The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1889-10-13

his career, his temper. on either line of
the ascending or descending scale,
uown INTO the lowest parts Of the earth
OF up TO the TRANSPORTING heights; there
IL no loss of sslf-command, no sacrifice
OF duty TO circumstance. On his line
oil motive and conduct, there is small
danger Of fatal extremes. He was too
nara "A worker for the family which
sheltered his youth, and for the race
which tasked his manhood TO the utter
most, TO excuse idleness and aimless-
ness of any kind. And on the path Of
his ambitions. and under their re-
strainst, there will be no extravaganza
OF desire, no unsettling of reason, no
spinning into the air like a balloon, to
come down into maniac's cell or a
suicides grave.
That wonderful mythology of the old
Greek race recognized the strength OF
human aspiration and its perils, too, in
the pathetic legend Of that child Of the
sun who foolishly insisted to drive, for
day, the fiery coursers of his father.
bat was thrown from his chariot high
IN mid heaven, and was drowned in the
sea beneath. They saw the dangers of
excessive desire, and so pictured it, but
they could supply no sufficient safe
guard to the emulous will. They had
no conception Of divine power taking
possession of the spirit of man, and
so infusing il with godlike tquahties
that the higher he rises in genuine
greatness, the safer he is from harm,
because he IS coming so much nearer
the only sure helper and keeper Of his
well.being. Reversing this. that guard
ian Friend knows experlmenNl.y what
aid is needed on the other side of this
double life Of ours. The hills must
have their valleys. The going down is
not so easy after alh There is the nat
ural shrinking within ourselves.
wretched loncsomeness craving selfish |
isolati0n-an unwholesome, stagDant
mood-under the incubus of which we
feel very worthless, would not inJure /
any one, do not care to benefit any one.
This is the receded tide, and tho broad,
fat. uncovered, unsightly, unsavory |
scawccd and slime; natural enough,
but not naturally to be cured. Now,
under "the quickening spirit, this hui
inflated and detected frame Of mind /
and feeling is lifted and purified into a
Christian meekness and sef possession.
The sense Of unworthiness is not less
ened: it is changed from a filful, tran
silent sensation of good -for-nothingness,
miserable self-disgust, into the humili-
ty Of a thoughtfully religious self-re-
spoct. Il am not deserving anything,
may be its honest confession; but l
know that am worth worlds is the
language of its hope and its purpose Of
winning i'm mortal crown.
Nothing marks this earnest, wrench
ing Of ours more polntedly and pam
fully than this-that increasing thou
sands of its educated people are of the
true centre of rest, are utterly unbal-
anced in feeling and character. So the
scale ylbraies. sinking heavily then fly
ing upward by some spasmodic strug
gle, but wholly without poise-a fear
full strain which the soul is thus made
10 suffer. How wearing and wasting
is such life is easily seen. 1t
is not easy 10 see, but many
know how eagerly, and by and bye
how desI e-ately, these baflled natures
pray for escape from this chill and fever
Of the heart. Life has proved failure:
what else is leltY The dismal reply Is
thrusting itself upon Us in every direc-
ton and through every channel OF
daily news, that worn out and
hopeless men and women, through
every grade of social standing,
are taking the last tateful venture
)f themselves. putting an end to this
ntOierabie existence. no matter what
nay come next. That was the solution
IF this grave problem to which the
highest grade of organism the world
las even seen, attained. That, or the
christian faith and self-control, is the {
eal alternative.