
you a desire to live a pure, straightforward life. You can bid those who
are almost overwhelmed by the billows and waves of sorrow, to look up
and see the sun shining through the rifts in the dark clouds passing
o'er them. All this can you do, and a grand success will be your reward.
Away, then, with your lethargy. You are a man; arise in your strength
and your manhood. Resolve to be in this, its true sense, a successful
man. And then if wealth or fame wait on you, and men delight to do you
honor, these will be but added laurels to your brow, but the gilded
frame encasing success.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: DIGNITY OF LABOR.]
[Illustration]
Labor, either of the head or the hand, is the lot of humanity. There are
no exceptions to this general rule. The rich who have toiled early and
late for a competence find their present ease more unendurable than
their past exertions, and the round of pleasures to which, in other
days, they looked for a reward of their toil in actual realization,
resolve themselves into drudgeries, often worse than those from which
they vainly fancied they had escaped. The king on his throne is beset
with cares, and the labor he performs is ofttimes far heavier than any
borne by the poorest peasant in his dominions. The high and low alike
acknowledge the universal sway of labor. That which is thus the common
lot of mankind and reigns with such universal sway can not be otherwise
than honorable in the highest degree.
Labor may be a burden and a chastisement, but it is also an honor and a
glory. Without it nothing can be accomplished. All that to man is great
and precious is acquired only through labor. Without it civilization
would relapse into barbarism. It is the forerunner and indispensable
requisite to all the sweet influence of refinement. It is the herald of
happiness, and makes the desert to blossom as a garden of roses. It
whitens the sea with sails, and stretches bands of iron across the
continent. It is labor that drives the plow, scatters the seed, and
causes the fields to wave in golden harvests for the good of man. It
gathers the grain and sends it to different regions of the earth to feed
other millions toiling in less favored channels there. Labor gathers the
gossamer web of the caterpillar, the cotton from the field, and the
fleece from the flock, and weaves them into raiment soft, warm, and
beautiful. The purple robe of royalty, the plain man's sober suit, the
fantastic dress of the painted savage, and the furry coverings of arctic
lands are alike the results of its handiwork, and proofs of its
universal sway and honor. Labor molds the brick, splits the slate, and
quarries the stone. It shapes the column and rears not only the humble
cottage but the gorgeous palace, the tapering spire and stately dome.
It is by labor that mankind have risen from a state of barbarism to the
light of the present. It is only by labor that progression can continue.
Labor, possessing such inherent dignity and being the grand measure of
progress, it is most fitting that man should not taste life's greatest
happiness, or wield great influence for good, or reach the summit of his
ambitious resolves, save only as the result of long and patient labor.
Life is a short day; but it is a working day, and not a holiday. Man was
made for action, and life is a mere scene for the exercise of the mind
and engagement of the hand—a scene where the most important occupations
are, in one sense, but species of amusement, and where so long as we
take pleasure in the pursuit of an object it matters but little that we
secure it not, or that it fades when acquired.
Life to some is drudgery; to some, pain; to some, art; to others,
pleasure; but to _all_, work. Let none feel a sense of sore
disappointment that life to them becomes routine. It is a necessary
consequence of our natures that our work and our amusements, our
business and our pleasures, should tend to become routine. The same
wants, the same demands, and similar duties meet us on the threshold of
every day. We look forward to some great occasion on which to display
ourselves, some grand event in which to give proof of a heroic spirit,
and complain of the petty routine of daily life. On the contrary, it is
this succession of little duties—little works apparently of no
account—which constitute the grand work of life; and we display true
nobility when we cheerfully take these up and go forward, content to
"Labor and to wait."
Alas for the man or woman who has not learned to work! They are but poor
creatures. They know not themselves. They depend on others for support.
Let them not fancy they have a monopoly of enjoyment. They have missed
the sweetest pleasure of life, even the pleasure of self-reliant
feeling, born of vanquished difficulties. They know not the thrill of
pleasure experienced by him who carries difficult projects to a
successful termination. Each rest owes its deliciousness to toil, and no
toil is so burdensome as the rest of him who has nothing to task and
quicken his powers. They do not realize, in their blind pride, what
labor has done for them. It was labor that rocked them in their cradle
and nourished their pampered life. Without it the very garments on their
back would be unspun. He is indebted to toil for the meanest thing that
ministers to his wants, save only the air of heaven, and even that, in
God's wise providence, is breathed with labor.
Labor explores the rich veins of deeply buried rocks, extracting the
gold and silver, the copper and tin. Labor smelts the iron, and molds it
into a thousand shapes for use and ornaments, from the massive pillar to
the tiniest needle, from the ponderous anchor to the wire gauze, from
the mighty flywheel of the engine to the polished purse-ring or
glittering bead. Labor hews down the gnarled oak, shapes the timbers,
builds the ship, and guides it over the deep, bringing to our shores the
produce of every clime.
