Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1856-08-08
A. BURLINGAME.
Washington July 2Sth 1856.
WHAT MAKES THE MAN ?

The boy thinks he is a man when he
can smoke a cigar, and do as a man does
in general, which, by the way, is one Of
the evils of our country. The dandy
thinks it consists in dress and Irritation.
and gives more attention to his NOUS
tachc and head than he docs to his brain
or his heart. The upstart places it in
his own superlative coneeits, and so treats
his equals and supcriors with contempt.
The rutfians thinks it lies in superiority
of brute force, and 50 he feels he is man
when he can insult and knock down all
that come in his way. The Irishman
thinks it is in having wife, and there
fore, if unmarried, calls himself boy
though he is fifty years old.
Let us, therefore, see what is included
in the term man, for it is unquestiona-
bly, the loftiest title that any earthly be-
ing can bear. Lords, dukes, emperors,
&c, are unknown to nature; they are
political fabrications.
The Creator has formed three great
classes of creaturcs-brutes, men, and
angels. Brutes are governed by instincts.
They possess animal power controlled by
mere blind impulse. Whatever they do
whatever ferocity or irregularity they
exhibit, no blame attaches to them. The
Quaker was right when he said it was
only jackass that kicked him. Man $
lot is a different one. He is not to en-
plov brute force if he does, he makes a
beast of himself just as much as II he
laid down and wallowed like hog. In
truth, could we see soul, fragrant as 1t
is with the odors of heaven, and winged
for ght that has no end, depose Itself
to initiate the acts of brute, we should
be apt to exclaim, ooh how fallen :"
Mans lot is far otherwise. 1t Is to
subdue the material and animal forces to
the control of the spiritual nature. His
condition is surely beautiful one. At
his birth he is the most helpless, lowly,
and ignorant vitality on earth. He has
few of the lowest animal instincts, but
gives no signs of spiritual life. Yet
from this very humble state he is des-
tined to mount upward, distancins all an
imal creation, to pinnacle OF grandeur
only little lower than that OF the an
gels. What he wants to fit him for his
position as man, is moral cultivation.
Not wealth, not fashion, not intelligence,
not genius. or smartness-not titles. nor
any other of the thousand ridiculous
paraphernalia with which fools deck
themselves, will make the man. A ma1
may act morally, and still be not moral.
He may be all the time acting the hyp'
ocrite. This is no uncommon fact for
if ..Final Perseverance is not truth in
religion. doubt much whether it is not
in m orals, for this very reason: In sur
veying the operations of nature, we arc
struck with this fact-that she designs
all action to be- instr ctive. Among the
lowest class of animals it is SO (; and
doubtless among the angels it is even the
same. 1t springs forth spontaneously
from the deep fountains of their nature
, How is it with the human race Take
child it must learn everything, except
swallowing and breathing. 1t tries Of
ten before it can make a step and 1T has
only learned to walk after it can make
step without effort or any attention. Sc
it is with talking. with judging OF dis
tance, size, and so on. 1t has only learn
ed these things when it knows then
without going through the places o.
thinking. So it is in our acquiring q
trade or an art. We have it when II
comes to us like second nature-that is
when it becomes an instinct. So, also
it is when we rise from the mechanical
and rational operations to the moral.
| A virtue is as much a thing to be learn
ed and cultivated as an art. Take tb'
virtue of honor. What does chile
know about it, before it is developed il
his breast And again, it must be nur
tpred for it is not so strong in tn
breast of the boy as in that of the man
Now M individual is man in the virtu