Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1865-12-01
Written for the Fremont Jouvnsl. ]
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upon Inc tdO1C ohu tAC nOots ts1O NohSS1oOhOS
was very simple, very direct and quite uncom-
Portable. The boy had no milk for dinner. He
survived the catastrophe to be sure. but his sat-
isfaetion was much diminished, and he had the
modification of seeing that which was prepared
for his enjoyment and nourishment utterly
wasted.
Well, thought I, there is vast quantity Of
spilled milk in the world. 1t is spilled, too,
not by any hard usage of fate, not by any for
tuitous circumstances that could not be foreseen
or prevented, but by sheer want of care and
thought The advantages which the foresight of
friends, and the kindness of benefcent Proyi-
dence have prepared and set before us for our
profit, are ayykardly wasted by our indolence or
lack of appreciation, and we go through life
without deriving any practical benefit from
them. aa
| When l see young man to whom there is
given goodly fortune in the line of property,
wasting this fortune in "fast" living cannot
| help saying-"Poor wretch, he is overturning
his milk" 1t is an old, oft-repeated saying,
that inherited fortunes are more likely TO prove
! curses than blessings but this old adage simply
states that people are quite likely to spill the
| milk which Providence has set for their dinner
And yet, if wisely employed, fortune is of
great advantage, and no man ought to despise it.
But, in point of fact, there multitudes ofpeo-
pie in the world who have no milk for dinner,
because they have early 'run through" the prop
erty which they found themselves possessed Of.
They have squandered it in extravaganza and
folly. "i@'@' -
When | see young person contracting irreg-
ular and injurious habits / think of the spilled
milk. One of the greatest blessings that can be
granted to us poor mortals lies in steady nerves,
a set of sound bones and muscles, and sound
body in general. But all these things are put in
jeopardy by rregularity of living, and habits of
dissipation. Ifthey are once lost like the spill
ed milk they cannot be gathered up again
And then, there must come all the positive evils
of disease and premature old age, which are
the peculiar inheritance of fast livers. They do
not live out half their days Indeed, temper
ance, regularity, moderation, is milk set for our
dinner in life. But how many spill it ruinous-
ly, hopelesslyl ,.,a .-s.l
When 1 see young man possessed of means
] and opportunities for securing a thorough edu-
cation, yet turning away from them and ventur-
ing out into life with very meagre outfit,
think he is spilling the milk set for his dinner.
If knowledge is power" he is letting chief
element of power slip altogether out of his hand.
l know that, if he lives few years, he will Ia
ment his folly in despising and neglecting his
opportunities; though nothing can convince him
of it now. So it is They who will not accept
the instructions of those who have gone before
them in life's journey, must work out the prob
lens of wisdom in their own experience. And
then, the great misfortune is that, when they
haze learned the lesson, great portion of their
race has been run, and their life is proportion
ately shortened; it is too late to gather up the
milk already spilled. 1t is gone forever. AL
/ though it is never too late to correct error
to mend fault, or to leave the ways of folly and
come over into the paths of wisdom, yet it is
always too late to retrace our steps and make
i life what it might have been, with wisdom in
the beginning. Though we may not starve, or
may even make out comfortable dinner, yet
! the spilled milk we shall never taste.
The means of securing an excellent education
are within the reach Of nearly every young per-
son of virtue and energy. Yet we very fire.
quently see those possessed Of every advantage
casting all these advantages away, and going
| into manhood or womanhood with little cultiva-
ton of mind At the same time we see others
| - Lao
paratively, yet making the most of them and
coming out finally an honor to themselves and
q bright example to others. They make bet
ter dinner in life out of their gill of milk, than
others out of the generous bowl-full which their
unwise carelessness overturned. Any man of
high education and generous culture can look
abroad and see multitude of those who have a
much less amount of knowledge and mental
cultivation, but who were companions of his
boyhood, and whose advantages were every way
equal to his own.
II were sorrowful enough thus SO see those
who have spilled the milk set for their life din
ner But it is more sad to see SO many whoare
nor spilling their milk and who are deafto every
voice of instruction, admonition and warning.
1t is not best to magnify the evils of human
folly and heedlessness. The lessons of expert
ence are not lost upon all. There are those who
are willing to be taught; who are able to see in
the lives of other men the operation of causes
and influences to be sought or avoided by them
selves, and willing to profit by what they OBJ
serve But vastly different would the world be-
if all would heed the voice of the past and make
the best use of the opportunities which Provi-
dence bestows upon them. B.