Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1872-05-11
What MIR. Greeley said to
tho Young Man.

A Young Englishman of our ac-
uuaintance, who recently came to this
country under the impression that he
could make money easily here, though
he had no very distinct idea how,
wrote to Mr.. Greeley, after exhaust
ing every other resource, asking his
advice. He described himself a. lib
orally educated, graduate from Ok
:ord, but without experience or skill
IN any particular business, aud, of
course. out Of monev. Mr. Greeley &
reply, which we have been allowed t"
lecil her, teyin- by saving Ia tn"
vonng lnan, Il utterly drt"yt a',I ah
hor the kind Of education You lave
received, " wl.!r;1, h" says, embraces
ryrrvt!.iu. cSrc,,t that which it should
.mhyar.--, the nasterv ut some hnEi-
mss that will yi,Id support, Mr.,
,;rcr.er ,!,anl; rod th,, he himself
sraduntal ;r,tn a N"~ England
Yer, culnlnrr ~,-'t>~i, not thN, he
uuderrAlu"s the knowledge t" h" Sc
cured IN universities We '!nr 1t, hut
trr,tu-r colleges tAii /" rr">!';. "d'-
,ua,"lN for he ti,ny,' "i ':., .nnn tv
.uaNin. !.j.u 4 ~klllrd "urhsuan in
come recognized business which will
,rrIainl yi"|'l !'!H, Il support and the
suggestion l. unr we'll worthy %! az
,rutiun. Mr.. Greeley thinks every
man, no matter what bis station in life
rlay h.. uu.ht to know i hu$,,.,s at
".,i,!l ile can earn q livelihood wIth
his hnndS-~that every man should
know a trade, in fact; and in a general
w"r he is doubtless right.
But Nha; do our colleges train men
Tor. They give US incidentally, doc
tors and lawyers in such ahundan,e
that the half of them never s.rrr.
4 footing II their professions, ~hll"
the non. professional graduates are
,Grnel ont "lihrrally educated, " as
lA- + hraso goes, but ultrr V destitute
o. a,4v kind Of fitness for life They
can read Greek and Latin, they know
the calculus, and have u limited ac-
aaainlance with the mixed mathrma-
ties and the sciences. But how many
Of them know how to make even ten
dollars a week AT any kind Of business?
How nanv Of them can utilize their
liberal elucations? How many of
them could command a salary on their
merits without lntlUenc" or patronage?
Men who are in journalism see more
of the misery wrought by our lefec.
tive educational system than others
do, because men of education, out of
money, invariably try literature, under
the delusiou that any man with an
education can write for the papers. -
They come by scores, confident Of their
entire qualification, while they admit
that they have no experience, and
some of them even confess themselves
void of an idea as to what they shall
write about, imagining that the men
who are to pay for their matter can
afford also to supply them with its
framework and spirit.
People talk a great deal about the
miseries of the poor and the struggles
Of the working classes, but there is
probably far more real suffering in
the struggles of those who want to
work but do not know how. We can
conceive of no more unhappy person
than the man whose ideas have been
refined into almost morbid sensitive
ness by liberal education, without
money and with no skill at anything
profitable. A complete education is
4 noble possession, but the education
which does not embrace the mastery
OF some business is lamcntably iucom-
s'lcte, and the parent who makes a
blacksmith out of his son does him a
Much greater kindness than the one
who makes a mere graduate of the
ooy and leaves him to battle with life
wholly uucquipped for the struggle.
The fault probably lies less with the
colleges, which educate q man for the
the sake Of the man, than with parent5
Who t2ll 10 add 10 .A2t tbs r.llcgo