The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-02-12
The Problem of Life.

The Problem OF Life.
From the beginning of recorded time,
life has been a strange problem. tits
unsolved to this day. If you ask man
of three score years and ten what has
been the purpose and object of his ex-
istence, he can give no answer satisfac-
tory either to himself or to you. If you
ask him whose years, by reason of
strength, have been heightened to four
score, and he can only reply by Devil
dered shake of the head. Starting out in
the morning Of life we are lured onward
over the thorny path by the foot of a
rainbow, whose brilliant colors are ever
near, but never attainable all
gently fade away as the shades of even
ing fall
What is the great end of life, its chief
good, the sunnsun, bon,1,u, as the old
Romans were wont to call it, has
always been a. subject Of
dispute among philosophers. 1t is
easier to tell what it is not, than what it
is. The real life, that which man is ever
getting ready to live, is never lived. We
think it is Pope who says:
"Man never is,
But always is to be, blessed"
Were we to gointo every place of bust.
ness and occupation in a city, and could
get the calm, serious attention of the
proprietor for few moments, he would
frankly tell us that his daily humdrum
existence, the perpetual cares and annoy
ances to which he submits, do NOT con-
stitute the life which he hopes one day
to enjoy. That life, whether he with
whom we talk be thirty, sixty, or eighty
years OF age, is still in the misty future.
1t has not yet been reached. 1t Is still,
as in the morning of existence, the ever
receding foot of the glorious rainbow. It
is no nearer to him of eighty than to him
of thirty.
Nearly all men, with greater or less
grasp and plan, are engaged in struggle
for wealth. But all will tell us that it is
not for wealth itself that they toll and plan.
None are soroid enough to admit that.
They strive to attain wealth as a means
to an end, that end is the ideal life that
is yet to come. Thus the great tide of
humanity sweep on through life, never
dreaming, never realizing thet the pass
ing days-their days of preparation to
ive-are all that there is of life.
Somewhere in some of his Writings,
Cicero gays that to study philosophy is
nothing but to prepare mans self to die.
A more agreeable and pleasant view of
philosophy, is to teach men to live-to
realize the main obi ect of life and to adapt
our philosophy to its attachments. Glorious
old Montaigue's view of philosophy and
the end of life pleases us better than that
OF Cicero. Said this really great man:
''And to say the truth, either our
reason does grossly abuse us, or it (phil-
osophy) ought to have no other aim but
our contentnaent only, nor to endeavor any,
thing bat. in sum, to make us live well.
and as the Holy Scripture says, at our
ease. All the opinions of the world agree
IN this, that pleasures IS our end, thoug n we
make use Of divers means to attain unto
it; they would all of them otherwise be
rejected at the first motion; for who
would give ear to him that should pro-
pose att1iction and misery for this end!
Let philosophers say what they
will, the main thing at which we all aim.
even in virtue itself. is pleasure.
Pleasure, happiness, or whatever term
you please to apply to tue idea-is, then,
the true aim of existence. How may that
best be gained? Is it in the unremi ting
and almost mad pursuit of wealth.. We
give prominence to this idea Of aceazth,
for it is that which engrosses the thoughts
and consumes the efforts of the great
mass OF men. Look all about you-up
and down our streets, and see the men
that are upon them. In what are thew
engaged now? In what have they been
engaged in all their days?
It is not necessary to argue that the
acquisition of wealth does not give that
pleasure, that happiness, which should
be the sum of life.
Cney must be sought in another direc-
ton. "Give me neither poverty nor
riches" was the prayer Of Agur. The gold
en- mean is what we should seek, and
contentment is the great foundation of
happiness and pleasure.
Two words in single line of one of
the beautiful odes of the Roman poet
Horace, were Carpe Diem, which freely
rendered mean: Enjoy the present day.
In those few words, Carpe Diem, there is
world OF philosophy and wisdom. To-
Dag IS all we have-all that we ever can
have. Yesterday can never be recalled:
Tomorrow which we are ever pre-
pairing to enjov--will never come. But
to enjoy the present day, Contentuent is
absolutely essential. For the discomfort
ed man, the sun shines, the summer
breezes blow, the fields are dressed in
green, the brooks murmur, and the flow
ers bloom, all in vain. All things ont
ward are just what the mind inward makes
OF them. To the contented mind it mat
tiers little what the face of nature is.
Says Montague: "Every one is well
or i'll at ease. according as he finds HIM
SELF; not he whom the world believes.
but he who believes himself to be so, is
content"
Lamp Cement Where the tops of
lamps have become loosened, it is not an
easy job to mend them, and many have
been disappointed in attempting to &C.
ment them on by the use of plaster-of-