Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-03-13
OWNING THE EARTH.
Some Solid Chunks of wisdom.

Peck'8 San.
How often we hear men say 81 am glad
of it," when speaking of some man who
has been at the top of the heap, political
ly, socially or financially, and has sud-
denly dropped. Once in great while a
man says 81 am s6rry, H'but that is when
the man who has fallen was the same Kind
Of fellow when he was or top that he
was before he got there. The trouble is
that too many men, who go to the front,
get the idea that they own the earth, and
their old friends get down on them and
they do not make new ones to take the
place of the old ones. A ward politician
who becomes a Congressman can make no
greater mistake than to get too big for his
boots when be is elected, and forget his
friends and put on airs. The boys who
have made him what he is. talk with each
other about him, and laugh at his great
ness, and never tell him what they think,
but some day when he comes up again
they slaughter him, and he drops on the
political sidewalk and never knows what
hit him, but he knows that he is hurt.
Then he tries to smile at his old friends
and slap them on the shoulders; and eX.
plain HIMSELF, but ii is eyerlastingfy too
late, What they wanted was to have him
remain Just the same when he was on top.
A man may go along, poor, and be re,
spected and have thousands of friends.
and he may suddenly have fortune left
him. The first time he puts on a silk
undershirt he changes towards his friends
and seems to own the earth. He
goes around block to avoid meeting
some friend of the old days, and he
looks over them when he meets them.
They watch for him to drop, and when he
does 60 through his money, and gets down
10 earth again, and fpds that the other
fellows own some of il, he meets an old
friend that he has not noticed for wears.
and says "HellO, Bill,' but Bill does not
'hello.' Bill has wanted to ''hellov for
for some time, but he didn't receive any
encouragement, and now his appetite for
S'helioinS3; has left him, If he wants to
''hell0 Bill he goes of and does it with
somebody whose head has not cot too
big far his hat, and the man who
las been temporarily at the top of
the heap sees that he has made a
Beaver Dam fool of himself, When man
has been climbing hill all his life, and
slipped back 80 much that it has made his
head swim, but finally, by sticking his toe
nails in, gets to the top, he has a right to
feel glad, but he wants to be contented
where he is, and not to try to fly high.
When he gets to the top of the hill he is
IN more dangerous place than he was
While lie Was climbing, because from
where he stands IT is doyZn hill in every
direction. Dld you ever think OF that,
boys? Every way you look, when you
get up there, it is down hill, and you have
got TO brace yourself, and not lose your
head, or the first thing you know your
foot viii slip. and yOg yill go down head
over appetite. If you have kept your
head and your friends while you were
at the top, and those who are
still climbing see that you are letting
go4r foot slip, they will try to brace
you, ana keep yoa up, but if you have
made an ass Of YOURSELF, and thought be-
cause you had got there that you owned
the hill, and have thrown obstacles in the
way of the other climbers, and you start
70 go down, as Josh Billings has said.
FAN cFsatioR seems creased for the occa-
sion," and when you set 10 gazing nobody
will reach out to save you. 1t Is good
lesson for boys as well as men TO learn.
that the top Of the hill is the most danger
GUS place, and when they get there they
yill be the same careful, sensible persons
that they were when they were sticking
their toe nails in and putting. The coun-
try is full Of late politicians, who would
give all they have got, and mortgage all
they expect to have, if they had not lost
their heads when they got TO the top Of
the hill.