Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1888-07-19
Advice 60 n Young Man.

/ turn over the leaves of an old note
book, the pages of which | filed half
score of years ago. On one page
find this note:
"My books arc all wrinklcd and tiilQd
with crumbs of maple and sumach
leaves, with here and there forgot
ten forest leaf olinging TO the printed
one. All well! some time | may kiss
the wiinklcd pages of my choicest
book while / think of the dear, white
hands that laid the maple leaves in
history or lexicon, and thank God that
the page is wrinklcd and the engray-
ing discolorcd'
And now, Whenever | turn to that
page In the notebook, do You know,
my boy, how glad am that wrote
about the leaves as | didg There YVES
no shadow Of fear or dread over my
little homo then. There was no reason
why | should feel SO tenderly toward
the leaves and stems that stained aud
wrinklcd my book, and even kept me
from using them for week ut time,
was there? All indeed there was
Because love j. better than books, my
boy. Because your books, my son,
though you crowd the literary treas
ures Of the world upon your shelves,
can never creep intoyour heart as your
wife VIII, some day, when you find the
girl whom the gods have decroed shall
crown your home. Because we should
always hold the hearts that love MS
nearer 10 los than the petty aunoyanoes
and little ills Of this life. Because the
quick, hasty, words You speak in i'll
temper or ungcntleness to-day. my
boy, leaves a sting in your heart 10
raukle half century away Because
to-day il ] could, / would burn up
every book there Is in all this world
just to feel the little hands that laid
those leaves in The pages where ! said
they must not 90, clasp themselves
about my neck for one hour Hold
your tongue and your pen, my boy.
Every time you are tempted TO say an
ungentIe word, or write nm uukiud
line. ~ say mean, ungracious thing
about anybody, ius4 stop; look ahead
twenty-five years, and think how it
may come back TO You then.
Let me tell YOU how | write moan
letters and bitter editorials. my boy.
Some time when % man has pitched
into nae and "cut me up rough, and
want 20 pulverize him, and wear his
CORY scalp at my girdle and hang his
hide on my fence, | write the letter or
editorial that Is 10 DO the business. /
write something that will drive sleep
from his eyes aud peace from his soul
for six weeks Oh, ! do hold him over
slow fire and roast him Gall and
aquaiortis drip from my burning bis
tcring pen, jhon | don't mail the
letter and don't print the editorial.
There's always plenty Of time 70 cru
city man. The vilcst criminal is en-
titled 10 a little rcprieyc ] put the
manuscript away in q drawer. Next
day | look 1T IT, The ink is cold; ]
read it over and say: II don't know
about this There's "A good deal Of
bludgeon and bowie-knifc journalism
In that. I'll hold ftoyera day longer"
The next day | read it again. | laugh,
and say "Pshaw!' and can feel my
checks getting little hot. The fact
is. / am ashamed that / ever wrote it.
and hope that nobody has seen Ir,and
| have half forgotten the article or let
ter that filed my soul with rage. /
haven't been hurt haven't hurt any
bod, and the world goes right along,
making twenty-four hours a day rs
usual, and am all Che happier Try
il, my boy Put off your bitterremarks
until tomorrow. Then, when you try
to say them deliberately youth find
that you have forgotten them, and ten
years later, ali, how glad you will be
that you did Be loving aud gentle
with the world. and you'll be amazed
TO see how dearly and tenderly the
worried, tired, yex2d. harassed old
world loves YOU. -Burtettc