But mere physical, manual labor is not the sole end of life. It must be
joined with higher means of improvement, or it degrades instead of
exalts. The poorest laborer has intellect, heart, imagination, tastes,
as well as bones and muscles, and he is grievously wronged when
compelled to exclusive drudgery for bodily subsistence. It is the
condition of all outward comforts and improvements, whilst, at the same
time, it conspires with higher means and influences in ministering to
the vigor and growth of the mind. Not only has labor inherent dignity,
but it is almost a necessity for mind as well as body. Man is an
intelligence, sustained and preserved by bodily organs, and their active
exercise is necessary to the enjoyment of health. It is not work, but
overwork, that is hurtful; it is not hard work that is injurious so much
as monotonous, fagging, hopeless work. All hopeful work is healthful;
and to be usefully and properly employed is one of the great secrets of
happiness.
Most interesting is the contemplation of the victories achieved by the
hand of labor—victories far grander than any achieved by physical force
on the field of battle; for its conquests are wrested from nature. The
very elements are brought under subjection, and made to contribute to
the good of man. It displays its triumph in a thousand cities; it
glories in shapes of beauty; it speaks in words of power; it makes the
sinewy arm strong with liberty, the poor man's heart rich with content,
crowns the swarthy and sweaty brow with honor, dignity, and peace. It is
one of the best regulators of practical character. It evokes and
disciplines obedience, self-control, attention, application, and
perseverance, giving a man deftness and skill in his physical calling,
and aptitude and dexterity in the affairs of ordinary life. Work is the
law of our being, the living principle that carries men and nations
onward. Manual labor is a school in which men are placed to get energy
of purpose and character—a vastly more important endowment than the
learning of other schools.
The laborer is placed, indeed, under hard masters—the power of physical
elements, physical sufferings, and want. But these stern teachers do a
work which no compassionate, intelligent friend could do for us, and
true wisdom will bless Providence for this sharp necessity. Labor is not
merely the grand instrument by which the earth is overspread with
fruitfulness and beauty, the ocean subdued, and matter wrought into
innumerable forms for comfort and ornament; it has a far higher
function, which is to give force to the will, efficiency, courage, the
capacity of endurance and of devotion to far-reaching plans.
We must ever remember that it is the intention only that disgraces; that
all honest work is honorable; and if your occupation be not so
high-sounding as you would like, still it is better to work faithfully
at this until opportunity opens the door to something higher. Because
you do not find just what suits you, to refuse to labor at all, to play
the drone, is to act unworthy of yourself and your destiny. Neither is
it beneath you to make yourself useful, regardless of what your position
and wealth may be. A gentleman by birth and education, however richly he
may be endowed with worldly position, can not but feel that he is in
duty bound to contribute his quota of endeavor towards the general
well-being in which he shares. He can not be satisfied with being fed,
clad, and maintained by the labors of others, without making some
suitable return to the society that upholds him. It matters not what a
person's natural gifts may be, he can not expect to attain in any
profession to a high degree of success without going through with a vast
deal of work, which, taken by itself, would rightly be called drudgery.
That quality in man which, for want of a better name, we call genius,
does not consist in an ability to get along without work, but, on the
contrary, is generally the faculty of doing an immense amount of work.
Young men sometimes think that it is not respectable to be at work, and
imagine that there is some character of disgrace or degradation
belonging to toil. No greater mistake could be made. Instead of being
disgraceful to engage in work, it is especially honorable. The most
illustrious names in history were hard workers. No one whom posterity
delights to honor ever dreamed or idled his way to fame. To be idle and
useless is neither an honor nor a privilege. Though persons of small
natures may be content merely to consume, men of average endowments, of
manly expectations, and of honest purpose will feel such a condition to
be incompatible with real honor and true dignity.
The noblest man on earth is he who puts his hands cheerfully and proudly
to honest labor, and goes forth to conquer honor and worth. Labor is
mighty and beautiful. The world has long since learned that man can not
be truly man without employment. Would that young men might judge of the
dignity of labor by its usefulness rather than by the gloss it wears! We
do not see a man's nobility in dress and toilet adornments, but in the
sinewy arm, roughened, it may be, by hardy, honest toil under whose
farmer's or mechanic's vest a kingly heart may beat. Exalt thine adopted
calling or profession. Look on labor as honorable, and dignify the task
before thee, whether it be in the study, office, counting-room,
workshop, or furrowed field. There is equality in all, and the resolute
will and pure heart may ennoble either.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: PERSEVERANCE.]
