The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1870-02-03
Fitness for. and Especial Call to, Par
ticular Occupations.


may perhaps be said to be called to
particular employment, for which by ma
ture he is peculiarly fitted and seemingly
fitted for no other, and in which he can
excel all others; but these are excep-
tons rather than the rule Further, that
there Is an aptitude existing in greater
| Or less degree in the majority for particu-
lar occupations, is also true; but the idea
however, or doctrine, that there is an
especial call of each particular man to
particular employment, in which he alone
can excel, or which he can perform bet
ter than all others, and which he is to
| ind or his life prove failure il as I'M
philosophical in reason. as it is untrue in
fact, and in our opinion cannot be sustain
ed. Besides, it is injurious in its teuden-
! clos; as IN all the cases where doubt is
entertained, the proper incentives to ap-
plicatlon which alone can give efficiency
and skill, are wanting. Indeed, in the
very nature of things, it is absurd; as it
not only prssupposes greater amount
ct discrimination in both parents and
children than is usually possessed to de-
termine precisely what that employment
I Is, but csmpels some to aspire only to the
most mental offices and employments
instead Of setting their mark high, or
| aiming at something lofty, the attain
ment of which, no matter how lofty, is
not impossible. Such aspirations, it can
not be disputed 'sudable even in the
| most lnslgn feeble, as these
would scarcely rise as high in the scale
without as with such incentives; and in
centives like these, it will not be denied,
are indispensable to greatness or great
developments, as these mainly depend
upon exertion without which there could
be nothing great.
Nor is it every minister that is called
either, unless! we suppose the Almighty
to have made big mistake; for it often
| requires only few grains of finite wis
dom even, to detect the complete unfit
ness of some for this employment, as
much so as butcher would be for a sur
| geon, "a black smith for jeweler. And
| if the special-call doctrine fails here,
where may We expect to succeed? Again,
| employments are continually changing
and ever will be; Cor while some cease to
be lucrative,-no longer pay,-and have
| to be abandoned, others are continually
springing into existence and it is this
capacity of adapting itself to new and
different avocations that particularly dis
tinguishes the human intellect from mere
instinct, and renders it capable of modi-
tying surrounding circumstances and
shaping its own destinies. The time was
| too when there were no steamboats,, no
railroads, and no telegraphs, but it does
not follow that there were then no minds
| capable of the various employments that
these developments have. brought into
existence, The bee, it is true, if it could
not make honey, could do nothing. Not
so with man, however, for in so numerous
instances has he shown himself capable
of any and every emergency. Let an
immortal mind once become aroused or
properly walked up to consciousness of
its own powers, and what is there that it
cannot accomplish? 1t has only to will,
accompanying this with the action, and
it is done to determine, and it's mandate
is obeyed. But man even, the noblest Of
the Creators works and most exalted of
living beings, can hardly be considered
other than a mere machine, acting only
as he is acted upon, until he becomes
conscious of this self determining power,
and boldly assumes its direction.
Admitting, therefore, difference Of
adaptation in different minds, to particu-
lar employnents, it is very apparent that
the latter are not conferred by the Author
of Nature, nor even made contingent
| upon taste, to any considerable extent,
as this els acquired after but the fact is,
they are necessity, and forced upon u )
by circumstances unavoidable. and both
the adaptation and taste, to a large ex-
tent, grow out of their pursuit. Every
example of a change Of occupation under
the notion of dislike or un6tness and
then resumption of it again, is evil
dence of the truth of this. 1t is proper
however, for parents to study the tastes
and aptitudes of their children, and SO far
as they can, select for them employments
towards which their tastes and ingenuity
seem to incline them naturally to lean,
and for which they are best adapted both
mentally and physically. But usually,
when selected with this view, reference
is had as much or more to the money
they promise than to any fitness for them ;
and this is not only right, but in exact
accordance with the maxim that "neces-
slty is the mother of inventions - prov
ing the mind capable of adapting itself,
to just such, or any circumstances, and
that constant, persevering application
gives aptitude and skill in any depart
ment, and experience makes perfect. As
education is simply the knowledge acquir-
ed in the pursuit of it, which alone gives
capacity; so here, it is the knowledge of
particular ayocations acquired, that makes
the skillful workman and constitutes the
adept.
Mind, cultivated or uncultivated, is
| ;d bouoror o1d in IFS natural state