San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1881-01-06
Phases Of Human Life.

Phases Of Human Life.
It is not true that the people are
growing worse, yet many are led to
think so after reading the papers,
much of whose space is filed with all
sorts of crimes; but the statementap-
pears at first glance to contain n large
percentage of truth; however, the ap.
pearance exists only in name, not in
fact. We are 80 accustomed to the
highly sensational and the weaker and
vicious phases Of society that we take
no notice of the thousands whose daily
walk is upright, and are known as quiet
industrious, and law-abiding citizens.
Are we not too apt to condemn indis
criminately whole class of persons
for the shortcomings of one onlyi Is
there not also side of human life that
is rarely seenin the publicprintsf Lei
but single person-either man or
woman-take one false step, and it
becomes known, soon it passes from
lip to lip, only to be flashed to all parts
ofthe country asa choicepiece OF news.
While, perhaps, in the very same 10
cality the hundreds who walked in The
path of right, are entirely overlooked,
their names unknown except to
small circle ofpersonal acquaintances,
and were it not they are numbered in
the census record their names would
neverappear in public. Oftheir happy,
healthy, social life the outside world
knows next to nothing.
This phase of life and conduct, we
are prone toneglect in makinga an esti-
mate of human conduct. Ifone pub
lie official proves recreant to the trust
committed to his care, it, as soon as
found out, is heralded to the world as
another proof Of general infdelity 20
public faith. But of the thousands
who perform their duty faithfully, and
as much as is ever said to them is SAC
counts balanced and found correct
A brief sentence is sufficient to tell
the whole history of official intesE'ty.
The gigantic contests from the pu-
gilist up to the railroad king are duly
chronicled, but the men OF peace are
quiet in their security from outside
tongues. Gauntpedestrians-alln nerve,
bone and muscle, tramp. tramp upon the
track to the utmost limit of human en-
durance, yet the millions of men who
follow the pillow, and are most worthily
engaged, work day in and day out
without ever attracting the attention
of the gay, the thoughtless and the
giddy. Their tread is as the tramp ol
the millions, because it is in the einter-
est of humanity; and the men who
stand through storm and sunshine
heat and cold, to protect life and prop
erty, more powerful! than governors in
preserving order, how little is said OF
their faithfulness, not because we do
not appreciate it, only we are used to
it.
Health is called q state of conscious
ness, and of this we are told next tc
nothing. Only the blotches and PIN
pies and putrid sores and the lurlo
glare of the vilest passion are brought
to the surface-they are not and can
not be the indices of social life and
heath. They do not represent the
better side of mans nature. This
morning it may be stated that the
"forger is arrested, nothing is said oI
the men who handled a 100000
yesterday and every cent accounted
for. Again, ''she was frail, think o
the millions of mothers and mlidens
constant and pure. "a railroad acci
dent-.ives lost" What shall we no
think of the thousands Of trains tha
go speeding across the country, carry.
ing safely half million persons every
week. With these, so it is with on
social world-its beauties we Otter
fail to see. Bat us we write c)nstan
stream of happy, cheerful faces COM
and 90 before us-faces, many Of then
we have known for years-they ar
pure, honest, upright: and on such a
these society rests-they are the tru
men and women whose lives are I'm
written only in the affections Of thos'
who know them, and a. large in tn
grelt helrt Of hunlnity.-K lnsi
City Times.
The coll feds Of Nlrslsrn Tsxr