Southern reveille. (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1851-185?, 1852-04-28

YoUNs MEN constitute a class in society
upon whom is concentrated much Of the in
terest, the anxiety, the hopes, and the fears,
which swell and agitate the human bosom.
There are many reasons for this. Their char
acters are not fully developed. Their princi-
ples have not been brought to that test which is
to determine their strength, which is to decide
whether they are to pursue the path Of virtue
or Of vice They haye not yet been called to
grapple with life's sterner realities. and to
meet and combat its temptations single handed.
II is yet point undecided, whether their god
like powers are to be so directed that we may
say, at the close Of their career. that the
world has been the better or the worse, for the
influence they have exerted whether their
names are to be handed down to posterity up
on the scroll Of infamy or Of fame and wheth-
er. as their immortal spirits take their flight
from the present sphere, they are to be con-
veyed BY angels to the mansions Of the blessed,
or hurled BY demons down to the bottomless
abodes Of despair!
AS we look at a company Of young men,
lust about to cross the threshold into the arena
Of active life, we see that each one Of these
momontous questions, as regards them, is
wholly undecided, known only TO Him "who
seeth the end from the beginning" and in
whose hand are the hearts Of all. Hence it
is that this large class in society is regarded
with such thrilling interest, BY relatives and
friends, by guardians and instructors yea, by
the whole community.
"The beauty Of OLD MEN, is the gray head. 7
We reverence the aged; it is an instinct Of
our nature Independently Of any virtues Of
character, or deeds Of glory, thoegh the old
man may have wasted his time and prostituted
his talents, stil there is an instructive prompt
ing Of respect and veneration for the man Of
gray hairs; and nothing is 50 sure a mark Of
bad heart, or a recklessness Of principle, as
disrespect TO those whose advanced years place
them upon the utmost verge Of human life.
But vet we cannot view the aged with the same
interest and anxiety that we do the young.
The work Of the old man is done His mark
upon his generation is made. His character
Is fixed. His destiny is sealed. His virtuous
or bis vicious deeds stand as an example or a
warning to others. He can do nothing
more to help the world on in a career Of glory
and virtue, or to sink it deeper in ignominy
and vice His sands arc run out Ills ac-
count is closed. He is going to his God, to
receive his doom or reward. Not one jot or
title Of the good or i'll which be has done can
he ever ei1ace. The streams Of moral inhu-
ence, which be has set in motion, must ever
flow onward, gladening and fertilizing the dis
tricts through which they pass or emitting
noxious vapors which spread on every hand
misery and death. The course Of not one
drop or rill can he now change, while the con-
sequences Of that ceaseless flow he must soon
meet in the righteous retrbutions Of eternity F.
But tho young man is just starting in this
race. He is yet to take the first step which
isto decide the character Of his course through
Life. And i. is because his subsequent career
50 much depends upon his beginning Alright
that around him cluster 50 many anxious
thoughts and up to heaven in his behalf arise
80 many fervont prayers Especially d. those
under whose care his earlier years have been
spent and from whose training bis future
course is to be shaped, eye him with an intense
interest. They perceive that as his life shall
issue well or ILL., it win not only effect his and
their fame among men, but viii involve their
mutual responsibility before God. Hence an
anxiety, laudabe, deep. and abiding
VI all classes Of young men respecting
whom these feelings are excited. perhaps there
arc none that stand above those, who. from
year to year, enter upon active life from a
completion Of their collegiate course Their
attainments ft them for positions in society
10 which the uneducated cannot aspire. Their
influence viii be correspondingly greater
knowledge is power IA mower for good or
for evil, according as it is usgd The simple
fact Of coming out Of seminary Of learning
into the activities Of life, improsses powerfully
many in the community who are not qualified
10 judge Of the attainments made therein.
The educated man is held in higher esteem by
all. To the masses, there is "a mystery which
hangs around learning. A reverence border
ing on superstition is paid to il, while at the
same time portion Of this yeneration is be-
slowed upon the persons Of those who are sup-
posed, whether justly or not, to have wended
their way through the labyrinths Of science.
and 10 have scaled it's most giddy heights
Hence Il in that 20 deep an interest ia felt In
the futnre rMrnhr az the ecys1c1te7 vounR mar.