The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-10-13
None Great by Chance.

ut is said that mere accident
placed WhiteIaw Reid at the head of
the New York Tribune. A mere ac-
cident may have place him there, but
no accident could haye kept him
there. , E,rchdnge.
The aboye is no truer of persons in
the newspaper profession than it is
i'll The thousands of other professions
ana business occupations ofthe world,
A young man may be suddenly ele-
Vated to prominent position by, as
IL may seem mere chance, but un-
less ne eVlnces energy, activity, abil-
ity and industry, he will not hold
the position by mere chance, or
through any other medium of favor,
but will be summarily bounced.
1t matters not whether it be the
boy who, "by chance" secured en-
ploymeat in grocery store, where
his duties are to wrestie with sugar
and molasses barrels, sort and deliver
potatoes, or weigh Goldfish, or the boy
who suddenly drops into a seat in a
lawyers Office where he can, between
running errands and sweeping out
the office, pack away in his memory's
store house, chunks OF Blackstone"
and intricate masses of legal prob
lens, the boy in both instances must
show up reasonable amount of in
telllgence, courtesy and Industry, or
some Kind of an accident will as sud.
denly oust him as the chance" plac.
ed him in that position.
In the case mentioned above, Mr..
held was young man when he crap.
pied with the duties and responsible.
tiles Of his position, not as young,
perhaps, as the boy who steps into
workshop to learn a trade, but young
enough SO that he could, had he kept
his eyes wide open and his brain and
hands busy, made mistakes which
would not have passed as accidents,
but which would haYe slid him into
obscurity SO unceremoniously as to
surprise him.
The boy who steps behind a grocery
store counter, or into the workshop,
and obtains position as the boys of
the town would say, by accident"
can if he sits around with his hands
in pockets, for hours at time, or
ldles away minutes and hours of his
employers time, lose the position by
a greater accident than the one that
secured for him the place.
This country is full of young men
who have been favored at times by
"chance," or what locks very much
like it, luck some call it but none of
the great thinking industries, self
made men, are great by accident.
Every town and city on earth, to-
day, possesses one or more young
men who have suddenly dropped in
to, fat situations, but unless they
have the requisite ability to perform
the duties of the situations, some-
thing more serious than an accident
deprives them of the chance of their
lives, and unless they reform, they
will seen be found with the idlers of
the town, sitting on the fence chew.
ing a stick, throughout the liyelong
day.
Occasionally one meets a young
man who is ioafirg about the corner
grocery or the saloon who can tell of
a time in his life when he accidental
~ got into a fine paying position,
and as he tells you of the circum.
stance, he invariably leaves out the
fact regarding how he came to lose
the Place, and attributes that TO an
accident also, when ten chances to
one, the facts were that he had a
strata of laziness in his composition,
or did not possess the ability and in
dustry to hold the place.
1t does not take the business men
tfthe present day, or the companies
who employ help, long to ascertain
how many of their hired hands fell
into the positions by accident, and
whether they are competent to fill
the position or not, and it is seldom
if ever, that young man holds po-
sition in these days unless he is COM
petent TO fill the place assigned him.
The chance or accident business
among the practical men of the
world, is played out, and whether it
be the case of Mr.. Reid, or the boy
wedding the onion beds for some
farmer at twenty-five cents a day.
both hold their respective positions
in life through attention to business
and ability to perform the labor set