Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1871-11-18
TRUE MORAL PERFEoT1oN.

ShOh - AhtAAho0J o9SoSts
consciousness. In the physical nature
the most complete health Is whore each
organ performs its part unheeded-
where the activities are tremendously
engaged, not in analysing their own
nature, but inaccompllshing their own
functions. Directly any part Of the
body asserts Its own separate exist
ence, and demands special notice, it Is
a proof that something is out Of order,
and Is the first symptom of disease.
The countrymsn who, on being asked
how he kept his physical system In
such perfect order, replied, that "for
his part he had no system, Showed by
his answer a perfection of health which
but few ever realize. It Is when the
head aches, or the tooth throbs, or the
limb Is injured, that we become spe-
cially conscious Of their existence ;
when they are In good working order
We forget them, and only consider the.
results they produce. This truth Is
not confined to the bodily functions.
The strongest mind Is not the most
conscious Of Its strength. Tho greatest
geniuses Of the world have lived and
died unaware Of the richness Of their,
mental treasures. The true artist Is
so absorbed in the love Of his art that
he forgets his W powers, while the
mere dabbler Is vainly conscious Of his
inferior abilities. 'Ofen those faculties
upon which we most pride ourselves
are the most specifically developed,
while our real powers lie unfathomed
and unknown. He who works for
fame or applause Is always measuring
his own skill and estimating his own
progress, while he whose heart Is CELL
tired in the work itself dwells not upon
his own instrumentallty, but r~ejolces
in the furtherance of the object, by
whatever means. One orator, filled
with the greatness Of his theme, or
bent OH e~ffecting some reform, and
anxious to inspire, others with a like
enthusiasm, Is unconscious Of the elo-
quence which holds his audience In
rapt attention, nor does he care to
measure 1t; his object lies ahead Of
himself, and he uses himself, as 1t were.
for a stop by which to reach It; he
employs his powers, as the carpenter
his tools, merely as instruments to
accomplish a higher purpose. An
other. bent on self.display, handles his
subject only with a view to caryc his
own fame. Unlnspired by great
thoughts, he Is kcenly alive 10 all his
rhetorical e%xcellences and failures; he
weighs his abilities with accurate pre-
cision, and measures his success by the
degree to which his hearers appreciate
him, instead Of the conclusions they
form as to his theme. The same differ
encs divides all the intellectual labor
Of tho world. Its best performance Ia
always attended with a certain unoon-
seriousness Of self, while Its inferior
work Is characterized by a keen anal
ysis Of the powers employed. The one
ia natural. the other artificial; the n
regards tho end as al~l-absorblng, the
other loves rather to dwell on the
means. Equally does this truth apply
to our moral conduct. Virtue requires
a certain degree Of Inconsistencies to
maintain her very existence. The
moral worth Of a good action depends
greatly upon its ~spontansity. Where
1t Is the natural outflow Of a loving or
generous heart It Is priceless, but when
we begin TO praise ourselves inwardly,
and think how merltorious VIC are, It
Immediately loses its bloom. Not
more surely Is the snow dissolved and
d~issipated By the rays Of the sun, than
goodness fades and vanishes before the
conscious pride Of itself. Some one,
In writing Of humility, has said:
1t 10 90 frall. 30 defeats q thing, psi.
II Il but look upon Itself. It's gone,
And he who ventures to esteem II his,
Proves by that very thought he has It not.
And the same Is true to a great ex-
tent of every virtue. He who most
fully appreciates his worth, has gen.
orally a slender stock to estimate.
Above all, the boaster, who talks
glibly of virtue, in order to sxtol him
self, knows nothing OF its profound
realities. Even self-depreclation Is not
akin to virtue in It's deep Significance.
It IL at the best, when sincere, an un-
healthy sort OF goodness, which dwells
upon self, after all, to the neglect Of
higher things; and when insincere 1t
Is the basest hypocrisy. The truly
virtuous man ia he who sinks self In
his object-who labors In the cause Of
right and truth, sacrificing his own
interests, without feeling himself a
martyr, without Boosting Of his deeds,
without too closely analysing his own
part in the matter, either to applaud
or 10 censure. He exerts all his powers
to the utmost, and rejoices In their
ability to carry out his noblest concep-
tions; but he values them as the me-
chanic does his tools, not for their W
sakes, but for what they can produce.
He exults, not'in his own be~noyolence,
but In the happiness 1t sheds; he on
graduates himself, not on his own
sense Of justice, but that others have
their rights; he triumphs, not in his
ability to convince or persuade men,
but in their acceptance Of the truth.
His Is that natural, spontaneous and
unconscious virtue that pauscs not to
gaze upon itself, but hastens to forward
aud to welcome glorious results his
the heroism, the fortitude and the
martyr spirit that animates life to
noble deeds, but know not Of them
selves. -g.-a=a Gas /