The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-06-30
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT.
The Fixcdness of Habit-The Importance
20 the Young of Doing Every Thing
Well.
Practice makes perfect, but perfection
does not necessarily come from much
practice. Every thing depends on the
character of the practice. The oftener
we do n thing carelessly, the more firm
ly we fix the habit of not doing that
thing well-the harder we make it to
do our best when need comes for the
exercise of our highest skill
Habits count for more than capacity
in the conduct of life; and if our
practice does not tend to make our
best work habitual, SO that it is easier
to do well than i'll, we will not be
much advantaged by it.
In practical life, "well enough for
the purpose" is a good rule. 1t is fol-
ly to put ten dola worth of work on
a fve-dollar job. We do not finish a
door-yafd fence as we would hand
rail of our stairway inside, nor a field
fence like the fence about the house.
The fine skill put upon the finishing of
a carriage would be out of place upon
a dump-cart
A Notwithstanding, or an ordinary
note of invitation, or penciled memoir
andum, must be correct or clearly in-
teliigible, but need not be artistic in
style or finish. In all such cases it is
not the doing, but the thing done, that
is of Importance. Doing TO- the pur-
pose of acknowledgement for any
purpose except sheer necessity in early
life-comes under different rule.
In youth, when our habits are form
ing, we misspend our time if we do any
thing-work or play-indiferently
well. There is then no ''well enough"
except our very best The thing we
set out to make may not be worth much
when it is finished, yet we can not af-
ford to make it badly, There is as lit e
solid enjoyment in piece of poor work
as in a badly-played game.
Besides, if the joining made, the
blow struck, or the line drawn, is not
true to the best of our ability, the prac-
tice got in doing it will hinder rather
than help us toward that condition of
off-hand, unconscious. habitual skill
fulness which is the secret of easy and
successful accomplishment.
We may not have-are not likely to
have-the rare gifts which constitute
genius, but we may draw near to, per-
haps surpass, the achievements of
genius, if in all our training work we
never allow ourselves in any thing to
fall short of the best that we are capa-
BILE of doing. Practice of this kind leads
toward perfection; all other away
from it.
With the high demands and fierce
competition of modern life, the chances
are heavily against those who are
capable of third or fourth rate work
Every avenue of life is crowded with
those who can do work that is lust toll
erably good; but superior workers are
fewer.
In every art or profession there is
abundant 'room at the top;" and the
uncrowded workers, though few
rather because they are few-reap the
lions share of tbs rewards. For the
products of superior knowledge and
skill there is always n demand at good
prices, and the first-rate man or wo-
man commands the situation, while the
third-rate goes a-begging for something
to do.
When one has learned how to do supe-
riorwork, and has acquired the habit of
doing it rs a matter of course, it is as
easy to do that rapidly as poor work;
and the superior worker in every field
Of effort receives twice, thrice, often
ten times the pay of the inferior work
er. This unequal pay for equal labor
is the prize which the world offers for
superior quality in work, and that quail
ity is very largely the result of taking
pains when working habits are being
formed
Accordingly we would say to our
young friends Don't let your pastime
work train you to be "botches.' You
are making not playthings merely, but
yourselves; and a bad job at that is
the worst job you can undertake. Bet
ter be doing absolutely nothing than
practicing any thing in II careless, hap
hazard. hit-or miss fashion.
1t is easier to learn good habits than
to nnlearn bad ones, and any practice
that fixes bad habits-mannal. mental
or moral-will not pay.-G E.. Corson