The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1883-08-25
LEFT FOOT
MIR. ANYTIME, THE sPANIARD.

l have a friend whose reply generally
Is, when you ask him to do thing:
"Oh, yes, that can be done any time"
He is not in the least unwilling to do
things. He is not obstinate about adj
hitting that the thing ought to be done,
but his first instructive impulse in re-
gard to almost everything in life is to
put it off little.
Ii You demonstrate with him, he has
a most exasperatiug proverb on his
tongues end, and he is never tired of
quoting it: "There is luck in leisure.'
Do what you will, you can't make
him see that this proverb is aimed at
people who hurry unwisely; not in the
least at people who are simply prompt.
As if headlong haste and quiet, ener-
getic promptitude were in the least
like each other. L.|.
We call Mr.. Anytime the Spaniard,
because it is well known that the Span
iard's rule of life is: "Never do to-day
that which can be put off till to-mor-
row. Even into the form of histor-
zeal proverb, the record of this national
trait of the Spanish people had crys-
tallized many years ago. Even the
Spanish people themselves say sarcastic
cally; "Succors of Spain; late or
never" .'.4
But says Mr.. Anytime: "What is
the use Of being in such hurry? Oh,
do be quiet, can't you? Let's take
little comfort and then he settles back
in his chair and looks at you with such
twinkle in his eyes that you half for
give him for his lazness. That is one
thing to be said for lazy people. They
are almost always good-natured.
Then we preach little sermon to
him, and the sermon has four heads;
four good reasons why we ought to do
things promptly. i
Firstly, we say to him; ''How dost
thou know, o lazy Spaniard, that thou
canst do this thing at any other time
than the present. Many things may
preysat sickness, thine own or
thy friends - business, forgetfulness,
weather, climates; there is no counting
up all the things which happen and
which hinder our doing the things we
have planned to do, but have put off
doing" eladl -f
Secondly: "There is another truth, o
iaay Mr.. Anytime, each day, each
hour, each minute, has its own thing to
be done--itsI own duty. If one single
thing is put off, that thing will have to
be crowded into the day, or the hour or
the minute which belonged to something
else; and then neither thing will be well
DONE. '.H $50 'N ''
Thirdly: IF it can be done now; that
alone is reason enough for doingit now
that alone is enough to prove that now
is the natural time, the proper time for
it. Everything has its own natural
time to be done, Just as flowers have
their natural time to blossom, and fruits
have their natural time to ripe and fall
Just suppose for a minute that such
things should get into the way of say
ing, Any time'' That the grains
should say: ''Oh, we can get ripe any
day" and should go on. putting it off
all through July and August, and Sep
TENDER, and October; for when people
once begin to put off, there is no know
ing what will stop them-until, all Of 4
sudden, some day sharp frost should
come and kill every grass-blade through
out the country. What would we do
for hay, then, L wonder! Why, half tile
poor horses and COWS. would starye, and
all because the lazy grains said they
! could get ripe " any time. "LL ''"7!
Suppose strawberries or apples should
take it into their heads to say the same
thing. Wouldn't we get out of patience
going day after day looking for some
ripe enough toleatP And wouldn't the
summer be gone before they knew itp
and all the time be wasted that the
vines and the trees had spent putting
out their leaves and blossoms, which
had not come to fruito And wouldn't
the whole world and everybody's plan
of living be thrown into confusion il
such things were to happenP
Luckily no such thing is possible in
this orderly earth, which God has made
with a fixed time for everything; even
for the blossoming of the FINEST little
flower, and for the ripening of the
smallest berry that was ever seen. No
body ever. heard the words ''any
time " from anything in this world eX.
cept human beings. ~
Fourthly,, we say, to, our dear Span
lard: Things which are put Off are
very likely never to be done at all. The
chances are that they will be at last
forgotten, overlooked, crowded out.
''Any time is no time; Just as ''any
body's work. is nobody's work, anc
never gets attended to, or il it is done
at all, isn't half done.
| Ia And after we have preached through
our little sermon with its four heads
then we sum it all'up, and add that til,
| best of all reasons for never saying /
thing can be done 'iany time is that
besides being shiftless and lazy phrase
1t is disgraceful one. 1t is the badg,
OF a thief; the name and badge of tn,
worst thief that there is in the world;