The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1892-08-14

When an old Greek Philosopher was asked
by young friend 10 give him advice for
life his reply was in the words Of Electra at
the bed Of Orestes Silence. Silence Gently
Step" And the first book Of the Had tells
US how Minerva seized Archilles by his
back-locks with an emphatic Don't! " No
advice could be more timely just now than
the apostolic injunction. Study to be
quiet" and no words are more generally in
place than the familiar Slowly. The Ten
Commandments are all "Don'ts" The sweet
grace of charity is pretty much made up OF
restraints and negatives, and being patient
1t doth not behave itself unseemly, seek
eth not her own" and then "beareth all
things. believetb all things. hopeth all
things. endureth all things" And it was
made to last through Earth and Heaven.
There is no grace that men admire and
are ready TO call divine that the devil and
the commonplace world does not discredit
and try TO burlesque This one of keeping
quiet is said 10 be without ambition, stupid,
negative character. creep easy. amount
to nothing no account; or identified with
some other annihilsting or extinguishing
idea, the nearest approach to nothing.
very root out Of dry ground. and yet
il is not an easy thing to keep quiet It IS
only perfected good wine that will be quiet.
1t is the new wine that ferments and bursts
the bottles. To be quiet, safely and agree
ably, requires a great deal of sense. obser-
walton and study. along with sublime faith.
The lilies are quiet. The sun and moon are
quiet. And all the regular operations of
nature are quiet but irresistible.
Moreover. to be quiet we must be entitled
10 confidence Our outgivings of words or
actions, sayings or doings must be accepta-
BILE and pleasant; then our quiet will be
allowed We will not be feared. But an
unwise or unhappy word or act makes US
unreliable. What else we may say or do is
feared. 1t is an accomplishment TO be able
to keep quiet and yet be good company for
others as well as for ourselves.
The unquiet character pushing and sg-
gressive. the man abreast Of the age. rest
less wide awake, and always stirring around
is the very opposite of the quiet man. He
makes big hits, but big smashes. Yet he
makes the common man feel as if it we're q
sin and shame TO be merely attending to
his business, and think it an honor to be a
cyclone. We have seen a good many of
these rushers and live men. In the last few
years they have whirled around hereabout
in high style. catching up men. women and
children. as the little whirlwinds catch up
the dry leaves and make them dance
around. Grazing all professions and pursuits
with the force of their advance ideas, smoke
stacks and new towns; very fnan-
cial witches dance. Old Nick making the
music. But these men of action, cyclones
and boomers. are in little favor Just now.
And the victims wish very much that they
had been fast asleep, frozen, quiet doaf and
dumb and blind. hid IN cellar when they
came along with their progressive euchre
and brilliant eloquence, and put them into
their good things, that seem to have no end
10 them.
IL Is Iact that our age is III high fever
and men are dying of oyer-acton and OK.
hsustion of every organ and faculty. If we
did but know it, the one thing that most
powerfully keeps US all from going stark,
starving mad is the Christian sabbath-that
compels many to most wholesome rest
and renovation and imposes moro OF less of
quiet on all The world; and the precept that
1t is most important for us to obey is to keep
quiet.
A thousand bothers and difficulties will
entangle and cure themselves if We only
keep quiet Words and good Offices half
the time add fuel to fame and require new
explanations. Ia most of the accidents OF
life the tendency is to heal ''by the first in
tention," and natures movements are all
towards curing and getting we'll and the
best wisdom for the most part islands off
keep quiet. And ths wisdom is con-
stantly sppreciable in all our Affections of
mind. body or estate. All that is required
at IA u Ia kssn still and behave ourselves,