The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1893-03-16

II had both money and friend
Of either, thought store,
lent my money to my friend
And took his word therefore:
sought my money, from my friend
Which had wanted long,
lost my money and my friend
And was not this wrong;
If had money and friend
As once had before,
I'd keep my money and my friend
And play the fool no more
There is much more truth than poetry
about the verse ust quoted, and not
very palatable truth at that. 1t i Il
generous soul indeed that can stand the
test imposed not by comforting faVors
but by receiving them. In ungencrous
hearts nothing breeds distru>t and hatred
81 quickly as the sense of being under
obligations. Friendship Which we pur-
chase by gifts or faN"r> i ii very pre-
earionS possession that. like riches, takes
To itself wings and tlc~ AWAY. at the
slightest hint You give it that Il return
would be acceptable. Friendship has Ia
do with character not benefits If YOU
desire 10 awaken that sentiment in the
breast of any person, may "A kind ProNi-
dence avoid placing between You a debt
of gratitude. unless it be gratitude Tor
help YOU render uncon~ ciou>lN by living
your own life and being Your best self
To those who help rs 10 be good and
true: To those who point II, 10 Il goal he-
You'd Them. toward Which they are
striving and we may strive. We acknoN-
ledge Il debt of gratitude that the heart
i ready to repay in il golden coin OF
affection.
sympathy. too, Is a debt We never are
10th To own and appreciation i the -ure-t
bond of all. Show any human being
that You appreciate h~ rndeaVorS. uu-
dcrstand his motives and sympHlhiIe
with his Joys, SORROWS aud above all his
aspirations, and You gain his interest in
Yourself If that sell j. something he
too can recognize, understand. apprcei-
ate. You have not made friend but You
have been lrade friends hy the natural
force that holds the universe together
and guides the planets round the sun.
"A force behind which sits.=God.
Any other tie i insecure. any other
interest is tranSitory and the friend You
seem To be drawing to Nouself in any
other way, will sooner or LATER serve You
IL the late comet did the earth and fail
ing 10 keep appointment, vanish from
your sky. Sometimes these comets do
belong To our planetary system and are
revolving about the same center. in or
bits that cross our own hut momcntaTilN.
and in that case, even such disappoiut-
ing approach is ii reality. gain, a help
in future calculations. Bnt there are
comets. You know, that have such wild
Irregularities of orbit, that once seen
they vanish to be seen no more and no
one knows whether they 90 a.trav or are
only true to some other center, or if
perchance, the cons may bring them
back. out of the depths OF space. il
proof that although they ionrnryrd too
far Tor human reckoning 10 follow them.
grayitatiou held them true 10 the sun.
t,ravitation of character then is the
force that holds you and your friend
together, as earth and moon are bound
to each other. in their journey round
the sun. In other words While "Blond
is thicker than water, while family tie,
are strong and oue dies for ones own.
nothing SO unites. rs kinshipo of character
recognized and realized.
Character isn't what one person says
of YOU. or the worlds estimate of YOU
though servant girls do sometimes ask
their mistresses 10 give them good char
actcrs at parting. If the mistress could
only give it, rest assured she wouldn't
send the girl away with it, she would
keep her for her own service. Character
isul your own opinion of yourself or
what You report yourselves To be to the
world, but ii j. hat YOU are and is quite
independent of any reputation you may
gain.
l. HItsipII- 1afitn2S "a lbn-
that hidden individuality will reveal il
self without word or deed. Emerson
says. ..What YOU are thunders in my ear
81 loudly that | can not hear what YOU
say Your reason, your SENSES, public
opinion may say ore thing To you of II
person. and your intuition may say quite
another. Your self is conscious OF the
other self before YOU, and you are al
tracted or repealed rs the case may be in
voluntarily. People rarely pay much at
tcntion 10 these feelings unless they are
strong enough to make the person alb
solutely rcpusve, but they are oftcner
than we dream. the correct impressions.
Human nature at its highest, as it
was before that same old serpent of
whom we hear 50 much, tempted Eve to
To listen to reason, rather than the voice
of God in her own heart. WAS meant, |
believe, to Judge instinctively. But the
serpcnt's reasoning was so subtle. and
Eve was so taken with his style, thai
her descendants have been arguing down
their better selves ever since. and eating
many an apple too green to be digcstcd
properly, because il stands to reason that
apples are made To eat. and we to eat
them. and we are all more or less spirit
III Il apfnpIinn1X