The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1878-06-14

act done, but will have its effect; an
there is no limit to that effect. Thf
thought, that word, that act will NOV
another, and that one another, and s
on endlessly, just as the atmOspher
vibrating to sound will spread its III
dulatiOns until they blend with othe
vibrations until they reach remotes
points. Or, rather, as the pebble droI
into the still waters of the placid lake
let, will stir its surface and send on
all overwhelming circle to its farthes
Z verge. Such is the power and eXten
of human influence, and so impOrtan
| is it that woman should be careful t.
exercise it in her own appropriat
sphere and exercise it Alright.
AS before remarked, the object O
education is to fit you for filling you
| sphere becOmingly. Remember you
education does not end here-it is bu
fairly begun. The course of studie
you have been pursuing will only serv,
as sweet prelude to the grand an
them which is TO follow. You have
only been working at and laying the
foundation. 1t remains for you t
carry up the superstructure, rear the
pillars, polish the columns, adorn the
walls and architraves and round vi
NhS OOAiC vi blAS anu INdlC'
ly has woman ventured into the wide
and to most persons uninviting, fielC
of the profound and abstract sciences
This field has been hitherto explored
chiefly by the sterner sex. But she
has often, by the eXquisiteneSS of hel
taste and fnely-wrought emotional
nature, adorned the arts of poetry
painting and music; and the history OF
polite literature, particularly for the
passing century, exhibits a wonderful
degree of development in female ge-
MUS and industry in these depart
ments. But whatever may be your
destiny in life, by whatever path Prov
idence may lead you, cannot refrain
from throwing out few hints which
may aid in the development of mind
and the formation of character.
Let me say then, cIGLtiCdte self
knOULedge. Know thyself was a max
im of one of the wise men of ancient
Greece. Many persons know every
body but themselves. They know 9TH
er peoples business, habits and dress;
and by taking pains and pleasure in
knowing Others they lose sight OF
themselves. 1t is not intended by
this to discountenance observations,
for much OF our information comes by
observation, but this, without intro
spectiOn, without knowledge of our
selves, makes superficial men and wO-
men. 1t is only by thorough under
standing of our own motives and feel
ings, that We can appreciate those of
Others fully, and thus become good
citizens and kindly social beings. 1t
is only by taking notice of our own
mental operations, that We can be
philosophers. 1t is only by searching
our own hearts that we can arrive at
the full stature of Christians. Self
examination is the key unlocking the
door to knowledge. 1t is the fountain
that feeds the streams of piety. How
can we comprehend others without
cOmprehending ourselves? Strive
then after self>knOwledge. Another
thought l would suggest is that of in
diridUdiity. Be like yourselves and
no one else. Be not servile imitators
in anything. Be nobody's shadow.
Have a character Ofyour own. Think
for yourselves Act for yourselves.
To form an individual character you
are by no means to suppose that you
must needs be abrupt, disagreeable or
offensive in your conduct, converse
ton or intercourse with Others. You
lIldN Dt Ill NOlll OlJlIIOllS "1luOub
being dictatOrial or dOgmatic. The
highest degree of amiability is entire
ly, compatible with independence of
thought. True politeness is not of
Tended by an honest difference of
opinion. The rules of etiquette in the
most refined society are not in antagO-
nism to independence of thought and
freedom of expression. It Is the man
ner, more than anything else, from
which offense cometh. You are not
to understand that such eccentricity of
character as attract attention is here
Not at all, for this is as
much to be avoided as the opposite eX-
treme. You can be yourself without
being eccentric. Nor are you to un-
derstand that, in order to sustain in
of character, it is necesSa-
ry whenever and wherever an opinion
from your own on any sub
ject is expressed, you should always
enter the lists to combat it in debate.
A becoming silence is not infrequently
as effective iii developing the trait now
under consideration. Not to dwell
longer upon this point, we simply
urge you to be something more than a
mere echo. Be self-reliant; look to
your own resources; cultivate individ-
uality.
Again: Need 1 admOnish you
against permitting your intellectual
faculties to rust and decay for want of
proper exercise or your minds become
dwarfed for lack of proper mental
The mind will be full,
and nourished, and enlarged chiefly
by reading. But no reading will be
or avail anything without
close attention. "Whether q book be
read from the oak lectern of a college
library, in the parlOr window or be-
meath the trees of summer, no fruit
will be gathered unless the thoughts
are steadily given up to the persual.
attention makes the genius; all learn
ing, fancy and science depend upon il.
1t builds bridges, opens new worlds
and heals diseases; without it taste is
useless and the beauties of literature
are unObserved, as the rarest flowers
bloom in vain if the eye be not fixed
upon the bed"
AS reading will afford you one of
the prime sources of improvement as
we'll as of pleasure, how important it
becomes to discriminate in the selec-
ton of books. In an address like the
present it would be impossible to men-
ton even the names of the many wri-
ters whose wOkS can be read, not only
with safety, but with profit. All
along the line of the march of letters,
great names stand out in bold relief
towering intellects rising above their
fellows like bold mountain peaks, SOL
itary in their grandeur. Such names
in profane history as that of the blind
old bard of Scio, whose epic numbers,
deep, solemn and musical as the
sounding waves of the blue Hgean,
stirred the heart of Greece and woke
the echoes of her clustering isles. Take
him all in all, and we are forced to the
"that Homer is not only
the poet, but the historian, the phil
osopher, the painter, the critic and the
rOnancer of the world. Such, too, as
the Bard of Mantua, the melody and
flow of whose verse have never been
surpassed and whose mild, subdued
Iustre is in part borrowed from the au-
thor of the Iliad. Then Shakespeare,
whose subtle spirit like the Ariel of
his own creation, penetrated all depths,
peered into and opened up every av-
enue cf the human heart, searched
out all the secret springs of action and
laid bare human character in all its
multiform phases. His mind, like
many~sided mirror, seemed, without
an effhrt, to catch and reflect with per-
feet distinctness, all images passing
before it. He, after Homer, sounded
the kev-note to almost every grand
conception in poetry since his day. Of
all profane writers he possessed, in my
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