The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1855-10-04
The Philosophy of Life.
MODERATION.

/. Iud6 poSScsSeS VITAL lulcIeSG 10 all, anu yS
there are few who discuss it with thought
reflection and philosophy, The multitud
live on, careless of to morrow, and as /
they were to live forever. ''All men thinl
all men mortal but themselves" Iu youth
and when life is full of cxctment, this
perhaps, is natural. Then the present a
e lone is cared for, and the future at least
has no gloomy forebodings. Fancy col.
ors everything with rosy hues, hope is
buoy ant the heart is impulsive, and care
and anxiety, and responsibility, have not
yet influenced the mind or marked the
forehead. But when youth has gone by,
and the character has to certain extent
ripened and matured, the modes of life
even with those who can afford to pause
and reflect, are not adapted to prolong
human existence, and to increase its soci-
al enjoyments. Thousands and tens OF
thousands perish annually, who might, by
the proper means, live for years and years
They are the victimsof excess and impru-
dence, and are, in fact, moral suicides
They cannot master their passions they
cannot control their tastes, they cannot
RESTRAIN their appetites, they cannot re-
sist the temptations around them.
The true philosophy of life is modera-
tion-moderation, not only in eating and
drinking, but in all indulgences and ex-
citcments. The head should be kept cool.
the mind should be kept clear, the heart
should be kept true, and the conscience
should be kept easy. These to very
considerable extent, comprehend the duty
of man. They teach him, not only how
to live, but they prepare him for the close
of life. The ancients perhaps, under
stood these things better than the mod
erns. They recognized the intimate con-
ncction between the mind and the body,
between the physical and the mental man,
and they endeavored to make the two
harmonize. They lived, not for the day
or the hour, but so as to proIong human
existence, and at the same time make it
agreeable. But in modern days, all is
excitement, and everything is up to fever
heat. We leap, as it were, by telegraph
ic impulse, from one world to the other.
Moderation is ignored 1t is regarded
as out of place. The young rush on wild
ly and recklessly, the middle-aged strain
and exhaust themselves in an effort to
keep up, while the cid gasp and groan,
and sink into the grave. All live too fast.
The exceptions, at least, are few and far
between. Even enjoyment is made sort
of madness, and nothing will now do,
but the keenest and most absorbing ex-
citcment. And thus it is, that while with
all our improvements and discoveries,
with the wonderful march of science, and
the many triumphs of civilization, the span
of life is rather diminished than extend
ed There are few who linger on the
stage at thee score years and ten, and the
number, it may be feared, is constantly
diminishing. The reason is palpable and
plain. We neglect or forget the expert
ence of by-gone sages. We disregard
the teachings of wisdom. We turn deaf
ear to the admonitions of even Death him
self. The philosophy of moderation is
constantly violated. We yearn, and grasp,
and clutch, and thus We strain and snap
the springs of existence. How few are
there among the sons of men who can
practice spirit of content How few who
adapt their tastes and expenditures to their
means! How few who pause calmly at
some critical point on the road of life, and
determine their future course in a spirit
of common sense, not to say of enlighten
ed wisdom! All more or less shut their
eyes to the truth. All yield to some de-
lusion. All permit themselves to be self
deceived And thus it is that errors are
committed, that dilemmas are encountered,
that suffering is experinced, and that much
of life itself is exhausted. ga sober life,"
according to an eminent author, "implies
moderation in all things. 1t consists in
moderate eating, in moderate drinking,
and in the moderate enjoyment of all the
pleasures of this world-in keeping the
mind moderately and constantly employ
ed in cultivating the affections NJ oderately,
in avoiding extremes of heat and cold,
and in stunning excessive excitement,
either of body or of mind" This is the
true doctrine, the real philosophy. But
how difficult it is to practice The rich
cannot or will not, for their means and
temptations are so abundant. The poor
cannot, for they often lack the essentials,
and are compelled to overtask as well the
body as the mind, in order to secure the
actual necessaries of life. The middle
classes will not, for they are constantly
seeking and striving to be ranked among
the rich. And so, too the ambitious, the
avaricious, the selfish and the vain. All
are absorbed by some passion of pursuit
All are discontcnted or anxious, and thus
the beauty, the duty and the philosophy
of moderation are neglected, disregarded,
Knocked at and violated. In ordinary
affairs, daily account is kept of the re-
ceipts and expenditures, and thus sort of
check and balance in financial point of
view. But how seldom do we extend the
system to the all important matters of
health and life, mental equipoise and So
cial employment. In other words, how
rarely, as the barque of life floats or toss
es along the sea of time, do we take
thoughtful observation. and so direct our