The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-17
METHODS OF MENTAL RECREATION
stray Thoughts of a Busy Man Weld
ed Together at Odd Moments.


! 1t behooves men in times like these to
pause for a moment and reflect amid the
pressing carking cares of life, and, if pos
sible, refresh and strengthen the intel
| lect by attention to other matters than
/ the mere daily claims of life and routine
/ humdrum Of existence. What more invig-
Grating, and at the same time revivins
! pursuit, could there be suggested than,
| say, the study of literature-the takins
up of some special branch-poe-
| try, metaphysics, history, romance
| pursuing it through all its differ
ent branches and in all its various sue
cesses and progressions, and having the
! mind for at least a little while all en-
! crossed and absorbed in what may be the
| especially selected theme. So we may
| think and so we will all admit, but the re-
| nection, even is, at best but a mental
| nre Hash, dying at once, and apparently
| beng made only to be forgotten. Is il
| not true that such is almost always the
| case! ANA do we not too often think
| thus, without allowing our thoughts IN
| any way to influence our aCtionsy Why
| is II that year by year il seems more and
| still more difficult to withdraw to ones
| self and so much as have time or find
| leisure to admire. much less to pursue
| or lngratt upon our former little stock of
| knowledge, the beauties or teachings of
| literary and scientific works? The World
| goes bunglingly, tumbling on, and he who
| would keep pace and learn all and have
| comprehensive, satisfactory view of
| where 1t is gaining or where it is losing,
| and when 1t improves or degrades and
how and in what respects, must have
! surely much more time than the indi-
| Vldual IS commonly possessed of, and we
! may add, too, be blessed with considerably
! more brains than the ordinary mortal Is
! ever gifted with
our century is a fast one. and that not
! in the low vulgar meaning of that word
| alone, but in broader, higher, much
| more intensely significant and important
! sense. Everything goes on with d rush,
] no time for dlllV-0allVin time for
| play, scarce time for criticism as though
| The controlling spirit of the age and the
| thought uppermost in all mems minds
/ was: have you word TO say, plan
! TO make or scheme to suggest a work
| quickly Not only is it a progressive, but
/ il is Enthusiastically also a sternly practi-
! cal age. Men will not listen to spun out
| theories or passively endure the recital
! tudcs. The time Tor all these is gone by;
! and perhaps too much stress is laid upon
| the unitarian demand, the never ccasing
question, the now, unerring, unfailing cry
! whenever a thing that is new is propos-
/ ed: What is the use of it, However
/ that may be, though, the fact is an unde-
! niable one that it is a practical age, and
| now the question comes up, what is it
/ in view of this? Shall we relinquish
! anything that has not connected with il
! the seeming cardinal virtue of being imme
| diateiy of practical good or benefit? Shall
! we forego the study of any old litera-
| ture dead languages, or ancient classics
/ AOI INSTANCE, SIMPLY because II mas no
! bearing at once on our present plans, or
/ direct influence on our temporary af-
! fairs and hopes of betterment? What
1 tollyi what egreg1ous stupidity and saw
age, barbarian prejudice does that one
/ cvince for example who says: Greek and
| Latin are no help to me, do not assist me
in any way to make my bread, therefore
away with them, my children shall not
| study them; Danish, Danish all these rel
les of dark mediaevalism and monkish
| tyranny That is his way of viewing it,
and that is doubtless the most common,
the popular way. The truth is, let us re-
mark right here, brushing aside all cob
! webs of ignorance and darkened preju-
| dice, the great need of our day is men who
untlinchingly, bravely looking beyond
mere present effect, have yielded them
selves to long, close, at first tedious, but
in the end delightful, persistent study of
erful mentally powerful strong
beauties and clearing up the meanings of
old authors are but as stimulants which
inure them to profounder studies and
make more easy, and in time almost as
childs play the prosecution, and ulti-
mately the complete grasp and compre-
hension of the deepest mental labors in
their own native tongues.
But whether this is admitted or not it
still remains true that men of our day
need recreation, mental repose and re
freshment. We would not insist that this
should always take the particular form
of the study of ancient literature, for
what is one mans delight and pleasure
/ may be another mans adherence. But
this we will affirm that the quickest sur
| est, pleasantest, and at the same time,
most instructive means to the end here
| proposed, the attaining needed. Relaxa-
| ton from almost overwhelming tolls can
| be best effected by the enthusiastic, yet
| patient study of some selected special
| literary theme. Take, for instance, this:
philosophers past and present-their in
| duence upon the race" Who will
need here to be reminded of the richness,
| scope and attractiVeness of the subject,
! from Hesiod down to Bolingbroke from
| Cousin and Carlyle away back to Zeno,
! Aristotle and Socrates? We can revel in
| imagining dialogues more enhancing to
us, probably than even those of magma
| tive Lander, and in degree enjoy, as we
/ Undue their spirit, the speculative themes
and grand schemes and philanthropies of
! all these great and learned men; How
! delightful the company, dOubly pleasing,
| always, because so exclusive and private,
| of such towering ana great worthless IS
! these. How profitable their lessons and
| the study of their thought-out ways and
| methods, by which they evolved their diff
ferent systems What pleasure, nay what
a privilege, to sit beneath, say, quaint
brusque Carlyle, snatch wisdom and, too,
trations, and feel that the hour has not
yet come when the world shall be wholly
barren of wise men, nor powerless to pro-
duce spirits able fully to keep abreast
of the age. The PHILOSOPHERS of the an
cient have long since, in a measure, been
superseded and there are those doubtless
who think it more important to heed only
| the modern teachers, and we would not
grumble at all at these but are there no
of close rigid adherence and unyielding
fealty to the PHILOSOPHERS only of these lat
ter days? Can we find no pure mental
pleasure beyond selfish cinging to, and
blind. senseless worship, because it is so
cramped and narrow-souled of only mod
ern wise men. Happy he who can break
away from prejudice and eXult in divine
power to freely think! Thrice happy he
who in youth has been so instructed that
it is no rueful task to him to contemplate
the glory and the powers of old classic
writer's. nor a labor to delve into their
mines of wealth, eXhuming rich metaphy-
steal gold of the purest. In spirit ne can
transfer himself beyond vastly seas, more
still back far-away back even of the COM
pact, piled up centuries, visit the shores
of Greece and
See there the olive grove of Academe
Plato's retirement where the Attic bird
Trills her think notes the summer long;
There flowery hill Hymettus, with the
sound
of bees Industrious murmurs oft invites
To studious musing; there Ilissis rolls
His whispering stream; within the walls
then view
The schools of ancient sages; his who bred
Great Alexander to subdue the world,
Lyceum there, and painted Stoa next"
And if the student be at all inquisitive,