The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1886-06-24


that it is one which shall command res
pect in the eyes Of all people; and then
give our whole might, strength, thought |
and sou! to itletting no disturbances over |
whclm us. overcoming all difficulties, |
and triumphing over ali foes.
Therefore, press on, and reach The goal.
And gain che prize and wear the crown;
faint not. for II the stcadfast soul
Come wealth. and honor. and renown.'
OF CIRCUMSTANCES.
By NELLIE $. AxTELL.
a pebble in tie s.reamlet scant
Hath turned the course Of many river;
A dcwdrop on the tiny plant
Hath warped the giant oak forever"
A word, look, trifling circumstance
has changed the course of many life.
A bowlder, towering on the mountains
summit since the world began, suddenly
awakens from its sleep OF ages, goes
laundering madly down the rocky preci-
pice and plunges into the peaceful river
at its base. The stream rises, and flows
calmly on to the sea; but its course is
changed; old haunts know it no longer,
and new fields are made green by it's life
giving waters.
As this mountain bowlder, by it's fall
into the quiet bosom of the river, has
changed its course. SO in the great river
Of life trivial circumstance thrown in
our way has reused the sluggish current
of the mind, turned it into new channels,
and accomplished results that even the
widest flights Of fancy had never pictured.
In regular education the various i'm
pulses which produce these changes come
under our immediate observation. In the
same manner we know the characteristics
OF the seed which we SOW in fertile soil;
but whence came the seed that bids the
wildwood plant spring from the mold in
all its freshness and beauty? We know
there was germ, but We arc ignorant OF
the circumstances by which the seed OF
one has been conveyed b. propitlous
winds to favorable spot. safely lodged
in the bosom OF the earth. and there wa
tered and nurtured until it springs forth
in all the glory Of its health and yigor,
while thousands around 1t perish.
Some fact or observation has impress
ed itself deeply upon the tender mind;
some word has fallen upon the delicate
ear; some nursery sto;y, told with loving
words at mothers knee, has kindled the
faint sparks Of imagination and ambi-
ton. and thus has been formed in power
ty. solitude and obscurity, the genius Of
Burns or Franklin.
Greatest among the ca,lses We are per-
mitted to see. is the discipline OF poverty.
We have no better example OF this than
in the history OF our own United States.
What colonies were those that prospered?
Histor; answers, those founded by mon
who were made hardy and self-reliant by
the pressure of existing circumstances
Men like John Smith who taught the
jamestown gentlemen to swing the axe
and follow the pillow.
DR.. Thomas says: "When we study the
American type. its strength, its love OF
liberty,--its breadth and generosity, and
high aspirations, and the fact that so
many lives rise from obscurity to great.
ncss.--we must ask for the past influences
and the present conditions that have
made such results possible. And here
we find, lying back Of our American life,
a long line Of facts and forces we'll calcu.
lated to produce the civilization and the
mar Of our tims.'
Now witness the effect OF early impress.
sions! Voltaire was never able to rid
himself of the influence Of an lnfidel poem
learned when he was five years OF age.
When only nine years Of age, the love for
playmate which sprang up in the
breast Of Dante became the inspiration
Of his lite. Watt saw the same sight
that thousands Of eyes had witnessed, hut
-A'.rvation Of the bubbling kettle in
,.a, - ~. vhola
his mothers kitchen change,. 49, -
system Of mechanics. Newton saw an
apple fall, and we were made acquainted
with the laws Of gravitation. Gaiileo idly
watched swinging chandelier, and the
pendulum was brought to light. Brunei
saw worm slowly and patiently boring
it's way through wood, and now the Alps,
de.iers OF all but Hannibal and Napoleon.
arc tinne.ed from base to base. The
gauzy web Of tiny spider flrst oriRinat-
ell the idea OF the suspension bridge.
Some national emergency may develop
latent power. Had there never been wars,
it is highly probable there would have
been no great generals; had the Blue and
the Gray never disagreed, might not
Ulysses s. Grant have lived and died an
obscure tanner instead OF the man whom
nations love to honor? II Frunce and
America had never stood upon the brink
OF financial ruin. would Colbert ever
have been noted for his superior talent
or Alexander Hamilton been known G.
the greatest financier America has ever
produced? Erskine, tho eminent iurist,
penniless and discouraged, while endeav-
oring to borrow money to quit the scene
Of his disappointments, sprained his an.
kle aud that very night received his first
case Had it not been for this, England
might have been deprived Of one OF the
brightest ornaments OF the bar.
Seventy-one years ago to-day tho fate
Of all Europe hung in the balance, while