Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1892-06-02
Rut don't im,tat. John Smith, who

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choice of wife, and prayed
devoutly to be divinely directed
in the matter, but always wound
up with the fervent petition to be
able to gain the affections and
the hand of Miss Lucy Jones.
Proceed on the hypothesis that
you and your party are liable to
err, and that there may be some
wisdom and honesty in the other
parties, Notwithstanding they
commit the grievous blunder of
refusing to see everything through
your specifies, Pray for the moral
courage to achange your; opinion
and and turn out of the old groove,
when you find you are going
wrong. 1t takes an immense
amount of grace to. enable man to
do that. You might pray oc-
casionally for similar blessings
on those Of opposing parties, but
you had better do most of your
praying for yourself And be
sure in your watching not to spend
all your time with a telescope
scanning. the political field, brt
keep an eve at home. 1t will pay.
Be self-possessed. 1t is no use
IN exhort you not to get excited;
for if you are worth anything at
all you cannot go though q
heated political campaign without
becoming excited. But you need
not lose your selfcontrol. 1t is the
engine with the biggest head of
steam, but under complete control,
that pulls the heaviest loads
rapidly and safely across the con-
tinent, Don't get angry, if you
can help it. And if you do, obey
the Scripture injunction and sin
not, neither let the sun go down on
your wrath. There will be plenty
of temptations to anger. Some
shallow-pated gentleman, with
perfect nonchalance, and III the
most approved form of the most
exquisite etiquette, will tell you
that you are both a knave and
fool because you differ from him.
But don't get angry. 1t will spoil
the fun. It has not been long
since we had the most perfect
specimen of q little singls-ideaed
fenatic we ever met tell us he was.
praying regularity for the opening
of our eyes. That was temptat-
tion indeed. Why we thought
we were wide awake and looking
though the clearest medium
straight at the truth. And the
idea Of. Never mind. We
didn't get mad We laughed it
off, and came to the conclusion
that his prayers would do US no
tharm, and-and-it was hard to
confess-that there might b. just
a little film over one eye. At any
rate, we would let the praying go
on and keep in good humor.
You will find some of the funny
phases of our imperfect humanity
drawn with grotesque distinctness
on the political canvass. The
man who has the fewest ideas and
the least ones will nurse them
with more than motherly devotion
and fight for them with the
lfereeness of q tiger. The man
whose osiittiiyeness ii amounts t.,
ibrusque domino eering will undertak
to cure your dogmatism by a dog
matte arrogance that is perfectly
refreshing in its .unsophisticated
simplicity. The man whose
opinions are inherited and deeply
imbeded in the mind by trans
mitted prejudice, the growth Of
generations, will condemn you for
your want of Independent thought,
and chide you for yourtr turbulence.
Poor human nature frequently
uncovers its worst deformitles iu
politicas, and then blows a trumpet
with a loud blast to call the eye of
the world uponit.
But 60 in, Your country needs
you. Play the man. Don't be
milksop. Don't fall into the
noisy parade of cheap pinchbeck
patriotism, and drift along with
the unthinking masses. Read and
think. Criticise men and
measures. You are one of the
sovereigns. Don't surrender your
mace, nor place your sceptre in
the hands of ignorance or corrup-
ton. Be firm and manly, but be
just and generou. Keep passion
in subsection to reason. Hold the
balance Of judgment above the
shifting and confusing currents of
popular prejudice. Only a. lew
men can do that. Seek to be one
of thatroyal number.
Women and preachers will
exercise political influence in the
inverse ratio of the amount of
noise they make.-Exchange.