The Illinois free trader. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1840-1841, 1840-06-06
SdilislucntiOn.

well !"
sdIEducation.
THE Educatb', moral and Intellectual,
Of erery indirh'al, must be chiefly his
oacn mork. Here is prevailing and ia.
tai mistake oIhis subject. 1t seems to
be supposed VI if a young man be sent
TO grammar chool, and then to college,
he must of cjrse become a scholar: and
the pupil him flf is apt to imagine that he
is to be the fere passive recipient of III
siruction, as le is of the light and atmos-
phere which surround him. But this
dream of inIence must be dssi pated, and
you must b awakened to the important
truth that, kou aspire to excellence YOU
must becom active and vigorous co-ope-
rators witltour teachers, and work ont
your own dtinctiOn with an ardor which
cannot be tenched, a perseverance that
considers bthing done while any thing
yet remaf to be done. Rely upop ii
that the hcients were right--QstSque
sur fort,Ir )aJer-both in morals and
intellect, he give their final shape TO our
own CHAPTERS, and thus become, emphat-
ically, N architects 81 our own fortunes.
How eH should 1t happen, gentlemen,
that vol g mer, who have had just the
same obor'dnities, should be continually
presenEg us with such different results,
and msing to such opposite destinies!
Didererf of talent will not solve it, for
very den that difference is in favor
of the disappointed candidate. You
shall Sd issuing from the walls of the
same Jhool--'nay, sometimes, from the
bosom f the same family-two young
men, q whom the one shall be admitted
to be genius of high order, the other,
search above the point Of mediocrity;
yet, yh shall see the genius sinking and
perislhg in poverty, obscuriiy and wretch
ednest while on the other hand, YOU
shall observe the mediocre Flooding his
slow lut sure way up the hill of life, gain
ng tedfast footing at every step, and
mounting, at length to eminence and dis
inctbn, an ornament to his family, a bles-
single his country. Now whose work
IS tlis Manifestly their own. They
ire IN architects of their respective for
unes. The best seminary of learning
hat cm open its portals to you, can do
10 mre than to afford you the opporlu-
lity o instruction: but it must depend at
asst OF yourselves, whether you will be
nstruted or not, or TO what point you
,ill push your Instruction. And if this
e asnred.-I speak from observation
cerain truth: There is no excellence
'ithm great labor. 1t is the fat of Fate
ON which the power of genius cannot
1sove you. Genius, unexerted, is like
lie poor moth that hutters around the
indie until it scorchcs itself to death. III
enius be desirable at all, it is only oil
lat great and magnanimous kind WHICH,
ke the condor of South America, perch
from the summit Of Chimborazo above
&c clouds, at pleasure, in that empyreal
gion, with an energy rather invigorated
IAN weakened by the effort. 1t is this
aRcity for high and long continued en-
rtlel-this vigorous power of profound
nd sarching investigation--this career
lg anl wide-sweeping comprehension of
llnd--hose long reaches of thought that
luck briht honor from the palc-faced moon,
r dive int the bottom of the deep,
Where iatlim line could never touch the ground,
nd drag uplrowned honor by the locks.
his is the rowess and these the hardy
,hievements which are to enroll your
ames amonghe great men of the earth.
But how areyou to gain the nerve and
ourage for enterprises of this pith and
loment! willtell you; as Milo gained
lat hoe signo tnces: for this must be
or work, not Nat of your teachers.
c you not wantir to Yourselves, and
on will accomplish IL that your parents,
lends and country, hive a RICH: to cx-
,ct.-UiHiam Uirt.