The native American., 1839-12-21

i
as the body But all experience goes to prove
that with those whose habits are jndicious; the
i lphysical frame does net attain perfection, in
every respect till thirty five pr forty
Ii is indeed said that knowledge, if il could be
acquired thus late in life, would be easily forgot
Item. This is true, if it be that kind of know
ledge for which we have no immediate use. But
| if it br Of pgacical character, il will net fail
TO be remembered franklin was always learn
ing, till death And what he learned he seldom
forgot, because he had an immediate nse for it.
| have slid, it is great point to be convinced OF
the Importance Of knowledge. | might add that
| it is a point of Still greater consequence to feel
our own Ignorance. TO know ourselves dis
eased, (morally) is half our cure. To know our
own ignorance is the first step to knowledge;
and other things being alike, our progress i'll
knowledge will generally be in proportion to our
sense Of the want Of it.
The strongest plea which Incidence is apt to
put in is, that we have no time Tor study. Many
| a Young man has had some sense Of his own ig
norance, and a corresponding thirst for know
ledge, but alas the idea entertained that he
had no time to read---no time to study-no time
to think. And resting on this plea as satisfactory,
he has gone down TO the grave the victim not
only Of indolehce aud ignorance, but perhaps io
vice vice, too, which he might have escaped
with hlNe more general intelligence
No greater mistake exists than that which so
tottrn hauns the human mind, that we cannot
ind time for things; things, too, WHICH we have
previously decided for ourselves that we oughtto
DO. Alfred, king of England, though he per-
formed more business than almost any of his sub
jccts, found time for study. Franklin, in the
MIST Of all bis nbors, found time to dive into
;he depths OF philosophy; and explore an an
lodden path of science. Frederick the Great,
with an empire at his dircton in the midst of
war, and Oh the of battles, found time to revc
IN all the charms of philosophy, and to feast HIM
self ON the rich viands of intellect. Bonapartr,
"jth Europe at his disposal, with kings at his
ncchanlber begging for vacant thrones, and at
the head Of thousands OF men whose destines
was suspended Oh his arbitrary pleasure, had time
to converse with books. Caesar, when he had
curbed the spirits Of the Roman people, and was
througed with visitors from the remotes king
donls found time for intellectual cultivation. The
late Dr. Rash, and the still later DR.. Dwight,
are eminent instances Of what may be done fer
the cultivation Of the mind, in the midst Of the
greatest pressure of other occupations. ...
On this point it may be useful to mention the
results Of my own observation. Al no period OF
my life am | conscious of having made greater
progress than | have sometimes done while la
boring in the summer; and almost necessarily
too. 1t is true, read but little yet that litlle
was well understood and thoroughly dgest,d.
Almost all the knowledge | possess OF ancient
history was teined in this way, in one year.
Of course, a partit u!ar knowledge could not be
expected, under such circumstances; but the
general imp, essions and leading facts which were
imbibed, will be of very great value to ne, as |
trust, through life. And | am acquainted with
one or two similar instances
Il o,,.s ,,,I F, ,..t,t
as we'll as men. of most other occupations, find
fewer rasure hours than most farmers. The latter
class Of people are certainly more GvorabIy sit
uated than any other. But it is also true that
even the former almost without exception, can
command small portion OF their time every day,
for the purposes Of mental. Improvement if they
are determined OH it. Few individuals can be
found in the community, who have not as much
leisure as had dnriug the summer have mem
toned. The great point is TO have the necessary
disposition to improve it; and second point, of
no small importance, is 10 have at hand, proper
means of instruction.. Of the latter shall speak
presently.
The reason why lnboring men make such rapid
proglcss in know ledge, i'll proportion to the num-
Der Of hours they devote to study, appears to me
devour with relish. What little they read and
understand, is thought over, and perhaps con-
versed upon. during the long interval; and be-
comes truly the property of the reader. Whereas
those who make study business, never possess
a healthy appetite for knowledge; they are al
ways cIoyed, nothing is well digesed; and the
result of their continued effort is either super
fetal or IL distorted view of great many things,
without thorough or practical understanding of
any.
DO not propose, in a work of this kind, to re-
commend to young men what particular books on
any subject they ought to study. First because
it IS matter Of less importance than many
others, and | cannot find room to treat Of every
thiug.
lie who has the determination to make pro-
gruSs, ill do so, either with or without books,
though these are certainly useful. But an Old
piece of newspaper, OF Struggling leai from some
book, or an inscription cn a monument, or the
monument ilscf-and works of nature well as
Of art, viii be books TO him: Secondly, because
there is such extensive range for selection.
But, thirdly because it may often be left TO the
readers own taste and discretion. He will pro-
badly soon discover whether he is deriving solid
u 1