Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-06-07
CHARACTER.

n,.sussing essay OF MISS AnHa
,:.o delivered in the NJ. T. Church
:, I; SEATTLE June 9Th, 1884:
Ia, 70 the seal. so light IL said to
A. e'E 10 the sbjec. it meets. Ihs
u hS.n ,r,e also of character, which
snesdily takes the shape given 70 ~.
very ,,,ess of orr life is to form 1t and
fbs ou u;sb the mould to which 1t shall
,dapt ITSELF. .hnna undertakings are
and uncertain. At most they
ass from the memory OF this bnsy
pol pt Int character is lasting. Often
sisall that remains to the lnolViuuai,
w., misfortune has swept away All MS
W. ;ns and be is left friendless and alone,
% r. rock, solitary amid the waves OF
agr1 gWbs, ia there that falls more lightly
1usn.ly than the snowflake? A breath
~ 'u roslt il AZ 1t falls unnoticed and
VI. s.Iss With the feecy mass. Yet with
and pressure il hsrdens and be-
.s Nu ! mart of the giant icebergs which
nS aoat,ug down from the frozen 70.
o of the North. Might this not, in
Scnratjye sense, be applied TO char
a
se,ers
80 smstlon, feeting taought, gliding
h-Eke drifting shadow, vet each and
" are combined to form its web and
vOof. ,.o.;
var. Long before the individual has
rssehea three-scOre years and ten, how
svsr il become es in its perrnanence like
sSsmaut. During the changes of child
IN years one cannot tell the form IL will
snsIly assume, but as time rolls on IL
hscom.s less and less pliable, evidencing
b4vond doubt what will be its individ-
nsiity. Then, il it bs wanting in beau
10 II will be wanting I'm beauty forever.
4 il formed by various circumstances,
an Of which are to a great extent under
The control of the individual.
Scareelya day passes without its train
AZ circumstances resulting in good or
eyil. Every action, every thought, every
emotion, contributes to ones education
and exercises an inevitable influence on
future life.
In human nature there is no passive
condition. Changes are constantly oc-
curing which, in their tendency, are
sIeyating or lowering. Mr.. Ruskin says:
There il 10 fault or folly OF my life
that does not rise up against me and
take away my Joy and sherten my power
Of possession, of sight, OF understand
ING. And every past effort OF my life,
every glesm of rightness or good In 1t,
il with me now TO help me-"
Character is as the iron in the mine.
Various and manifold shapes can be
given TO that iron. Ii can be melted
and moulded and hammered into a
thousand Implements, from the nail to
the steam engine. True, its use NAV be
misapplied, but little of material good
could he accomplished without 1t.
Charact II also is liable To pervsrsion.
Instead of being she ped 80 taat 1t IL
useful, it may so be formed as to be de-
uructive. Without character there
could be nothing like noble life or that
life's deeds. Ii is the most valuable OF
all things man can have on earth.
The possession of honesty, integrity and
controlling sense of duty Is a capital IN
itself. Ii inspires confidence and com
mands esteem.
In the dark days of the Revolution II
WAS by force of character that Washing
ton held together the armies OF on'
country. IL was force Of character that
enabled Lincoln to bear mp against the
constant pressure of business. and to
discharge the duties which otherwise
his Overwrought mind would have re-
fused TO perform.
Character is valuable because of what
can be fashioned from it. What IL
brought out of it is the individuafs
alone, and his forever. Ii will be car
ried with him when time itself Is no
more. The image of the life hewn out
Of these years is the character which
has been traced by toe deeds performed
aud the thoughts that have been enter
tanned. That which a man IL in him
self Is true wealth; all else is but super
hcial.
The value of character is seen also by
the permanence Of its results. IL may
DO stamped as the wax or clay, but, the
stamp once made, the impression lasts
forever. Its imprint lays itself ON The
face OF the mind and fits itself to every
feature. Not an atom, not a shadow
fails to leave its impress.
Since impressions are 30 lasting, how
necessary it is that early education be
Of the best-that good example be al
ways chosen and followed. The train
Ing Of any man Is strongly influenced
BY the moral atmosphere of his early
years. child surrounded by coarse.
ness, ignorance and brutality ~ very apt
10 be coarse. ignorant and brutal.
On the contrary, a child who has al
ways been associated with persons OF a
pure, refined and lofty nature will un-
consciously acquire the attributes of that
nature. How needful, then. 10 Ia that
parents should instill into their child
Ten, and teachers develop in their schol-
ars, aud every one encourage In his as
sociates, those principles which will
make life blessing rather than a curse.
As We wander by the borders of the sea
where the dashing waves for centuries
have been ercroaohinp ON the land,
washing the sand away but leaving here
and there r, cky ledge, lifting Its top
In proud defiance our thought IL direct
ed to the shores of time. On these the
waves OF centuries are undermining and
sweeping away the greatest works OF
art. fhe structures on which We ex-
pend our skill are crambling; fortunes
are overwhelmed in the abyss; marks
OF decay are traced in all we behold'
and yet time and violence, destruction
ana decay leave tn every man that which
we denominate his character.