Wichita eagle., 1889-03-01
PROFITS OF IDLENESS.
a Dangerous Doctrine to Inculcato INT
the Thriftless and Ne'er-do-Wen

a Dangerous Doctrine to Inculcato into
the Thriftless and Ne'er-do- Wen.
1t is often said that time is money!" and
we know that ''money is power" Time,
therefore. is also power, and a power Of
which we ought to make the best poss IDLE
use while we may, for, like money, this is
apt to take wings and fly. There is an art
of economizing time that is just as impor-
tant as the art of economizing wealth, says
London Queen. Economy is to attain a
given result at the least possible cost (of
time, money or any other power) or to at
tain the greatest possible result at given
cost. We have got certain amount OF
work to do-hOw can we most quickly do
1t! Or we have got certain amount Of
time at our disposal-how make the most Of
1t! Such are the problems of the time
economist Time economy is by no means
an easy art, we are all whether consciously
or unconsciously, either practicing or neg
lecting its principles. We are all either
time economists, time-mlsers or tlme-spend-
thrifts The time-economist IS the man or
woman who discovers as soon as possible
the work for which he or she is best suited,
how much he or she can do in q given time,
adopting the best and speediest methods,
and practicing the difficult art of leaving
undone or minding his or her own business.
Again, there is the tine-miser, whose OBJ
Ject is to hoard time, to spend no minute
without tangible return. To him time is
what gold is to the money-miser, a tyrant,
no less memorable because invisible, whose
iron will hinders, cramps and finally
crush es every noble and kindly impulse.
To him leisure minute is a lost minute.
His life is regulated by infinitely detailed
timetables, which, leaving no margin for
unforeseen events, is only adhered to at
the cost OF many a precious Opportu-
nifty Of getting or receiving good. Such
are unaware or forget that what they cali
wasted time is often fertile of the greatest
results to the obseryant and intelligent. Ii
all that we have learned in so-c2lied idle
moments were suddenly expunged from our
minds by some chemical process, how bar
rem those minds would often be. Who
knows now much such men as Shakespeare
Scott, Goldsmith, Thackeray, Dickens and
other students Of human nature have
learned in those idle moments when the
people who write stupid little tracts on the
sin of wasting time would have sent them
back to their desks and their dictionaries
We all know how fertile in results is heif
day to the weary brain worker or intelligent
handicraftsman. What poor economy i,
would be to dispense with such times ofidle-
ness. Topffer, the Swiss artistauthor, him.
self no idler, spoke truly when he said that
year of downright idlencss was desira
bic element in liberal education.
A comforting doctrine truly, but highly
dangerous to our third class of men and
women-the time spendthrHt- We al
know the type, the inveterate idler, who
yawns through purpeseiess days, talks Of
killing time and yet has pressing business
if suddenly asked for helping hand. But
there is another less obvious kind Of spend
thrift, the man or woman ever feverish
about trifies; or the other, who undertakes
long and varied programme OF work, and
accomplishes none for want OF method; or
third, who expends q vast amount of energy
in trying 70 do something for which he or
she is quite unified All three are ike
those Of whom the poet speaks. They spend
Q lifetime In the toll
OF dropping buckets into enplS wells,
And growing Cd "a crawing nsthiug Up