The Columbus journal., 1880-12-01
Success and Failure.

The world is full of failures.
There is scarcely a man of talent,
genius and energy who has not fail
ed. The germ of enterprise that an
imates the youth shoots up like a
stem, and then often weakens for
want of genial soil and temperature.
Often il battles the elements for a
a long time, and then it must sue
cumb for want of proper food and
room to spread in. There are thou
sands whose bright spirits are chok-
ed in youth, and whose lives are
blanks for want of congenial ele-
ments, or, as we call it-epportuni-
ties. And there are those whose
morning of life is an aurora of
golden rays, whose progress is on
the silver edge of every cloud, apd
whose setting day is like the azure.
filled with brilliancy. These have
neither success nor failure, but are
fortwne's favorite. They do the
world but little good and are soon
forgotten. But these are hardly
spirits whose fame will fasten to the
rocks, and who will shoot up and
grow in spite of drought, heat or
cold who will displsce whatever is
too near for scope, and will have
room in spite of all resisting obsta-
cles, aud succeed. There are men
whom nothing will keep down.
They start in life with ideas, they
follow ideas, they work out prob
lens, and accomplish results.
These are positive minds-born TO
work, TO think and act. Often, too
often, they fail-utterly fail: but
like the ants, they start again to
carry home a new load. Yet the
grandest failures in the world have
resulted in the greatest benefits TO
mankind. The men who work and
fail are those who make charts for
others to sail by. They run on to
the hidden rocks and shoals, and
thus teach others where the safe chan
mel lays. They are self-sacrificing
benefsctors TO humanity in spite of
themselves. No class Of men are
More so than discOverers, inventors
and founders of new ideas. Christ
was in a worldly sense, perhaps, the
greatest failure on earth. lie failed
as a Jewish Reformer he failed on
the cross. Yet, but for his earthly
failure, there would have been no
success to his divine mission. Thou
sands of prelates, who have chanted
bis doctrines, have grown fat on his
teachings, and succeeded on his fail
ure. They have taught the world
how TO succeed. And all due pro-
gress is due TO them.
The glory of intelligence is devel-
opement and progress. We are
cropping in the dark - studying,
thinking, working, and trying to
End the point of success. The man
of ideas and perseverance is a glor-
iOus man. To him the world is i'm
debt. In debt for the lessons which
his ardor, genius and struggles haye
taught; in debt for his failures.
Give us the man who is not deferred
from effort blythe fearof failure. Many
must try and fail, so that some can
succeed. How gloriously confident
do not our miners work, and how
many fail but TO try again; to fail
and then succeed.
Many are called to work, but few
are chosen-to succeed. Failure is
the foundation of success.
The world is but too often wrong
in depreciating the man who works
and fails; often wrong in giving
credit to the men who have stepped |
into easy success on the failures of |
others.
Let us work on in faith, even if
we fail in effort, and we shall at least |
have lived for good results.