Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1890-09-10
VIA is 50 coEss Z
~ Ever lntereStine Question Answered
81 40 Ind Sensible 6Nnner.s I.

I ~ Ever 1ntoreating Question Answered
in5a sensibls M.nnsr.s -
Success Is word frequently upon the.
lips, but not always used with discrim..
tnation. It IL often confused with tho
mere qualification Of wishes, or the pos
session Of some thing IN itself desira Bile;
whereas It should be confined TO the
prosperous results Of our own efforts. q
youth at school Of college gains prize
for the best essay IN his class. But Il
some ono else has written It for him.
can we consider him . successful COM
petitorP A young man Graves wealth,
and suddenly, by the death Of rola-
tive, he finds himself rich; but is this
the success that he would have earned
had he, by his own industry and energy,
gained the much-coveted possession?
Another through the interest Of his
friends, or through bribery, gains q
place and position of honor for which
he has never fitted himself; he has OBJ
tanned q seeming success, but is
It the true one which talent
and power and patient endeav0r
would have earned? This differ
epce is not one OF mere words. Sue
cess is something which every one wants
and hopes for, naturally and rightly,
for 1t is to q great degree the measure
Of his life-happiness, and his value to
the whole world. For this reason, 1t is
of great Importance that it be distinct
~ understood In what It consists, and
how 1t must be secured. II there is
vague notion that 1t means any and
every pleasant thing that we may de.
sire, procured by whatever means are
at hand, and with as little personal ef-
tort as may be, energy and endeavor
will be at discount They will only
come In as q last resort, when all easier
methods have failed; and thus the no.
blest elements Of manhood and woman
hood will remain comparatively undo.
veloped. But If, ON the other hand,
success is understood TO mean achieve
ment through personal exertion Of mind
or body, then all the valuable attributes
Of activity. vigilance. skill, persever-
ance and power will expand and
strengthen by continual practice.
There are many fortunate men
who are not successful-men on
whom the world has smiled from
their birth up, who have enjoyed the
benefits Of q good home. of a good edu-
cation, Of loving friends, of much assist
ance and encouragement and ample op-
FORTUNES, who yet do not succeed be-
cause they depend on these things, and
fail to put forth their powers, and to
exercise their own talents and abilities.
And there are others who are successful
in spite of many privations and misfort-
unes. With few early advantages of
training or education, with little help
and many disbursements, they yet
work hard and struggle manfully, and
through the struggle gain power and
stamina which command success in
whatever they undertake.. 1t is indeed
always problem for wisdom and INTEL
ligence to solve. how far external ad-
vantages continue to be advantageous,
and where kindness ceases to be kind.
A recent writer says, with truth:
"There is kind of aid which it is i'm
moral for friend to give, and equally
immoral for another toreceive. 1t is the
aid which takes the place Of some work
we ought to have done, some energy we
ought to have put forth, some strength
and power Of character we ought to
have attained" What is thus true of
success Is in the main also true Of de-
feat; it comes from within rather than
from without Many persons are in the
habit of referring all their disappoint.
ments to some untoward circumstances.
There was a lack Of opportunity or ad-
vantage; some one else failed to do his
part; some unforeseen difficulty arose
beyond their power to overcome, or
some opposing force came in which no
one could counterfeit; the very ',stars
in their courses fought against Sisera."
But keener insight into their own
nature would usually show them that q
deeper cause was at work in their fail
ure than any OF these things; that had
they put forth more energy, or exercised
more patience, or been more brave and
resolute, or had taken more precau-
tons, these disadvantages might have
been overcome and these obstacles might
have been conquered. Or, perchance,
their defeat arose from an ambition too
great to correspond with their capaci-
ties, and humber ventures might have
proved successful. Whatever it may
have been it was probably the result Of
an internal defect, or error OF judg-
ment or lack Of energetic action. and
when that is discovered the first step
has been taken toward turning past
failures into future success. 1t is not
opportunity or friends or fortuitous cir
cumstances that chiefly determine our
success; it is the spirit within us, of
which Goethe speaks when he says:
''Life lies before us as . huge quarry
lies before the architect; he deserves
not the name of an architect except
when out of this fortuitous mass he
can combine with the greatest economy
and fitness and durability some form,
the pattern of which originated in his
spirit" -Philadelphia Ledger.
WHAT A MAN COSTS.
Diary OF Householder Who Spent eAO,-
900 In Twenty-Six Years.
What does it cost to bring I'M q fam.