Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1871-07-29
IIrn,s DETAILS rrNoB11D.

tANAA /
All agree that to conduct worthily
large and weighty affairs, demands
breadth of view and loftiness of pur-
pose, but it is commonly supposed that
for the ordinary business of men, for
what we are pleased to term menial or
petty offices, no special dignity or ele-
walton of mind Is necessary ; that the
virtues of plodding industry, patient
frugality, and unthinking honesty are
all sufficient; and that great ideas,
deep thoughts and exalted aims rather
unfit than prepare a man for ordinary
duties. Such a notion Us this, how
ever, proceeds from Undertaking. the
practical everyday occupations that
fall to the lot Of the majority Of man
kind, and of not perceiving the secret
Of their worthy performance. 1t Is a
truth that few appreciate, and yet that
lies at the root of all excellence, that
where the mind is occupied with the
noblest ideas, small duties will be most
perfectly performed. The services Of
social life, petty and trivial as we are
apt to think them, demand the gener-'
alship of a clear mind, a strong will,
deep affections and pure motives, to
steer safely through the daily trials
the innumerable cares, the complicated
relations which they involve. How
much of home happiness Is sacrificed
for the want of u comprehensive grasp
Of all that is necessary to 1t. Some
single point, such as frugality or the
maintenance of authority, absorbs the
mind, and Is carried out at the expense
of comfort, or to the destruction Of
those sweet affections which alone can
bind n household together. Or the de-
sire to please and crafty overcomes
the sense of duty, and abuses are suf-
fered to creep in and poison the home
circle. Where an Intelligent desire
for moral beauty unites with a deep
fountain of domestic love, narrow and
one-sided notions disappear; the vari-
Gus wills and tastes Of the family are
tremendously adjusted, innocent pleas
ures multiply, and the home circle
becomes n of peace, love and mutual
improvement. Such results ensue
| from a breadth of moral view that can
only be had by living on an eminence.
Just as, when standing on a hilltop,
we discern the objects beneath in their
just proportions, so when our thoughts
| are raised above the many details of
life we shall accord to each their just
value, allowing none to absorb us to
the exclusion OF the rest. The spirit Of
contempt with which some people re-
gard offices called mental, will utterly
fade away before a soul of large and
comprehensive ideas. 1t Is the narrow
mind that adopts paltry rules Of judy
ment concerning the dignity Of occu-
patlons as such, and shrlnks from GER
tain offices as degrading. 10 the pure
all things are pure. 1t is the purpose
which ennobles or degrades tho action.
The most mental service wrought in
love is no longer mental, but a pledge
Of the tenderest affection. The kindly
offices rendered to the sick and suffer-
ing by the willing hands Of compassion
and beuevolence, are no longer petty
and thrilling, but sweet privileges that
bring 4 double blessing to the glver
and receiver. Just as the widest and
deepest root brings forth the tender
blossoms in the richest p~rofusion, so
the largest heart and deepest senti-
ments will produce the most perfect
performance of the minute details of
daily duty. If this truth bears strongly
upon small duties, equally does it ap-
| ply to the smaller trials and annoy
auces of life. Every II Is beset with
many vexations, but few know how to
bear them with dignity and repose. 1t
Is not a mere matter of volition. Hard
striving may repress the outward eX-
preston of irritation, but it Is only rs
we can raise our spirits above the little
singing causes Of it, 80 as to view our
life us it were from an eminence and
see how its troubles subside ard are
lost, that we can gain that real tran
guilty of soul that shall make us gen.
tie and serene in the midst Of annoy
ances, disappointments and cares. If
any one despises small things, throws
contempt upon mental occupations,
scorns manual labor, or ignores petty
offices of kindness and benevolence, 1t
but proves him to be narrow-minded,
small-souled, and unable to view things
in their just proportion. 10 the large
hearted man, who takes n broad and
comprehensive view Of life, and studies
its meanings, nothing Is small and
nothing tritling. Pure motives glorify
the smallest action, and make 1t noble;
high purposes dignity and exalt the
the life, however commonplace it seems
to the superficial. 1t is the prin-
ciples we hold, the heart we bring into
our work, the soul energy we exert,
which alone cal make US efficient or
worthy actors in the scene Of life. Only
ne we cherish the great truths and