Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-08-16
FIRST PERSON SINGULAR.
BY CHRISTINE TERHUNE uERRICK
: Copuridhted. 18SG.l

CoDyrighted, 1886.
"Seest thou a man wise in his own concet;
there is more hope of a fool than OF him.
The remark is not inirequently heard
that the Bible has become old-fashioned,
its code of ethics and beliefs fallen far
behind that Of the present age. Occasion
ally in reading passage like the one
cited above it seems Mat such a state
ment has some truth in It, and that the
conditions OF success must have under
gone an astonishing change since the
days OF Solomon. We know 80 little OF the
everyday life of that period that we cannot
Judge il egotism was as essential TO ad-
vancement then as it now appears to be,
although the Royal Preachers dictum
would seem to Indicate the contrary.
Still, His utterances may have been like
those OF many mOralists and epigram
writer's OF our own period, whose terse
sentences show phases of lie rath er as
they should be than as they are. Perhaps,
/ too. diplomatic discrimination and the
| pride that apes humility" were as COM
mon in 1000 b. G. as in 1886 A. D., and
/ cOnceit may have yelled itself under an
/ appearance of self-depreciatIOn that then
as now deceived no one thoroughly except
! the person who practiced it.
The fact, lamented by many but denied
/ by few, that modest merit has little
| cnance when placed in competition with
self-asserting mediocrity, makes itself
more g,aringly perceptible each day. The
| saying that If man will not blow his
own trumpet he will find trouble in in
ducing any one to blow it for him merely
crystallizes into. an aphorism popular
! opinion upon the matter. II it be true
that men will praise thee when thou doest
good unto myself, 1t is also true that self
exaltatlon and self-depreciation are both
more apt to arouse echoes than contradic-
tions.
A theory once held as a belief, but now
rapidly sinking to the standpoint of a
fallacy, is the one that great learning
brings modesty in its train. The man
wise In his own cOnceit was prejudged to
be fool, while primers, copy books and
other engines for youthful instruction de-
clared that true knowledge was always
accompanied by humility. In the words
of NJ. Jourdain, "Nous av0ns change tout
celia" Now intelligent self-appreciation
rules the day, and man Is thought none
the less OF because he proclaims his own
powers and accomplishments.
Nor is any profession exempt from this
failing-if one may venture to stigmatize
as failing what is so rapidly becoming
a general practice. ClergYmen are rare
! ly free from a strong tendency towards
-glOriticatiOn. This may not always
| be simply coarse repetition of batteries.
1t shows itself in various forms. Chief
among them 10 naive conceit manifested
principally by constant disseI tations
upon their methods of preparing sermons,
their style OF creating certain topics in
sermons preached, the startling ef-
iects produced upon spellbound
audiences by the aforesaid discourses,
and the heartfelt compliments elected
from various members of the congrega-
ton. In listening TO such reports one is
tempted to parody the well-known saying
OF the small boy, who, after roaming
through a graveyard, attentively perus'
Ing the epitaphs, suddenly asked
"Father, where are all the bad people
buriedY One wonders privately what
has become OF all the stupid sermons and
thinks with new appreciation OF the
text preached from by so many young
tTeologues, 81 magnify mine office"
The Charltably disposed may plead in
eXtenuation OF this weakness in members
OF the body clerical that there is probably
no other class OF men who are so tremen
dOusly petted aud tlattered as are these
Women and men vie with one another in
attentions and compliments, and IL is not
to he wondered at il vain and much.
spoiled ministers are the result. Their
horizon is often bounded by their pastoral
charges ana their professional rethren
so that they become apt to ''take the rus.
tic murmur of their burg Tor the great
wave that pulses round the world"
But this excuse cannot he urged in
favor OF literary men. They, at least,
nave intercourse and friction with other
learned minds. Still IL is the exception,
not the rule, when a writer can be found
who is unwilling to entertain chance nc
quaintance with an account Of his modes
OF work,his successes and the tribute paid
to his talents. All, too. with generous
confidence that the recital cannot fail to
be interesting to the person hOnOred by
being made the auditor OF the narrative,
To such an extent has this been carried
that even among learned students mod
esty may be said to be fairly gone out of
fashion. Sir Isaac Newton would find
few imitators in his dying statement that
he felt like little child who had wan
dered on the shore OF the ocean OF know
ledge, gathering here and there shell or
a few pebbles. The modern savants have
cast their plummet into the deepest depths
and some OF them do not hesitate to aver
that nothing in their fields is unknown to
them.
A noted authority In English literature,
holding a chair In one OF our foremost
universities, recently consented II deliver
In private house, and at high figure, a
course OF lectures upon the English poets,
interspersed with readings from their
works. The series over, the lady in whose
parloTs the entertainments had been brld,
Invited choice circle of appreciadve
! friends 10 meet the distinguished PROBES