Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-08-26
HOW TO GET TEE BEST OF Lrrr.


From the Christian Union.
l. For the body, first-sleep, and enough Of
it. is the prime necessity. Enough exercise,
and good food and enough, are other necessi-
ties But sleep-good sleep, and enough OF IT.
that is q necessity-without which you cannot
have the exercise Of use. nor the food The
old proverbs about sleep are all misleading, e.
cept. indeed, that which says that "a woman
who has young child should get all the sleep
that she can" am told that different people
need different amounts Of sleep. Perhaps they
do. On the other hand, 1 know that the aver
age night of the world Is about eleven twenty
fourths of the average day. For myself, long
since settled down on ten hours sleep in the
twenty -four as good for me; and in this, As in
all things, 1 get the best. An hour after lunch
or dinner and nine hours between $50 in the
evening and $50 in the morning make good
division.
am told that Napoleon I "got along" with
four hours sleep out of twenty-four. Perhaps
he did; what is certain is that he died at the age
of ffty-two. and that his constitution was
broken at least five years before that time.
II You lose sleep in any twenty-four hours,
make 1t up as soon as you can.
II. About food, you will find out soon what
you digest and what you do not. The less you
think of 1t the better. Take time enough for
your meals and eat them in company whenever
least Of all when are eating
think the modern fad OF doctors. of meals
often and light, is a good one. L like a cup of
coffee (mostly milk an hour before breakfast
like to breakfast about 730. like a cup of
coffee (mostly milk at IL; lunch or dinner at 1
consequence, say, at Z. If the supper has been
light or what people call tea. a bowl of soup
before going to bed is n good thing.
If you mean to sleep you should not drink
tea Or coffee after in the afternoon nor go into
any hard brainwork after 3 or 4. Most people
say they want to sleep. but also want to do
everything else conceivable up to the moment
Of taking off their clothes. But this is absurd
III. The open air and enough of it every
day, rain or shine. This is another necessity
Tor sleep and for digestion, and for any brain
work which shall be good for anything. have
never made any rules for exercise, however,
excepting this general demand for the open air
man in health ought to be able to walk six
miles day without feeling tired. But fancy
that 1t is rather a matter of time In the air
than of physical exercise. Thus ten miles in
an open horse car or a wagon seems to answer
as well as six miles on foot.
For body or mind do not believe in getting
tired for the sake Of resting. the negro boy
stubbed his toe because it felt 80 good when
the pain ceased. OF course a man had to get
tired sometimes in the line of his duty. But
work of tired brain is useless, and Il is a pity
to Oyerstrain a tired body il you can help it,
You should never sit down to the table to eat
when you come in from work dead tired. Lie
down for ten minutes first or take cup of tea,
or even Of wine. That is what wine Is for and
the only thing it is for. But before you eat
wait till the machine is a little rested or re-
freshed
". So much for the physical machine. Of
mental operations We know less of the methods.
But we do know some results.
For literary men the same rule is laid down
nv Wal.ar Scott md W Rulxrar vi hot
to daily maximum of real work. They were
very different men, yet each of them say, that
three hours work is all that is good for any
thing. An English commission of high author
ity says that chid's capacity for learning is at
an end after three hours. Ibelieve this is quite
true. That is one reason for saying that you
need not hurry about anything.
While you work stick steadily to what you
have in hand, if you can. Nothing is more
fatiguing than change of subjects. 1t is hor-
subjects at one sitting. Yet this is what modern
barbarism, with its invention Of the post,
demands of us.
As above, never work the brain when it is
tired, if you mean to do good work.
As above again, never work the brain on
intricate work after in the afternoon, if you
mean to sleep.
Reduced to practice these rules would come
out, in vigorous life, somewhat thus: You
rise and battle and dress 30 as TO be at your
work, with your cup Of coffee, about $50 or a
little later. When l say coffee l mean milk
warmed with good coffee. The rule is. .'color
OF the cheek of a brunette in Seville" if you
ever happened to see one.
Thus you will have one happy hour, or nearly
that, undisturbed by bores.
For breakfast take full hour. 1t is no great
matter what that breakfast is. so it is only diff
ferent from what il generally is.
After breakfast an hours loafing. You must
not work the brain till the digestion has well
begun. Read the newspaper. or go out in the
garden, or hang the picture which Mark gave
you yesterday. Most men have to go to their
business at this time, so they get an hour of air
and exercise without much brainwork
Thus you come to $50 thereabou.. Now
you may go to work with will. IT, as say,
you are man of literary occupation, shut your
self in with your emanuensis and begin to die
tate. The best work of the day is done before
breakfast, or now. Fortunate for you if you
have a sympathetic amanuensls, who knows
more than you do, and can follow your dicta-
ton without asking how to spell ''Seringapatam."
At the end of three hours you have done all YOU
can do to any purpose in that day. Now you
may unlock the door and let the wild cats or
the tame, rush in. Now you NAV see the Par
| see gentleman with the note of introduction
from the English consul; You may see the Ar
menian professor; you may see the Koorish
pilgrim, the queens inspector of education, the
returned missionary from Micronesia, your
rest of them. You may do anything which is
entertaining. But you will not work that brave
old brain of yours any more today.
Lunch at l, or, If you prefer. dinner at 2. If
you wait till some warm drink between break
fast and 2. Then, as above a nap for an hour.
You must be refused TO all these people named
above, or their cousins. You will train your
self in a little while to kick eff the rug and
jump up just when the hour has ended.
So We are at or O'Clock Now you may
walk, or ride. or drive, or row. or stay at home,
so you only contrive in some way for the hour
or two in the open air. And you may read
read if You choose for next weeks work. But
no figures, no accounts with your tenants
nothing to be called work. Go and see people
If you like. 1t is good time 20 meet for
these terrible bored meetings which nave taken
the name of board. Boards are made Of
wood; they are long and narrow Some peo-
pie go to afternoon concerts. Some to after
noon tease.
And SO we are at superior at dinner, if you
called the prandium lunch" For the even
ing, no work Not too much reading. Lie on
the sofa and let Rob play to you. II you are not
orthodox, play cribbage with your wife, or
whist or euchre with the children. Let some
body read aloud Adams History or Howells'
last. Or the door bell may ring and here are
the Pages. How nice! Or the Vokeses are at
the fremont. Or Tennyson's last play and the
Days. Rest, perturbed spirit, rest! And then
you will be ready for bed and hard work to-
morrow.