The Osceola times., 1881-11-05
Character.
Communicated !

! Communicated
There is structure which every
, body is building; young and old,
each one for himself. II is called
character; and every act of life is a
stone. If day by day we be careful
to build our lives with pure, noble,
upright deeds, at the end will stand
a fair temple, honored by God and
man. But as one leak will sink a
ship, and one flaw break chain, So
one mean, dishonorable, unthought-
ful act or word will forever leave its
impress and work its influence on
our characters. Then let the several
deeds unite to form a day, and one
by one the days grow into noble
years, and the years as they slowly
pass will raise at last a beautiful edi-
flee. enduring forever to our praise.
There are AS many master workmen
in you as there are separate faculties,
and there are as many blows struck
as there are separate acts Of emotion
or solition. Every single day these
myriad forces are building, building.
building. Here is great structure
going up point by point, story by
story, although you are not conscious
of it. 1t is building of character;
it is building that must stand. and
the work Of inspiration warns you 10
take heed how you build it; TO see to
it that you have foundation that
shall endure; to make sure that YOU
are building on il, not for the hour
in which you live, but for that hour
of revelation when you shall be seen
just as YOU are. Our minds are Civ
en- us, but our characters we make:
our mental powers must be cultiva-
ted, The full measure of all the
powers necessary to make a man are
no more a character than handful
Of seeds is an orchard of fruits. Plant
the seeds and tend them well and
and they will make an orchard. Cul-
tivate the powers and harmonic
them well and they viii make a no.
bic character. The germ is not the
tree; the acorn is not the oak; nei-
ther is the mind character. God
gives the mind, man makes the char
acter. The mind is the garden, the
character is the fruit. The mind is
the white page, the character is the
writing we put on it. The mind is
the metallic plate, the character is our
engraving thereon. The mind is the
shop-the counting-room, the char
acter is our profits on the trade.
Large profits are made from quick
sales and small percentage; so great
characters are made by many little
acts and efforts. \ dollar is com
posed of a thousand mills, so is a
character Of Il thousand thoughts and
acts. The secret thoughts never ex-
pressed, the inward indulgences in
imaginary wrongs, the lie never told
for want of courage, the licentious-
ness never indulged in from fear Of
public rebuke, the irrevcrencco of the
heart, are just as eifectual in stain
ing the character as though the world
knew all about them. \ subtle
thing is a character, and a constant
work is its formations; whether it be |
good or bad, it has been long in its
growth, and is the aggregate of mil !
lions of little mental acts. a good
is a precious thing above
rubies, gold crowns or Kingdoms,
and the work Of making it is the no.
blest labor on earth
Character is formed by course of
actions, and not actions by character.
A person can have no character be-
fore he has had actions; though an
action be ever SO glorious in itself,
it ought not to pass for great if it be
not the effect Of wisdom and good
design. Great actions carry their
glory with them as the ruby wears
its colors. Whatever be your condi.
ton or calling in life, keep in view
the whole Of your existence. Act
not for the little span of time allotted
you in this world, but act for eterni-
ty. Characters formed bv circum-
stances are much like machine poe
try. They are the picture of old
chaos-a mass of confusion. \ thou
sand winds have blown together the
materials of which they are made.
They usually lack order, harmony,
consistency and beapty-the very
elements and essentials of good
character. They are those aimless
nuisances that live for nothing, and
mould and become putrid aboSt the
sewers Of the world. If aught on
earth is dispicable it is these porous
masses of eonglomcrated filth and
scum that float on the surface of So
ciety, driven or attracted bv every
speck of circumstance about them.
They are purposeless, powerless, en-
cryated automatons playing second
fiddle to chance, One brave will to
resist evil and hold fast to good is
worth million of them. One stout
soul with resolute determination to
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