The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1886-11-06
NECESSITY OF LABOR.
Training and Exercise Of Mind and BODY
Essential to True Happiness.


Training and Exercise Of Mind and BODY
Essential to True Happiness.
There died in Paris the other day .
woman erich beyond the dreams Of ava
rice" She tried to keep her table as
simple as her dignity permitted, but
that, It seems, was not simple enough
for her good. Gout, that follower Of
ease and high living, tormented her. af-
fecting her bronchial tubes so that she
could not breathe the night air without
torture, and so she was deprived Of
sleep. "Poor food and hard exercise
would probably have relieved her. But
what doctor would have told q
dowager rolling in millions that sne
was subject to the common law, or that
IL she did not take out of herself in care
and work what she put into herself in
the form of victuals and drink she must
be torturedp She was kept on couch
when she should have been wedding her
garden or fussing around her dairy"
To get beyond the necessity of labor
is the ideal of happiness with great
many people. And this right in tho
face of the primal law: 'In the sweat
of thy face shalt thou cat bread" be-
cause 'cursed is the ground for thy
sake"
There can be no question that 1t is n
pleasant thing and very desirable to
have the command of ones time, and
to be able to choose how one shall occu-
py it. But to be able to take charge OF
ones self intelligently, and so to use
ones various faculties, mental and
bodily, that they may be developed to
the utmost, all kept in harmony with
each other and with the Divine law, and
all serving the common good, is in the
power of but very few. Unless one can
do this, the command of his time may
present condition of the generality of
people, the necessity of daily labor to
earn daily bread is most beneficcnt in
all its bearings.
We are learning by degrees that in
the training of the mind the highest de-
velopment can not be reached without
corresponding training of the body. In
other words, that both body and mind
must work or the best results can not
be attained as to mental stature. And
the great movement of our working
classes toward higher intellectual cul-
ture shows that they are beginning to
see that they can do better work with
their muscles and more of it if their
minds are quickened and informed. Our
schools and colleges add gymnasia to
their outfit for education, and furnish
them with apparatus calculated to de-
velop every tissue of the body. Exer-
else in the gymnasium is as much an
inforccd habit of the students life in the
better class of our schools as study or
recitation. We are learning, too, that
the training of the hand ought to keep
pace with the training of the brain, and
Industrial and technical schools are
springing up everywhere. In charity
kindergartens and kitchen gardens the
little children of the poor are learning
the use of their hands in various occu-
pations and industries, learning how to
play and how to work. how to apply
themselves to the tasks appointed them
to do, and being thus introduced in
telligently to the harder tasks they will
be called on to perform in maturer life.
Rest both body and mind must have.
But to rest one must first labor. One
must not take out of the body more
than is ''put into it in the form of vict-
uals and drink" but unless so much is
taken out. the overfilled body will be-
come prey to disorders and diseases
that will sooner or later destroy 1t.
While we are writing comes the Cent
ury, in which President Gilman, one of
our highest educational authorities,
pleads for the promotion of hand craft,
thus: "Kindergarten work should be
taught in the nurseries and infant
schools of rich and poor. Every girl
should learn to sew. and every boy
should learn to use domestic tools,
the carpenters or the gardeners,
or both. Well-planned exercises
fitted to strengthen arms, fingers, wrists.
lungs, etc., should be devised, and
where possible, driving, riding. swim
ming, rowing, playing ball. and other
out -of-door sports should be encouraged.
Drawing should be taught as early as
writing, and as long as reading, for all,
and everywhere.
This means hard labor for the little
ones; not necessarily disagreeable labor,
but labor that brings out the resources
OF the body and multiplies and develops
them fully.
The sleep of the laborlng man is
sweet whether he eat little or much, but
the abundance of the rich will not suf-
fer him to sleep. a good test of ones
condition is ability to sleep well. Toll
that does not interfere with sleep can
not be said to be excessive. Idleness
that prevents sound and refreshing sleep
and takes away the keen appetite for it,
robs man of this among other goods
of life, and makes existence empty. OBJ
jectless and meaningless.-M. y
Tribune.