The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1885-11-21
Beauty and Excellence
Philadelphia Ledger.

Many persons have the notion that
beauty is something entirely apart from
excellence or usefulness. However de-
sirable it may be in itself considered to
refine and soften mankind, it is usually
thought of not as an Inherent necessity
to our nature, and not as an essential
part of sound and sterling value, but
rather as a felicltous appendage only to
be sought after all useful qualities have
been secured. Yeta trueridea of beauty
would give it deeper place both in ma
ture and in art. 1t is not, on after
thought, to be taken up or laid aside as
opportunity or accident suggests not a
luxury to be postponed until all fancied
needs are supplied. 1t is intimately
connected with excellence, and is fire.
quently token of its presence. There
is nothing really beautiful that Is who'll
ly useless; nothing perfect of its kind
which has not also beauty of its own.
Nature, it is true, teens with beauty.
which, as it appears to our limited
vision, has no other purpose than to de-
light the eye of man. Yet all research
es into her secrets show us how thor
oughly her beauty enters into and forms
part of her perfection. Mountain and
sea, valley and lake, river and forest, all
have their own character and destiny,
and 1t Is these that are revealing them
selves to US through the emotions which
sublimity or lovliness always excites.
A tree that bears neither fruit nor foil
age, that suggests no idea of shade for
man or shelter for bird, does not inn
press us with sense of beauty. Nei-
ther would fish that could not swim,
bird that could not fly, or horse
that showed no marks of strength or
fleetness.
So in mans productions, there must
be fitness before there can be beauty.
We cannot admire the ediiice that is i'll
built and tottering, or the ship that can
not breast the waves, or the machinery
that lacks smoothness and power. The
dress that exposes the wearer to the cold
of winter or the heat of summer can
not by any adornment be made truly
beautiful. Whatever. in fact, impairs
the value or usefulness of an article inn
pairs also its beauty, and the more sur
| passing the performance the more claim
it has to be considered beautiful.
Beauty is far more than mere ornament
or establishment; it belongs, first of all,
to the intrinsic fitness of things and to
their real value. No one, therefore,
who does thoroughly good, honest work
of any kind need feel that he can con-
tribute nothing to the beauty of the
world, for he is doing it in the most ef-
tective and permanent manner.
We do not mean that this excellence
eHhausts all the beauty in nature and in
art. There are laws of beauty which it
is well to study and observe, apart from
what we call simply useful. There are
shadings of color and graces of form
and delicacy of texture which we all
agree to be beautiful, yet of which we
cannot discover other practical use than
the pleasure they afford. Even these,
however, must have their foundations
laid in real worth If the beauty is too
survive. All shams, all shallow and
imperfect work, done without earnest
ness or for gain and show, must event
ually be as destitute of real beauty as
they are of practical use. But just rs
true diamond gains in lustre by polish
ing that would wear away false stone,
so superior work honorably performed
is capable of taking on it more and more
beauty with every fresh effort.
So with character, it cannot be beau
tiful until it is good and true, for in that
very goodness and truth does its beauty
reside. 1t is when virtue becomes
spontaneous, when right-thinking and
right-doing are the natural outbreak
ings of the soul, that we recognize and
admire tie beauty OF character This
is, however, the rich fruit that grows
only upon the strong tree of earnest
striving and virtuous endeavor. 1t is
well, then ever to bear in mind that,
while beauty has many off-shoots in
which we may justly delight, it must,
to be worthy of its name, have its roots
deeply planted in the soil of goodness,
truth and excellence. When this is so
then
'The thing of beauty is a Joy forever;
Its loyliness increases; II will never
Pass into nOihneness" h"