The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1871-06-29
Stick TO One Thing.

In this progressive age, with its rush and
force and competition, when there Is so much
to learn and to do; a man, to achieve any de-
gree of success, must select some particular
calling and devote his time, his mind ahd all
his energies persistently and vigorously to the
work of mastering all its details, and to render
his services valuable in that line. The easy
going days when a ."Jack- of-all-trades" could
command custom or remunerative wages has
passed away, and instead we have 8. moro cor
rect idea prevailing, and higher appreciation
of energy, appreciation and persistence OF pur-
pose. Scholars, inventors, practical workers,
thinkers in every field, have been laboring con-
stantly, and in the last quarter of century
there have been so many important improve
ments perfected, so many valuable discoveries
made: so much light thrown on hitherto OBJ
scurcd subjects, and the range of learning is SO
vast and diverse, that anything like marked
success is attainablo only by bestowing undi-
vided attention on some particular department
of. thought, some one branch of trade, or some
singular Industrial pursuit. The correctness OF
this assertion is shown in the en,inence at
tained by certain individuals in different occu-
pations, who without the advantages in starsing
out that others had, yet distanced competition
and gained wealth and distinction.
Every neighborhood furnishes instances OF
shiftless, aimIess persons, who struggle on year
after year, barely making support, because
they undertook to accomplish too much when
they commenced life. It is simply a mental
and physical impossibility for q man to be
skillfll and successful rs carpenter, machinest
and merchant, and life is altogether too brief,
and the human capacity too limited, to enable
person to learn all that ought to be known OF
each Of these occupations. We frequently
meet men who started out as farmers, but just
when they had been ut it long enough to ac-
quire. practical acquaintance with the work
to be done, and to get the farm in order, they
would imagine that money could be made easic.
and faster in some other way, and at once the
labor. time and experience of several years
would be given up for new idea, to be aban-
doned itself in turn for something more at
tractive. Such men never manage to seize the
fortunate time or pursuit, for they are always
losing while others arc accumulating. But a
small amount of common sense is needed to
show that this fckleness, a lack of application
and resolution, must not only keep person
poor. but tends to the formation of shiftless
habits, and to the loss of all the benefits ac-
quired previously.
Let q person first ascertain for what pursuit
he is best adapted. Let him determine by re-
Election and trial the direction his tastes and
capacities incline, and then having reached
this important conclusion, the contest of life is,
in great measure ended, for industry, perse-
verence and regularity in habits will accom-
plish the rest. Many an excellent farmer Is
to-day growing sallow and dull behind q coun-
ter in the city, because it seems "genteel," and
there are numerous clientless lawyers and pa
tient-less physicians who are wasting time,
health and patience in offices, would make
money for themselves and benefit the country
by the yigor and skill with which they would
piow and ditch and SOW. The world is full of
useless liyes-those who attempted too many
different undertakings, and those who sought
to do that for which nature never gave them
the capacity. =.