[Illustration]
It is only by reflection that we derive a just appreciation of the value
of perseverance. When we see how much can be accomplished in any given
direction by the man or woman of but average ability who resolutely
perseveres in the course of action adopted as the ruling purpose of
their lives, we then arrive at a just estimate of the value of
perseverance as a factor in success. The old fable of the hare and the
tortoise only exemplifies a truth which we are all ready to admit when
we once stop to admire those stupendous works of nature and art, which
proclaim in no uncertain tones the triumph of perseverance. All the
performances of human art, at which we look with praise or wonder, are
instances of the resistless force of perseverance. It is by this that
the quarry becomes a pyramid; it is by this the Coliseum of Rome was
built; and this it was that inclosed in adamant the Chinese empire.
One man's individual exertion seems to go for nothing. If a person were
to compare the result of one man's work with the general design and last
result, he would be overwhelmed by the sense of their disproportion. Yet
these petty operations, incessantly continued, in time surmount the
greatest difficulties. Mountains are elevated and oceans bounded by the
slender force of human beings. How many men, who have won well-nigh
imperishable renown in the world of literature, science, or art, owe all
their greatness to persevering efforts? How many of those whom the world
calls geniuses can exclaim with Newton that they owe all their greatness
to persevering efforts, and whatever they may have been able to
accomplish more than ordinary has been solely by virtue of perseverance?
They were the sons of unremitting industry and toil. They were once as
weak and helpless as any of us, once as destitute of wisdom and power as
an infant. Once the very alphabet of that language which they have
wielded with such magic effect was unknown to them. They toiled long to
learn it, to get its sounds, understand its deeper fancies, and longer
still to obtain the secret of its highest charm and mightiest power, and
yet even longer for those living, glorious thoughts which they bade it
bear to an astonished and admiring world.
Their characters, which are now given to the world and will be to
millions yet unborn as patterns of greatness and goodness, were made by
that untiring perseverance which marked their whole lives. From
childhood to age they knew no such word as fail. Defeat only gave them
power; difficulty only taught them the necessity of redoubled exertions;
dangers gave them courage, and the sight of great labors inspired in
them corresponding exertions. Their success has been wrought out by
persevering industry. It has been said by shrewd observers that
successful men owe more to their perseverance than to their natural
powers, their friends, or the favorable circumstances around them.
Genius will falter by the side of labor, great powers will give place to
great industry. Talents are desirable, but perseverance is more so. It
will make mental powers, or at least strengthen those already made. This
should teach a great lesson of patience to those who are so nearly ready
to sink in despair, and have grown weary in their strivings for better
things. For one who faints not, but resolutely takes up the work of life
and perseveringly continues his exertion, it is possible for him to
reach almost any height to which his ambition may point. Some of the
great works of literature, in which are stored away great masses of
information, are the results of persevering efforts, before which many
minds would have quailed.
Gibbon consumed nineteen years in writing his masterpiece. How many
would have had the courage to persevere that length of time, though
certain of success at last? Courage, when combined with energy and
perseverance, will overcome difficulties apparently insurmountable.
Perseverance, working in the right direction and when steadily
practiced, even by the most humble, will rarely fail of its reward. It
inspires in the minds of all fair-minded people a friendly feeling. Who
will not befriend the persevering, energetic youth, the fearless man of
industry? Who is not a friend to him who is a friend to himself? He who
perseveres in business, amidst hardships and discouragements, will
always find ready and generous friends in time of need. He who will
persevere in a course of wisdom, rectitude, and benevolence, is sure to
gather round him friends who will be true and faithful.
Go to the men of business, of worth, of influence, and ask them who
shall have their confidence and support. They will tell you "the men who
falter not by the wayside, who toil on in their calling against every
barrier, whose eyes are 'upward,' and whose motto is 'excelsior.'" These
are the men to whom they give their confidence. But they shun the lazy,
the indolent, the fearful and faltering. They would as soon trust the
wind as such men. If you would win friends, be steady and true to
yourself. Be the unfailing friend of your own purposes, stand by your
own character, and others will come to your aid.
Almost every portion of the earth teems with works which show what man
has been able to effect in the physical world by means of perseverance.
Calculate, if you can, the efforts required to build the pyramids of
Egypt. Can you conceive of a more enduring monument to the triumph of
perseverance than that? Look at nature. She has a thousand voices
teaching lessons of perseverance. The lofty mountains are wearing down
by slow degrees. The ocean is gradually, but surely, filling up, by
deposits from its thousand rivers, and by the labors of a little insect
so small as to be almost invisible to the naked eye. Every shower that
sweeps over the surface of the country tends to bring the hills and the
mountains to the level of the plains. Nature has but one lesson on this
subject, and that is, "Persevere."
