The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1894-03-07

So take Lincoln. Suppose, again,
there had been no war, suppose there
had been no slavery agitation, it is
probably true that Lincoln would never
have been president. He might have
distinguished himself locally as law
yer, but the chances are that in popular
estimation all over the escountry Doug
las, who was the incarnation Of smart
ness, would have been regarded as the
greater man of the two. And yet, with
no opportunity to manifest what was
in him, he still would have had the pcs
sibility in brain and heart and soul OF
reaching that towering position OF the
highest and grandest American who has
ever lived.
DIFFICULTIES IN THE WAY.
Let as note few Of the difficulties
that stand IN the way Of people finding
their places. I was asked only this
last week to give my opinion concern
ing the question Of human freedom and
CT responsibility in the kind of lives we
lead. If you look over the matter care
fully and candldly, I think you will
agree with me that we must limit this
responsibility in the most serious way.
Apply it this morning to this matter ct
finding ones place IN. the world. We
are born without any consultation as
to where we shall be horn, whether in
Africa or Boston, whether white OF
black, whether our parents shall be
ignorant or educated, vicious or vir-
tuous. We are born, and that, in the
main, determines all that follows.
Then during our youth the question as
to whether we shall be properly edu-'
Gated CT not, whether we shall be
trained into fitness for this thing or
thatsor have q bias implanted in some
direction-al these things are deter
mined before the question Of thessfree
dom of our own wills has any chance
to assert itself Here, then, is one OF
the great difficulties that stand in the
way OF finding cne's place.
There is one other thing that wish
to speak of in this particular, and that
is one which the most of You will be
surprised to have me class under this
head. I think c1e Of the most serious
things in our modern world that stands
in the way of any mans finding his
place is being born of parents who hap
pen to possess too much money. l be-
lieve that this is as serious, and some
times more serious, than any OF the
causes that have had occasion to refer
to. know young men by the score
in the great cities of this country-in
New York, in Boston, in Washington,
in Baltimore, in New Orleans, III Chi
cage, in st. Louis, in San Francisco
Young men who will never find any
place that is worthy Of a manly mans
ambition, who have not walked up to
the idea that it is important that they
should find any place, simply because
they can say as they are growing up,
Father has money enough, and it does
not make any difference whether 1 be-
come anything or not think that is
very serious danger that men with
money specially need to guard. For
the young man who thinks that there
is nothing more for him to do in this
world except to get rid of the money
that his father has earned is one OF
those that we can spare with the least
conceivable amount Of loss. He is
worth nothing to the world.
WHAT MEN MOSTLY CARE FOR.
What is it today that most men care
for? In this country, at any rate-and
it is coming to be more and more true
in Europe one great thing that
people long for and seem to cale for,
and which seems to promise the most,
is of course money. said this is COM
ing in Europe. 1t has not come yet,
because there is still a remnant, in Eng
land and in France and other parts Of
Europe, of the old days of chivalry,
when nobility meant something, and
when to belong to an old and honorable
family was the one greatest thing that
man could boast. In these conditions
to belong to the nobility or to come un-
der the shadow of the nobility, to be-
come associated or allied with it in
some way, means more than money,
and money by comparison is regarded
as vulgar and poor. But in this coun-
try, where we have no nobility, where
we say that one man is just as good as
another-though We do not believe it
in this country the one great thing that
seems to promise most, to give a man
position and power and all the things
that he desires, is money. So, when a
young man is looking round for place
in the world, the one thing which is up
permost in his mind is the opportu-
nifty, the promise, in that place for get
ting rich: how much money is there in
it: The position may be a poor one,
may have some se1vile aspects about 1T
at first, but is there an opportunity to
rise, to get near the firm, to perhaps get
into the firm: Is tia business that will
reward one who faithfully devotes him
self to it with large amount OF mon
(; ey? This is the great motive.
DESIRE FOR POWER AND PLACE.
There is another thing that men de-
sire. They desire power. From the