More depends upon active perseverance than upon genius. Says a
common-sense author upon this subject: "Genius unexerted is no more
genius than a bushel of acorns is a forest of oaks." There may be epics
in men's brains, just as there are oaks in acorns, but the tree and the
book must come out before we can measure them. Firmness of purpose is
one of the most necessary sinews of character, and one of the best
instruments of success. Without it, genius wastes its efforts in a maze
of inconsistencies. It gives power to weakness, and opens to poverty the
world's mark. It spreads fertility over the barren landscape, and bids
the choicest fruits and flowers spring up and flourish in the desert
abode. There is, perhaps, nothing more conducive to success in any
important and difficult undertaking than a firm, steady, unremitting
spirit. In seasons of distress and difficulty, to abandon ourselves to
dejection is evidence of a weak mind. Opposing circumstances often
create strength, both mental and physical. Opposition gives us greater
power of resistance. To overcome one barrier gives us greater ability to
overcome the next. It is cowardice to grumble about circumstances.
Instead of sinking under trouble, it becomes us, in the evil day, with
perseverance to maintain our part, to bear up against the storm, to have
recourse to those advantages, which, in the worst of times, are always
left to integrity and virtue, and never to give up the hope that better
days may come.
It is wonderful to see what miracles a resolute and unyielding will can
achieve. Before its irresistible energy the most formidable obstacles
become as cobweb barriers in the path. Difficulties, the terrors of
which cause the irresolute to sink back with dismay, provoke from the
man of lofty determination only a smile. The whole history of our race,
all nature, indeed, teems with examples to show what wonders may be
accomplished by resolute perseverance and patient toil. How many there
are who, thinking of the immense amount of work lying between them and
the object of their desires, are almost ready to give up in despair! But
do they not, when they view the work thus in mass, forget that there is
time enough, if only rightly improved, to suffice for each effort?
One step after another, perseveringly continued, will enable you to
arrive at your journey's end, however long it may be. It is only when
you come to reckon up the aggregate number of steps that you are ready
to sink under a feeling of despair. But you are not required to take
them all at once; there is an allotted time for each individual step.
Thus, in viewing any work that you may have marked out in life, only
remember that you are not obliged to do the work all at once; that the
regular daily portions performed quietly and systematically, day after
day, will enable you to achieve almost any desired result. When we
reflect on the wonderful results that perseverance has accomplished, we
are led to believe that the man who wills, resolves, and perseveres can
do almost any thing.
Every one, then, regardless of his condition in life, should set his aim
high, and resolve to remit no labor necessary for its realization, but
cheerfully take up the trials and burdens that life has in store for
him, and carry them forward, be the discouragements what they may, to a
glorious consummation. Only learn to carry a thing through in all of its
details, and you have measured the secret of success. Only learn to
persevere in carrying out any plan of work which an enlightened judgment
decides is the best, and you will force life to yield you its grandest
triumphs. There is almost no limit to what you can achieve if you thus
govern your actions, and make all your exertions contribute to the
fulfilling of some great purpose of life, which you took up with a brave
heart, and with a determination to persevere therein until success
crowns your efforts.
[Illustration: ENTERPRISE.]
[Illustration]
Closely allied with the qualities of self-reliance and energy is that
characteristic quality which so much conduces to success in life, and is
generally expressed by the word "enterprise." It is distinct from
energy, inasmuch as it is constantly active in discovering new fields
for energy to exert itself in. We are familiar with examples of men who
have won fortunes or gained renown, not because they pursued better or
wiser courses, but because of some originality in their aims and
methods, by which they were enabled to command the attention of the busy
world long enough to wrest from it the special object of their choice.
True enterprise is constantly on the alert to discover some new want of
society, some fertile source of profit or honor, some unexplored field
of business, and is ready to supply the one or to take advantage of the
other. It is nearly an indispensable element in these days of fierce
competition. Every avenue of business is crowded, and as soon as it is
known that one party has made a success by one method there are scores
of eager aspirants ready to try the successful plan, so that straightway
it, too, ceases to be unique, and, in becoming common, loses the power
it formerly possessed of compelling success. Hence the late-comers in
the field are doomed to failure, while they may at the same time be the
better fitted for the peculiar work in hand. What they should do is to
aim at success by new plans and methods. Every one knows the
enthusiastic glow that animates the whole being of him who feels the
ardor of an explorer, who surmounts difficulties by new and, before,
unthought-of expedients, who plans and projects enterprises that had
previously escaped the active minds of his fellow men.